Declan McKenna (Photo by Riley Donahue)
Declan McKenna recently sold out all 16 dates on his 2022 USA tour, and now he announces the extensive 50+ date The Big Return Tour of North America. The tour includes a concert at The Anthem in DC on Monday, June 5.
Tickets go on sale to the public at 10am ET on Friday, March 17.
Said McKenna about the upcoming tour, “buzzing to get this new era underway all across North America this year! We’ll be weaving in some new material on the tour that I’m more than ready to show everyone. Expect Big, Expect my Return.”
McKenna will perform in cities including Washington D.C., Seattle, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Brooklyn, NYC, Nashville, Atlanta, and more between late May and early November.
Since finishing his tour last year McKenna has been working with producer Gianluca Buccellati in LA and in his hometown of Brighton, UK, on the follow up to Zeros. Of Zeros, Pitchfork said “nodding to Bowie and the Beatles on songs about climate change and capitalism, the songwriter roots his political critique in the rich tradition of British protest rock.” Zeros, produced by Jay Joyce with mixing by Spike Stent, is available for purchase on all formats here. He also shared his single “My House,” which features vocals from Rostam and was co-produced by McKenna and Neil Comber (whose credits include MIA, Charlie XCX, and Florence + The Machine)
Watch the official music video for “My House” by Declan McKenna on YouTube:
In late 2019, Declan McKenna headed out to Nashville to record his second album, Zeros, with producer Jay Joyce. By September 2020, he was battling out for a No. 1 record with The Rolling Stones.
“Nashville is a great place to record because it’s filled with a lot of creative people and music heads trying to escape LA,” Declan said.
This idea of a refuge is fitting for Declan, who wanted to be away from the pressures of London or the drab consistency of home, allowing for an intimacy and a desire to explore on this super galactic album that can only really be pursued in a place that is unfamiliar. Zeros is playful, wonderfully strange, and intensely musical, but there’s a dark shadow looming throughout. It’s Coors Light and cowboy boots escaping a Silicon Valley dystopia.
Whilst Declan might have lost that particular battle by a whisker to Jagger and his cohorts on the very last day of sales, it showed just how far Declan had come since his arrival as a slight in stature, big ball of fizzing teenage energy only a few years earlier. The boy most likely to had very quickly become the young man to beat.
Buy your tickets online (starting March 17!)
Declan McKenna
W/ Oracle Sisters
The Anthem
Monday, June 5
Doors @ 6:30pm
$45/$75
All ages