July Talk

'Touch' (album stream)

BY Sarah MurphyPublished Sep 2, 2016

July Talk took their self-titled debut album to impressive heights, pushing out an expanded version and reissuing it for international audiences, and now they're ready to deliver the highly anticipated follow-up.
 
Touch arrives as the band graces the cover of Exclaim!'s September issue, and it features previously shared singles "Push + Pull" and "Strange Habit."
 
Following the roll out of those tracks, Exclaim! is giving you a preview of the album in its entirety. Kicking off with "Picturing Love," taking listeners through the tales of "Johnny + Mary" and "Lola + Joseph," then wrapping it all up with the title track, the album is an exploration of what it means to connect to one another in the modern age.
 
The ten new songs hear the band attempting to bring their explosive, visceral live shows into recorded form, offering listeners a sense of real connection and an antidote to a mirror and screen obsessed world.

Bassist Josh Warburton recently told Exclaim! that the band tried out a variety of styles — writing "country tunes, straight-up pop tunes, all kids of different variations of music that we love" — but ultimately knew what direction they wanted to take things in after hitting on "Push + Pull" and "Strange Habit."
 
"There's danceability but there's also this darkness," guitarist and singer Peter Dreimanis explained. "The songs all had to contain a certain amount of darkness while still moving your muscles uncontrollably."
 
Hear that raucous live energy translate into July Talk's sophomore LP. Touch is officially out on September 9 via Sleepless Records/Island, but you can give it an early spin right now. Just scroll past the group's busy upcoming tour schedule and hit play.
 
Tour dates:
 
09/03-04 Edmonton, AB - Sonic Boom Festival
09/03-04 Calgary, AB - XFest
09/07 Amsterdam, Netherlands - Paradiso
09/08 Groningen, Netherlands - Vera
09/09 Tiel, Netherlands - Applepop
09/10 Enschede, Netherlands - Atak (Saxion Hall)
09/11 Rotterdamn, Netherlands - Rotown
09/13 Glasgow, UK - King Tuts
09/14 Manchester, UK - Sound Control Bar
09/15 London, UK - Barfly
09/17 Munster, Germany - Gleis 22
09/19 Berlin, Germany - Lido
09/20 Munich, Germany - Strom
09/21 Wiesbaden, Germany - Schlachthof
09/22 Cologne, Germany - Underground
09/23 Hamburg, Germany - Reeperbahn Festival
09/26 Los Angeles, CA – Fonda *
09/27 Phoenix, AZ - Valley Bar  *
09/29 Denver, CO - Marquis Theatre *
10/02 Austin, TX - Austin City Limits
10/03 Dallas, TX - Cambridge Room*
10/05 New Orleans, LA - Gasa Gasa
10/07 Houston, TX - Bronze Peacock
10/09 Austin, TX - Austin City Limits
10/10 Kansas City, MO - Record Bar *
10/11 Minneapolis, MN - Fine Line  *
10/12 Milwaukee, WI - The Rave *
10/13 Grand Rapids, MI - Founders Brewing Co.
10/15 Indianapolis, IN - Deluxe *
10/17 Columbus, OH - A&R Bar  *
10/25 Waterloo, ON - Maxwell's
10/26 London, ON - London Music Hall
10/28 Toronto, ON - Danforth Music Hall
10/29 Toronto, ON - Danforth Music Hall
10/30 Montreal, QC - Café Campus
10/31 Ottawa, ON - Algonquin Theatre
11/03 Washington, DC - DC9
11/04 Pittsburgh, PA - Rex Theatre
11/05 Philadelphia, PA - Boot & Saddle
11/06 Cleveland, OH - Grog Shop
11/09 Chicago, IL - Subterranean
11/12 Salt Lake City, UT - Kilby Court
11/16 San Diego, CA - The Casbah
11/17 Costa Mesa, CA - The Wayfarer
11/19 San Francisco, CA - Bottom of the Hill
11/21 Portland, OR - Doug Fir Lounge
11/22 Seattle, WA - Sunset Tavern
11/23 Vancouver, BC - Commodore Ballroom
11/25 Vancouver, BC - Commodore Ballroom
11/26 Victoria, BC - Sugar Nightclub
12/06 Saskatoon, SK - Louis'
12/07 Winnipeg, MB - Garrick Centre
12/13 Burlington, VT - Higher Ground
12/14 Boston, MA - Great Scott
12/16 Buffalo, NY - Town Ballroom
 
^ with Kongos
* with Nothing But Thieves

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