Boston indie-folk band crafts a transportive kind of mood on an effervescent new single out Friday, April 17
Many of us often find ourselves daydreaming of escape, and transporting to some far-away land, either real or imagined, where our stresses and fears become a distant memory. Tommy Ng has been experiencing these fantasies for as long as they can remember, and in recent years, it has especially helped the Jesus The Dinosaur vocalist, acoustic guitarist, and lyricist cope with the harsh realities around them.
That kind of escapism comes to the forefront in Jesus The Dinosaur’s vibrant new single “Empty Space,” an emotive and blissful dose of indie-folk set for streaming release on Friday, April 17 on all major platforms except Spotify.
Blending the genres lines between indie, pop, and folk with a sweeping magnetism and confessional tone, the effervescent “Empty Space” is the follow-up to last month’s “Sweet Nothing,” and acts as the latest from the Boston quintet’s forthcoming debut album, Nothing To The Branches, out Friday, May 15.
Where “Sweet Nothing” found Ng reacting to the stresses and pressures of awkward social settings and enduring them with a depleted social meter, “Empty Space” centers on the opposite scenario. It’s an invitation to a place Ng often retreats to, even if it may not always physically exist.
“The lyrics are about spending time alone, and doing your own thing,” Ng says. “This is something I’ve always had to do to maintain my capacity for dealing with the world, and to manage being overstimulated by it. When I was a kid, this desire manifested itself as a fantasy about a special place that was somehow completely separate from the world, where time didn’t exist, and that only I could access, which I found incredibly soothing to think about.”
While both singles help set a musical tone for the album, showcasing Jesus The Dinosaur’s lush, emphatic sound that somehow feels both intimately personal and richly expansive, lyrically there is a nice juxtaposition at play between the two. Instead of trying to push through life beyond what feels doable, as explored in “Sweet Nothing,” Ng and Jesus The Dinosaur utilize “Empty Space” to explore feelings about refuge, and finding a place to not only lay low and recharge, but feel like themselves.
“I think ‘Sweet Nothing’ is probably one of the darkest and heaviest songs on the record, while ‘Empty Space’ is probably the most bright and upbeat,” Ng notes. “This song is definitely more about being at ease and what it can feel like, while ‘Sweet Nothing’ is coming from a place where everything feels like a struggle. They both have a theme of ‘neverending’; ‘Empty Space’ in the way it can manifest in deep ease and patience, and ‘Sweet Nothing’ the way it can manifest in spiraling distress.”
Ng first started writing “Empty Space” as part of a two-song submission for a 4-track tape compilation called Four by Four Vol. 1, conceived alongside good friend Sami Martasian of Puppy Problems as a way for their friends’ bands to hear what the playback and cassette tape recording process was like, all while raising funds for local non-profit Warm Up Boston.
“Empty Space” has also been a live favorite for the band, and should decorate the Jesus The Dinosaur set list with a hopeful sense of sonic optimism across a series of upcoming live shows, including a house show April 17 at The Fifth Column on the night of release, as well as April 24 at The Lilypad in Cambridge and May 8 at Somerville’s Warehouse XI.
“I think it will sound sweet against the backdrop of spring,” Ng adds. “Windows-open vibes, some levity. Also it’s another song that’s always been fun to play together.”
A sense of fun, while also being adeptly mindful of the world around them, has been at the core of the Jesus The Dinosaur ethos for the past few years. Now operating as a cohesive unit in crafting Nothing To The Branches, Ng is rounded out by Hannah Foxman (electric guitar, vocals), J Kimball (electric guitar), Bradley Robertson (electric bass, vocals), and Jamie Rowe (drums, percussion).
“Empty Space” was produced, engineered, and mixed by Rowe at Rare Signals in Cambridge and The Record Co. in Boston, with additional engineering by Brian Charles at Rare Signals. It was mastered by Ian Farmer and his cat, Onion, at The Metal Shop in Philadelphia.
“We wanted to do basics in the studio just as we were doing it in the practice space,” Ng notes. “Personally, I’ve made a conscious effort in the last five years to bridge the gap between being my casual self and a performer, and being around my friends to perform always puts me at ease and lets cool things happen naturally. On the record, for the song’s outro we did a lot of cool drum and guitar overdubs and a bunch of fun loopy vocal stuff, which I think was a natural extension of our casual curiosity as a group.”
Rowe agrees, and elaborates: “When we play this one live we always do the outro differently. Sometimes it’s a pretty quick conclusion, but sometimes we’ll jam for a while and everyone can kind of find their own loops and offset things to play with the ‘infinity’ vibe… which informed the decision to end it with a fade out on the record.”
