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Each artist will donate a track to the project which will pressed just 100 times each, creating 700 unique 7” records. Additionally, artists, designers and illustrators from around the globe will be called to design special sleeves for each track, making every record and one-of-a-kind collectible. The 700 unique sleeve designs will be on display at London’s 180 Studios from August 18-30, 2026 and available to purchase via online auction running until September 2, 2026.

Buyers may make guesses based on the sleeve artwork as to which vinyl they will receive, but the track remains a mystery until it is purchased.

All of the proceeds from the auction will go towards War Child’s work delivering mental health support, emergency aid and protection to children and families in areas of conflict across 13 countries. Previously, the Secret 7” Auction has raised more than £900,000 for War Child’s efforts.

John Lennon will be donating his track ‘Out of the Blue’ from the 1973 ‘Mind Games’ album. While The Last Dinner Party will contribute their single, ‘Let’s Do It Again!’ which was featured on the recently released ‘Help (2)’ compilation album from War Child. Gabrielle has given her 2001 hit, ‘Out of Reach.’ And fans of The Maccabees will be excited to hear their 2009 track, ‘No Kind Words’ will be apart of the auction. It will be the song’s first standalone physical release. In a post announcing their contribution, the band encouraged fans to submit artwork for the auction saying their “work will be a missing part of [their] catalogue.”

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Also on the line up is ‘Purple’ from Skin’s 2006 album ‘Fake Chemical State.’ Glass Animals will be giving ‘Take a Slice’ to the project, from their 2016 album ‘How to Be a Human Being’ and still, one of the band’s most-streamed songs. And Bastille will contribute ‘Hope For The Future’ a track originally penned for a climate emergency documentary about wildfires which ravaged Portugal in 2017, From the Devil’s Breath.

Artwork submissions for the sleeves are open now on the Secret 7” website. Parameters for submissions are wide, artists are encouraged to submit whatever they like, so long as it is a piece inspired by their interpretation of one of the seven songs on the project. Submissions will close 1 June 2026 at 11:59 PM GMT.

Charlotte Nimmo, War Child’s fundraising and engagement director described the urgency of the 2026 Auction, “right now over 520 million children have had their lives impacted by conflict worldwide. The need has never been so great and it is increasing daily.” She continued, saying she hopes the 10^th Secret 7” project will “offer music and art fans something truly unique to take home that brings them joy when they see and listen, and know that they helped have a tangible impact on children’s lives in the process.”

Listen to all seven tracks included in the project here.

Anti Social Camp is the first-ever songwriting camp in the vehicle of a front-facing festival with 200 recording sessions and ten public events showcasing world renowned artists at premiere London venues.

The event will run in November from the 3-7 in London, with 200 artists being selected from 10,000 applications.

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The event, created by songwriters for the purpose of building community, is completely free for all official artists and event attendees. Alumni include Nile Rodgers, Moby, Cigarettes After Sex, Ava Max, Kimbra, Andy Grammer, Linda Perry, Beach Bunny and JP Saxe.

Anti Social Camp 2025 have Presenting Partners including TIDAL, Splice, TikTok, Believe Music Publishing, PRS, Bonza Music, Distrokid, Sound Royalties, Songtrust, SoundExchange, Jubel, Groover, Two Tribes, Muse, Tileyard Music, Tileyard Education, TYX Studios and Tileyard London. Venue Partners include Samsung Kx, Colours Hoxton, One Hundred Shoreditch, Spiritland, The Victoria Dalston and Sensible Music.

“While Anti Social Camp began in New York City, we’ve heard from creatives across the globe over the last five years who are hungry to unite with their community in person — making records and connecting with industry in the same place at the same time,” said Danny Ross, Founder of Anti Social Camp.

“We’re thrilled to announce our first ever expansion — Anti Social Camp UK Presented by Tileyard. Beyond recording hundreds of new songs, Anti Social Camp is a forum to interact with every sector of the music industry and shape the future we want to see as creators. Now we begin our work across the pond.”

The events and recording sessions in November will take place in partnership with Tileyard Music and will be hosted at Tileyard London, the epicenter of UK’s music industry, and home of London’s most influential hitmakers as well as major labels, publishers, and DSPs.

War Child UK are going to be the charity partner for the festival, helping raise funds to support their vital work delivering aid, education, specialist mental health support, and more to children who live in or are feeling from conflict zones around the world.

