Who’s behind the highest charting debut British rock album of the year so far? That’ll be The Amazons, whose self-titled debut smashed into the album charts at #8 earlier this summer. It also reached #6 on the vinyl album chart.
The year started in style for the young Reading-based quartet as they became the most hotly-tipped guitar band of 2017 according to Music Week. That flying start was extended with continuing support from Radio 1, a debut performance on ‘Later… with Jools Holland’ and the backing of a wide range of print and online media. The Amazons couldn’t be ignored.
Now The Amazons have shared a brand new static video for the album cut and fan favourite Ultraviolet, which was produced by the Grammy nominated Catherine Marks (Wolf Alice, Foals, PJ Harvey). A counterpoint to the band’s more visceral moments, Ultraviolet signposts their arena-filling potential with insistent melody, an anthemic holler-along hook and explosive dynamic shifts. Lyrically it’s immediately relatable too, with frontman Matt Thomson exploring the yearning and confusion which accompanies young love.Check out the single below!
‘‘Ultraviolet’ is about all the things you fill your head with during lonely hours. The silence and the space when they don’t call you back. All the things you want to say but can’t find the words,’ says Thomson.
‘We’re excited for this track to be our next single knowing it’s become a favourite amongst our fans since the release of the album, and also having seen how crowds have engaged with it at our live shows.’
The track’s parent album includes the punk ‘n’ roll rush of opener Stay With Me, the playful rhythmic drive that underpins ‘Black Magic’, and the foreboding grunge of Little Something. Elsewhere, Burn My Eyes recalls both Husker Du and Biffy Clyro with its cocktail of visceral aggression and melodic intent, while ‘Raindrops’ showcases Thomson’s emotive vocal delivery. The album comes to surprise conclusion with the lighters-aloft piano ballad ‘Palace’ which demonstrates another angle to band away from their fiery wall of sound.
The Amazons’ ascent has continued in the live arena too. Their first headline tour of the year was entirely sold-out and their festival scheduled has extended from Glastonbury and BBC Radio 1’s Big Weekend at home to dates all across the rest of Europe. A big moment for the band is set to come with a homecoming set on the Festival Republic Stage at the Reading Festival later this month. The Amazons’ previous Reading Festival performance on the BBC Introducing Stage represented a turning point for the band as local fans and newcomers alike were spilling out of the tent in order to catch their set.
October’s headline tour will be their biggest to date and the first since their album was released. Tickets for the dates, listed below, are selling quickly with several nights already sold-out.
HEADLINE SHOWS
OCTOBER
2nd – The Waterfront, Norwich
3rd – The Leadmill, Sheffield (SOLD OUT)
4th – The Liquid Room, Edinburgh
6th – Rescue Rooms, Nottingham (SOLD OUT)
8th – The Riverside, Newcastle (SOLD OUT)
9th – The Tramshed, Cardiff
11th – Phoenix, Exeter
12th – The 02 Forum Kentish Town, London
13th – Engine Rooms, Southampton (SOLD OUT)
14th – SWX, Bristol
UK FESTIVALS
AUGUST
25th – Reading Festival
26th – Leeds Festival
OCTOBER
7th – Neighbourhood Festival