ALASKALASKA Send Their “Tough Love” on Hypnotic New Single

South London-based quintet ALASKALASKA have a new song out titled “Tough Love,” the second single from their forthcoming debut album The Dots, out this Friday, May 3, on Marathon Artists.

ALASKALASKA vocalist, guitarist and principal songwriter Lucinda Duarte-Holman says of the band’s new single, “‘Tough Love’ is a protest and a paradox. It is an invite to each individual listener to interpret however they like.” Duarte-Holman wonders “who gives a shit about my opinions / who gives a shit about my point of view / who gives a shit about anything lately” to open the song, struggling to reconcile the many contradictions of our current cultural moment over nervy guitars, shuffling drums and steadily escalating synths, all combining to evoke both confidence and near-collapse.

The hypnotic track comes with a video featuring animation from Callum Scott-Dyson, who, per a press release, “originally wanted to mirror nature, reproduction and the human body in his visuals, but once the track’s lyrics embedded, he changed tack.” Says Scott-Dyson of the video, “I didn’t think having abstract patterns and things would suffice. So something of a loose structure began to build, based on someone being captured and their thoughts and feelings being harvested into seeds. It went in more of a sci-fi-based direction but all done in very loose, obscure ways.”

“Tough Love” follows lead The Dots single “Moon,” which Paste’s own Lizzie Manno described as an “intensely invigorating and rhythmic slice of art-pop,” hailing it as “easily one of the best art-pop tracks of 2019 so far.”

ALASKALASKA are heading out on a headlining U.K. tour in support of their new album, beginning in Brighton on May 14 and concluding in Bristol on May 22, with a festival set to follow on Aug. 24. You can find tickets for their upcoming shows here.

Listen to “Tough Love” below and find ALASKALASKA’s tour dates further down.

ALASKALASKA Tour Dates:

May
14 – Brighton, U.K. @ The Green Door Store
15 – London, U.K. @ Omeara
16 – Birmingham, U.K. @ Hare & Hounds
17 – Leeds, U.K. @ Hyde Park Book Club
19 – Manchester, U.K. @ YES
20 – Glasgow, U.K. @ The Hug And Pint
22 – Bristol, U.K. @ Rough Trade

August
24 – Lincolnshire, U.K. @ Lost Village Festival