More information can be found here, and a detailed itinerary is detailed below:

November 3: Anti Social Music Conference

November 3: Industry Showcase

November 4-6: Recording Sessions

November 4-6: Artist Lounge

November 4: Writers Round

November 5: An Evening With Republic Records

November 6: Anti Social Gala

November 7: Playback Party

November 7: Education Summit

]]> https://www.mxdwn.co.uk/news/pinkpantheress-glass-animals-dave-bayley-kick-off-1st-annual-anti-social-camp/feed/ 0 https://www.mxdwn.co.uk/news/glass-animals-new-song-vampire-bat-the-fifth-song-in-their-fresh-fruit-series/ https://www.mxdwn.co.uk/news/glass-animals-new-song-vampire-bat-the-fifth-song-in-their-fresh-fruit-series/#comments Wed, 13 Aug 2025 14:13:34 +0000 http://www.mxdwn.co.uk/?p=112126 British indie rock band Glass Animals have released a new song this past weekend titled ‘Vampire Bat’. This new single is the fifth song of the band’s Fresh Fruit Series, an experimental ongoing project where the band collaborates with different artists. This series has allowed the band to explore new sounds and musical direction outside of their core album work. 

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‘Vampire Bat’ was a collaboration with Dave Bayley, the lead singer of Glass Animals, and composer and producer Rob Bisel, known for his work with popular American singer-songwriter SZA. The Fresh Fruit Series includes tracks ‘Lost Control’ with Joey Bada$$, ‘Gold Lime’ and ‘Tokyo Drifting’ with Denzel Curry, and ‘I Don’t Wanna Talk (I Just Wanna Dance)’, with Albert Hammond Jr. This Fresh Fruit project has allowed space to push their comfort boundaries, with each release having a separate and unique sound. 

‘Vampire Bat’ explores the duality of fame and the struggle with balancing artistic desire and the spotlight that comes with their career. It highlights the conflict of enjoying and wanting success with the realities of being in the public eye. The song goes back and forth between the ideas of desire and love. 

Glass Animals have released a lyric music video for ‘Vampire Bat’, which visually mirrors their cover art of a fork stabbing a kiwi in a space-like background. The band had used this kiwi imagery while promoting the song before it’s release, referencing the Fresh Fruit Series. The song has a smooth, melancholy feel with a psychedelic flow to the sound, allowing for a close and personal listening experience for the audience. ‘Vampire Bat’ has bridged a gap between their earlier work and the hip-hop-influenced style from their popular album ‘Dreamland’ from 2020, which just turned five years old this past week.  

Glass Animals is currently on tour in support of their fourth studio album ‘I Love You So F***ing Much’. This world tour started last year in North America before heading to Europe and the UK last autumn, ending in London. The band extended the tour this year, coming back to North America all summer, starting in New York back in June, and is wrapping up this leg of the tour with shows in Idaho, Oregon, and Nevada this weekend, August 15-17.  

The Grammy-nominated indie-rockers released ‘Take A Slice’ in 2016, as part of their second studio album ‘How To Be A Human Being’. Although the single failed to chart upon its release, thanks to a sudden surge of popularity from TikTok, it has since become their second most popular song on Spotify, behind their top 10 hit ‘Heat Waves’.

To celebrate this unpredictable spike in popularity, band members Drew MacFarlane and Dave Bayley have set up a new website, which functions as a visualiser for the track, picking a selection of video clips from the internet at random upon every refresh, ensuring a unique experience for every viewer. The website, called ifuwatchthisustink.net, went live today (17 June) and displays the same message upon each load:

“Hello, u stink. I am a product of the internet, entirely made from randomly selected YouTube videos. Every play is totally unique.

“I do not reflect the views of Glass Animals – I reflect the insanity of the internet. Blame the algorithm.”

As well as this, the band have taken to Scarr’s Pizza in New York, encouraging fans to ‘Take A Slice’, handing out pizza, band merchandise and hosting meet-and-greets.

@glassanimalsofficialThanks to all of you and to Scarr’s pizzeria for letting us attempt to cook you lunch. my pizza making was a disaster, but the hangs were 10/10. luv♬ Take A Slice – Glass Animals

Alongside the resurgence of their older tracks, Glass Animals continue to make waves with their newest releases. Last year, they dropped their latest studio album ‘I Love You So F***ing Much’, peaking at number 5 in the UK charts. The album discusses themes of existentialism, inspired by frontman Dave Bayley’s experiences being stranded in an AirBnB during a storm.

Speaking with Rolling Stone about their latest album, he said: “I was in this really weird existential place, and I saw the hope. I had to get out of this doom hole. I was looking out over the valley in Los Angeles and I saw the couples and families walking around. People laughing, people crying. It was like I was in space looking down. I felt like that is actually where we need to be putting our focus – down there.”

