Greg Mendez Shares Par of New Singles “Gentle Love// Frog”

Today Greg Mendez shares a pair of new singles “Gentle Love” and “Frog,” the latest releases from Mendez’s recently announced new album, Beauty Land, due May 29th via Dead Oceans. The tracks arrive alongside a music video that Mendez has dubbed a “period piece,” which connects the two songs and was directed by Mendez’s frequent video collaborator, Luke LeCount.

The double-single shows the duality of Mendez’s writing across Beauty Land – it’s unpredictable in the best ways, a record that can swing from something nearly buoyant on “Gentle Love,” with full instrumentation (all performed by Mendez), before devolving into something more atmospheric and sparse, a cosmic and strange lullaby with a simple, pleading refrain: Please forgive me for my faults.

On the album, which was just named one of the most anticipated records of the spring by Pitchfork, and has already earned adulation from outlets like Rolling Stone, Consequence, Paste, Stereogum, and more, we’re guided by a wry but forgiving narrator, an underdog who has learned to balance cynicism and faith. These songs are self-effacing without self-pity, carefully constructed altars of imperfection channeled through pop melodies, shimmering but urgent guitars, and a voice that reaches for choir boy innocence.

The bulk of Beauty Land was recorded directly to tape, almost entirely alone in Mendez’s makeshift home studio in Philadelphia – a small room with no natural light. It’s his first full-length album since his unexpected breakthrough self-titled album in 2023, which was a slow burn success following 15 years of writing and recording music in relative obscurity between Philly and New York. Beauty Land picks up where we left off three years ago – plumbing the depths of grief, love, and addiction – but its intense, quiet clarity shows Mendez at his songwriting best.

Mendez is taking his stark and affecting live show on the road this summer. Tickets are available now via gregmendez.net. All dates below.