At long last Gang Of Youths are making their highly and hotly anticipated return with their new single “the angel of 8th ave.” Released today, the single is the first taste of new music from the band since their successful 2017 album Go Farther In Lightness.
The band have undergone a few changes in those intervening years. They’ve decamped to the UK, setting up a studio in Hackney, where they recorded the new single. Multi-instrumentalist and former member of Noah and The Whale, Tom Hobden has also joined the band; first as a performance member, and now as an official full member.
Musically, it’s not so much a change, as an extension and evolution of their existing sound. It’s still cinematic, ambitious and muscular; but now they’re also channeling some new influences from their new life in the UK. Lyrically, Dave Le’aupepe remains a master craftsman, and “the angel of 8th ave.” is as full of poetic expression and grand emotion as you would expect, but with perhaps a greater focus on the everyday and commonplace. According to Le’aupepe it is about “falling in love, and finding a new life in a new city together.”
To accompany the single, the band are releasing a music video. Directed by Joel Barney, the video was filmed in the band’s adopted hometown of Angel, North London. It features the band darting from the bustle of the station towards the relative desolation of the canal, with a tight close up of Le’aupepe’s charismatic performance forming the film’s main focal point.
It’s been a wait, but Gang Of Youths are back, and we couldn’t be more excited. They’re one of Australia’s premier acts, and “the angel of 8th ave.” suggests there’s exciting things to come from the band post-COVID.
“the angel of 8th ave.” is out now. Keep up to date with Gang of Youths via Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and via their Website.
Header Image: Amy Heycock
