2025

Poliça – Dreams Go

Since their emergence from Minneapolis’ vibrant underground in 2011, Poliça has carved out a singular space in electronic indie-pop, blending shadowy synths, pulsating rhythms, and the unmistakable vocal presence of Channy Leaneagh—a voice that bends and refracts like light through water, shaped by intricate processing yet deeply human at its core. Co-founded by producer Ryan Olson, the band’s alchemy has long been defined by its balance of warmth and detachment, with Chris Bierden’s melodic basslines and the dueling drums of Ben Ivascu and Drew Christopherson anchoring their hypnotic sound.

From the spectral longing of Give You the Ghost (2012) to the dystopian undercurrents of United Crushers (2016) and the machine-driven paranoia of Madness (2022), Poliça has never been content to stand still. Their upcoming LP, Dreams Go, out September 2025, is perhaps their most emotionally charged yet—a collection of eight new songs recorded at Pachyderm Studio in Minnesota, marking the band’s final sessions with Chris Bierden before he lost the ability to play due to brain cancer. 

The record pulses with a raw, elegiac energy, a testament to the chemistry that defined Poliça’s first decade. While Bierden can no longer perform live, Poliça presses forward with a new addition of Alex Nutter, reimagining themselves once more with a new touring lineup. Dreams Go doesn’t just memorialize the past—it propels the band into the next phase of their evolution, proving that reinvention has always been part of their DNA. 

With Dreams Go, Poliça delivers their most emotionally resonant and texturally rich work to date—a poignant meditation on loss, resilience, and the fragile beauty of holding on. Written and recorded in the shadow of bassist Chris Bierden’s glioblastoma diagnosis, the album is both elegy and act of preservation, capturing the band at a moment of profound transition.

Produced by Ryan Olson—co-creator of the band and Poliça’s main producer and composer extraordinare—and fronted by vocalist and lyricist Channy Leaneagh, the record also features Bierden’s last performance on the bass, alongside the atmospheric percussion of Drew Christopherson and Ben Ivascu. Across tracks like “She Knows Me,” “Wasted Me,” and “Creeping,” Leaneagh’s vocals hover over expansive synths and fractured rhythms, delivering lyrics that are both deeply personal and universally resonant. 

The album was mixed by Jake Luppen (Hippocampus), Alex Nutter (Braingiver, Poliça), and Ryan Olson (Gayngs, Marijuana Deathsquads, Poliça)

Though born of grief, Dreams Go is anything but static. It breathes, shimmers, and ultimately insists on the power of making art in the face of uncertainty. Whether or not Poliça continues beyond this release, Dreams Go stands as a moving testament to the band’s creative bond—and to Bierden’s indelible role within it.