At long last, Warpaint return. The Los Angeles quartet have announced their first studio album in six years, following up their critically acclaimed 2016 full-length Heads Up. Radiate Like This (out May 6 via Heirlooms) sees the band reconnecting from afar, recording each basic backing track together, but fleshing out every part separately while each member was in isolation, scattered across the country. Despite the physical distance and time apart, the band have picked back up without missing a step, if lead single “Champion” is anything to go by.
Co-produced by Sam Petts-Davies (Thom Yorke, Frank Ocean, Skullcrusher), Radiate Like This sees Warpaint tackling the distinctive dream-pop sound they’re known for from a completely different angle, not only in terms of recording logistics, but also in sound. “Champion” lives up to the promise of the album title, seemingly glowing as it builds momentum. The vocals provided by the band’s four members propel the whole thing forward, making it seem like they’re floating a few feet off the ground and have designs on taking you with them: “We’re all the same sun / We’re all our own sun, too / We’re all the ocean / We all look up at you.” It’s a challenge as much as it’s a unifying statement, and the band sound ready to face whatever gets thrown back at them.
In a statement accompanying the single’s release, the band explained that the new track is about “being a champion to oneself and others,” explaining, “We are all in this together, life is too short not to strive for excellence in all that we do.” The track pulses with life, oozing plenty of cool confidence to back that statement up.
Warpaint have also announced a string of tour dates in May and June throughout Europe and the U.K., with a list of global dates to follow soon. You can find tickets for the dates that have been announced here.
Check out the visualizer for “Champion” below, and keep scrolling for Radiate Like This album details and the band’s U.K. and European tour dates. You can preorder the album here.
Radiate Like This Tracklist:
01. Champion
02. Hips
03. Hard To Tell You
04. Stevie
05. Like Sweetness
06. Trouble
07. Proof
08. Altar
09. Melting
10. Send Nudes
Radiate Like This Art:
Warpaint 2022 Tour Dates
May
09 – Paris, FR @ La Cigale
11 – Bristol, UK @ O2 Academy
12 – Manchester, UK @ Albert Hall
13 – Glasgow, UK @ SWG3 Galvanisers
14 – Dublim, IE @ National Stadium
17 – Bexhill, UK @ De La Warr Pavilion
18 – London, UK @ The Roundhouse
20 – Berlin, DE @ Huxley’s
21 – Cologne, DE @ Live Music Hall
22 – Hamburg, DE @ Fabrik
24 – Amsterdam, NL @ Paradiso
26 – Brussels, BE @ Ancienne Belgique
28 – Warsaw, PO @ Progresja
June
01 – Istanbul, TR @ Zorlu Performing Arts Center
03 – Barcelona, ES @ Primavera Sound
