Music | Tickets on sale Monday 28 September, 10am
Indie-dance favourites Friendly Fires are back. Their long-awaited fourth album, Dig Deeper, arrives on 15 January 2027 through LAB Records, and they’re celebrating with a run of intimate album launch shows starting at Circuit in Kingston.
Here are five things to know.
1. The tour starts in Kingston
The launch shows kick off on Thursday 14 January 2027 at Circuit, Kingston, in partnership with Banquet Records, the night before the album comes out. Tickets go on sale on Monday 28 September at 10am, and these small-room shows are likely to go fast.
2. It’s been a long time coming
Childhood friends Ed Macfarlane and Edd Gibson released their Mercury-nominated debut in 2008, followed by Pala in 2011 and Inflorescent in 2019. Album four took nearly a decade of work, with plenty of doubts along the way. Ed calls it some of the best music they’ve ever written.
3. The new single is already a hit
Lead single “Magnetic”, a song about an attraction too powerful to control, has been backed by BBC 6 Music and playlisted on Radio X and Virgin Radio. Fans of the early records will find all the classic Friendly Fires ingredients still very much in place.
4. A love letter to indie-dance
For Dig Deeper, the pair built a huge playlist of their influences, from Talking Heads and New Order to Madchester, Balearic beats and nu-rave. You can hear it throughout: opener “Lose All Your Friends” nods to Madchester, while closer “Wear It Out” tips its hat to Primal Scream’s Screamadelica. Expect soaring choruses, falsetto and plenty of cowbell.
5. The live show is still rapturous
The band recently played an intimate comeback show at London’s Moth Club, mixing new songs with favourites like “Jump In The Pool”, “Paris”, “Skeleton Boy” and “Hawaiian Air”. They say there’s nothing like the intensity of a small, sweaty gig, which is exactly what the launch shows promise.
Tickets and dates
Friendly Fires: Dig Deeper album launch shows 2027
14 Jan: Circuit, Kingston (with Banquet Records)
15 Jan: Gorilla, Manchester
16 Jan: Jacaranda, Liverpool
18 Jan: Wardrobe, Leeds
19 Jan: Newcastle Uni
20 Jan: Oran Mor, Glasgow
22 Jan: Rescue Rooms, Nottingham
23 Jan: XOYO, Birmingham
24 Jan: Thekla, Bristol
31 Jan: Chalk, Brighton