About a year ago, Black Midi was a mysterious new UK band that nobody really knew anything about. They didn’t have any music available online, and even their identities weren’t fully known. Then, they became very popular in their homeland, and among fans of math rock, after they performed at the Kex Hostel in Reykjavik during Iceland Airwaves 2018, for KEXP. The band earned further acclaim stateside at this year’s South By Southwest, and now their legend continues to grow.
Black Midi signed to Rough Trade earlier this year, and along with that announcement, they shared their first single on the label, “Speedway.” Now the group is back with their second new track of the year, “Crow’s Perch.” The song begins with a relatively tame bass line before some soft guitar strums come in, and for a minute, it sounds like this song could end up being a relaxed affair. Instead, this is just the calm before the storm: Jittery rhythms and waves of intensity take over for the rest of the track, which rewards listeners ready for something unexpected and appealingly different.
Viewers should be aware that the band included a strobe warning for the song’s video, a visually busy clip that was directed by Vilhjálmur Yngvi Hjálmarsson (aka susan_creamcheese).
Black Midi has been tight-lipped about what their plans are for upcoming material. The band’s Cameron Picton said in a new interview that “Crow’s Perch” comes from a recording session the group did towards the end of 2018, which yielded “a bunch of recordings,” none of which have been released yet. When asked if those songs were part of an album, Geordie Greep said, “Yeah… I’m not sure about that. We’ll see.”
Check out the band’s upcoming tour dates below.
4/06 — Brussels, BE @ BRDCST
4/20 — Rotterdam, NL @ Motel Mozaique
5/05 — Manchester, UK @ Sounds From The Other City
5/09-11 — Brighton, UK @ The Great Escape Festival
5/25 — Totnes, UK @ Sea Change
5/30 — Nimes, FR @ This Is Not A Love Song Festival
5/31 — Düdingen, CH @ Bad Bonn Kilbi
6/01 — Neustrelitz, DE @ Immergut Festival
6/05-06 — Gothenburg, SE @ Garden Festival
6/08-09 — Paris, FR @ Villette Sonique
6/10 — Moers, DE @ Moers Festival
6/15 — Bergen, NO @ Bergenfest
6/18 — London, UK @ EartH (Concert Hall)
6/20 — Bristol, UK @ Fiddlers
6/21 — Liverpool, UK @ Phase One
6/22 — Glasgow, UK @ Mono
6/23 — Nottingham, UK @ Contemporary Space
7/05 — Roskilde, DK @ Roskilde Festival
7/05-07 — Moscow, RU @ Bolь Festival
7/12 — Madrid, ES @ Mad Cool Festival
7/14 — Nijmegen, NL @ Valkhof Festival
7/18 — New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom
7/21 — Chicago, IL @ Pitchfork Music Festival
7/22 — Minneapolis, MN @ 7th Street Entry
7/23 — Madison, WI @ The Terrace at University of Wisconsin
7/26 — Hyéres, FR @ Midi Festival
8/02-04 — Katowice, PL @ Off Festival
8/04 — Waterford, IE @ All Together Now
8/08-10 — Rees Haldern, DE @ Haldern Pop
8/10 — Oslo, NO @ Øya Festival
8/16 — Viana do Castelo, PT @ Paredes de Coura
8/16-18 — Biddinghuizen, NL @ Lowlands Festival
8/24 — Gueret, DR @ Check In Party
8/29-9/01 — Dorset, UK @ End of the Road Festival
9/19 — Paris, FR @ La Boule Noire
10/07 — Berlin, DE @ Lido
10/08 — Hamburg, DE @ Kampnagel
10/09 — Cologne, DE @ Bumann & Sohn
