Some forty years after a fan letter from Nebraska resulted in Independent Project Records commencing a decades-long collaboration with post-punk cult favourites turned dream pop visionaries For Against, the label proudly presents Piqued, the last album from For Against chief songwriter, lead singer, bass player and only constant member Jeffrey Runnings.
A posthumous release that’s also a celebration of the artist’s lifelong quest for a sound that, stripped to the bones, is all the more powerful and cathartic for its restraint, Piqued was recorded by Runnings at home on an old 8-track cassette machine. It plays just like a late ‘80s mixtape, lovingly compiled to showcase the beautiful emptiness of post-punk’s more eloquently quiet peaks.
The favourites of a lifetime — from Section 25 to The Comsat Angels, from Young Marble Giants to early 4AD singles — are conjured as Runnings’ final songs play. Stark and deadpan on the surface, this is electric guitar music in its most human and vulnerable form. Piqued is available on vinyl (Black or Transparent Magenta), Special Edition CD and digital, and comes with a 4-track EP of rare recordings from the late ‘80s — two of them previously unreleased. This listing is for the black vinyl edition with the 4-track EP pressed at 45 RPM on black vinyl. (See our separate listings for the color vinyl and CD editions.)
Album Track Listing:
1. Batman Forever
2. Just Before Nothing
3. Threadbare
4. Mayfair
5. Bloom
6. The Courage of Voluntary Trees
7. Heretofore
8. Failed Rescue Attempt
9. Glorious Grey
10. Value
11. Elegy
Bonus Songs Track Listing:
1. Follow
2. Light of My Life
3. Watch
4. Demolition Blast
All tracks composed, arranged, produced, performed and mixed by Jeffrey Runnings.
Releases July 11, 2025
JEFFREY RUNNINGS - Piqued double LP on Black Vinyl
"We've said it before, likely more than once, but a new release from Independent Project Records is cause for celebration. The packaging is always incredible, the notes fascinating... You can spend hours with this thing. Of course, it helps if the music is great, and this offering from Jeffrey Runnings, creative force with Nebraska post-punk band For Against, is glorious... There are two LPs, and both feature enough curveballs and off-the-wall surprises to ensure that the listener is never bored. Simultaneously bleak and cinematic, it really is a tremendous experience."
—Brett Callwood, Music Connection"Piqued is Jeffrey Runnings’ final transmission, an unflinching, minimalist elegy that distills a lifetime of post-punk devotion into something raw, intimate, and quietly transcendent... Piqued is more than a farewell, it’s a quiet declaration from a lifelong listener who turned his influences into something uniquely his own."
—Vince Hans, New Releases Now"A eulogy of sorts, mostly wordless but still profound, written on bruised clouds of undulating, ethereal effects and whispery whirr by the artist himself, the breathtaking Piqued collects the utterly captivating last recordings of For Against dream-pop factory manager Jeffrey Runnings. It arrives, appropriately enough, in elaborate packaging, a specialty of Independent Project Records... It’s a fitting sendoff. And not just because of its insular, shape-shifting electric guitar artistry."
—Peter Lindblad, Ink197/10 "A combination of minimalistic electronica, trancey ambience and low-level industrial riffing, [Piqued] displays a range of emotions that perhaps expressed Runnings' own feelings as he contemplated his mortality... It's not all sombre though, and the blast of euphoria that is 'Bloom', and 'Heretofore', with its lush arrangement, are the most upbeat songs here."
—Rich Deakin, Vive Le Rock"Both a testament to Runnings’ creativity and a loving tribute to the musician... The packaging for the vinyl is spectacular, with a letterpress-printed die cut jacket. Tucked inside an insert pouch are the liner notes as well as three postcards featuring drawings that Runnings made in the last weeks of his life. The amount of care and attention to detail that went into Piqued is impressive and it’s a wonderful example of why physical media is so important. Together, Runnings and Independent Project Records were able to make something that’s both an artist’s final statement and a beautiful tribute to him."
—Liz Ohanesian, Beatique"Piqued rolls out like a catalog of the Nebraskan’s influences: the Chameleons, Joy Division, Cocteau Twins, Gary Numan, Talk Talk, the Smiths, the Sound. That’s not to say Runnings simply displays his record collection in song, however – outside of his skill at writing beautifully melodic tunes and acerbically romantic lyrics, his most singular ability is in filtering all of his atmospheric British influences through his forthright Midwestern sensibility. Lush arrangements meet straightforward tunes; arrangements distill foggy instrumentation into earthy sentiment... Had circumstances been different, the record might well have kickstarted a new phase of Runnings’ long career, rather than become his elegy. Regardless, Piqued evokes a vision that’s reflective of its creator’s musical loves without being shackled to them."
—Michael Toland, The Big Takeover"I’d never heard of Jefferey Running’s combo For Against, but they originated far from the California shores; positing a Post-Punk that sprang from Nebraska!... Indeed, his aesthetic here of paring down the music to its base essence; trimming vocals and lyrics down to a keenly honed presence was as much of a design decision as it was to record it on an analog 8-track home studio. Perhaps that last gambit was the creative decision that resonates the strongest here. This made for a recording that sounded out of any one time, but was strongly suggestive of several at once. I love the sound of musical elements swirled together as here in a mix where everything is intrinsic and nothing sounds apart from the gestalt of it all."
—Post-Punk Monk"There's an elegiac quality that pervades the compositions as well as a rawness; when he sings to his husband in 'Batman Forever' — his nickname was that of the Caped Crusader — 'You're the one I want to be there/When the very last light goes out,' it's almost unbearably sad... Typically for IPR, the packaging is quite beautiful and lavish... In any format, Piqued is a fine tribute to the late artist."
—The Second Disc"It’s certainly more than just a final record. It’s a graceful and intimate farewell letter to the world... In many ways, it’s the most 'Jeffrey Runnings' album imaginable, quietly powerful, intensely personal, and deeply sincere. It’s the sound of an artist at peace with his past, making peace with his future. This is a record for those late hours of self-reflection, for fans of forlorn beauty, and for anyone who’s ever felt comfort in a song that doesn’t demand attention but rewards it endlessly. More than anything, Piqued is a final gift, not just to longtime fans of For Against, but to anyone willing to listen."
—Simone Ribeiro, Midlands Traveller"Piqued makes for a fitting epitaph. A career which Jeffrey has been searching high and low for that elusive feel and sound, it seems that with Piqued he finally found it... As per usual, Independent Project Records have done a great job with this album, taking great care with all aspects of this release, making it the perfect companion to the music contained within. Recorded just prior to Jeffrey’s untimely death, Piqued proves his life’s work a success."
—The Midland Rocks