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Both bands announced the concert today on social media, along with another one in Montreal, Canada. The UK night is going to be held at at the OVO Wembley Arena in London on the 24th of June, with Alexisonfire playing ‘Crisis’ and Billy Talent playing ‘II’ in full, to what will certainly be a maximum capacity crowd of 12,500.

Both bands were founded in the Ontario province in Canada, with Billy Talent being the older group, having formed in 1991 under the name Pezz. Though they released three self-titled albums after renaming, ‘Billy Talent II’ was their best remembered and received the best scores from review sites. Packed full of angst, it walked the line between anthemic rock and rebellious punk, not quite pigeonholing itself into either. Singles like ‘Fallen Leaves’, ‘Red Flag’ and ‘Devil In A Midnight Mass’ were a hit with rock radio stations, and the band earned themselves a Juno Award for best rock album, one of Canada’s most prestigious prizes.

Alexisonfire formed later in 2001, but following on from strong second album ‘Watch Out!’ in 2004 led them to a defining album in the rock and hardcore scene in ‘Crisis’. Sometimes described as “pop screamo”, their sound was a mixture of hardcore punk with George Pettit’s harsh vocals, and very raw emotional rock built around Dallas Green’s hauntingly beautiful singing. The singles ‘Boiled Frogs’ and ‘This Could Be Anywhere In The World’ are still hugely popular today, with the album being cited as inspiration to many of the Canadian scene’s later albums by artists like Cancer Bats and Silverstein.

Both albums reached number one in Canada’s Album Chart and became a large part of each band’s legacy. Fittingly, Liam Cormier of Cancer Bats was quoted in a now-deleted article as saying “everyone will always remember Alexisonfire and Billy Talent as the two bands that brought heavy music to the forefront and broke that scene wide open in this country.” Also rather appropriately, both bands released their last albums in 2022, and both are currently in the studio writing new music, with Alexisonfire only documenting their recording sessions earlier this week.

In a post on Instagram, Alexisonfire stated that the tour will feature both albums played front-to-back, with the headliner alternating – they will headline London while Billy Talent will play last in Montreal. US post-hardcore stars Touché Amoré will be opening the evening at the Wembley Arena. Pre-sale starts tomorrow at 10AM, general sale follows this Friday also at 10AM, with both Alexisonfire and Billy Talent providing ticket links and passwords on their Instagram posts. Alexisonfire will also be performing ‘Crisis’ in full when they headline the Saturday at this year’s Outbreak Fest, which runs from the 26th to the 28th of June at Manchester’s B.E.C Arena.

The group includes founding member and guitarist/vocalist Murray Lightburn and vocalist/pianist Natalia Yanchak, the husband and wife duo have remained at the helm since its formation in the 90s. After The Dears released their debut album in 2000, they quickly amassed a loyal following and received praise from critics and fans alike. Entitled End Of A Hollywood Bedtime Story, the album caught the attention of music fans and The Dears were placed at the forefront of a resurgence of popularity for Indie rock in Canada. The group’s recent release marked their eighth studio album, Lovers Rock was released in 2020 and was met with critical acclaim and rave reviews.

On tour this fall… https://t.co/j5lKBfM252

— Natalia Yanchak (@nataliayanchak) May 20, 2022

The band had initially planned to tour in support of Lovers Rock two years ago but due to COVID and the subsequent lockdowns, they were forced to postpone any live performances of its material.  Speaking in a press release, Yanchak has given the following statement, “After all this time, the re-re-scheduling of tour dates and the re-re-re-anticipation of playing shows — it’s a little hard to believe these shows are finally going to happen. We originally released ‘Lovers Rock’ in 2020. It was an album we were, and are still, very proud of. So it was hard to put out a record and then not play a single one of those songs live. We did a streaming show, but it’s just not the same as being in the same sweaty club, all together.”

The album saw Lightburn and Yanchak work with long-time drummer Jeff Luciani, guitarist Steve Raegele and bassist Remi-Jean LeBlanc. Along with a full-string section, Lovers Rock features E Street Band’s Jake Clemons and Alex Francoeur on saxophone. Also included in the album is Sam Roberts, the fellow Montréal-based musician also known for his work within Canada’s indie rock scene.

Lightburn gives the following statement concerning the group, “The Dears aren’t fucking around, We don’t have time to waste. We’ve got a job to do. And we’re going to do it. 20 years ago, I knew I had a sound in my head, but I didn’t know how to get that down. Now I know how to get that sound. The question we’re asking in the music is, ‘how do we navigate so much bullshit in this world?’, We’re still playing this dumb rock music. But there’s always gonna be a little twist of the knife, cutting into something deep to make you feel like you’re alive. To say, ‘I know what you’re going through. And I’m hearing you, and I’m with you.’ That’s what the music is supposed to do.”

