The Penske File Unleash Youthful Energy on the Explosive “Dead Maps,” Opening Track From Upcoming Album, Reprieve, Out October 3rd
Hamilton-based punk rock trio The Penske File charge forward into a new era with “Dead Maps,” the electrifying opening track from their forthcoming album Reprieve, out October 3rd via Stomp Records. Urgent, anthemic, and loaded with the raw double-time energy that inspired the band to pick up instruments in the first place, the song sets the stage for their most sonically expansive record to date.
The song’s title and central metaphor emerged unexpectedly for guitarist and vocalist Travis Miles while deep in the writing process:
“I riddled with the lyrics of this song for a few weeks and had everything set in a place I was happy with, but I knew I wanted one big line to tag the chorus. I was reading a book and saw the two words “Dead Maps” next to each other in a sentence and lightbulbs flickered. The song is an exploration of my own mind, where creative and personal pursuits run along jagged paths in tandem. There is no destination, but the meandering pathways are charted. I feel like the metaphor of the dead map fits that reality. Plus, it sounds fuckin’ cool, which is part of the fun!“
“Dead Maps” also marks a deliberate nod to the kind of fast-paced punk that first shaped the band. Miles recalls:
“I recall having a conversation with our good friend Chuck Coles. He had said in passing that we should open the album with a classic double time punk ripper. Hearing Chuck say this – someone whose creative intuition I greatly admire and respect – gave me the confidence to draw this idea out into the open. With the desire to have the opening lyric of this song open the album, I figured “Dead Maps” was a perfect candidate for that double time energy.“
Produced by longtime friend Adam Michael, Reprieve represents The Penske File at their most adventurous yet, spanning stripped-down folk reflections, sprawling indie rock epics, and urgent punk anthems like “Dead Maps.”