IDLES Erupt with Volcanic Love on New Album “TANGK”

With the release of their momentous new album TANGK, British rock band IDLES direct their meteoric will and art toward a cathartic celebration of life’s pendulum swings. You won’t want to miss out when they unleash its roaring anthems at the Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles on May 13th and May 14th.

The ethereal ballad “IDEA 01” opens TANGK, a coiling piano melody descending like a staircase into the depths of Talbot’s disjointed visions of a broken home. From there the album anchors itself to a ferocious plea for love, the erratic funk of “Gift Horse” rocketing toward a rebirth incited by another’s affection. While slow-burner “Roy” wrestles with the necessity of relinquishing yourself, every messy and lucent piece of your soul, to rapturous love.

On the simmering “Grace” they outline for the second time a rebuke of the socio-political artifices — “No god / No king / I said love is the thing” — that pit people at each other’s throats rather than urging them into one another’s arms. IDLES follows it up with a side-winding sprint of ricocheting riffs and percussion that is “Hall & Oats,” another emphatic adoration: “I was walking all alone / A preacher with no choir,” Talbot intones, “And then you came into my world / And set it on fire.”

Those pining for the delightful belligerence inherent to past albums will find their thirst satiated with “Jungle,” a reserved but lyrically roiling with scowling indignation at “lame sovereignty.” Likewise, the presence of LCD Soundsystem’s James Murphy and Nancy Whang on “Dancer” breathes a raucous breath of fresh air into its middle half, identifying both band’s life-blood as an ability to get people fucking moving. Though true to the collection’s resounding ethos it’s followed by the far more hyperkinetic “Gratitude” — a visceral declaration of defiance delivered as extolling thanks. 

Front to back the album bristles with the same bellicose passion that IDLES has served as a conduit for over the years. But this time volcanic vocalist Joe Talbot directs his passion less at cutting society down to size and more toward kindling a bonfire of joy and love. Its songs travail the lofty peaks and hellish abyss of existence with the band’s indefatigable sonic spirit. 

Words: Steven Ward

See IDLES live when they perform back-to-back nights in Los Angeles at the Hollywood Palladium on Monday, May 13th, and Tuesday, May 14th.

Stream IDLES’ new album, and keep up with news on their website and Instagram.

IDLES tour
Feb 29 – Porto, PT @ Super Bock Arena
March 1 – Madrid, ES @ Wizinik
March 2 – Barcelona, ES @ Sant Jordi Club
March 5 – Milan, IT @ Alcatraz
March 7 – Paris, FR @ Zenith
March 8 – Amsterdam, NL @ AFAS
March 9 – Antwerp, BE @ Lotto Arena
March 11 – Prague, CZ @ SaSaZu
March 12 – Luxembourg, LU @ Rockhal
March 14 – Zurich, CH @ Halle 622
March 15 – Berlin, DE @ Max-Schmeling-Halle
March 16 – Hamburg, DE @ Sporthalle
March 18 – Stockholm, SE @ Annexet
March 19 – Copenhagen, DK @ KB Hallen
March 21 – Cologne, DE @ Palladium
March 22 – München, DE @ Zenith
March 23 – Frankfurt, DE @ Jahrhunderthalle

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May 03 – Vancouver, BC @ PNE Forum
May 04 – Portland, OR @ Roseland Theater
May 07 – Seattle, WA @ Paramount Theatre
May 10 – Oakland, CA @ Fox Theater
May 11 – San Francisco, CA @ The Warfield
May 13 – Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Palladium
May 14 – Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Palladium
May 18 – Denver, CO @ The Mission Ballroom
May 21 – Austin, TX @ Moody Amphitheater
May 22 – Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall
May 23 – Dallas, TX @ South Side Ballroom
Jun 10 – Ft Lauderdale, FL @ Revolution Live
Jun 11 – Orlando, FL @ House of Blues
Jun 13 – New Orleans, LA @ The Fillmore

July 12 – Cardiff, UK @ Cardiff Castle
July 13 – Halifax, UK @ The Piece Hall
July 20 – Margate, UK @ Margate Summer Series
July 21 – Cornwall, UK @ The Wyldes
Sep 14 – Asheville, NC @ Rabbit Rabbit
Sep 15 – Atlanta, GA @ Tabernacle
Sep 18 – Chicago, IL @ Byline Bank Aragon Ballroom
Sept 20 – Toronto, ON @ Coca-Cola Coliseum
Sep 21 – Montreal, QC @ MTELUS
Sep 24 – Boston, MA @ Roadrunner
Oct 01 – Guadalajara, MX @ Guanamor Teatro Estudio
Oct 02 – Monterrey, MX @ Showcenter Complex
Oct 04 – Mexico City, MX @ Pepsi Centre
Nov 17 – Belfast, UK @ The Telegraph Building
Nov 19 – Dublin, IE @ 3Olympia Theatre
Nov 23 – Glasgow, UK @ Hydro
Nov 24 – Newcastle, UK @ City Hall
Nov 25 – Nottingham, UK @ Rock City
Nov 29 – London, UK @ Alexandra Palace
Dec 01 – Brighton, UK @ The Brighton Centre
Dec 03 – Birmingham, UK @ O2 Academy Birmingham
Dec 06 – Manchester, UK @ Manchester Apollo
Dec 07 – Manchester, UK @ Manchester Apollo

Listen to TANGK the new album from IDLES below!