| Born from the womb of Y2K techno paranoia, Death From Above 1979 have been a cathartic through-line since 2001. Touted by Stereogum as “one of the most explosive rock duos of the 21st century” and “a tightly wound mass of fuzz and force” by Pitchfork, the band has survived CDs, MP3s, piracy, streaming and AI slop completely undeterred Today, Death From Above 1979 blast off once again, celebrating their 25th anniversary as a band with the announcement of their fifth LP, Private Lives, due January 29th, 2027 via their original label Last Gang/MNRK. Alongside the announcement, the band is sharing the album’s driving opener and title track, “Private Lives,” alongside a music video starring actor Kim Bodnia, directed by Eva Michon. Private Lives finds DFA 1979 more invigorated than ever before, with sharp and tangy melodies complementing the duo’s signature low-end thickness and eternally cool swagger. “The song ‘Private Lives’ is a declaration of privacy in an era of overexposure. We are compelled, often by one another, to share our most intimate moments and quietest thoughts. To what end? More often than not, to be part of a cheap consumer feedback loop. Ultimately though, it’s just a ripping rock song with maniacal riffs!” the band explains. “Our new 10-song LP, Private Lives, represents a renewed commitment to the pure industrial magic of electricity. We’ve never been able to do anything halfway. Much like Kim Bodnia’s dance performance in the video for the lead single, it’s all or nothing for us.” The band is hitting the road next year in support of Private Lives. The tour, which will traverse North America in the spring, kicks off February 2nd and goes through the end of March. All dates below. Tickets available via |
The invigorating and surprisingly serpentine Private Lives arrives after a rare moment of looking back for such an in-the-moment band; following the release of 2021’s sensational Is 4 Lovers, Sebastien Grainger and Jesse F. Keeler underwent several retrospective performances, specifically a tour celebrating the 20th anniversary of their groundbreaking debut You’re a Woman, I’m a Machine as well as several shows commemorating the 10th anniversary of their second album, 2014’s The Physical World, which marked their reunion after a 6-year breakup. “Playing the old songs every day really inspires you to want to make something new,” Keeler says, while Grainger sardonically adds, “After the anniversary shows, we were at once kinda sick of celebrating ourselves but also re-grounded in the true foundational sound of the band.”
DFA 1979 soon got to work on assembling what would become Private Lives, unearthing unused but privately cherished demos and drawing from their history and experience. Grainger reflects, “When we first started making music, it was as easy as going down to the basement. It was a physical process. An extension of just hanging out and living together. As the years went by, the process became more deliberate. The trick is to remember what makes it fun and special. Our band has always been a balance of sweet and sour. Heavy music that’s also tender and playful. We’re really cooking when we lean into those contradictions.”
The result is a record brimming with megawatt boldness, as Grainger’s vocals are more front-and-centre than ever before on songs like the cascading anthem “Like My Ex Did” and laser-guided hardcore missile that is “Dreams”. He states: “It wasn’t really until Outrage! Is Now that I began to understand my voice in this band. The goal since then has been maximum freedom. It’s a journey.” Keeler is effusive: “You can really hear the confidence in his voice, and that inspired me to make more space for him. We used to try and cram everything at all times, now we can let each other breathe.”
Tour Dates:
02/02 – Tempe, AZ @ The Marquee
02/04 – San Diego, CA @ Observatory San Diego
02/05 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Belasco
02/06 – Santa Ana, CA @ Observatory Orange County
02/09 – Ventura, CA @ Ventura Music Hall
02/10 – Sacramento, CA @ Ace of Spades
02/11 – San Francisco, CA @ August Hall
02/24 – Waterloo, ON @ Maxwell’s
02/25 – Toronto, ON @ HISTORY
02/26 – London, ON @ London Music Hall
02/27 – Ottawa, ON @ The Bronson
03/01 – Montreal, QC @ Theatre Beanfield
03/02 – Quebec City, QC @ Imperial Bell
03/03 – Boston, MA @ Brighton Music Hall
03/05 – Brooklyn, NY @ Warsaw
03/06 – Philadelphia, PA @ The Foundry
03/07 – Washington, DC @ Howard Theatre
03/08 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Thunderbird Music Hall
03/15 – Denver, CO @ Gothic Theatre
03/17 – Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall
03/18 – St Louis, MO @ Old Rock House
03/19 – Minneapolis, MN @ Fine Line
03/20 – Winnipeg, MB @ Park Theatre
03/22 – Red Deer, AB @ Bo’s Bar & Stage
03/23 – Edmonton, AB @ Midway
03/24 – Calgary, AB @ Palace Theatre
03/26 – Vancouver, BC @ Vogue Theatre
03/27 – Victoria, BC @ Capital Ballroom
03/29 – Portland, OR @ Revolution Hall
03/31 – Seattle, WA @ The Crocodile
Track List:
2. Escape From Steeltown
3. Mystery (ft. CSS)
4. Hi Lo
5. Put Up/Shut Up
6. Dreams
7. Drunk In Tokyo
8. Like My Ex Did
9. TV Don’t Talk Back
10. Late Stage Liberal
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