Fickle Friends’ current single ‘Alone’ continues to amplify anticipation for the release of their second album ‘Are We Gonna Be Alright?’ on January 14th, as the tracks that have previewed the album have now exceeded 8 million streams at Spotify. The buzz around ‘Alone’ resulted in an international array of global playlists across Apple Music, Spotify, Deezerand Amazon Music, including New In Indie, New in Alternative and INDIY on Apple; and Indie Stage, New Music Friday and Indie Brandneu on Spotify. That reputation even spread to Japan, where the track was added to Spotify’s Up Next, while the band were featured on NME Japan.
Reflecting the song’s hedonistic house party vibe, the band powered up their amps and shook the foundations of the historic Hammerwood Park country house in East Sussex. The house was designed by Benjamin Henry Latrobe, best known as the architect of the White House and the US Capitol Building. It also has a connection to the history of music too, having been owned by Led Zeppelin throughout much of the ’70s.
Natti Shiner says, “Jack kinda fell down a rabbit hole looking at shoot locations and stumbled across this amazing stately home. We didn’t really have a budget for the video, but spent what we had on the incredible location, and were lucky enough to rope in a couple of friends who know a thing or two about filming.
We knew we wanted to do a performance video, and setting it against the grand setting of Hammerwood Park gave a nice nod to the song theme. We thought it would be fun shooting in a house that is screaming for a huge party but probably hasn’t hosted one since the ’50s. It definitely captured the way I felt in lockdown, in my empty house, fantasising about having all of my friends over and never letting them leave again!”
Fickle Friends launched the ‘Are We Gonna Be Alright?’ album with the single ‘Love You To Death’, which earned major airplay from Jack Saunders at Radio 1 and Lauren Laverne at 6 Music, plus coverage from The Line of Best Fit, Dork and 1883 Magazine. The album is available to pre-order here, and the band’s official store offers exclusive signed bundles including CD, coloured vinyl, cassette and a ‘Weird Years Complete’ bonus CD. A marbled blue vinyl edition is also available via select indie stores.
After playing an intimate album teaser show at the Sebright Arms which sold-out immediately, Fickle Friends will kick-start 2022 with a major headline tour in January. Tickets are available HERE. The band’s previous live highlights have included sold-out London headline shows at the O2 Kentish Town Forum and the O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire, playing to rammed tents at the Reading and Leeds Festivals, and performing at the gargantuan Alexandra Palace as guests to The Kooks.
Fickle Friends first established their reputation entirely independently, touring extensively throughout the UK and Europe before hitting the Top 10 with their major label debut album ‘You Are Someone Else’. They’ve since returned to their DIY roots and broadened the scope of their sound with two seasons of the ‘Weird Years’ EP series. It earned the band widespread critical acclaim as they exceeded 120 million career streams.
TOUR DATES – JANUARY 2022
13th – Brighton, Chalk
14th – Birmingham, O2 Academy
15th – Newcastle, University (basement)
17th – Glasgow, SWG3
18th – Manchester, Club Academy
20th – Nottingham, Rescue Rooms
21st – Cambridge, Junction
22nd – Norwich, The Waterfront
24th – Leeds, Brudenell Social Club
25th – Bristol, Thekla
27th – London, Electric Brixton
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