Speaking to NME at Reading Festival, the punk duo also hailed Kneecap for inspiring to speak out about the issues, whilst also claiming Spotify founder, Daniel Ek, is “investing in AI drone weaponry”.

Laurie Vincent and Isaac Holman were speaking after their belting set on the Chevron Stage where they bought out Kate Nash and led the crowd into a “free Palestine” chant.

Speaking to NME, guitarist Laurie Vincent said: “It’s happening before our eyes. You can support Israel openly and not get arrested but if you wanna protest for women and children to stop being bombed, you’re gonna get arrested.

“I think there needs to be a total dismantling of all of the systems, all of the old money that still has its fingers across everything. There needs to be a dismantling of the music industry. The guy that owns Spotify is investing in AI drone weaponry. It’s just all fucking bullshit, and I’m bored of it. I think everyone is.”

Vincent then praised the likes of Kneecap, Brian Eno and Fontaines DC for encouraging other bands and artists to come forward and openly support Palestine: “We took too long to come to the forefront, but then going on tour with Kneecap in the US and watching three of the most eloquent people I’ve ever met talk about it onstage fearlessly and educate us, and show that standing up for people that don’t have a voice is so purposeful.”

He continued: “It’s strength in numbers as well, and its turning round and seeing it, no matter what form its taking, whether it’s Brian Eno leading his charge with his cooperative of musicians or it’s Fontaines DC getting onstage and putting their signs up, or if its The Murder Capital or Kneecap or Bob Vylan – all these people, like Lambrini Girls.”

The punk band also claimed that the media is playing a role in conflict, saying: “The BBC are not sharing a proper view of it. They’re commissioning documentaries like Gaza: Doctors Under Attack, which is now being shown on Channel 4, and they’re not showing it.”

Soft Play are currently touring their fourth album, ‘Heavy Jelly’, which proved to be their most commercially successful release yet, reaching Number Three on the UK Album Chart.

Drummer and vocalist Isaac Holman teased that a new album is closer than some might think, saying in the same interview: “We’re ready to get in and start making shit again. That’s done. It’s got its place in our heart, but we don’t really care about it anymore. We just wanna get on to the next thing.”

Speaking about the direction their sound will go in for the next album, Vincent revealed: “It’s sounds heavy. It’s just gonna be even heavier, more raw, more Isaac spitting bars, more shredding… I wanna push the envelope even further.”

Keep an eye on Soft Play’s social media’s to keep up to date with any announcement regarding their fifth studio album.

Due for release on August 29 and available to pre-order here, the release will feature the entire of the album – including popular tracks such as ‘The Hunter’ and ‘Sockets’ – along with some added gems for fans to dig their teeth into. 

The original album was released by the powerful duo of Isaac Holman and Laurie Vincent back in 2015, when they were still known as their previous name of ‘Slaves’. It secured a position in the Top 10 as well as a Mercury Prize nomination.

A selection of b-sides and demos will be included in the reissue, including their cover of Skepta’s ‘Shutdown’ – which they emphatically performed in the BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge – and multiple tracks from their ‘Sugar Coated Bitter Truth’ EP.

Speaking about the reissue, Vincent said: “10 years since we released our debut album. ‘Are You Satisfied?’ took us places we never dreamed were reachable and it was the foundation our career was built upon. It only feels right to reissue it with our new improved name.”

The new release will feature updated cover art featuring their new Soft Play name as well as a selection of archive photography. It will mark the first ever physical release of the album.

The album shot Slaves, as they were then known, straight into the minds of indie and punk fans. NME gave their debut a four-star review, describing the duo as “Larger-than-life.”

The review gave high praise to the newcomers, saying: “They’ve used their major-label debut to rally the troops rather than just jeer at them from the sidelines. Every song here is a call to arms or an affirmative flip of the table.”

Slaves followed up their debut with two more Top 10 albums – 2016’s ‘Take Control’ and 2018’s ‘Acts of Fear and Love’. After taking a break due to unfortunate events in their personal lives, the duo returned in 2022 with the new name of Soft Play, releasing ‘Heavy Jelly‘ in 2024.

They revealed during an interview with NME that a conversation with Bob Vylan led to their decision to retire the Slaves moniker: “He basically said we were one of his favourite bands but he wouldn’t wear our merch. If he felt uncomfortable about liking us, there must be other who feel the same way.”

Soft Play will be on the road for the remainder of 2025, playing numerous European festivals before heading out on a North American tour. They will also be playing support slots for the likes of IDLES, The Libertines and Slipknot. Visit here for ticket information.

The 10th anniversary reissue of ‘Are You Satisfied?’ will hit the shelves on August 29, with it available to pre-order now from here.

