Prison - Big Rigs on the BQE (2026) [Hi-Res]

New York improv outfit Prison releases its third major album, "Big Rigs on the BQE," recorded far from the locations of its two prior releases, "Downstate" (2025) and "Upstate" (2023). This time the session took place at a studio in Brooklyn's Sunset Park, with a direct view of the Brooklyn–Queens Expressway (BQE) — a vista that helped shape the record's mood.

On March 7, 2024, Prison's core lineup — guitarists and drummers Sarim Al-Rawi, Matt Lilly, and Paul Major — was joined by guest players Mike Donovan on fuzz organ, percussionist Ryan Sawyer, and bassist/synth player Matt Leibowitz of Downstate. Downstate guitarist Adam Reich served as the studio's engineer and mixer, contributing his own effects and remix passages heard on both sides of the record.

The resulting music is described as fierce yet joyful play in the tradition of the Groundhogs, Velvet Underground, Hampton Grease Band, Pink Fairies, Magic Band, and Can, combining guitars, bass, drums, organ, and synthesizer. Paul and Sarim's vocal shouts form a stream of road-thoughts, processed through looping effects at varying ranges and volumes. The album is structured as a travelogue: two side-long journeys of deep, searing improvisational jams that reflect real lives lived on the road while sending a burst of positive energy out into the world.

Tracklist:
1-1 Prison - Sunrise Highway [21:48]
1-2 Prison - Sunset Park [19:27]