Ringdown—the duo of Danni Lee Parpan and Caroline Shaw—has shared the single “Emotional Absentee” from their upcoming debut album, Lady on the Bike, out May 9. The song, about trying to create a deeper connection with someone but realizing they are emotionally unavailable, features indie electro-pop group New Body Electric. You can watch the visualizer for it here. Ringdown says: "The moral of ‘Emotional Absentee’ is that when someone shows you who they are, pay attention, and when they tell you they’ve changed, run."
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Cinematic electro-pop duo Ringdown, featuring Danni Lee Parpan and Pulitzer and Grammy winner Caroline Shaw, has shared the single “Emotional Absentee” from their upcoming debut album, Lady on the Bike, out May 9 on Nonesuch Records. The song, about trying to create a deeper connection with someone but realizing they are emotionally unavailable, features indie electro-pop group New Body Electric. You can watch the visualizer below and hear the single and pre-order the album here.
“The moral of ‘Emotional Absentee’ is that when someone shows you who they are, pay attention, and when they tell you they’ve changed, run,” shares Ringdown. “We decided to collaborate with New Body Electric on this because we love the sound and vibe of their music. We’ve played shows together a few times in Portland, OR, and became friends. The band is fronted by our wonderful sound engineer and co-producer for our album, Aaron K Peterson. His partner in both life and creative projects, Leah Vautar, is the drummer and also helped shape some of the sound of this album. Evan Smoker plays electric guitar and bass.”
Ringdown’s debut album, Lady on the Bike, celebrates the feeling of possibility in myriad forms: the possibility of love; the possibility of creating connection and community in a world trying to pull those things apart; the possibility of making music in new ways. The duo was drawn to each other through mutual admiration of each other's work: Shaw has won a Pulitzer Prize and five Grammy Awards for her boundary-breaking compositions and collaborated with celebrated artists such as Nas (NASIR) and Rosalía (MOTOMAMI), and Parpan is a dynamic vocalist and folk-pop singer-songwriter who sings emotionally stirring lyrics and relishes in challenging how instruments are “supposed” to be played. Ringdown is a playground they can only access with each other, allowing them to express their pasts and presents through a world of sound that holds feelings and lyrics the way Shaw and Parpan’s hearts and minds want to experience them. The result is a singular style of pop music that feels otherworldly as it explores the spaces between electronic and acoustic sounds and re-imagines traditional song structure.
“I’ve thought for years about making a solo record that is in a more electro-pop vein, but didn’t have the courage,” Shaw explains. “Danni Lee finally brought that out of me, and I wouldn’t have taken this step if it weren’t for her. Ringdown is where I experiment with so many things I’ve wanted to try. I’ve also learned that being in a band and making your own record is much harder than playing a Mozart sonata and I will absolutely die on that hill.”
Last month, the duo released the single “Run,” an anthemic song of empowerment for fighting against personal and systemic injustices that could easily score The Handmaid’s Tale or blast through the stadium speakers at a U.S. women’s national soccer team game. In addition to New Body Electric’s performance on “Emotional Absentee,” the album also features Sō Percussion on a new version of Ringdown’s previously released single “Ghost.” Ringdown performed on Sō and Shaw’s new Grammy-winning album Rectangles and Circumstance, and the groups have been playing together in collaborative concerts since last fall. Ringdown will perform more of those concerts as well as their own headlining shows this spring and summer. See below for details and tickets.
Ringdown—Caroline Shaw and Danni Lee Parpan—Shares "Emotional Absentee" From Upcoming Album, 'Lady on the Bike'
Cinematic electro-pop duo Ringdown, featuring Danni Lee Parpan and Pulitzer and Grammy winner Caroline Shaw, has shared the single “Emotional Absentee” from their upcoming debut album, Lady on the Bike, out May 9 on Nonesuch Records. The song, about trying to create a deeper connection with someone but realizing they are emotionally unavailable, features indie electro-pop group New Body Electric. You can watch the visualizer below and hear the single and pre-order the album here.
“The moral of ‘Emotional Absentee’ is that when someone shows you who they are, pay attention, and when they tell you they’ve changed, run,” shares Ringdown. “We decided to collaborate with New Body Electric on this because we love the sound and vibe of their music. We’ve played shows together a few times in Portland, OR, and became friends. The band is fronted by our wonderful sound engineer and co-producer for our album, Aaron K Peterson. His partner in both life and creative projects, Leah Vautar, is the drummer and also helped shape some of the sound of this album. Evan Smoker plays electric guitar and bass.”
Ringdown’s debut album, Lady on the Bike, celebrates the feeling of possibility in myriad forms: the possibility of love; the possibility of creating connection and community in a world trying to pull those things apart; the possibility of making music in new ways. The duo was drawn to each other through mutual admiration of each other's work: Shaw has won a Pulitzer Prize and five Grammy Awards for her boundary-breaking compositions and collaborated with celebrated artists such as Nas (NASIR) and Rosalía (MOTOMAMI), and Parpan is a dynamic vocalist and folk-pop singer-songwriter who sings emotionally stirring lyrics and relishes in challenging how instruments are “supposed” to be played. Ringdown is a playground they can only access with each other, allowing them to express their pasts and presents through a world of sound that holds feelings and lyrics the way Shaw and Parpan’s hearts and minds want to experience them. The result is a singular style of pop music that feels otherworldly as it explores the spaces between electronic and acoustic sounds and re-imagines traditional song structure.
