Oceanator signs to Polyvinyl and releases rumbling rocker “January 21st”

Hot on the heels of the release of her debut album, , Brooklyn-based indie rocker Oceanator has signed to Polyvinyl Records and put out a new single.

The project of singer-songwriter and guitarist Elise Okusami has had a busy autumn. On August 28th, she released her debut album, Things I Never Said; she’s played livestream sets for Long Neck, Bandcamp, and New Colossus, and contributed to In This Together LA’s excellent Care Not Cops compilation, which benefits the Youth Justice Coalition and Feed Black Futures. And she’ll appear on (at last count) three Halloween livestream shows, including this stacked show to benefit Equal Justice Initiative and Girls Rock Chicago.

Along with the news of signing to Polyvinyl yesterday, Oceanator released her newest single, “January 21st.” Polyvinyl is home to a litany of punk and indie artists like Julia Jacklin, American Football, Jay Som, Jeff Rosenstock, and now, of course, Oceanator. The label will also be re-releasing physical versions of Things I Never Said on January 15th.

“I’m extremely excited to be joining the Polyvinyl family,” says Okusami of her new home in a press statement. “They’ve been one of my favorite labels for a while!”

The song is a midtempo rocker with a roaring refrain, and as the lyrics address feeling torn apart by repressed emotions, the video gives it a quite literal dimension. “We filmed this video in DC. I got to wear a full green suit and everything! Baby Pony Foods filmed and edited it and did all the special effects. The idea was to represent that feeling of being stuck in an anxiety spiral, and the way your body and mind feels when you’re in one.”

Check out Oceanator’s “January 21st” below.