Friendly Fires announce long-awaited fourth album ‘Dig Deeper’ with glistening new single ‘Magnetic’

Friendly Fires have announced their long-awaited fourth album, ‘Dig Deeper’ – listen to new single ‘Magnetic’ below.

The 11-track project is due for release on January 15 via LAB Records, following on from 2019’s ‘Inflorescent’ .

You can pre-order/pre-save it here .

“Attraction is a force so strong it can be beyond our control.

What we want and what we should do aren’t always the same,” the band explained about the meaning behind their latest song.

“Can you ever take charge over something so powerful?” In the glistening chorus, frontman Ed Macfarlane expresses the difficulties of not giving into temptation in the face of undeniable chemistry: “ Take it off/ It’s all I’m wanting, but I have to say no/ Take it off/ When we’re magnetic, it’s so hard to let go .” Later, he declares that “ it’s time to let go, you’ve got to let go “.

There are also shades of Talking Heads , who Friendly Fires have cited as an influence on their forthcoming LP.

Other song titles on ‘Dig Deeper’ include ‘Leap Of Faith’, ‘Gold Dust’, ‘Orbital’ and ‘Catherine Wheel’. ‘Lose All Your Friends’ , the first single from the album, arrived last month.

“We had 100 ideas that never saw the light of day and songs that were finished but still didn’t feel right,” explained Macfarlane of how the record followed an uncertain period for the duo.

“We were unsure about what the point of this was and what we’re about.” The vocalist said the finished album contains “some of the best music we’ve written”, adding: “Doing something truly honest, putting it out there and hoping it connects with people – that feels like a huge leap of faith for us.” Edd Gibson commented: “Our friendship has been led by the fact we’re in a band together and we’re focused on so many other things.” Macfarlane shared: “There were things that Edd and I had never discussed before, like a friend of ours passing away when we were younger.

And then a dear friend of mine also died during the making of this record.” As well as tackling harder, more personal topics, the pair explored the key influences at the heart of Friendly Fires.

They delved into their vast vault of song ideas and stems, and drew on material that represented the best of the group’s essence.

“We blasted back through the archives and reminded ourselves what Friendly Fires are all about,” said Gibson.

“There was definitely a conscious effort to come back to what we were about in the first place.” Other influences across the record include New Order , the Balearic and baggy sounds of late-’80s, and the halcyon days of mid-2000s ‘nu-rave’ that Friendly Fires first emerged from.