No stranger to DIY spaces and performing live away from the Boston club circuit, some of the final form that eventually would shape “Empty Space” came from playing in such a setting.
“Our friend Otto Klammer – badass Boston audio engineer – was running front-of-house at a backyard show once and did this long delay throw thing when Tommy was singing ‘infinity’ and I immediately knew I was gonna borrow that for some ear candy when it came to mixing!” Rowe adds. “You can hear it at the end of the fade out if you listen closely.”
What began as an Ng solo and guest collaborator project – releasing a string of singles and EPs over the past dozen years, and earning a Boston Music Award nomination in the Folk Artist of the Year category along the way – has recently shifted Jesus The Dinosaur into something bolder and broader. Nothing To The Branches is the project in its latest shape, properly defined as a band, and carries a lot with it.
“I think the songs on this record explore a range of feelings, some of which are pretty tough and uncomfortable,” Rowe says. “In the studio we have the opportunity to put all five of our sensibilities and curiosities together to sonically express some of these complex feels in a way that supports what Tommy brings to the table lyrically.”
In 2022, with the release of their most recent EP …I’m Passing By My Truths as Fixed Points Only to Return, the band had been operating as a trio (Ng, Foxman, and Robertson), but soon enlisted Rowe and Kimball. Robertson says the band was “learning how to write harmonies over wobbly acoustic guitar, plucky bass, and cassette-recorded drum loops,” and wanted to keep playing those songs with additional, full-time players.
Robertson adds: “At that point, with three guitars and a full lineup, we spent a lot of time experimenting and figuring out the space each of us could occupy without stepping on one another in the arrangements. In doing so, I think we’ve learned a lot about how we each play our instruments, how to support one another, and how to communicate our ideas.”
Those ideas also extend lyrically into social and societal issues, as Rowe suggests, which unfurl vividly in kaleidoscopic color across the album. Exploring themes of gender identity, relationship dynamics, and the oppressive forces that denigrate our daily lives, Nothing To The Branches is a statement of purpose and visibility. Which is also why the band has decided to not release the singles or the album on Spotify.
“We’re joining the ever-growing community of artists who are boycotting the company,” says Kimball. “This includes joining our Boston music peers who are doing the same, which is an exciting development toward using our leverage as a music community. The reasons for rejecting Spotify are numerous and well documented at this point, including running ICE recruitment ads, founder and executive chairman Daniel Ek’s investments in AI warfare and surveillance technology, the introduction and flooding-in of AI artists and playlists onto the platform, the lowest royalty payments of streaming platforms… the reasons increase every day.”
What’s also increasing is the confidence Jesus The Dinosaur boast in this new lineup and enhanced sound, with five creative voices all contributing to its organic development and providing a portal into the soul of Nothing To The Branches. The core of the sound present on the singles, and the album overall, is centered around the experience of the band playing together as a group, all leveraging what it means to be young and alive in the world today.
“We love each other so much!!” Foxman concludes. “When we are creating or making decisions as a band, we are friends first, band second. I always feel super supported, respected and loved by this group. Unfortunately, I know that is not always the case in ‘band land’. I think we all have really deep love for each other and that’s how we connect sonically as well. Whether we are getting together to play, practice, or hang — when we are together I’m always feeling full with gratitude, energy, and happiness.”
It provides Ng with a time, however fleeting, when there is no need to escape.
Connect with Jesus The Dinosaur:
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Jesus The Dinosaur is:
Tommy Ng: Vocals, acoustic guitar
Hannah Foxman: Electric guitar, vocals
J Kimball: Electric guitar
Bradley Robertson: Electric bass, vocals
Jamie Rowe: Drums, percussion
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‘Empty Space’ production credits:
Produced, engineered, mixed by Jamie Rowe at Rare Signals in Cambridge, MA and The Record Co. in Boston, MA
Additional engineering by Brian Charles at Rare Signals
Mastered by Ian Farmer and his cat, Onion, at The Metal Shop in Philly
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Jesus The Dinosaur short bio:
With warm and warbly acoustic guitar and waves of bittersweet harmonies, Jesus The Dinosaur’s gentle and confessional performances speak to the soft spoken, embracing life’s gifts and griefs like an old friend. The Boston-based indie folk project first started by Tommy Ng has in recent years blossomed into a full-fledged five-piece, and in May 2026 release new album Nothing To The Branches, recorded at Rare Signals in Cambridge, MA and The Record Co. in Boston, MA.
