This Friday, November 6th, Killphonic Records drops Heart Of Gold: The Songs of Neil Young, Vol. 3 – Into The Black, pheaturing PHILTHY phavorites King Princess and Modest Mouse, in addition to our brand-new phriends New Constellations, whose take on Harvest Moon opening track “Unknown Legend” closes the 12-song tribute album. And this Sunday, November 8th, the Portland-based indie-pop duo will be headlining our very own Brooklyn Bowl… a venue which more than septuples the size of that which hosted their previous show in the City of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection. Harlee Case and Josh Smith have been collaborating together since they were 14, a decade and a half ago, and New Constellations officially dropped their first single (“Hot Blooded”) in 2021, but just this May they released their debut full-length, It Comes in Waves, via Nettwerk. Since the LP hit shelves, New Constellations have played an abundance of shows, including their first-ever headlining tour of the UK and Europe and a number of major festivals, such as BottleRock, Lollapalooza, and Austin City Limits. New Constellations’ stop this Sunday at Brooklyn Bowl Philadelphia comes a little more than halfway through their biggest North American headlining tour yet, from which Harlee and Josh recently took some time to tell me about all of this and more…
Izzy Cihak: Earlier this year you dropped your debut LP, It Comes In Waves, and you’ve already played some major shows behind it, including a few massive festivals. What have been some of the highlights of this album cycle so far?
Harlee Case: There have been so many amazing moments so far, but I loved getting to make so many music videos with our best friends in Portland. We got to tap into so many of our talented friends’ gifts on these videos. Playing the main stage at Lolla and ACL wasn’t half bad either 😉
Izzy: How do you like playing festivals like that compared to nightclubs?
Harlee: The view from the stage at these festivals is wild, seeing a massive crowd with the city line in the background is really something special that only a few people get to experience. So, we are so grateful to be trusted with playing for so many people… buuuuuuttttttt I think our favorite shows might always be small bars and venues. There’s something really electric about being so close to the fans, and I personally feel more comfy when it feels like we’re all in the space together, compared to us on a massive stage way above people.
Izzy: Have you had any favorite reactions to the new music so far?
Harlee: It made me really happy hearing one of my besties, Alisha, tell me that she was listening to “Believe Again” over and over again to amp herself up for something big in her life. You never really know if your friends are just coming to your shows for support or you, or because they actually like the music. My friends quote my lyrics back to me in common conversation, which I just adore. To be known is really so special. On this tour in Chicago one of our fans planned a fan participation project where they all held up signs that said, “It’s time to believe again.” I nearly lost it on stage.
Izzy: Do you have a favorite album track at the moment?
Harlee: I’m really loving “Edge of the World” right now. This is the first tour we’ve played it live and I just love the lyrics so much. I have really worked on my mental, physical, spiritual health over the last few years, and I feel like that song is just an ode to that work and stepping into this next chapter of our lives because of that work. It’s really special to me.
Izzy: Earlier you mentioned the music videos that you make with your friends, which are totally rad, especially “Waterslides.” What kinds of things inspire the visual elements of New Constellations?
Harlee: We are so lucky because some of our closest friends — Keke Brown, Chase McDaniels, and Cameron Browne — are the masterminds behind all the videos on this album. They know us so well and come up with ideas that are so perfect every time. I contribute in ways, but I usually just let them take the lead because they always have me and personal style in mind when creating that I always feel like I can just trust them to do whatever they want.
Izzy: Your cover of “Unknown Legend” is going to be appearing on a Neil Young tribute album alongside a lot of other really amazing artists. How did it feel getting asked to participate in that and do you have any especially meaningful Neil Young memories?
Josh Smith: This was such an incredible thing to get to be a part of, we feel so honored to get to be among such amazing artists covering the songs of one of the all-time greats. My Dad passed away when I was 12, and one of my core memories with him is driving around in his truck listening to his Neil Young tape. The song “Unknown Legend” was my favorite, I would always ask him to play it for me. So, when we got this opportunity, that song was my #1 choice and it was available! It felt like a sort of cosmic coincidence. It feels really special to get to play a song that I have such strong memories of.
Izzy: You still have a bunch of headlining dates coming up, including a stop at Brooklyn Bowl Philadelphia, which is more than seven times the size of Kung Fu Necktie, which you played last year (and is sort of just down the street). What can be expected of the show this time around?
Josh: This tour is a big step of for us in a lot of ways. Our album came out this year, so this is the official album tour, so we are playing a lot of songs off the record, some of which we have never toured before. On top of that we have a lighting director and a lighting package for the first time, so the whole show is a big step up production wise as well as set wise.
Izzy: You’re going to be on the road with Vox Rea, who seem absurdly cool, but who I haven’t actually seen before. What are your thoughts on the sisters and their music?
Josh: We love Vox Rea, we met them in Vancouver last year and absolutely fell in love with their music and with them as people. Their harmonies are so beautiful in a way that only sisters can lock into.
Izzy: I don’t have much of a transition here… but I know you’re based in Portland, Oregon. I actually spent kind of a lot of time there back in the early-aughts, but that was like forever ago. What’s the music and art scene in the city like at the moment? Any peers you wanna shout out?
Josh: We love Portland and we are so proud to be from there. There have been some really great scenes there over the years. I think we are in the midst of a new one emerging right now that we feel very lucky to be a part of. We’d love to shout out Night Heron (late night smooth jazzy funk), Reign Cycle (Cinematic, synthy progressive art rock), Tenants (Super catchy, shimmery synth pop), and Seance Crasher (really cool goth dance that is both retro and futuristic).
Izzy: Finally, what’s next for you, after these dates wrap in early December? How are you hoping and planning to close out 2026 and kick off 2027? Anything you’re especially excited about?
New Constellations: We’ve had such a crazy year that it is sometimes hard to wrap your brain around the difference between “next” and “now” and “after” but we are very excited to take some time to write new music and just get back into our studio and just do what we do best: Make music!
*Get your tickets here.
