Julia Jacklin yearns for a version of herself long gone on her latest single, “I Was Neon.” Our second preview of her new album, PRE PLEASURE, out Aug. 26 via Polyvinyl, it’s a fitting follow-up to the religious ambivalence of “Lydia Wears a Cross.”
Jacklin has a knack for turning anxiety-ridden subjects (see “Pressure to Party”) into exuberant pop songs that make you forget the underlying crisis at the core. She realizes the unsettling distance she has put between herself and the person she used to be, yet “I Was Neon” still feels fluorescent. The propulsive percussion pushes a reluctant Jacklin forward as she asks, “Am I gonna lose myself again? I quite like the person that I am.” As the glow of her past self grows dimmer, the steadfast song pushes forward with the same invariability as time.
“I first wrote ‘I Was Neon’ for a band called Rattlesnack, a short-lived, much-loved 2019 side project that I played drums in. I rewrote it for my album in Montreal, during a time when I was desperately longing for a version of myself that I feared was gone forever. I was thinking of this song when I made the album cover, this song is the album cover really,” Jacklin said in a statement.
The accompanying music video was directed by Jacklin and filmed in Melbourne. It feels like she’s taking viewers on a tour of all the places her old self used to frequent, from the charmingly retro suburban home she dances through to the lush, green soccer fields she wanders around. As the video closes with Jacklin under pink and orange apocalyptic skies, the striking sunset affirms that even endings can hold a certain radiance.
Jacklin has also announced a world tour in support of PRE PLEASURE, which will kick off in the U.S. in August and wrap up in Portugal in December. You can find a complete list of her tour dates below.
Check out “I Was Neon” and revisit Jacklin’s 2019 Paste Studio session below.
Julia Jacklin Tour Dates:
August
26 – Stanford, CA @ Frost Amphitheater – Here and There Festival
27 – Pasadena, CA @ This Ain’t No Picnic Festival
September
09 – Austin, TX @ Mohawk #
10 – Dallas, TX @ The Studio at The Factory #
12 – Nashville, TN @ The Basement East #
13 – Atlanta, GA @ Terminal West #
15 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club #
16 – Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Steel #
17 – Philadelphia, PA @ Underground Arts #
18 – Boston, MA @ Paradise Rock Club #
20 – Montreal, QC @ Corona Theatre $
21 – Toronto, ON @ Phoenix Concert Theatre $
22 – Grand Rapids, MI @ Calvin University $
23 – Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall $
24 – Minneapolis, MN @ Fine Line $
26 – Denver, CO @ Bluebird Theater $
27 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Urban Lounge $
29 – Vancouver, BC @ Commodore Ballroom $
30 – Seattle, WA @ The Crocodile $
October
02 – Portland, OR @ Revolution Hall $
04 – San Francisco, CA @ The Fillmore $
05 – Solana Beach, CA @ Belly Up Tavern $
07 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Fonda Theatre $
08 – Phoenix, AZ @ Crescent Ballroom $
November
03 – Dublin, Ireland @ Vicar Street &
05 – Glasgow, Scotland @ SWG3 TV Studio &
06 – Manchester, UK @ The Ritz &
07 – Birmingham, UK @ The Mill &
09 – Bristol, UK @ SWX &
10 – Brighton, UK @ Chalk &
11 – London, UK @ Roundhouse &
13 – Paris, France @ La Maroquinerie &
14 – Antwerp, Belgium @ Trix Club &
15 – Cologne, Germany @ Club Bahnhof Ehrenfeld &
17 – Amsterdam, Netherlands @ Paradiso &
18 – Hamburg, Germany @ Knust &
20 – Oslo, Norway @ Parkteatret &
21 – Stockholm, Sweden @ Slaktkyrkan &
22 – Copenhagen, Denmark @ Dr Koncerthuset &
24 – Berlin, Germany @ Columbia Theatre &
25 – Munich, Germany @ Strom &
26 – Zurich, Switzerland @ Plaza &
27 – Milan, Italy @ Magnolia &
29 – Barcelona, Spain @ Apolo &
30 – Madrid, Spain @ SalaMon &
December
01 – Lisbon, Portugal @ Lav &
(# – w/ Kara Jackson)
($ – w/ Katy Kirby)
(& – w/ Erin Rae)
