Nation Of Language – “Sole Obsession”

John MacKay

Nation Of Language – “Sole Obsession”

John MacKay

Last year, the New York post-punk trio Nation Of Language followed their 2021 sophomore album A Way Forward with the one-off single “From The Hill.” Today, they’ve got another one. Nation Of Language have just announced a big tour with Miss Grit, and they’ve got plans for a new LP called Strange Disciple. Today, they’ve dropped a video for the synthy, diaphanous new single “Sole Obsession.”

Here’s what the band says about the new track:

In simplest terms, “Sole Obsession” is one about knowing when, or if, to give in or give up — particularly, when to untie the knots we tie ourselves into when an infatuation sets in. So many of us have experienced an addictive feeling that constricts us further and further until, hopefully, there’s a moment of clarity that allows one to free themself from that particular compulsion. The title of our next album Strange Disciple is a lyric from “Sole Obsession” which references a character of such a nature, one who finds themself an adherent to a subject that is probably not worth the devotion.

We chose to represent this with an anonymous robed figure that lives within all of us, waiting for us to don the cloak and take up our role, and we worked with John MacKay to bring the Disciple to life in the music video. Taking cinematic inspiration from Maya Deren’s Meshes Of The Afternoon (1943) as well as Ingmar Bergman’s The Seventh Seal (1958), the Disciple is depicted as one of us, and we in turn are depicted as the Disciple.

Below, check out the “Sole Obsession” video and the dates for Nation Of Language’s tour.

TOUR DATES:
4/28 – Baltimore, MD @ Ottobar
5/04 – Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Steel ^
5/17 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Fonda Theatre *
5/18-19 – Seattle, WA @ The Crocodile *
6/02 – Barcelona, Spain @ Primavera Sound Barcelona
6/06 – Madrid, Spain @ Primavera In The City
6/09 – Madrid, Spain @ Primavera Sound Madrid
6/11 – Hilvarenbeek, Netherlands @ Best Kept Secret
6/14 – London, UK @ KOKO
8/11-13 – San Francisco, CA @ Outside Lands
8/12 – Portland, OR @ Revolution Hall
8/13 – Seattle, WA @ Day In Day Out
8/14 – Vancouver, BC @ Rickshaw Theatre
10/13 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Mr. Small’s Theatre #
10/14 – Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop #
10/16 – Madison, WI @ High Noon Saloon #
10/18 – Milwaukee, WI @ Back Room @ Colectivo #
10/19 – St. Paul, MN @ Amsterdam Bar & Hall #
10/20 – Kansas City, MO @ RecordBar #
10/22 – Denver, CO @ Gothic #
10/23 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Urban Lounge #
10/29 – San Diego, CA @ Belly Up Tavern #
10/30 – Phoenix, AZ @ Crescent Ballroom #
11/02 – Austin, TX @ Scoot Inn #
11/03 – Fort Worth, TX @ Tulips FTX #
11/04 – Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall Upstairs #
11/07 – Nashville, TN @ Basement East #
11/08 – Asheville, NC @ Grey Eagle #
11/09 – Carrboro, NC @ Cat’s Cradle #
11/10 – Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer #
11/30 – Boston, MA @ The Sinclair #
12/01 – Montreal, QC @ Studio TD #
12/02 – Toronto, ON @ Phoenix #

^ with Gustaf
* with Reggie Watts
# with Miss Grit

more from New Music