Today Rusty Santos, musician and experimental pop producer (Animal Collective / Panda Bear, Born Ruffians, DJ Rashad, etc.), shares a new single, “Are You A Portal,” from his forthcoming 2026 solo album, Psycho Horses & announces spring 2026 tour dates across the West Coast & SW.
About “Are You A Portal”:
“In the intro, white noise combines with a stretched-out lyric; it’s the title, a question, and then suddenly, my vocals and acoustic guitar are underway, like Buddhist bubblegum, “flipping channels station to station,” is a triple entendre, referring to channels as metaphysical realms, as stations on a radio dial, and ultimately, the channelling of David Bowie. Drums and flute are the only other accompanying instruments. The chorus, “I’ll never gas you up,” echoes the Big Bang; I’m singing about how Eternity is unknowable and worthy of reverence.”
TOUR DATES:
02/05 Seattle, WA – Funhouse
02/07 San Francisco, CA – Question Mark Bar
02/13 Fresno, CA – Sour Milk
02/19 Los Angeles, CA – Non Plus Ultra
02/20 San Diego, CA – Folk Arts Rare Records
02/21 Phoenix, AZ – MySpace
02/22 Flagstaff, AZ – The Hive
02/27 Tucson, AZ – Poe’s Art House
03/04 Denton, TX – Rubber Gloves
03/05 Austin, TX – The Mohawk
More about the new album:
Rusty Santos’ solo music belongs to a different timeline, one where music moved at its own speed, and artists stand out in contrast to their scenes. On his new album, as an artist, he eclipses his role as producer. Metaphysical lyrics and psych folk textures remain, yet the mood is darker. Here, he is no longer a stranger to the city of Los Angeles, and the work is a conversation with his musical heroes. It’s as art-world-saturated as The Velvet Underground. Like Arthur Russell, he’s in revolt, an outsider amongst the indie pop music of his own time; he sounds like the avant-garde Elliot Smith. Yet, he is all of their artistic cousin, with blood of the same lineage, but walking the alternative path, as these references are only signposts, and his music aims to sound like nobody else.
There are layers of acoustic guitar, backed by a minimoog synthesizer, drum kits recorded through effect pedals, fuzzy electric bass, and guitar. Still, his presentation of these elements marks a departure point. He performs in alternate tunings, utilizing frequencies that sound unfamiliar. This is an album that could have been recorded in any era, even with the audible influence of acoustic provocateurs like Nick Drake or Leonard Cohen; yet, the DNA is that of indie rock’s golden age. That it might seem familiar is because Santos has worked on seminal music by fellow trailblazers Animal Collective, Panda Bear, Weyes Blood, Black Dice, Dawn of Midi, Owen Pallett, Beach House, Dirty Projectors, DJ Rashad, Gang Gang Dance, and more.
Psycho Horses reveals poetry in the grotesque. These sad songs about isolation, trauma, and betrayal also explore themes of evolution, self-discovery, and ultimately, how ephemeral our time together in this place we call Earth actually is. This scenery may be macabre, but these words are sung by someone who feels cursed by the beauty of the world and is devastated by how determined we are to deny it. On side A, the music transitions from atmospheric to energetic, following a parabolic curve; on side B, the music becomes more precise, and the parabolic curve now descends. Santos’ existential song lyrics guide the listener on their ascent and descent into epistemological oblivion. It is a deceptively straightforward sound, and although this music may be from a different timeline, it belongs to the here and now.
