Glass Beach (band)

Glass Beach
OriginLos Angeles, U.S.
Genres
Years active2016–2026
LabelRun for Cover
Past members
  • J McClendon
  • Jonas Newhouse
  • William White
  • Layne Smith
Websiteglassbeach.band/main

Glass Beach (stylized in lowercase) was an American indie rock band from Los Angeles and based in Seattle.[1] Their music has been described as "heavy indie rock", blending influences including punk rock, math rock, and mid-century jazz. They cite some of their musical influences as Jeff Rosenstock, They Might Be Giants, and the Brave Little Abacus.[2][3][4]

The band's formation and music is closely tied to internet communities,[5] and according to The Washington Post has "developed a cultish online following".[6] In early 2020, the Los Angeles Times predicted that the band "likely won't be playing cozy venues like All Star Lanes for much longer."[7]

History

2015–2018: Early years

In 2015, lead singer J McClendon[8] made the move to Los Angeles, California, from her hometown of Burleson, Texas,[9] where she began demoing tracks and worked on her solo project, Casio Dad.[9] During this time she released an EP titled He's Not With Us Anymore.[10] Shortly after, while attending the University of Minnesota Morris, close friends Jonas Newhouse and William White heard a song from J's new EP on their school's radio station, and immediately found interest in the musician.[5] The trio quickly became friends, and soon Newhouse and White joined J in Los Angeles to live together and form Glass Beach.[11] For the next three years, the group worked diligently on their first album, The First Glass Beach Album, which would debut on May 18, 2019, under Run for Cover Records.[4]

2019–2022: The First Glass Beach Album

Before the album's release, musician and artist Layne Smith joined the group as the band's guitarist after bonding over Dungeons & Dragons,[11][3] and immediately got to work developing the band's live sound and became a key member of the group.[12]

The band released several singles and a remix album following The First Glass Beach Album, many of them initially released on Bandcamp. These included "running", originally written for Bill & Ted Face the Music before it was cut from the film, and released in 2020.[13] The band released an alternate version of "classic j dies and goes to hell", a song on their first album, in celebration of the song achieving 1 million streams on Spotify.[14] They covered Car Seat Headrest's "Beach Life-In-Death" in January 2021,[15] as well as "Welcome to the Black Parade" by My Chemical Romance in July of the same year for Pride Month.[16] The remix album, featuring Bartees Strange, Skylar Spence, Ska Tune Network, and Dogleg, was also released in 2021.[17]

Between November and December of 2021, the band would go on their first US tour.[18] During this tour, William White would contract a major case of COVID-19, causing parts of the tour to be cancelled, as well as their eventual departure from playing live with the band.[19]

2023–2026: Plastic Death and later years

In 2023, Glass Beach released an alternate reality game hosted on their website which culminated in the reveal of the name and tracklist of their second album Plastic Death.[20] On October 11, 2023 the band released the album's first single, "the CIA", featuring themes of fear and surveillance by the Central Intelligence Agency, with a music video directed by White.[21] On November 6, the band released the second single, "rare animal", a song about the disappearance of D. B. Cooper.[22] Plastic Death was released on January 19, 2024[22], followed by the band's second US tour.[23]

On February 23, 2026, J released a solo album entitled it's fine to dream under her new project's name, 'you are an angel'.[24]

On April 30, 2026, Glass Beach announced their dissolution, stating "we are no longer capable of making music together that we're proud of nor can we tour in a way that works for all of us."[25][26]

Members

  • J McClendon – vocals/guitar[2] (2016–2026)
  • Jonas Newhouse – bass[2] (2016–2026)
  • William White – drums[2] (2016–2026)
  • Layne Smith – lead guitar[2] (2019–2026)

Discography

Studio albums

Remix albums

  • Alchemist Rats Beg Bashful (Remixes) (2021)[28]

