We Found Someone To Look After The Dogs

I think everyone who knows me personally knew that a PUP feature would come in some way or another as soon as the singles were released, but I, quite frankly, never expected to be grief-writing in the coffee shop next to Jannus Live. I didn’t expect one of my brothers to die, or to put everything on the back burner for a good minute because of it.

Now I fully understand that “Hallways” isn’t about what I’m going through, but I’ve been able to parallel it to my life in so many ways. The true beauty of music, but the true frequency of a PUP the band song for me. “The first night without you I collapsed on the floor” / “What the hell am I gonna do if I can never see you anymore?” The whole song feels like the entire ordeal I’ve gone through the last few weeks, and even if it were not this parallel for me, it is such an emotive and beautifully painful expression of a life with someone you love or have loved that just isn’t present in your life anymore…But you “Can’t die yet, cause who will look after the dog/s?”.

Having PUP around in any capacity is a gift to me and surely many others, seeing how around 2016, “The Dream Is Over” was almost a little too real. The fact that Stefan and the boys continue to persevere with an unwavering talent and success is a testament to quite a bit of the human experience itself. Reminds me in bad times that this is what it’s all about.

PUP is currently preparing for a European tour for the full month of May (5.6-5.30), and then readying themselves for the subsequent North American (CA/US) tour with Jeff Rosenstock and special guest Ekko Astral. A true “Catacysmic Rapture of Friendshipness”, indeed. Their upcoming album, “Who Will Look After The Dogs?” will be released via Rise Records on May 2, 2025, and can be pre-ordered here.

My brother was preceded in death by our grandparents, our father, and leaves behind the rest of us to ride it out on the motorcycle of our choosing. I’m only a little mad that he never supplied the training and expected my ass to sit in a sidecar. He also left behind two dogs - Noah and Allie - named after the notebook characters. But don’t worry, we've gotten someone to look after the dogs.

4/30/25

ct.