Fast-rising UK indie-punk/emo collective itoldyouiwouldeatyou have today revealed the video for their new single ‘Almost Zero’ which is released on 22nd February 2019—another incisive piece of insightful political commentary threaded through their now-trademark blend of boundary-pushing indie-punk and experimental emo.
Alongside the single release, the band will be touring throughout February supporting Liverpool punks Queen Zee on their near-sold-out debut headline tour.
“Of all the songs from the album this one is probably the most in keeping with the name ‘Oh Dearism’—” says vocalist Joey Ashworth of the track, “—in that it talks about the influence of the state on the subconsciousness of the people and how that is rarely a good thing. It’s about the effect that having your personality traded and sold back to you has on a person’s self-worth, however subtle.”
The single is partly inspired by a short story written by senior Putin advisor Vladislav Surkov, the name of which roughly translates to ‘An Empty (or ‘cloudless’) Sky’. Surkov often perversely writes work that criticises the political administration in which he plays a key part. In that way, ‘A Cloudless Sky’ is almost taunting his own victims, in that it’s about a populace so brow-beaten and desensitised by war that over generations they have lost their vocabulary for things like colours.
“Everything is either war or not war, for them,” continues Ashworth, expanding on the idea. “I think most of us could see how that relates not only to the people of Russia (and perhaps more starkly, Ukraine), but more and more to the people of the West, also.”
Once again directed by ITYIWEY’s long-term collaborator, the beloved Chevy Blazer, the band’s friends in fellow London collective WORSTWORLDPROBLEMS came along for the shoot, hanging out for an evening spent driving around New Cross, bringing their signature blend of mad energy and adorable exuberance to the video.
“The finished product is meant to incite panic and uncertainty, using only natural light from a moving car and a refusal to use anything to stabilise the camera,” explains Blazer of the concept. ”The shapes aren’t shape-shaped; it’s tonally ambiguous. The video being shot from inside a car is a nod to our cameo from WORSTWORLDPROBLEMS, who filmed their video for ‘Romeo Must Die’ in the same way; a song that, if you ask me, was Track Of The Year 2018.”
Over the past year, ITYIWEY have slowly but surely been assembling a family of like-minded fans and friends across the country. Building on their previous material, the Get Terrified EP and their 2018 debut album, Oh Dearism, were a further exploration of the band’s talent for finding balance within their own sound, as they straddle a range of genres from punk, emo and math-rock to wall-of-noise guitar parts and lo-fi indie.
The band’s 2018 releases presented their most confrontational work so far, addressing vocalist Joey’s experiences of being discriminated against as non-binary and bisexual, while also taking aim at what itoldyouiwouldeatyou see as “cowardly” centrism in British politics.
itoldyouiwouldeatyou’s debut album Oh Dearism is out now on Alcopop! Records x Failure By Design
itoldyouiwouldeatyou February 2019 UK Tour Dates w/ QUEEN ZEE:
12.02.19 – LEEDS – HYDE PARK BOOK CLUB
13.02.19 – BRISTOL – ROUGH TRADE
14.02.19 – LONDON – LEXINGTON
15.02.19 – BRIGHTON – HOPE & RUIN
20.02.19 – GLASGOW – GARAGE
21.02.19 – NEWCASTLE – THINK TANK
22.02.19 – NOTTINGHAM – BODEGA
23.02.19 – MANCHESTER – YES