I’d forgotten about Priestess until they woke me up at SXSW. It’s not surprising my mind wandered. It’s also not surprising they got my attention in a live setting: For a few years, the Montreal quartet depended on unending tours to get their newer sounds outside the practice space and recording studio. They released their well-received debut Hello Master in Canada in 2005 (and the States in 2006) and finished their sophomore effort in 2008, but had to fight with then-label RCA, who reportedly didn’t think it contained a proper “single,” to release it. RCA ostensibly never found that elusive single so they dropped the group, who were allowed to take Prior To The Fire to a new home. It’s been out a couple months now. If you haven’t taken a listen, the closer “Trapped In Space & Time” offers a good entryway. Intentional or not, that title and the song’s lyrics (“five long years,” etc.) also offer a nice fuck you to RCA.

• Priestess – “Trapped In Space & Time”Download

To create a proper bookend, here’s the video for flanged opener “Lady Killer.”

Prior To The Fire is out via Tee Pee. You can catch them live on the aforementioned tour with High On Fire, Bison B.C., and Black Cobra.