American Football have made a “cathartic confession” with their new single ‘Bad Moons’ – watch the video below.
The veteran emo band are getting ready to release their fourth studio album ‘American Football (LP4)’ on May 1 via Polyvinyl, their first full-length LP in seven years.
Now, they have shared the record’s first single, an eight-minute sprawling epic, titled ‘Bad Moons’. Originally written as two separate songs, it has been produced by Sonny DiPerri, and it opens with delicate and melodically intricate guitar parts, before expanding and careering into a headstrong, frantic jam.
Check out the video, directed by Alex Acy, here:
Frontman Mike Kinsella has said: “‘Bad Moons’ is actually a Frankenstein of two different demos we’d been passing around for quite a while: one playful, with children playing and toy-pianos plinking; one brooding, with guitars screeching and drums bombasting. I had already been singing the “(…) in the dark” mantra over the latter, so the biggest challenge for me was thematically bridging the innocence and buoyancy of the first act with the deep despair of the second.”
“I decided to begin the song as a child. Or, rather…two. Stacked up in a single trench coat; secretly, reluctantly living the life of a grown man, accruing all of his missteps and guilt along the way. By the end, these missteps are almost spilling out of the boys. A cathartic confession, hopefully at least somewhat relatable to anyone listening who’s ever lived a life.”
The news of a new album comes following the band announcing tour dates in the UK, Europe and North America for 2026 earlier this month. The initial run of shows featured two UK shows – Leeds’ O2 Academy (June 26) and London’s O2 Kentish Town Forum (27).
Now, they have announced a second London show due to “massive demand” from fans. The extra date will be on June 28 at O2 Kentish Town Forum and tickets will be available from 10am on Friday (February 27) – find yours here.
American Football toured last year to mark the 25th anniversary of their 1999 debut album, ‘LP1’, following some celebratory shows in 2024. The UK leg featured a date at the Roundhouse in Camden Town, London, and a slot at Manchester’s Outbreak Fest.
Since they dropped ‘LP3’ in 2019, the band have also dropped a new original song called ‘Rare Symmetry’ in 2021, along with a cover of Mazzy Star’s classic track ‘Fade Into You’.
In 2024, the band spoke to NME, and frontman Mike Kinsella reflected on major younger artists like Hayley Williams and Matty Healy being fans of American Football.
“I mean, I don’t know if we’re like a nostalgia band. In my mind we’re not, ’cause I know how hard I’m working to write new stuff all the time and try new things,” he said. “But I’m not sure if people are coming to the shows because they’re like, ‘Oh, I used to love this band’, or if we’re a contemporary band that people still enjoy.”
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