Heat Waves” is the brand-new single from Glass Animals. Taken from their fast approaching third album Dreamland, “Heat Waves” is out now on Republic Records. Dreamland will now be released on August 7th, delayed in order to respect and support the ongoing Black Lives Matter movement.

LISTEN TO “HEAT WAVES” HERE

Bursting with all the wonderful tricks that we have come to expect from Glass Animals’ enigmatic frontman and producer Dave Bayley, “Heat Waves” is the introspective summer hit within Dreamland. A scorching, bass-heavy pop-trip, “Heat Waves” is a distorted Glass Animals love song, exploring how relationships can blur your personality and change you in ways you don’t even realize until you take a step back.

“Heat Waves” comes alongside a stunningly cinematic video, directed by Colin Read. It finds Dave Bayley meandering the deserted streets of lock-down London, as on-lookers watch him slowly make his way to an empty venue.

WATCH THE VIDEO FOR “HEAT WAVES” HERE

On making the video, Dave says, “The ‘Heat Waves’ video is a love letter to live music and the culture and togetherness surrounding it. It was filmed at the peak of the lockdown in my neighborhood in East London by the lovely people who live around me, just using their phones. These are people who are usually out at shows, in galleries, going to cinemas, etc. These venues are left empty now, and many of them will not survive. The song is about loss and longing, and ultimately realizing you are unable to save something…and this video is about that but for art, being together and human contact. Huge love and thank you’s to everyone who got involved and helped out. When everyone was leaning out of their windows filming, I felt that same sense of togetherness and spine-tingling energy that happened at live shows. It made the coldness of performing to an empty room with the band stuck on screens feel even more heart-breaking.”

Fundamentally a nostalgic memoir of his life so far, in Dreamland Bayley covers expansive and difficult ground. As a result, the brand-new album is packed full of intensely sensitive and personal experiences, none more emotional than when the band’s drummer Joe Seaward was involved in a monstrous bike accident in July 2018, which threatened his life and that of Glass Animals altogether. Born at a time of immense confusion for the band, it’s an album that truly mirrors the uncertainty of the world today. 

Originally to be released in May, Glass Animals had planned to celebrate Dreamland’s arrival with two back-to-back shows at the iconic Red Rocks, supported by recent collaborator Denzel Curry. It was due to kick-off a busy 2020 that should have seen the band play venues and arenas across the globe, and celebrate the release of their new record with their fans.

However, with all of that temporarily thrown up in the air and being the extraordinarily forward-thinking band that they always have been, Glass Animals have adapted wonderfully to their new situation. From his home studio, Bayley has been creating, building, writing, performing, producing and beyond to ensure the band is constantly connecting with their international fan base, offering a host of creative distractions for people in lockdown. The video for title track “Dreamland” set the bar impressively high for what can be achieved by one person in his London flat, under remote direction. Elsewhere, Dave has recorded and released a series of covers, including a collaboration with Arlo Parks to take on Drake’s “Hotline Bling.” In addition, their first release “Your Love (Déjà vu)” reached top 10 at Triple A and Alternative radio, while making waves with its eye-catching music video (shot with thermal and organic imagery). Check it out here. The band have released Open Source (a website where fans can use exclusive, unreleased Glass Animals content to create their own music, artwork and beyond), aired their own Dreamland TV Network and hosted Mario Kart tournaments on Twitch.