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  The band, formed in 2012 by Isaac Holman and Laurie Vincent in Tunbridge Wells, Kent have produced two EPs and three studio albums with their 2015 ‘Are you satisfied’ reaching number 8 in the UK Albums Chart. After their chart success and strong presence in the British punk scene, the band released their 2024 album ‘Heavy Jelly’ which they toured that year, featuring the song ‘John Wick’ inspired by the 2014 action thriller film series starring Keanu Reeves. The song is said to be written from the perspective of Reeves’ character, with references to the film in lyrics ‘you killed my fucking dog’ and the playful punk hook ‘I’m John Wick bitch’.  The plucky rock duo took to Instagram to request Reeves to feature on the track playing bass for their performance this year at Coachella. This daring performance is unsurprising of the band with how they have redefined live performance, making fun, bold experiences for fans. In their latest performance in Utah, the band proved their down to earth nature with crowd participation which they posted onto Instagram.  

 

 

 

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This nature has strong importance to the band as shown by the political content in their discography with songs like ‘Punk’s dead’ and ‘Act violently’ sharing their anger and frustrations at the world. They discussed in an interview with Louder their thoughts on releasing such songs, stating “We’re not gonna be the band that leads your protest march. What we can do is sing about relatable things.”.

Soft Play have released their new album ‘Heavier Jelly’ today on 18 April– an extended project of the previous album ‘Heavy Jelly’. The album has created a lot of buzz with fans, especially with their song ‘Slushy- feat. Kate Nash’ which had been released previously to full album release. 

The band have shown their process of creating the album with snippets on Instagram, discussing how the song ‘Slushy’ came to be and the involvement of pop icon Kate Nash– singer of the chart topping track ‘Foundations’. 

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The punk duo’s involvement in Coachella will surely be showstopping and fans await eagerly to see the response of Keanu Reeves. To their dismay, the band have not yet heard a response from the actor, but posted a temporary post asking playfully for anyone with a similar appearance to come to the performance instead.

The announcement comes just 24 hours before the Kent double act are set to perform at download festival in Leicestershire and will see them perform 13 dates up and down the UK. Kicking off the tour in Brighton at The Dome, they will then play dates in Birmingham, Bristol, Leeds, Manchester, Glasgow and Norwich before concluding the run with a Halloween show at the O2 academy Brixton, in London. The whole tour will see support from Cardiff based punk band Panic Shack.

“HERE WE FUCKING GOOOO” the band said on their Instagram when announcing their first UK headline tour in six years. Fans will be able to get tickets on pre-sale on Wednesday the 19th of June at 9am BST if they pre order their upcoming album ‘Heavy Jelly’ before 3pm BST on the 18th of June which you can do here. General sale for the tour will open at 9am on Friday the 21st of June.

HERE WE FUCKING GOOOO

Pre-order Heavy Jelly from our store before 3pm on Tuesday June 18th to gain access to pre-sale for our 2024 tour – pre-sale opens Wednesday June 19th at 9am. https://t.co/nSD1ZBA1FY pic.twitter.com/tFQZLPIJbz

— SOFT PLAY (@softplayband) June 13, 2024

Check out the bands full list of dates for their 2024 tour below:

October

15 Brighton The Dome
16 Cardiff The Tramshed
18 Birmingham O2 Institute
19 Bristol O2 Academy
20 Leeds O2 Academy
22 Sheffield Tramshed
23 Manchester O2 Academy
25 Liverpool O2 Academy
26 Newcastle NX
27 Glasgow Barrowland
29 Nottingham Rock City
30 Norwich UEA
31 London O2 Academy Brixton

The tour will follow a busy summer festival period for the punk duo including sets at Download festival this weekend, Glastonbury later this month and Victorious festival at the end of the summer.

The tour will support their new album ‘Heavy Jelly’, which we have already seen four singles from, to give us an idea of what to expect from the album and it’s all been very promising so far. The singles of of the album so far are ‘Punk’s Dead’, ‘Mirror Muscles’, ‘Act Violently’ and their latest release was the very emotional track ‘Everything And Nothing’ which was a bit of a switch from the slightly punchier tracks we saw recently.

Isaac Holman, the band’s singer, said that their latest single, ‘Everything And Nothing’, was inspired by huge losses that both members of the band experienced: ““I started writing the words in lockdown in the depths of a mental health breakdown, my good mate Bailey had just passed away, Laurie had not long lost his partner, Emma, to cancer. It was one thing after the next.”

He added “We demo-ed the tune and took it to the studio, lyrics still unfinished. During that stint, I kept seeing people that looked like Bailey, which unlocked the next line of the tune and allowed the rest to come out.”

PUNK’S DEAD OUT NOW XXX https://t.co/g6x5oxTt5t pic.twitter.com/jL2HfPTzdt

— SOFT PLAY (@softplayband) August 21, 2023

The duo, consisting of Isaac Holman and Laurie Vincent, last released new material back in 2019 under their original moniker Slaves. In December of last year, the punk performers announced their return to the scene-complete with new name Soft Play-citing that the previous group name no longer represented the pair as people or their music.

Wanting to distance themselves from the connotations that their band name inevitably created (the duo always maintained that the name had no reference whatsoever to race), Vincent and Holman opted for the change to Soft Play-a name that will attract far less controversy. Along with the name change, Soft Play also announced, to the delight of their fans, that they would be returning to pick up where they left off and begin making new music once again.

