Having sung the Afterlife Blues in 2013, Toronto-based indie outfit Fast Romantics are making a move to the land of the living loving with a new LP this spring. Titled American Love, the band's new effort will arrive on April 28 through Light Organ Records.
Said to feature "12 anthemic 'heart-on-your-sleeve' and lyrically relevant tracks," American Love was written and recorded over the course of two years in Toronto and Brooklyn, and produced by Gus Van Go and Werner F (Arkells, Wintersleep, Hollerado). A press release reveals that the songs explore the type of love pushed upon us through pop culture, while also exploring realities outside of these fairytale romances that can affect those feelings.
"I was falling pretty hard in love when we started the record," frontman and lyricist Matthew Angus explained in a statement. "But the songs ended up being paintings of what it felt like to fall in love while the rest of the world went mad. The American election went bizarre and took over the Canadian one, everybody's obsession with social media hit some kind of peak, and suddenly everyone — everywhere — was talking about America. Smartphones were going off like bombs everywhere I went. It started seeping into the songwriting, and now I'm not even sure how to describe it. Is it a collection of love songs about politics or is it a collection of political songs about love?"
That said, Angus says American Love is far from a protest record.
"I've always had some kind of love affair or fascination with America. I think a lot of Canadians feel a push or a pull about our southern neighbours," he continued. "But the songs aren't even really about one country, they're more about borders. So many borders are blurring. What does it mean to be Canadian, or American, or Chinese, or British? We've all got Twitter, we've all got the BBC, we all fall in love, but that doesn't mean we're the same. Or does it?"
Along with the album announcement, the band have announced a run of dates supporting Said the Whale that will take them through Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia. While further dates have yet to be announced, you can find the current itinerary below.
American Love is available for preorder here. Read through the tracklisting and tour dates to revisit the band's video for freshly revealed album cut "Why We Fight" in the player below.
American Love:
1. Everybody's Trying to Steal Your Heart
2. Why We Fight
3. American Love
4. Get Loved
5. Ready for the Night
6. Radio Waves
7. Julia
8. Alberta
9. Kids Without a Country
10. Runaway Girl
11. How Long Is This Gonna Last
12. Heaven's Alright
Tour dates:
03/31 Toronto, ON - Lee's Palace*
04/01 Toronto, ON - Lee's Palace*
04/04 London, ON - Rum Runners*
04/05 Ottawa, ON - Bronson Centre Theatre*
04/06 Montreal, QC - Petit Campus*
04/07 Kitchener, ON - Centre in the Square*
04/08 Peterborough, ON - Red Dog*
04/28 Victoria, BC - Sugar Nightclub*
04/29 Vancouver, BC - Vogue Theatre*
* with Said the Whale
Said to feature "12 anthemic 'heart-on-your-sleeve' and lyrically relevant tracks," American Love was written and recorded over the course of two years in Toronto and Brooklyn, and produced by Gus Van Go and Werner F (Arkells, Wintersleep, Hollerado). A press release reveals that the songs explore the type of love pushed upon us through pop culture, while also exploring realities outside of these fairytale romances that can affect those feelings.
"I was falling pretty hard in love when we started the record," frontman and lyricist Matthew Angus explained in a statement. "But the songs ended up being paintings of what it felt like to fall in love while the rest of the world went mad. The American election went bizarre and took over the Canadian one, everybody's obsession with social media hit some kind of peak, and suddenly everyone — everywhere — was talking about America. Smartphones were going off like bombs everywhere I went. It started seeping into the songwriting, and now I'm not even sure how to describe it. Is it a collection of love songs about politics or is it a collection of political songs about love?"
That said, Angus says American Love is far from a protest record.
"I've always had some kind of love affair or fascination with America. I think a lot of Canadians feel a push or a pull about our southern neighbours," he continued. "But the songs aren't even really about one country, they're more about borders. So many borders are blurring. What does it mean to be Canadian, or American, or Chinese, or British? We've all got Twitter, we've all got the BBC, we all fall in love, but that doesn't mean we're the same. Or does it?"
Along with the album announcement, the band have announced a run of dates supporting Said the Whale that will take them through Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia. While further dates have yet to be announced, you can find the current itinerary below.
American Love is available for preorder here. Read through the tracklisting and tour dates to revisit the band's video for freshly revealed album cut "Why We Fight" in the player below.
American Love:
1. Everybody's Trying to Steal Your Heart
2. Why We Fight
3. American Love
4. Get Loved
5. Ready for the Night
6. Radio Waves
7. Julia
8. Alberta
9. Kids Without a Country
10. Runaway Girl
11. How Long Is This Gonna Last
12. Heaven's Alright
Tour dates:
03/31 Toronto, ON - Lee's Palace*
04/01 Toronto, ON - Lee's Palace*
04/04 London, ON - Rum Runners*
04/05 Ottawa, ON - Bronson Centre Theatre*
04/06 Montreal, QC - Petit Campus*
04/07 Kitchener, ON - Centre in the Square*
04/08 Peterborough, ON - Red Dog*
04/28 Victoria, BC - Sugar Nightclub*
04/29 Vancouver, BC - Vogue Theatre*
* with Said the Whale