Courteeners announce 2024 UK arena tour

NME

Courteeners have today (July 12) unveiled details of a new UK area tour this winter –  check out the dates below.

• READ MORE: Courteeners’ Liam Fray on ‘St. Jude’ hitting Number One: “We feel pretty blessed”

It comes after the band recently announced a new album ‘Pink Cactus Café’ and shared their new “feel good” single ‘Solitude Of The Night Bus’.

‘Pink Cactus Café’ marks Courteeners’ seventh studio effort and is set for release on October 25 via Ignition. You can pre-order and pre-save the album here.

The band have now unveiled details of an extensive UK arena tour this winter that will see them play Glasgow, Manchester, London, Leeds, Cardiff and Birmingham. Support on the tour will come from DMA’s on all dates except London.

Check out the full dates below. You can buy tickets from July 19 at 9am here.

NOVEMBER
14 –  Glasgow, OVO Hydro
15 –  Manchester, Co-op Live
16 –  London, 02 Academy Brixton
21 – Leeds, First Direct Arena
22 – Cardiff, Utilita Arena
23 – Birmingham, Utilita Arena  

Speaking about their latest single release via a press statement recently, Fray shared: “This came at a time of real questioning. Things weren’t going particularly well. No confidence. No direction. I think that’s why – whisper it – it’s on the fun side. This is the new us. I’d previously worked with Ola [Modupe-Ojo] on ‘Hanging Off Your Cloud’ and, like then, there was just a magic in the room that was irresistible.

“It’s a summer breeze. But it’s a winter’s night. Either way, sometimes you have to block out the noise. My late Uncle Pat loved a whistle so it’s a bit of a homage to him. Get on the bus; headphones in; go your own way. It’s the feel good, imposter syndrome hit of the summer.”

Speaking about the album, Fray added: “The last record came out on the cusp of lockdown so straight away I went into panic (writing) mode…on my own but with no real plan. I wasn’t sure if it was going to be a side project, Courteeners, solo project. Just songs. Everything was up in the air. So, it wasn’t necessarily a Courteeners SOUND…I started reaching out on my Indie Rolodex as a bit of fun really, and it’s ended up being the most collaborative and rewarding thing we’ve ever done. It’s a real collage of an album, we threw everything into the melting pot.

“Cam & Cones have brought their magic to these songs, along with… to name a few…. DMA’S, Charlie from Blossoms, Theo from Hurts, James Skelly and his percussion genius of a brother – lan, and two of the best vocalists out there in Brooke Combe and Pixey. It’s the most collaborative thing we’ve ever done, and we couldn’t be happier. Four and half years in the making, we genuinely believe it’s the best set of songs we’ve released into the world since St. Jude… we hope you buzz off them as much as we do.”

‘Pink Cactus Café’ follows the band’s 2020 release ‘More. Again. Forever.’ In a four-star review of the LP, NME shared: “‘More. Again. Forever’ strikes a mature balance. It’s escapist in its sound but humane in its approach to the world. It’s experimental but familiar, and tests what the band are capable of while proving to be their most focussed work to date.”

In other news, Courteeners are scheduled to appear at Boardmasters and Victorious Festival in August and were named Band Of The Year at the inaugural Northern Music Awards back in April.

The post Courteeners announce 2024 UK arena tour appeared first on NME.