Singles

References

  1. ↑ "glass beach". glassbeach.band. Archived from the original on January 19, 2024. Retrieved January 31, 2024.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Glass Beach: Better Living Through Irony". Track 7. August 3, 2020. Archived from the original on March 7, 2021. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
  3. 1 2 "Interview: Glass Beach Discuss Their Restless Debut". The Alternative. January 28, 2020. Archived from the original on October 25, 2020. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
  4. 1 2 3 "Glass Beach: The First Glass Beach Album". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on February 27, 2021. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
  5. 1 2 "Band To Watch: Glass Beach". Stereogum. November 13, 2019. Archived from the original on November 26, 2020. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
  6. ↑ Chu, Hau (November 22, 2021). "Three emo bands fight the alienation of the online world by rocking out IRL". The Washington Post. Retrieved February 1, 2026.
  7. ↑ "Best concerts in L.A. This week: The Smell's anniversary celebration, Califone, Glass Beach". Los Angeles Times. January 2020. Archived from the original on January 20, 2021. Retrieved March 6, 2021.
  8. ↑ Jones, AJBy Abby (April 30, 2026). "J McClendon Gives First Interview About End Of Glass Beach And Launch Of New Band You Are An Angel". stereogum.com. Retrieved May 1, 2026.
  9. 1 2 Russell, Scott (November 13, 2019). "Glass Beach Sign to Run for Cover Records, Share New Video". Paste. Retrieved February 2, 2026.
  10. ↑ "He's Not With Us Anymore, by Casio Dad". Classic J Bandcamp. Retrieved February 2, 2026.
  11. 1 2 The Making of The First Glass Beach Album. Run For Cover Records. February 17, 2020. Archived from the original on May 27, 2021. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via YouTube.
  12. ↑ "Glass Beach". Terrorbird. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
  13. 1 2 Deville, Chris (July 30, 2020). "Glass Beach's New Song "Running" Was Originally Written For The New 'Bill & Ted' Movie". Stereogum. Archived from the original on October 22, 2022. Retrieved October 22, 2022.
  14. 1 2 Rettig, James (September 16, 2020). "Glass Beach – "classic j dies and gets a million streams on spotify"". Stereogum. Archived from the original on October 22, 2022. Retrieved October 22, 2022.
  15. 1 2 Deville, Chris (January 7, 2021). "Glass Beach – "Beach Life In Death" (Car Seat Headrest Cover)". Stereogum. Archived from the original on October 22, 2022. Retrieved October 22, 2022.
  16. 1 2 Deville, Chris (June 28, 2021). "glass beach – "Welcome To The Black Parade" (My Chemical Romance Cover)". Stereogum. Archived from the original on October 22, 2022. Retrieved October 22, 2022.
  17. ↑ Rettig, James (February 23, 2021). "Glass Beach Announce Remix Album Featuring Bartees Strange, Skylar Spence, Dogleg, & More". Stereogum. Archived from the original on August 6, 2024. Retrieved October 22, 2022.
  18. ↑ Punknews.org (July 29, 2021). "Tours: Glass Beach announce 2021 tour dates". www.punknews.org. Retrieved August 23, 2026.
  19. ↑ Jones, AJBy Abby (April 30, 2026). "J McClendon Gives First Interview About End Of Glass Beach And Launch Of New Band You Are An Angel". stereogum.com. Retrieved August 23, 2026.
  20. ↑ Machado, Arthur (April 22, 2024). "The DRIVE Issue: glass beach". Emmie. Archived from the original on July 17, 2024. Retrieved January 25, 2025.
  21. 1 2 Pappis, Konstantinos (October 11, 2023). "glass beach Return With New Song 'the CIA'". Our Culture Mag. Archived from the original on August 6, 2024. Retrieved November 1, 2023.
  22. 1 2 3 Breihan, Tom (November 6, 2023). "Glass Beach Announce New Album 'Plastic Death': Hear "Rare Animal"". Stereogum. Archived from the original on November 7, 2023. Retrieved November 7, 2023.
  23. ↑ Sacher, Andrew. "glass beach announce new album 'plastic death' & tour, share "rare animal"". BrooklynVegan. Retrieved August 23, 2026.
  24. ↑ "it's fine to dream, by you are an angel". j. Retrieved February 23, 2026.
  25. ↑ "glass beach announces dissolution". The Needle Drop. April 30, 2026. Retrieved April 30, 2026.
  26. ↑ Jones, AJBy Abby (April 30, 2026). "J McClendon Gives First Interview About End Of Glass Beach And Launch Of New Band You Are An Angel". stereogum.com. Retrieved May 1, 2026.
  27. ↑ Sacher, Andrew (November 6, 2023). "Glass Beach announce new album Plastic Death & tour, share "Rare Animal"". BrooklynVegan. Archived from the original on January 6, 2024. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
  28. ↑ Moore, Em (February 24, 2021). "Glass Beach announce remix album". Punknews.org. Archived from the original on July 25, 2022. Retrieved July 25, 2022.
  29. ↑ glass beach (June 7, 2018). glass beach - neon glow (2018). Retrieved September 9, 2024 – via YouTube.
  30. ↑ DeVille, Chris (October 19, 2020). "Glass Beach – "1015"". Retrieved February 2, 2026.
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