Swim Deep have announced details of an upcoming album, ‘Hum’. Check out lead single ‘Pieces Of You’ below, as well as new UK tour dates.
READ MORE: Swim Deep and Bill Ryder-Jones tell us about new single ‘Very Heaven’ and their “brave” new album
The new release marks the fifth studio album from the Birmingham indie stars, and the follow-up to 2024’s ‘There’s a Big Star Outside’. It is set for release on June 19 via Submarine Cat Records, and is available to pre-order here.
Today (February 6), the band shared the first taster of the new LP in the form of the powerful lead single ‘Pieces Of You’. Much like the album as a whole, the inspiration for the track comes from a place of determination and perseverance, and carries the message of hope for those hoping to get out of tough circumstances.
Sonically, the track carries nods to Britpop, indie and alt-rock, and gradually builds in with a shimmering guitar riff, and charismatic, hard-hitting drums before introducing the signature, atmospheric vocal style of frontman Austin “Ozzy” Williams.
It also comes with a new music video, which sees the band struggle to plant a flag emblazoned with their original logo in the muddy soil of the rainy English countryside. Check it out below.
The album comes on the heels of a tour of Thailand and China at the end of 2025, and introduces songwriter and guitarist J.J. Buchanan into the line-up. Explaining how they met, Williams shared: “I had found a new writing partner at the full-time bar job: there stood J.J. Buchanan by the barrels of beer kegs we were hauling.
“A sharp songwriter and a soaring guitarist, who brought something fresh to this song and the whole sonic landscape that would shape ‘Hum’.”
After joining forces, the band harnessed a newfound sense of confidence, and found many song ideas emerging – meaning that the gap between their last album and ‘Hum’ is the shortest yet. Thematically, the record also continues where ‘There’s a Big Star Outside’ left off – with Williams continuing to draw inspiration from his time becoming a father, and coping with the loss of his wife’s father.
Sharing how family, loss, and responsibility lie at the core of the album, the frontman shared: “I’ve now got someone to inspire. It’s like, ‘Yeah, your dad works at a bar to make rent, but this is what he actually does, this is what the dream is, and we’ll all live on it together. That’s the ethos on this album.”
Swim Deep ‘Hum’ artwork. CREDIT: Press
Swim Deep have also announced a new UK tour for later this year, which kicks off in Manchester on September 24, and includes stops across Manchester, Glasgow, and Nottingham throughout the month. It also includes three dates lined-up for October, which comprise a show in Cardiff, and two back-to-back stops at the Moth Club in London.
Swim Deep 2026 UK tour dates are:
SEPTEMBER
24 – Leeds, Brudenell Social Club
25 – Manchester, YES Pink Room
26 – Glasgow, McChuills
30 – Nottingham, Bodega
OCTOBER
1 – Cardiff, Clwb Ifor Bach
2 – London, Moth Club
3 – London, Moth Club
In 2024, the band spoke to NME about the creation of ‘There’s A Big Star Outside’, and touring guitarist and producer Bill Ryder-Jones explained: “It would be very easy for Swim Deep to make a synth-pop, Killers-style record that would appease their fans. I think it’s incredibly brave what they’ve done.
“There’s so many easy routes in music – we know how we can get on Radio 6. I’ve got the utmost respect for Austin for writing those songs and letting them be what they are,” he added. “He’s a very underrated songwriter of his generation – I thought that before we worked together, but since then, it became very apparent.”
The post Swim Deep return with new album ‘Hum’, and announce 2026 UK tour appeared first on NME.
