Last month, Sleater-Kinney fans were given the news that the band have begun working on a new record. Of course, the eventual questions of “when is it coming out?” begun to fly, but now, frontwoman Carrie Brownstein has announced that fans can expect the new album “early next year”.

In a recent interview with Stereogum, Carrie Brownstein opened up about the ending of her beloved television show Portlandia, her future projects, and the recording of a new Sleater-Kinney record.

“We went back in the studio at the end of 2017 up in Portland and we recorded five songs and we are going to continue in that way for a while,” Carrie Brownstein said in the new interview. “For many years, the methodology with which we worked was very like, classic band dynamics of getting together in a basement and writing. Or Corin and I getting together in one of our living rooms and writing songs and — because we’re each busy and sometimes we’re not in the same cities — we’ll write separately and then send each other ideas over email, and then we work on the songs kind of remotely and then we come together in the studio.”

“We always feel that sense of urgency around Sleater-Kinney and it was I think a pleasant surprise that we didn’t feel pinned against the wall by the band itself,” said Brownstein in reference to the eagerness of fans to hear new music.

“With the intensity with which we play and the intensity of the songs we write and the subject matter that we try to deal with, you know, there’s a heaviness to it … but at least there was such a levity and buoyancy to that round of touring that we knew we wanted to continue with the story of the band. I think the cycles are just longer now. There’s a longer cycle in between albums — so it might be every three or four years but we do wanna continue making music and putting it out and touring.”

“I talked to [Corin Tucker, guitarist] yesterday because I was trying to lock down some studio time [right away]. Because I’m someone that really thrives on busyness and I like being active, and I thought ‘now that Portlandia’s locked and loaded, let’s get right back in the studio!’ Corin was sorta like, let’s slow down, let’s carve out some time in February/March.”

“So that’s the plan. And I would hope that if we continue going as is that an album should be around early next year.”

So while fans might have to wait another year for a new record from the beloved punk rockers, you can rest assured that we won’t have to endure another ten year wait between albums like we did last time.

Check out Sleater-Kinney’s ‘Entertain’:

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