The lyrics for the 1975’s new song, “Part of the Band,†blow any of the group’s past provocations out of the water. We’ve known that for about a week, after the band released the lyrics alongside a teaser for their upcoming fifth album, Being Funny in a Foreign Language. (“Am I just some post-coke, average, skinny bloke calling his ego imagination?†You decide.) But the release of the song today managed to pack another surprise: It’s actually extremely pretty! “Band†is far from the brash electropunk of a song like “Love It If We Made It,†instead featuring a gentle strings section and plucked guitars. (It might sound right at home on Vampire Weekend’s chilled-out 2019 album Father of the Bride.) That new style is thanks in part to Jack Antonoff, who co-produced the track with singer Matty Healy and drummer George Daniel. (Also helping out? Japanese Breakfast’s Michelle Zauner on backing vocals.) And as a function of that, those eye-popping lines about soy boys and being “ironically woke†just sound … good? You’ll have Matty cooing “vaccinista tote-bag chic baristas†stuck in your head for the rest of the day.
“Band†comes with an equally pretty black-and-white music video of the band performing on the English countryside, directed by Samuel Bradley. (Healy gently delivers some of the choice lines to an attentive circle of kids.) It comes after a poster campaign in early June for the 1975’s return, following their 2020 album Notes on a Conditional Form. The band has also released a track list for the 11-track Being Funny, full of innocuous titles like “Happiness,†“I’m in Love With You,†and “When We Are Together.†Find out what other oddities they have in store when Being Funny is out on October 14.
This post has been updated throughout.