“I’ve thought for years about making a solo record that is in a more electro-pop vein, but didn’t have the courage,” Shaw explains. “Danni Lee finally brought that out of me, and I wouldn’t have taken this step if it weren’t for her. Ringdown is where I experiment with so many things I’ve wanted to try. I’ve also learned that being in a band and making your own record is much harder than playing a Mozart sonata and I will absolutely die on that hill.”
Last month, the duo released the single “Run,” an anthemic song of empowerment for fighting against personal and systemic injustices that could easily score The Handmaid’s Tale or blast through the stadium speakers at a U.S. women’s national soccer team game. In addition to New Body Electric’s performance on “Emotional Absentee,” the album also features Sō Percussion on a new version of Ringdown’s previously released single “Ghost.” Ringdown performed on Sō and Shaw’s new Grammy-winning album Rectangles and Circumstance, and the groups have been playing together in collaborative concerts since last fall. Ringdown will perform more of those concerts as well as their own headlining shows this spring and summer. See below for details and tickets.
Ringdown—Caroline Shaw and Danni Lee Parpan—Shares "Emotional Absentee" From Upcoming Album, 'Lady on the Bike'
Cinematic electro-pop duo Ringdown, featuring Danni Lee Parpan and Pulitzer and Grammy winner Caroline Shaw, has shared the single “Emotional Absentee” from their upcoming debut album, Lady on the Bike, out May 9 on Nonesuch Records. The song, about trying to create a deeper connection with someone but realizing they are emotionally unavailable, features indie electro-pop group New Body Electric. You can watch the visualizer below and hear the single and pre-order the album here.
“The moral of ‘Emotional Absentee’ is that when someone shows you who they are, pay attention, and when they tell you they’ve changed, run,” shares Ringdown. “We decided to collaborate with New Body Electric on this because we love the sound and vibe of their music. We’ve played shows together a few times in Portland, OR, and became friends. The band is fronted by our wonderful sound engineer and co-producer for our album, Aaron K Peterson. His partner in both life and creative projects, Leah Vautar, is the drummer and also helped shape some of the sound of this album. Evan Smoker plays electric guitar and bass.”
Ringdown’s debut album, Lady on the Bike, celebrates the feeling of possibility in myriad forms: the possibility of love; the possibility of creating connection and community in a world trying to pull those things apart; the possibility of making music in new ways. The duo was drawn to each other through mutual admiration of each other's work: Shaw has won a Pulitzer Prize and five Grammy Awards for her boundary-breaking compositions and collaborated with celebrated artists such as Nas (NASIR) and Rosalía (MOTOMAMI), and Parpan is a dynamic vocalist and folk-pop singer-songwriter who sings emotionally stirring lyrics and relishes in challenging how instruments are “supposed” to be played. Ringdown is a playground they can only access with each other, allowing them to express their pasts and presents through a world of sound that holds feelings and lyrics the way Shaw and Parpan’s hearts and minds want to experience them. The result is a singular style of pop music that feels otherworldly as it explores the spaces between electronic and acoustic sounds and re-imagines traditional song structure.
“I’ve thought for years about making a solo record that is in a more electro-pop vein, but didn’t have the courage,” Shaw explains. “Danni Lee finally brought that out of me, and I wouldn’t have taken this step if it weren’t for her. Ringdown is where I experiment with so many things I’ve wanted to try. I’ve also learned that being in a band and making your own record is much harder than playing a Mozart sonata and I will absolutely die on that hill.”
Last month, the duo released the single “Run,” an anthemic song of empowerment for fighting against personal and systemic injustices that could easily score The Handmaid’s Tale or blast through the stadium speakers at a U.S. women’s national soccer team game. In addition to New Body Electric’s performance on “Emotional Absentee,” the album also features Sō Percussion on a new version of Ringdown’s previously released single “Ghost.” Ringdown performed on Sō and Shaw’s new Grammy-winning album Rectangles and Circumstance, and the groups have been playing together in collaborative concerts since last fall. Ringdown will perform more of those concerts as well as their own headlining shows this spring and summer. See below for details and tickets.
Trumpeter/composer Ambrose Akinmusire and guitarist/composer Mary Halvorson's album Slo-Mo Neon Luminate Hoverings is out now. It features four new compositions by each musician plus one collaboration. The duo, long admirers of each other’s musicianship, began playing together periodically back in 2009. They rehearsed the music on Slo-Mo Neon Luminate Hoverings in January 2025, just before performing it at the NYC club The Stone; they recorded the album the next day at Sear Sound. “I think it’s partly a shared aesthetic and an ease of communication. I feel comfortable to try whatever,” Halvorson says. Akinmusire concurs, “I think it’s rare to find an improviser that all goes and nothing has to go at all. It’s rare to feel like you don’t have to do anything and you can do anything. And that’s what I love about playing with Mary.”
Robert Plant with Saving Grace and Suzi Dian announce Up the Sharp End, September 18–October 15, 2026—a US tour in celebration of their critically acclaimed recent album, Saving Grace. The band, which completed two sold-out US legs last fall and this spring, performs in the Midwest and the West, with stops in Saint Louis, Santa Fe, San Francisco, Minneapolis, and Chicago, among others; special guest Rosie Flores joins. Artist presales begin Wednesday, June 10 at 10am local time, with general sales beginning Friday, June 12 at 10am local time.
