Developed across 13 years on the fringes of noise, post-punk, and My Bloody Valentine-style rock, Belong’s new album Realistic IX finds the duo as essential as ever. It’s the New Orleans duo at their most indefatigable: on songs like “Souvenir” and “Difficult Boy,” early MBV is channeled in the singed guitar riffs while motorik drum patterns — the most intense on any Belong project — pump the blood in ways previous albums did not. But it’s the nods to Belong’s foundation, noisy instrumentals such as “AM PM” and “Crucial Years,” that help put Realistic IX in Belong’s firm tradition of excellence. “It isn’t important to sound different, and changing album to album isn’t a conscious decision,” Michael Jones says. Turk Dietrich agrees: “We do have an inclination to not repeat ourselves but I think it happens naturally over time as our interests evolve and grow. Read our latest The Opener profile at the link in bio, or head to TheFADER.com. #Belong krankyltd