The band are currently in the midst of another round of their ‘Tour Of Earth’, which has taken them across Europe and North America since August of last year. This year, they’re touring the USA, playing at Jacksonville’s Daily’s Place later today.

 

 

 

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For more MXDWN coverage on Glass Animals’ ‘Tour Of Earth’, click here.

Mad Cool 2025 it’s here@oliviarodrigo , @KingsOfLeon , @gracieabrams , @NoahKahan , Alanis Morissette, @Weezer , @30SECONDSTOMARS and 55 bands more will be in MADRID between July 10-12thpic.twitter.com/8j0Wj74kn9

— Mad Cool Festival (@madcoolfestival) December 19, 2024

The 2025 lineup boasts an impressive selection of UK talent, ranging from legendary bands to contemporary stars. While no major UK solo artists are confirmed as of now, announcements are still being made and updates may follow as the festival approaches.

Glass Animals are a British indie rock band from Oxford, formed in 2010. Known for their dreamy, experimental sound and lush production, they blend indie rock with elements of electronic, R&B, and psychedelic pop. The band gained international fame with their chart-topping hit ‘Heat Waves’ from their album ‘Dreamland’ (2020). The song peaked at #5 on the UK Singles Chart, making it one of the band’s highest-charting songs in their home country.

The British indie rock band Kaiser Chiefs is known for their energetic performances and catchy anthems, they gained fame with hits like ‘Ruby’, ‘I Predict a Riot’, and ‘Oh My God’. Their music blends indie rock, Britpop, and post-punk revival styles. Their hit ‘Ruby’ debuted at #1 on the UK Singles Chart, becoming the Kaiser Chiefs’ first and only UK chart-topper. The band has recently announced a series of outdoor shows to commemorate the 20th anniversary of their debut album ‘Employment’.

Another exciting band on the lineup are The Wombats. The Liverpool indie rock band is known for their infectious energy, witty lyrics, and danceable tunes. They gained fame with hits like ‘Let’s Dance to Joy Division’, ‘Moving to New York’, and ‘Greek Tragedy’. The band currently has a new album on the way, ‘Oh! The Ocean’, which is set to release on February 14, 2025. The band has so far described ‘Oh! The Ocean’ as their most ambitious album to date, blending their trademark upbeat sound with darker, introspective undertones.

Aside from these indie rock bands, the Mad Cool Festival will also host Bloc Party, a band formed in London in 1999, which blends post-punk revival with alternative and electronic elements. The lineup is rich with other American music acts scheduled such as Olivia Rodrigo, Kings of Leon, Foster The People, and Iggy Pop as the headliners.

The 2025 edition will host over 60 artists across multiple stages, offering an unforgettable experience for music lovers. Mad Cool also places a strong emphasis on eco-friendly practices, making it a favourite for environmentally conscious attendees. Whether you’re a fan of indie rock, electronic beats, or just want to experience a world-class festival, Mad Cool 2025 promises to be a must-attend event with tickets to be found through their official website.

@Beyonce‘s #RENAISSANCE is Number 1 for a second week!

It’s her first album to spend multiple weeks since 4 in 2011

Details https://t.co/oa2XR9BNOo pic.twitter.com/J3Tpm8HC86

— Official Charts (@officialcharts) August 12, 2022

After Renaissance was released on 29th June 2022 via Parkwood Entertainment and Columbia Records, it was announced that Beyoncé had achieved another feat. The singer has been named the fourth woman in music history to have ten tracks position at the top of the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip- Hop chart. Respected music industry organisation Billboard reported the figures this week, the report confirmed that the album’s lead single “Break My Soul” held the stats to place the singer in fourth place.

Elsewhere within this week’s UK album charts, American rapper, Eminem has been named this week’s highest new entry. The artist’s new compilation album Curtain Call 2 has debuted at number three in the UK, marking Eminem’s twelve Top 10 album in the UK so far. The “The Real Slim Shady” rapper’s second greatest hits album was released on 5th August 2022 via Aftermath Entertainment, Shady Records and Interscope Records. The new release is a follow-up to the Detroit act’s first greatest hits, Curtain Call: The Hits, which was released on 2005 and reached number one within the UK album charts.

Dreamland IRL…out NOW. to celebrate we have just released 11 incredible brand new remixes from some of our favourite artists. <3 And…today we are also dropping new Vinyl, Cassettes, VHSs, & CDs. Available from link in bio, or from ur fave record store xx pic.twitter.com/Rm6s4yxXOd

— Glass Animals (@GlassAnimals) August 5, 2022

Making a triumphant return to the UK album Top 20 are indie rockers Glass Animals, the group’s recent release Dreamland has placed at number 20. The Oxford-based group’s third studio album was originally released on 7th August 2020 and came four years after their second studio album How To Be A Human Being. After its original release, Dreamland placed at number two within the UK album charts and sired five singles including “Heatwaves” which placed at number 5 on the UK singles charts. The surge of interest in the album can be linked to its anniversary, last week saw Glass Animals reissue the album on limited edition formats in celebration of the album’s two-year birthday.

