Fontaines D.C. have announced details of a huge UK and Ireland tour, set to kick off later this year. Find ticket details below.
- READ MORE: Fontaines D.C.’s daring comeback single ‘Starburster’ is their most experimental work yet
Announced today (Friday, April 19), the new dates arrive in celebration of the band’s upcoming album, ‘Romance’.
Grian Chatten and co. shared news of their fourth LP earlier this week, dropping the pummelling new single ‘Starburster’ and confirming that it will be arriving later this August.
Produced by James Ford (Arctic Monkeys, Foals, Depeche Mode), the release will mark the follow-up to 2022’s acclaimed ‘Skinty Fia‘ and will be shared via XL Recordings. Visit here to pre-order it.
The new tour dates are set to take place across the latter half of 2024, and kick off on November 20 with an opening night at The Halls venue in Wolverhampton. From there, the tour will continue with a gig at Alexandra Palace in London two days later.
Shows in Cardiff, Plymouth, Nottingham and Manchester are lined up for the remainder of the month, and the final three shows will take place during the first week of December.
The December shows include a gig at First Direct Arena in Leeds (3), Glasgow’s OVO Hydro Arena (4), and finally, a stop at the 3Arena in Dublin on December 6.
Support for all dates will come from Sorry, and DIIV will also be joining the Irish band for the gig at Alexandra Palace.
Tickets go on sale next Friday (April 26) at 10am and will be available here. Fans who pre-order the album by 3pm on April 23 will also have access to pre-sale tickets. Check out a full list of new tour dates below.
Fontaines D.C. upcoming UK and Ireland tour dates are:
NOVEMBER
20 – Wolverhampton – The Halls
22 – London – Alexandra Palace
24 – Cardiff – Utilita Arena
26 – Plymouth – Pavilions
27 – Nottingham – Motorpoint Arena
29 – Manchester – Aviva Studios
DECEMBER
3 – Leeds – First Direct Arena
4 – Glasgow – OVO Hydro
6 – Dublin – 3Arena
The 9-date tour through November and December will follow a summer of extensive festival shows for Fontaines D.C., which includes performances at Glastonbury, Reading & Leeds, Fuji Rock, Pukkelpop Festival, and more.
The announcement of ‘Romance’ also came with the release of lead single, ‘Starburster’ – a song inspired by frontman Grian Chatten suffering a panic attack and accompanied by a sinister and cinematic video directed by Aube Perrie (Megan Thee Stallion, Harry Styles, The Hives).
Reviewing the track, NME noted how the band had “taken a perfect left turn”, adding: “Leaning on the Massive Attack trip-hop noir vibes first hinted at on ‘Skinty Fia’’s title track, ‘Starburster’ is a pensive art-rock beast that fuses elements of electronica and hip-hop more akin to their fellow striking countrymen (and recent collaborators) KNEECAP.
“Bravado meets psychedelia as the frontman says he’s ‘over harder than a turned up challenger’ and ‘the pig on the Chinese calendar’.” it added. “The video, too – a fever dream of blood, animals and a cast of misfits trying to find their way – further supports their referencing of Shygirl and Sega Bodega as key inspirations.”
Speaking about the title of the album, bassist Conor Deegan said: “We’ve always had this sense of idealism and romance. Each album gets further away from observing that through the lens of Ireland, as directly as ‘Dogrel‘. The second album (‘A Hero’s Death‘) is about that detachment, and the third is about Irishness dislocated in the diaspora. Now we look to where and what else there is to be romantic about.”
He added: “This record is about deciding what’s fantasy – the tangible world, or where you go in your mind. What represents reality more? That feels almost spiritual for us.”
Since their third album, ‘Skinty Fia’, Fontaines D.C. have also covered Nick Drake’s ‘Cello Song’ for a compilation album.
In December, the band teamed up with Massive Attack and Young Fathers to announce the release of a limited edition 12” single to support Médecins Sans Frontières in their relief efforts in Gaza. The ‘Ceasefire’ EP will arrive on June 1.
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