Glasgow band San Jose have shared their ode to the manifest beauty of multiculturalism and integration, ‘Dirty Linen’.

The number merges theatrical punk-poetry with moments of gorgeously-rendered, ornate orchestration across its marathon six-minute runtime. Produced by Christopher McCrory, ‘Dirty Linen’ offsets the encroaching threat of bigotry and intolerance, disillusionment and societal decay, with a communal show of togetherness brought to life by a sprightly wall of sound and vocal ululations.

Of the inspiration behind the single, San Jose explain: “The song stems from a conversation with a bigot. We spoke about purity and race. Eventually the bigot returned to the empty glass in front of him, and I went home. But born was the idea that no one is truly “pure”. We are all from somewhere, a rehash of a rehash of a rehash. We have all been through the washing machine and tumble dryer and we all will return there again. That bigot will be reborn, in his mind “stained” by the marvels of multiculturalism and immigration, but in my mind he has been fulfilled, like a colouring-in page receiving its last crayon mark. We are what surrounds us, and if anyone considers it ‘dirty’ then let it be so. We’d all rather play in the “mud”, than let our clothes keep us captive.“

Of the sonic world-building of ‘Dirty Linen’, they continue: “We styled the song to that of a musical, adding different elements and sounds to create a crazy circus-like sound that can also make you feel slightly uneasy. We aimed to fully embrace this balance of joviality and wrongness to try and create something new and unique. Which can be hard when the easiest route is to redo the same tired formula. Recording ‘Dirty Linen’ was a euphoric experience. Chris McCrory is a joy to work with and he understands us completely, he helped us shape or mental ideas to create a sonic piece we are all proud of.  We hope people enjoy the song as much as we enjoyed recording it.”

San Jose’s universal anthems on the human condition and social mores are meant to be experienced live, the band are renowned for their uproarious and unpredictable stage shows. They’ve opened for the likes of Gallus, Courting, Hotel Lux, headlined Tenement Trail, whilst selling out a marquee show at the iconic King Tuts.

Tomorrow they hit up Queen Margaret Union at Glasgow, followed by a show at the Post Bar in Tottenham, London on November 30th.

Listen to ‘Dirty Linen’ below.

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