Due to their return to the live stage after a three-year hiatus, Artic Monkeys’ album AM has leapfrogged five places to chart at number 22. The Sheffield rocker’s fifth studio album was originally released in September 2013 via the British independent label Domino. The album was proceeded by three singles, “R U Mine?”, “Do I Wanna Know?” and “Why’d You Only Call Me When You’re High?”. Upon the album’s initial release it charted at the top of the UK album charts, making the group’s fifth number one album. All of the award-winning band’s albums have scored the top spot, with their set at Reading & Leeds coming up music fans have betted that more of the Arctic Monkey’s albums will re-enter the charts.

The UK music industry is no stranger to producing record-breaking artists. Leading the way are chart-dominating artists Dua Lipa, Ed Sheeran and Adele along with heritage artists like Queen and Elton John. Adele alone is the only artist to exceed 1 million album sales last year and her album, 30, sold twice as many copies as any other. But it wasn’t just the super-established that made waves in British music in 2021. This substantial growth was also down to the work of breakthrough acts such as Glass Animals, Rex Orange County and BBC Sound of 2022 winner, PinkPantheress. In fact, Glass Animals song “Heat Waves” was Australia’s No. 1 single of the year

Last year, nearly 400 UK artists accrued over 100 million audio streams worldwide, compared to around 300 artists in 2020. The figures also revealed that there were notable artists who gained over 250 million streams yet did not achieve a UK Top 40 single, proving that despite moderate success in the UK, some of these artists will be extremely established overseas. Such artists included Grammy-nominated Ella Mai, metalcore band Asking Alexandria, and Scottish-American singer Bishop Briggs. Ella Mai’s single “Boo’d Up” hit the top five of  The Billboard Hot 100 and was an R&B No. 1 in the US, but peaked at 52 on the UK chart.

Geoff Taylor, Chief Executive BPI, BRIT Awards & Mercury Prize said, “These record-breaking figures once again highlight the extraordinary popularity of British music internationally. This is not just about our much-loved superstars, but new artists and bands from all over the UK who, with their label’s investment and expertise, are able to successfully navigate the competitive streaming landscape.”

The BPI also predict that, if this growth continues, British music exports could rise to £1 billion or more by the end of the decade. However, they do take note of the intensifying global competition and urge the Government to support artists to achieve this growth. “Continued success isn’t guaranteed,” states Taylor, he continues “with sustained support from Government, British music will continue to thrive all around the world.”

Read more here: www.bpi.co.uk

The staggering line-up for Big Festival’s inaugural event includes Rage Against The Machine, Muse, Jamiroquai (exclusive show in Europe), Glass Animals, Years & Years, Vetusta Morla, Biffy Clyro, Nova Twins, Sylvie Kreusch, Morgan, Los Planetas, Lucy Dacus, Michael Kiwanuka, Paolo Nutini and Aurora.

Rage Against The Machine, one of the most exciting additions to this already sensational line-up, recently reunited for the second time, announcing dates for a worldwide “Public Service Announcement” tour in February of 2020. The tour was, as expected, rescheduled for 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, however it was rescheduled once more in April of 2021, and is now set to take place in the spring and summer of this year. The band will be accompanied by hip-hop duo Run The Jewels.

Rage Against The Machine’s appearance at Big Festival will mark their first appearance in Spain in twenty-five years, and will be one of two Spanish dates on their world tour, the second being a headlining slot at Mad Cool Sunset in Madrid. The band will, of course, tour North America extensively, with plenty of dates in both Canada and the US. For any UK fans, the band will be making three stops; one at Edinburgh’s Royal Highlands Centre, and Reading and Leeds festivals. More tour and ticket information can be found on the band’s website.

Andalucía Big Festival is part of the Andalucía BIG project, which aims to be the largest cultural event in Andalusia and includes two other major events, Andalucía Live, a series of free concerts that will take place in the different provinces of Andalusia in the weeks prior to the festival and Andalucía Music Forum, the meeting for music industry professionals. These three new events make up a new way of internationalizing the Andalusia brand through quality tourism, which will provide the added enjoyment of music and all the activities linked to the enjoyment of the southern area, the climate, the gastronomic and tourist offer of the area. This project has the collaboration of the Tourism Council of the Andalucía Board.

