The Irrepressibles return with Yo Homo Deluxe, an expansion that digs deeper into the emotional scope, punk edge, and eroticism of their fourth studio album. Written, composed, and produced by Jamie Irrepressible, the deluxe edition has new tracks and alternate versions that further create the world of unapologetic queerness. More than an album, it’s a statement of queer joy and embracing who we are; it’s a work that celebrates desire, identity, and the freedom to express both without apology.
We caught up with Jamie to talk about this new chapter, the sound and imagery of Yo Homo Deluxe, and the power of creating music rooted in queer pride.
Yo Homo has already been praised as “a milestone in queer indie rock”. What inspired you to revisit and deepen the album for its deluxe version, Yo Homo Deluxe?
There were some tracks that didn’t make it in time. I wanted to finish, to complete the record before it was immortalized in physical format. Plus some existing tracks I wanted to improve upon.
This deluxe edition adds new tracks and alternate versions. In which way do these additions and changes go further into the emotional scope and sonic world of the original album?
They just build on the messages of the record and are better realized as tracks for me, I feel.
The first single released from Yo Homo Deluxe, What I Am, Queer!, is an anthem and a call for queer self-love and accepting the truth. How does this single embody and represent what we can expect from this deluxe album?
It’s a bit of an aside, actually. Most of the album is in 1st person and very much focused on the experience of the visceral truth of homosexuality. Whereas What I Am, Queer! starts like this, a reflection on growing up as queer, but becomes a rallying outward call.
In Yo Homo, there is a shift in The Irrepressibles’ tone, a new era rooted in symphonic beauty, punk, and an erotic spirit. What inspired you to take this direction for your fourth studio album?
My music always reflects my life in some way. I’d never written about this area of my life. After consistently making music that is often about sad subjects, emotional intensity, I thought, why not make an album exclusively focused on queer joy and sexual expression.
I originally come from indie rock and punk before The Irrepressibles, so I thought, why not go back to my roots with this, but of course, I ended up orchestrating around this to give the tracks some landscapes and emotional intensity. You can’t keep me away from strings!
The Irrepressibles has always fused music with a strong visual identity. How does the imagery and overall aesthetic of Yo Homo Deluxe reflect its erotic energy and queer pride?
I’ve always been interested in how pop music brings together elements of the visual with music to create a world to hold it. I think when we think “queer”, we have an often commercial and at times straight idea based on straight artists who are considered part of queer culture. However, queer art and culture are deep and vast, from Kenneth Anger to Fassbinder to Warhol to Tillmans to Haring, and so many more. We worked with gay, queer, and non-binary directors to create visual worlds for the tracks that were about their worlds as visual artists, yet connected with the meanings of the tracks. We featured queers of all types in the videos who express themselves as they are, whether it’s through performance art, dance, or skateboarding. They create something deeper and more real about what it is to be queer, rather than a straight artist playing with the tropes of “gayness”.
Finally, with Yo Homo, you wanted to “create a record for the queer community” and “create a safe space where people feel they are being expressed”. How do you maintain this in the deluxe version?
With the What I Am video, we decided to do this with the band of musicians including non-binary, lesbian, trans, bisexual, pan, and homosexual people, all there joyfully singing along, real, surrounded by each of our flags, collective but different. I’m a strong believer in the diversity of the queer community and making space for this difference. Far too often, there is homogenization. We are not all the same. Queer expression is diverse and has brought about much innovation for mankind.
