Ratboys – “What’s Right?” [Video]

Ratboys Drift Into the Unknown with “What’s Right?” — a glowing slow-burn from their next chapter

Ratboys are back with a new single, “What’s Right?,” taken from their upcoming album Singin’ to an Empty Chair, out February 6 via New West Records. The track is a strangely beautiful ballad that wanders through dream logic, desert haze and quiet emotional weight — the kind of song that feels familiar and otherworldly at the same time. The lyric video, crafted by drummer Marcus Nuccio, floats right alongside it with a soft, off-kilter charm.

Julia Steiner explains that “What’s Right?” started as a studio experiment, pieced together from three different drum setups to create the song’s shifting atmosphere. The final section arrived straight out of a dream — one of those rare moments when the melody and lyrics spill out before you’re fully awake. She cites The War on Drugs and Thelma and Louise as guideposts, and you can hear that wide open space in the way the song blooms.

Steiner’s writing steps into sharper focus on Singin’ to an Empty Chair, her first Ratboys album since beginning therapy. The title comes from a technique she used to work through a difficult estrangement, speaking to an empty chair as if the person she misses were sitting in front of her. The result is a record that looks inward without losing the warmth and spark that defines the band.

The four piece — Steiner, guitarist Dave Sagan, bassist Sean Neumann and drummer Marcus Nuccio — wrote and demoed the album on a quiet stretch of land in Wisconsin’s Driftless Area before teaming up once again with co producer Chris Walla. Sessions at Electrical Audio in Chicago and Rosebud Studio in Evanston helped shape a sound that’s bright, twangy and fully confident. If last year’s The Window cracked things open, this one kicks the door wide.

Pre-order Singin’ to an Empty Chair

Ratboys hit the road starting in February, with tickets moving fast.

Ratboys Tour Dates

Wed Feb 25 – Detroit, MI @ El Club ~
Thu Feb 26 – Toronto, ON @ Lee’s Palace ~
Fri Feb 27 – Montreal, QC @ Bar Le Ritz PDB ~
Sat Feb 28 – Cambridge, MA @ The Sinclair ~
Tue Mar 3 – Philadelphia, PA @ First Unitarian Church ~
Thu Mar 5 – Brooklyn, NY @ Warsaw ~
Fri Mar 6 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club ~
Sat Mar 7 – Richmond, VA @ The Broadberry ~
Sun Mar 8 – Durham, NC @ Motorco Music Hall ~
Tue Mar 10 – Asheville, NC @ The Grey Eagle ~
Wed Mar 11 – Atlanta, GA @ Terminal West ~
Thu Mar 12 – Nashville, TN @ The Basement East ~
Fri Mar 13 – Louisville, KY @ Zanzabar ~
Sat Mar 14 – Milwaukee, WI @ Vivarium ~
Tue Mar 24 – St. Louis, MO @ Off Broadway •
Wed Mar 25 – Kansas City, MO @ recordBar •
Thu Mar 26 – Fayetteville, AR @ George’s Majestic Lounge •
Fri Mar 27 – Dallas, TX @ Club Dada •
Sat Mar 28 – Austin, TX @ Mohawk •
Mon Mar 30 – Albuquerque, NM @ Launchpad •
Tue Mar 31 – Phoenix, AZ @ Valley Bar •
Wed Apr 1 – San Diego, CA @ Soda Bar •
Fri Apr 3 – Los Angeles, CA @ Teragram Ballroom •
Sat Apr 4 – San Francisco, CA @ August Hall •
Mon Apr 6 – Vancouver, BC @ Biltmore Cabaret •
Tue Apr 7 – Seattle, WA @ Neumos •
Wed Apr 8 – Portland, OR @ Aladdin Theater •
Fri Apr 10 – Boise, ID @ Shrine Social Club •
Sat Apr 11 – Salt Lake City, UT @ The Urban Lounge •
Mon Apr 13 – Denver, CO @ Bluebird Theater •
Wed Apr 15 – Omaha, NE @ The Waiting Room •
Thu Apr 16 – Minneapolis, MN @ Fine Line •
Fri Apr 17 – Madison, WI @ Atwood Music Hall •
Sat Apr 18 – Chicago, IL @ The Vic Theatre +

~ with Florry
• with villagerrr
+with Free Range