The Dublin band have shared two new songs ahead of the release of their new album All That Is Over.
The lead single ‘Descartes’ dropped in June, along with live shows in Dublin, Belfast and supporting the Fontaines D.C in Europe.
‘Rage’ and ‘Beg’ from the album were released today, along with two videos.
On the themes of the videos, director David Willis says:
“The idea for the videos originally stemmed from Karla’s desire to work with her friends who happen to both be drag queens (Kiki Cult and Hansun Lamb who were both phenomenal). Sprints have always had a pretty clear stance on both gay rights and more specifically trans rights and she wanted to flip some stereotypes upside down by having some drag queens acting like lairy blokes on a night out and terrorising the public.”
Karla says:
Rage:
“I think in the world today, it’s a lot easier to be angry than it is to help facilitate change. People are fatigued, disillusioned – it’s understandable, but we shouldn’t be pointing the finger at those already marginalised and making them shoulder the blame. The world is full of false prophets and false promises; it’s time we call them out. Don’t let the rage bait fuel the fire and burn us all in the process.
Sonically, I was pretty consumed by Dandy Warhols and Viagra Boys during the writing of this album so I feel like that’s seeped its way into the subconscious of the song. The rumbling, desert, garage influence that almost feels like a tumbleweed of chaos blowing across the track in the guitars.”
Beg:
“‘Beg’ is a track that represents a lot of the key motifs, themes and topics we explore across the album. Sonically, it’s a sum of all of the parts, new and old, that make up the sound of All That Is Over. Inspired originally by a line in a Vladimir Holan poem, “Beg” is written in part as a joke, a call and response to the question, “Is Karla Jesus?” that was written atop a moodboard when we were brainstorming ideas for a music video.
It’s tongue in cheek, it’s satirical, and it pokes fun at the idea that often it’s those in positions of power that preach their moral codes and judgments, while committing the most heinous crimes themselves. Meanwhile, the communities often under attack are just aiming to exist and to live. It’s an exploration of the self, sexuality, lust, ambition, but also my own shortcomings and the constant battle to be better.”
NEW Instore Dates:
26.09 – Dublin, IE – Tower Records Instore + Signing an Spindizzy
27.09 – Liverpool, UK – Jacaranda (Outstore at Baltic)
28.09 – Manchester, UK – Piccadilly (Outstore at Night & Day)
29.09 – Brighton, UK – Resident (Outstore at Chalk)
30.09 – London, UK – Rough Trade East Instore
01.10 – Bristol, UK – Rough Trade Instore
02.10 – Kingston, UK – Banquet (Outstore at Fighting Cocks)
03.10 – Berlin, DE – Rough Trade (Outstore at Mikropol)
Sprints tour dates
02.11 – Empire Hall, Belfast, NI
06.11 – SWG3 Galvanisers, Glasgow, UK
07.11 – Leeds Beckett University, Leeds, UK
08.11 – Albert Hall, Manchester, UK
10.11 – NUSU, Newcastle, UK
11.11 – Foundry, Sheffield, UK
12.11 – Rock City, Nottingham, UK
14.11 – Troxy, London, UK
15.11 – O2 Academy, Bristol, UK
18.11 – O2 Academy, Oxford, UK
20.11 – Vicar Street, Dublin, IE
EU 2026:
10.03 – Grand Mix, Tourcoing, FR
11.03 – Botanique, Brussels, BE
12.03 – Melkweg, Amsterdam, NL
17.03 – Loppen, Copenhagen, DK
20.03 – Voodoo, Warsaw, PL
21.03 – Akropolis, Prague, CZ
24.03 – Bogen F, Zürich, CH
25.03 – Arci Bellezza, Milan, IT
28.03 – Cabaret Sauvage, Paris, FR
2025 SUMMER DATES:
25.07 – Latitude, Suffolk, UK
26.07 – The Parish, Huddersfield, UK
27.07 – Deer Shed, Thirsk, UK
04.08 – Parkbühne, Leipzig, DE w/ Fontaines D.C
05.08 – Zitadelle Spandau, DE w/ Fontaines DC
14.08 – Cabaret Vert, Charleville Mezière, FR
15.08 – Congés Annulés, Luxembourg, LU
19.08 – Kunst!Rasen, Bonn, DE w/ Fontaines D.C
20.08 – Freilichtbühne Killesberg, Stuttgart, DE w/ Fontaines D.C
21.08 – Freiluftarena, Graz, AT w/ Fontaines D.C
22.08 – Victorious, Portsmouth, UK
17.10 – Carnavalorock Festival, Saint Brieuc, FR
18.10 – Ouest Park, Le Havre, FR
19.10 – Le Temps Machine, Joué-lès-Tours, FR
21.10 – Paloma, Nimes, FR
22.10 – Marché Gare, Lyon, FR
23.10 – Croc the Rock Festival, Etagnières, CH
All That Is Over:
All That Is Over is a remarkable record in itself – a second album that pushes the dynamics of the band into richer territory, finding new space and nuance but also going harder than ever. However there’s a potency born from the “baptism of fire” beginnings of their current line-up that infuses SPRINTS’ second with a whole new energy. “By the time we ended up working on new stuff, we’d played so many shows together that the natural chemistry me, Karla and Sam had built up over years, Zac had very quickly developed too,” Jack says.
Where many bands would find themselves burnt out and needing a break after such a hectic period of time, in the midst of the whirlwind, Karla found herself becoming more prolific than ever. “There was just so much happening and so much to process,” she explains. “I was going through a big break up with my partner who I’d been with for eight years; Colm had left the band; we’d really progressed into being professional musicians, and I was at the start of a new relationship. But then you’d look outside and it’s like the world has never been uglier. I was writing every day because there was so much going on.”
It’s into this landscape of duality and disparity, anger, ambition and a thousand feelings in between that ‘All That Is Over’ lays out its cards. Its title is taken from a lyric at the centre of ‘Beg’: an uncompromising slice of propulsive punk that seeks the cleansing of new beginnings. Written on tour buses, in soundchecks and very much in real time, it’s an album set against the backdrop of a litany of atrocities – the war in Gaza, the wildfires in LA, Trump’s executive order denying the rights of trans people – that sees SPRINTS trying to make sense of a society gone mad.
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, Cara Magazine, Sunday Times, Totally Dublin, Red Bull and more. Niall is a DJ, founder of Lumo Club, club promoter, event curator and producer of gigs, listening parties & events in Dublin.
