Dari Bay announces new album, Surprise Wish

April 10, 2026

out June 26th via Double Double Whammy

Watch the Video for New Single “We’re Gonna Be Okay”

On Tour Supporting Whitney This Month

Dari Bay — the Burlington, VT-based project of Zack James — announces their new album, Surprise Wish, out June 26th via Double Double Whammy and releases the single, “We’re Gonna Be Okay.” Since first launching the band, James has used Dari Bay to explore free-for-all experimentation, shape-shifting from project to project before slowly cohering into a vehicle for James’ most direct and personal songwriting. The pivot became clear on 2023’s Longest Day Of The Year, the “bedroom-folk opus” (FLOOD) that served as Dari Bay’s proper debut. Now, the evolution has blossomed on Surprise Wish, Dari Bay’s first album for Double Double Whammy.

Across Surprise Wish, James tackles the joys and pitfalls of a life formed by and filtered through the internet, isolation, connection, near-disasters, fragile hope, all in a series of snapshots of the strange liminal space that is young adulthood. Surprise Wish finds Dari Bay blending strains of ‘90s alt-rock, indie, and grunge into songs that are equal parts sly and poignant. Bleary bedroom pop melodies capture the listless, searching days of your twenties, but punchy arrangements and performances act like the little eurekas James experienced, urgently jolting you awake.

Following single “The Joke” released last summer, today’s single “We’re Gonna Be Okay” is fueled by layers of guitar, beautiful yet overdriven. The song reflects on a fire that nearly took James’ home and sounds as much like a conflagration itself as the sunrise following a close call.

James comments: “‘We’re Gonna Be Okay’ is about being grateful for what you have because it can all be taken away from you. Around the time that I was writing this song my girlfriend and I were facing some obstacles in our lives, like housing displacement, some health issues, and a lot of general uncertainty. Just some “welcome to the real world” stuff hitting us from different angles all at once. It was a strange and intense time, knowing we had reached a new low point but as a result feeling really lucky to have the stuff that we did have, like our community, and each other and a hope and excitement for the future.

The accompanying video was directed by Noah Lenker. James adds: “Noah’s video is a warning not to let life’s petty wounds give you a savior complex. He said, ‘If you must convince yourself that you are a noble and deserving hero, you may have become a covetous and baseless villain.’ It might seem like others are out to get you, but your true opponent is your own projections.”

Watch the Video for “We’re Gonna Be Okay”

Growing up in a musical family, James tried his hand at everything — learning drums as a child, DJ’ing, rap beats, production, elementary school punk rock. He eventually became a multi-faceted and in-demand player: providing drums on recordings and tours for old friends Lily Seabird and Greg Freeman, serving as one of the primary songwriters in Robber Robber, joining Unknown Mortal Orchestra as a full-time member, all while steadily concocting Dari Bay’s next chapter.

Surprise Wish came together slowly over time as James balanced multiple projects while finishing college, but everything about these songs was immediate. Seeking to abandon the genre detours of past Dari Bay releases, James honed in on a scuzzy, visceral rock sound. “I cared less about aesthetics and more about primal feelings,” he explains. As before, James made much of Surprise Wish alone without real studio time, giving the album a raw, homespun quality anchoring lyrics that are intimate yet casual and self-effacing.

James’ only promise for the future of Dari Bay is that he will always be making albums, and that they will always capture him simply figuring out how to write and record music. Fittingly for a project that is always coming into being, Surprise Wish is a portrait of a person coming into being. These are songs in transit, but inviting the listener to cut through the fog and be more present in their moment.

Dari Bay has previously toured and played alongside MJ Lenderman, Horse Jumper of Love, Water From Your Eyes, Cola, TAGABOW, Dutch Interior, Being Dead, and LUCY (Cooper B. Handy). This month, James and the band — Nina Cates (bass), Joey Krouse (guitar), and Will Krulak (guitar) — will support Whitney on their east coast tour. Upcoming dates are listed below and tickets are available now.