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This year’s nominees contain a long list of British artists, including Adele, Dua Lipa, Glass Animals, Ed Sheeran, Genesis, Harry Styles, The Rolling Stones, Calvin Harris, Coldplay and FKA Twigs. Leading the way in nominations are Lipa and Sheeran who have received nine nominations each.

Lipa has been elected for Top Song Sales Artist, Top Billboard Global Artist and the coveted Top Female Artist award. The “Don’t Start Now” singer is up against Doja Cat, Olivia Rodrigo, Taylor Swift and fellow Brit Adele for the award. Lipa scored nominations in six individual categories for her 2020 single “Levitating”. The track sired nods for Top Hot 100 Song, Top Streaming Song, Top Selling Song, Top Radio Song, Top Billboard Global 200 Song and Top Radio Song. The Grammy-award winning artist has also been nominated for her collaboration with Sir Elton John; “Cold Heart (pnau remix)” is up for Top Dance/Electronic Song. Sir John took to Twitter to confirm the news, and within the post the famed musician expresses his excitement to receive the nomination.

Delighted that Cold Heart (@pnau Remix) is a finalist for Top Dance/Electronic Song at this year’s @BBMAs! It’s an honour to have this song with @dualipa and that it’s bringing joy and making people dance #BBMAs pic.twitter.com/i6i6uChYQH — Elton John (@eltonofficial) April 9, 2022

Sheeran has also received numerous nominations for his hit single, “Bad Habits” which has incurred nominations in four categories including Top Selling Song, Top Radio Song, Top Billboard Global 200 Song and Top Billboard Global Song. The 31-year-old singer is also up for Top Song Sales Artist, Top Radio Songs Artist, Top Billboard Global 200 Artist, Top Billboard Global Artist and Top Male Artist. Also up for the Top Male Artist are Canadian artist Drake, Justin Bieber, Lil Nas X and The Weeknd.

The 2022 nominees for Top Soundtrack contain some of this year’s most popular films and TV series. Included within the nominees is the animated action series Arcane: League of Legends, Grammy-nominated duo Bones UK and legendary recording artist Sting are amongst the talent-filled track list. Also up for the accolade is the soundtrack to the film Sing 2, included within the tracklist are several beloved songs including “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” by Sir Elton John, “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” performed by U2 frontman Bono and the film’s title song and original composition “Your Song Saved My Life” performed by U2. Also included within the nominees are Disney musical Encanto, Tick, Tick…BOOM! and the film adaption of the musical In the Heights.

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Another headlining act poised to win big at this year’s ceremony are British rockers Glass Animals. The Oxford formed band is up for Top Duo/Group and Top Rock Artist, and in both categories the band are up against American rock band Imagine Dragons. Glass Animals secured further nominations in two categories with their top five hit “Heat Waves”, which received two nominations for Top Streaming song and brand new category Top Viral Song.

The awards ceremony will be broadcasted live on NBC and will be available to watch via the streaming service Hulu and with a YouTube TV subscription.

The upbeat, summery song which combines dreamy vocals with glossy production has now been streamed more than 1.1billion times on Spotify and has hit the top of Spotify’s Global Top 50 Chart, making Glass Animals the first British band ever to reach the top spot.

‘“Heat Waves”, which is solely credited to Glass Animals frontman Dave Bayley, is currently amassing over 4.26million streams a day on Spotify. It is also the first Spotify chart-topping song since Pharrell’s 2014 single “Happy” to be solely credited to a single writer. Bayley in fact wrote and produced all three of the band’s albums to date.

The song has also been nominated for a BRIT Award for ‘Song Of The Year’, while Glass Animals are up for both Best Band In The World and Best Band From The UK: Supported by Pizza Express at the BandLab NME Awards 2022.

“Heat Waves”, was re-released in March 2021 which featured a new verse by Iann Dior, and helped Glass Animals to achieve US chart history back in November. The song reached number 10 on Billboard‘s Hot 100 for the first time that month, having already spent 42 weeks on the chart.

It was the longest climb to the top 10 in US chart history: beating previous American Idol winner Carrie Underwood, whose single “Before He Cheats” released in 2006 took 38 weeks to reach the same position.

Glass Animals have been going strong for more than 10 years now having released their debut EP in 2012. After touring heavily across the UK, the US and Europe they had their first major success with their second album How to Be a Human Being in 2016, which reached the US Top 20 and was nominated for the Mercury Prize. This was then followed by their aforementioned third album Dreamland, which was recorded after drummer Joe Seaward recovered from a serious cycling accident, reaching No 2 in the UK and No 7 in the US.