The Dears’ six-date UK tour kicks off on 30th September 2022 with a set at Cambridge’s Portland Arms, the band will then play Liverpool’s Zanzibar on 1st October 2022. After a set in Manchester on 4th October 2022, the group will perform in the capital at Highbury’s The Garage with support from Perfect Son. The tour concludes with a performance at Bristol’s Exchange on 6th October 2022, click here to purchase tickets.

The Dears UK tour dates

30/09/2022 – Portland Arms – Cambridge
01/10 – Zanzibar – Liverpool
02/10 – Hug & Pint – Glasgow
04/10 – Deaf Institute – Manchester
05/10 – The Garage – London
06/10 – Exchange – Bristol

Photo Credit: Misael Hiram

Among the artists that will feature on Suddenly Remixes is UK’s hot artist Four Tet on his version of the track Never Come Back. Among the artists who will feature for the first time on the new album are Toro y Moi, Jessy Lanza, Prince Nifty, and Koreless, all who have produced remixes for Never Come Back, Home, You and I and others.

When discussing the upcoming Suddenly Remixes, Caribou stated that, ‘Sometimes remixes are commissioned to be marketing tools or to make the music functional in a club. But for me, there’s only one reason to get remixes done: because I’m a giddy fan of the remixer. Looking down the tracklisting of this remix album, it’s a thrill to see a list of producers whose music I find so inspiring collected there. Some are established artists, some are just starting out; some I messaged, begging a remix, right after coming across their music for the first time; and some are dear friends whose music I’ve loved for a while—but in every case, I feel very lucky to hear their music and mine connected on this remix album.

The original album Suddenly was released Februrary 28th, 2020 and in October of that year, Caribou released the first round of remixes for the album via EP. The remixed EP consisted of two remixes for the song Sunny’s Time, one by Kareem Ali and the other by Logic1000.

Like I Loved You by India Jordan and Shanti Celeste produced Ravi. The remixed singles Sister and Never Come Back were however released 3 months earlier, which was the beginning of the long slew of remixes to come for Caribou in the years 2020 and 2021.

Suddenly Remixes Tracklist:

01 Never Come Back (Koreless Remix)
02 Never Come Back (Four Tet Remix)
03 Home (Toro y Moi Remix)
04 Sunny’s Time (Logic1000 Remix)
05 Sister (Floating Points Remix)
06 Ravi (Shanti Celeste Remix)
07 You and I (Jessy Lanza Mix)
08 Sunny’s Time (Prince Nifty Saddle Up Mix)
09 Never Come Back (Floating Points Remix)
10 Never Come Back (Morgan Geist Remix)
11 Sunny’s Time (Kareem Ali Remix)
12 Like I Loved You (India Jordan Remix)

The remixed EP consisted of two remixes for the song Sunny’s Time, one by producer Kareem Ali and the other by Logic1000. Like I Loved You was mixed by India Jordan and Shanti Celeste produced the mix for Ravi. The remixed singles Sister and Never Come Back were however released 3 months ago and likely inspired Caribou to continue this mixed-up idea in the form of the EP that released today.

The album Suddenly was the Canadian-composer’s first released full-length album in 6 years and dealt with themes of the reality of love over an electronica dream-pop sound. Though mixed by various producers, tracks on the new remixed EP only enhance the neo-psychedelic/folk-tronica sound that the artist is so well-known for.

Caribou is critically acclaimed for his unique instrumentation on his various albums, beginning in 2005 with the break-out album The Milk of Human Kindness, and has been awarded multiple Polaris Music Prizes for his work. Suddenly, the Polaris Music Prize’s 2020 shortlist nominee, is now among the long list of his musical accomplishments.

The typical live concert for Caribou would include the performance musicians, Ryan Smith, Brad weber, John Schmersal and Snaith himself on percussion. A Caribou show is unique in that audience members are shown complex video projections on a very large screen behind the performers. The artist is known for these artistic projections and every music video that has been released has strictly been set to these.

Fans however were disappointed when Caribou was forced to announce this July that all 2020 UK tour dates were cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic safety concerns. However, tickets bought for those shows will be valid for the rescheduled 2021 tour that will take place throughout the month of May next year.

It is currently unclear is Caribou will perform the new remixes and/or if it will include the original album tracks off Suddenly. The newest remixed EP is available today on all streaming platforms and videos with Caribou’s unique projections are available on YouTube today as well. Tickets are on sale for the upcoming UK Tour but fans are encouraged to purchase quickly as they are rapidly selling out.

Caribou UK and Paris Tour Dates:

06/05/2021 – L’Olympia – Paris, France
08/05 – Invisible Wind Factory – Liverpool
09/05 – O2 Academy – Birmingham
10/05 – O2 Academy Brixton – London
11/05 – O2 Academy – Bristol
12/05 –  Barrowland – Glasgow
13/05 – O2 Academy – Leeds
14/05 – Academy 1 – Manchester
16/05 – The Dome – Brighton