Glass Animals Photo Credit: Neil Krug
Today, Glass Animals share the official video for new single “Agnes,” taken from their Mercury Prize shortlisted album How To Be A Human Being. Watch the video for “Agnes” HERE.
Deeply honest, beautiful and full of depth, “Agnes” is the most personal song lead singer Dave Bayley has ever written. Dave explains: “There are varying degrees of autobiography and my own life in each song I write…but for the most part, that stuff is buried and clouded in fiction or blended with other peoples’ lives that I’ve heard about in taxis or at parties or on the street. But there is one song that stands apart from the rest. it is the most truthful, honest, and personal story I have ever written. And that song is ‘Agnes.'”
The video, directed by Eoin Glaister, explores the weight of grief in an abstract way, by a Human Centrifuge, a machine used by pilots for g-force training. The subject’s body mass increases as it subjected to increasing amounts of gravitational force, and as the song progresses this is visibly showcased through Dave’s difficulty performing the song.
Eoin explains: “In searching for ways to explore the weight of grief I remembered my grandfather used to perform tests on a human centrifuge, Essentially it’s an extremely large bit of kit that spins around very quickly. As it does so it subjects its occupants to increased levels of g-force. The faster 4you go, the heavier you become. On the day Dave described this feeling as like having an elephant sat on his chest. It was emotional. Appropriately so.'”
Glass Animals continue to demonstrate why they are one of the true global breakthrough artists of 2016/17. How To Be A Human Being (Harvest Records) debuted in the Top 20 of the Billboard 200 and topped the iTunes Alternative Albums chart in the U.S. and Australia. Named as one of the “10 Best Albums of 2016” by USA Today, it has racked up nearly 80 million Spotify streams in the U.S. The Associated Press hailed it as “a complex, exciting tapestry of a CD which switches musical styles and reveals new things each time it’s played.” They have now been shortlist for the 2017 Hyundai Mercury Prize, have over 3 million monthly Spotify listeners and have sold over 900,000 albums worldwide since their debut, obliterating all expectations created by first album Zaba’s word of mouth buzz.
The band have already played a huge selection of international festivals including Primavera, Coachella, Glastonbury (which featured a lot of fans dressing as pineapples), Latitude, and Bonnaroo, as well as headlining a sold out 10,000 capacity Red Rocks in Colorado (at which there was a huge electrical thunderstorm). For the rest of the year, Glass Animals will continue their anomalous rise. The band are still to play Lollapalooza and Reading and Leeds before returning to their U.S. headline tour. The run will kick off on September 16 at WaMu Theater in Seattle and include a show at Los Angeles’ historic Shrine Auditorium (September 21) and the band’s first concert at Radio City Music Hall in New York City (October 5). Additional East Coast dates include shows at Agganis Arena in Boston (October 7) and two nights the 9:30 Club in Washington, DC (October 8 & 9). New York based artist Amber Mark will support Glass Animals on tour. Glass Animals will cap off the tour with a performance during Weekend Two of Austin City Limits Festival (October 13-15). See below for itinerary. Tickets are on sale now.
GLASS ANIMALS – NORTH AMERICAN TOUR DATES
Newly added dates in bold
8/2 – New Haven, CT @ College Street Music Hall
8/3 – Portland, ME @ Thompson’s Point
8/4 – Montréal, QC @ Osheaga Festival
8/5 – Chicago, IL @ Lollapalooza
9/16 – Seattle, WA @ WaMu Theater
9/19 – San Diego, CA @ Humphreys Concerts By the Bay
9/21 – Los Angeles, CA @ Shrine Auditorium
9/22 – Berkeley, CA @ Greek Theatre
9/23- Troutdale, OR @ Edgefield
9/25 – Denver, CO @ The Ogden Theatre
9/27 – St. Paul, MN @ Palace Theatre
9/28 – Chicago, IL @ Aragon Ballroom
9/29 – Detroit, MI @ Royal Oak Music Theatre
9/30 – Columbus, OH @ EXPRESS LIVE! – Outdoors
10/2 – Toronto, ON @ Massey Hall
10/3 – Montréal, QC@ Metropolis
10/5 – New York, NY @ Radio City Music Hall
10/6 – Philadelphia, PA @ The Fillmore
10/7 – Boston, MA @ Agganis Arena
10/8 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
10/9 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
10/12 – New Orleans, LA @ Mardi Gras World
10/13 – Houston, TX @ Revention Music Center
10/13-15 – Austin, TX @ Austin City Limits
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