Speaking about the change to Soft Play, the pair said, “we are aware that people have differing opinions on the name, we hope you can accept and respect our decision and not continue the argument between yourselves. When it comes down to it, the music and community surrounding our band are what matter the most and we don’t want anything to stand in the way of that community being as inclusive as possible. Our music is for anyone and everyone.”

“Punk’s Dead” sees the band offering up a tongue in cheek nod toward their name change while also taking a (joking) dig at the people who have criticised them over the decision. The song also features, arguably, the most unlikely of guest singers on the track-Robbie Williams. Williams features during the bridge of the song, with Soft Play deciding to include the pop singer on the track after he expressed himself as a fan of the band and would be open to working with them.

A soft song by a couple of soft cunts. Punk’s Dead out next week pre save it now xxxx https://t.co/NrulZOXlWu pic.twitter.com/FeV9k9mXvU

— SOFT PLAY (@softplayband) August 15, 2023

Soft Play were not quite finished with the surprises however, as, in addition to the new song and William’s inclusion, the group have also announced a last minute appearance at Reading and Leeds festival this coming weekend. Following on the heels of their intimate comeback/warm-up shows and headlining slot at 2000Trees, the group are ready to fully commit to the live circuit once more with sets at the legendary festivals. The band is also set to embark on a supporting tour with The Prodigy this autumn.

Surprise we’re playing @OfficialRandL bloody hell can’t wait for a coupla ciders and a giant Yorkshire pudding if you’re coming see ya there xxxx Tickets: https://t.co/t0cURcXjLt pic.twitter.com/9l7nuq3HmU — SOFT PLAY (@softplayband) August 21, 2023

Soft Play Tour:

25/08/2023 – Hop Yard – Forest Row
26/08 – Reading Festival – Reading
27/08 – Leeds Festival – Leeds
16/11 – OVO Hydro – Glasgow
17/11 – AO Arena – Manchester
18/11 – First Direct Arena – Leeds
20/11 – The Brighton Centre – Brighton
21/11 – Cardiff International Arena – Cardiff
23/11 – Utilita Arena – Birmingham
24/11 – Alexandra Palace – London
25/11 – Alexandra Palace – London

The festival posted on their official Instagram page, “Beyond stoked to announced @Softplayband (formerly known as Slaves) are headlining the Thursday at 2000trees! New name, same songs, same incredible live show!!!”

The band first headlined 2000trees festival in 2017, between releases of their second and third album in 2016 and 2018. Their first album, Are You Satisfied?, reached the top ten of the UK music charts and was nominated for the 2015 Mercury Music Prize. They have performed and have song writing credits with other big UK artists, including Chase and Status, Gorillaz, and Slowthai. They last released music and performed together in 2019, before going on an indefinite hiatus.

The festival will be the rock duo’s first show since reforming as Soft Play. To commemorate the event, the band even said on Instagram: “First gig back headlining @2000trees_festival wtffff. We wanna know what tracks you’d like us to play on the night. Our set is in your hands.”

Playing alongside Soft Play on the Thursday includes big names in rock music such as Skindred, Eagles of Death Metal, American punk rock group The Bronx, and more.

Scheduled to play a plethora of festivals this summer, Hastings band Kid Kapichi are playing a set at 2000trees after completing their 2023 Here’s What You Could Have Won European tour. They last played in 2022, and have moved to the main stage after a successful year and the release of their first album Here’s What You Could Have Won. They said on Instagram: “Happy to be returning to 2000trees festival this year, this time on the main stage. What a festival. What a line up.”

One fan, @ziolipo56, commented on their post, calling them the “best band on the line-up“.

The Friday line-up features Rival Schools, Dinosaur Pile-Up, Simon Neil of Biffy Clyro’s metal side project Empire State Bastard, Prima Queen, and Motherhood alongside headliners Bullet For My Valentine. Kelsey Karter & the Heroines are a highlight, playing the festival after finishing supporting Billy Idol on his American tour. Playing on Saturday under Frank Carter and The Rattlesnakes are Deaf Havana, Black Honey, Electric Six, and American Football.

The other new acts announced include Dinosaur Pile-Up, Hell Is For Heroes, B-Sydes, Bilk, Beach Riot, CARSICK, Congratulations, Clarence, NOISY, Gaffa Tape Sandy, Haggard Cat, and Love Is Noise.

The full line-up is available on the website.

2000trees festival began in 2007, and is one of the UK’s most loved alternative music festivals. The organisers say it is a festival for a community rooted in music. Their manifesto says: “Trees is more than an event. It’s a family gathering based on positive community values. A sense of community, common culture, kinship and collective wellbeing. Music is the foundation for these positive values. Music brings this extended family together, giving everyone a powerful and vivid shared experience. This experience lingers long after the festival is over.”

Final weekend and day tickets are available on the offical website here.

It takes place:

05/07/23 – Upcote Farm – Cheltenham

06/07 – Upcote Farm – Cheltenham

07/07 – Upcote Farm – Cheltenham

08/07 – Upcote Farm – Cheltenham