Overmono have announced their second album Pure Devotion, out August 7th via XL Recordings, and shared lead single ‘Lockup’ – premiered as Radio 1’s Hottest Record.
‘Lockup’ arrived after brothers Tom and Ed Russell fell down a rabbit hole reading Simon Reynolds’ Rip It Up and Start Again – a great read – excited by the impulsive rule-breaking of the post-punk era, they ended up sampling cult Birmingham band Fast Relief’s ‘What A Waste’.
The result is an unflinching, immediate track: pummelling beats and chest-rattling basslines wrapped around tender chords. The accompanying video is directed by long-time collaborator Rollo Jackson.
Pure Devotion shares its name with the live event series they launched in 2024, and the album grew directly out of those performances – from headlining Glastonbury’s West Holts to selling out Alexandra Palace and curating Manchester’s Warehouse Project.
The core idea was crystallised through isolated writing retreats to Spain and Iceland with nothing but two synths and an FX unit.
The production approach is characteristically hands-on – synthesisers from the 70s and 80s, an antiquated train station announcement speaker from the 1930s, tape run over magnets, blown speakers, an overclocked FX unit picked up years ago in Bromley – and a crash cymbal baked in the oven covered in coffee grounds, crisps and vinegar. The brothers credit producer Sylvia Massy for that last one. Vocal features come from British poet John Joseph Holt, close collaborator Kindora and Paul Institute’s Ruthven across the 11 tracks.
“We wanted to try make something that captured the physical space of our studios. The vocal isn’t sitting quite right? Let’s track it through an old Tannoy speaker in the basement. That synth needs to twang harder? Let’s play it through an old train station announcement speaker from the 1930s.”
Tom and Ed on the record:
It follows their 2023 debut Good Lies and a run of collaborations with Joy Orbison, High Contrast, Fred Again, Lil Yachty and The Streets. The album release date coincides with a headline show at the Old Royal Naval College in London on August 7th. Festival appearances this summer include Primavera Sound (June 4th), Down The Rabbit Hole (July 5th) and Lost Village (August 29th).
Tracklist
- Lockup
- Knight In Shining Prada (feat. John Joseph Holt)
- Slowmotion
- Even Angels Ghost (feat. Kindora)
- Barum
- Mialon
- Laxbrook
- Gem Lingo (ovr now) (feat. Ruthven)
- Adre
- Ballad (feat. Kindora and Rock Floyd)
- After The Rain
Pre-order on LP, deluxe 2xLP, limited white-label, CD and cassette at overmono.com | Pre-save on streaming
Overmono live dates:
https://overmono.com/tour
22 May – Lightning In A Bottle, Bakersfield, CA, USA
24 May – Movement, Detroit, MI, USA
4 Jun – Primavera Sound, Barcelona, Spain
6 Jun – We Love Green, Paris, France
26 Jun – Boiler Room Festival, Nottingham, UK (DJ set)
5 Jul – Down The Rabbit Hole, Ewijk, Netherlands
31 Jul – O Days, Copenhagen, Denmark
1 Aug – VIVA! Festival, Puglia, Italy (DJ set)
7 Aug – Old Royal Naval College, London, UK
8 Aug – Pop Messe, Brno, Czech Republic
15 Aug – Grape Festival, Trenčín, Slovakia
29 Aug – Lost Village, Lincoln, UK
Niall Byrne is the founder of the most-influential Irish music site Nialler9, where he has been writing about music since 2005. He is the co-host of the Nialler9 Podcast and has written for the Irish Times, Irish Independent, Sunday Times, Totally Dublin, Cara Magazine, Red Bull and more. Niall is a DJ, co-founder of Lumo Club, event curator, Indie Sleaze club promoter, and producer of gigs and monthly listening parties & events in Dublin.
