Lettuce have announced that they will release their new album, Elevate, on June 14, marking the funk stalwarts’ sixth studio effort and first since 2016’s Mt. Crushmore (the band released a live Miles Davis tribute, Witches Stew, in 2017).

The group also shared the first single from the record, “Krewe,” via Brooklyn Vegan, along with a couple quotes about Elevate, which was produced by the band members and recorded with engineer Russ Elevado.

“We put so much energy into this record,” says saxophonist Ryan Zoidis. “I think I can speak for all of us when I say it’s our favorite sounding record so far. Working with Russ Elevado really highlighted a lot of things. He has a strong relationship in the hip hop, R&B/neo soul and electronic/house genres. We had these super focused mixing sessions where we would go through one song per day in a pecan ranch in the middle of Texas all on analog gear (Sonic Ranch – Adobe Studio). The tracking of the record was special too because Russ pushed us to stretch out and not cut the songs short. For the first time in our recording process, we played and worked through a good handful of the songs for a year before going into the studio. We were more prepared than ever. This record has a 13 and a half minute song in the middle that we’re really proud of called ‘Gang Ten.’ It’s also featuring the current lineup with Nigel on keys, without Kraz or Neal, so it’s a much different sound and a great representation of where we are now. We feel like this is the best place we have ever been as a band and creatively in general.”

Bassist Erick “Jesus” Coomes also notes that the album features two vocal songs, sung by Nigel Hall, along with track that includes guest vocals and guitar from Marcus King. Zoidis tells Brooklyn Vegan that the new single, which can be heard below, was originally “a nod to Khruangbin and a cool mashup of what we do, but with a vibe done in our own way. The way it came together reminds us of breakdancing in the park. It’s got real breakbeat hip hop vibes.”

Below, listen to “Krewe” and watch a trailer for Lettuce’s upcoming documentary on the making of Elevate, and pre-order the album here. The band plays The Capitol Theatre in Port Chester, NY, tomorrow night, April 20, with special guest guitarist John Scofield. See their full schedule here.

Elevate Tracklist:

1. Trapezoid
2. Royal Highness
3. Krewe
4. Shmink Dabby
5. Everybody Wants to Rule The World 
6. Gang Ten7. Ready To Live
8. Larimar
9. Love Is Too Strong
10. Purple Cabbage
11. Trapezoid Dub