Veteran Scottish indie depressives don’t seem like the type to throw emojis into their album titles, but that’s what they’re doing. In 2021, Arab Strap’s Aidan Moffat and Malcolm Middleton returned from an amicable 16-year hiatus with As Days Get Dark, one of our favorite albums of the year. Now, the duo have announced plans to follow that LP with a new one called I’m totally fine with it 👍 don’t give a fuck anymore 👍.

Aidan Moffat and Malcolm Middleton wrote and performed the whole album themselves, with some help from their collaborator Paul Savage. First single “Bliss” pairs Moffat’s deadpan near-spoken lyrics with a shimmery, guitar-laden disco backbeat. The track is a lament about online hate: “They said beware of strangers, but now that’s all we are/ Tolling real-time autofiction, reveries with avatars.” In a press release, Moffat says, “It’s about women being terrorized online; it’s about cowardice and bigotry. It’s about how we expose ourselves on social platforms while hiding alone at home. But you can dance to it too!”

In the Ains-directed “Bliss” video, dancer Molly Scott Danter portrays what it’s like to be caught up in this ugly digital world. Below, watch that video and check out Arab Strap’s tour dates and their I’m totally fine with it 👍 don’t give a fuck anymore 👍 tracklist.

TRACKLIST:
01 “Allatonceness”
02 “Bliss”
03 “Sociometer Blues”
04 “Hide Your Fires”
05 “Summer Season”
06 “Molehills”
07 “Strawberry Moon”
08 “You’re Not There”
09 “Haven’t You Heard”
10 “Safe & Well”
11 “Dreg Queen”
12 “Turn Off The Light”

TOUR DATES:
5/20 – Carlisle, UK @ The Brickyard
5/21 – Sunderland, UK @ Fire Station
5/22 – Birmingham, UK @ Castle & Falcon
5/23 – Bristol, UK @ Lantern
5/24 – London, UK @ Koko
5/25 – Manchester, UK @ Gorilla
5/26 – Leeds, UK @ Brudenell
9/21 – Glasgow, UK @ Barrowland Ballroom

I’m totally fine with it 👍 don’t give a fuck anymore 👍 is out 5/10 on Rock Action. Check out our 2021 Arab Strap interview here.