San Tropez - Exit Through the Gift Shop
San Tropez return with their third album, Exit Through the Gift Shop, a collection of curiosities that draws from the band’s first two records to retrace their journey—or, perhaps, to suggest an alternate route to where they are now. Across eight songs, the album presents a companion reality: not a glimpse of what might have been, but a different perspective on what already was. This is not an album for fans so much as one intended to make new ones, bringing together remixes, live recordings, a cover, a demo, and a previously unreleased alternate version. Leading the collection is “The Oval (Milestar Mix),” a brand-new reimagining by Skot Kremen, known for his work with You Shriek, Model Behavior, Project Sphere, and Provocateur. Taken together, Exit Through the Gift Shop offers another way into San Tropez—a sideways look at where the band has been that points, however indirectly, toward where it might go next.
San Tropez’s 2025 sophomore release, Museum of Modern History deepened the band’s signature blend of American dream pop and cinematic atmosphere. The album featured standout guest appearances by Marissa Paternoster (Screaming Females, Noun), saxophonist Zack Sandler, and vocalist Victoria Benesch (The Slow Circuit), adding new textures to the band’s evolving soundscape. Rebel Noise called “Swear Off the Sunlight” a “sublime collision of isolation and spectacle.” New Noise Magazine said “Baby Bells” “distinctly ’80s vibe as well as a deep-seated sense of nostalgia that makes for a vibrant sonic adventure.” Alt Recess followed up this listening experience to “opening a photo album you forgot you had—soft-focus, sun-bleached, and full of moments”.
San Tropez’s 2023 Mint 400 Records debut, Maybe Tomorrow, received praise from The Rodeo Magazine as their “strong balance between embracing more modern approaches like dream pop whilst continuing to honour the classics of My Bloody Valentine and Slowdive.”
San Tropez started in 2016 amongst old friends Ralph Nicastro (Wreaths, Aviso Hara, Sparks Fly from a Kiss) on guitar and vocals, Albie Connelly (Angular Brothers, Stuntcocks, Urchins) on guitar and vocals, Frank Bridges (Magic Mountain, Duochrome, kiaro skuro) on bass, Andy Fountas (Magic Mountain, The Border States, Duochrome) on drums, and Phil Pirri (Blaa Fugl) on keyboards.