Dan Boeckner (Wolf Parade, Handsome Furs, Divine Fits) has announced the debut album for his band Operators, titled Blue Wave, out worldwide April 1st on Last Gang Records. Formed in 2013, the band features Boeckner on vocals, guitar, and synths and is joined by New Bomb Turks and Divine Fits drummer Sam Brown and electro-wiz Devojka. Produced by Graham Walsh (METZ, Alvvays, Viet Cong), much of Blue Wave was recorded in a middle of nowhere 1850s-vintage barn in southern Ontario.

Blue Wave follows the release of EP1, an upbeat, aggressively melodic collection of synth driven pop songs featuring the single “True” and gave us a taste of what was to come with the band. After a length of time on the road with the likes of Future Islands, New Pornographers and more, the band’s sound evolved from an analog post-punk project to a more live, punked out sound, with Boeckner finding himself often strapped back into his guitar. The first single “Cold Light” demonstrates the beautiful melding of both worlds. The single wil be out January 29th via all digital platforms. Listen to via Pitchfork.

Dan Boeckner has shown his diverse musical taste over the years; consequently, his decision to focus his attention on a new, electronic dance project shouldn’t be surprising as it feels like nothing more than a natural progression from the first synth he bought for the debut Wolf Parade EP, to the primarily stark, digital sounds of Handsome Furs, and now the organic, melted, deeply dance driven Operators.