Those who’ve listened the April edition of Philthy Radio (now streaming via Y-Not Radio) recently heard “Viking Hair,” an early single from South London post-punk quartet Dry Cleaning, which can be found on the band’s 2019 sophomore EP, Boundary Road Snacks and Drinks. Those listeners also heard me discussing Dry Cleaning’s upcoming return to Union Transfer, which they headline this coming Wednesday, May 6th, a show originally scheduled for February 1st before the group was forced to reschedule their North American tour.
The North American jaunt comes in support of Secret Love, Dry Cleaning’s third LP, which dropped this January on longtime home 4AD and features our buddy Cate Le Bon handling production duties (in addition to synthesizer and programmed drums on a number of tracks). The album, the first of the band’s not to be produced by John Parish (This Is the Kit, Aldous Harding, Jesca Hoop), features vocalist/lyricist Florence Shaw incorporating more singing into her traditionally spoken word deliveries than ever and includes some of Dry Cleaning’s best work to date (videos for the best of which can be seen here).
“I think this might be my favorite record of theirs so far, and I think this match up between great producer, great band, finding the same wavelength, has taken them to a new level,” said NPR Music’s Sheldon Pearce of Dry Cleaning’s third full-length, while Pitchfork wrote, “With each album serving as one big swing above home plate, Dry Cleaning use their third LP, Secret Love, to confirm they’ve got one of the most consistent batting averages in modern post-punk.”
In late March, ahead of their nearly-month-long, rescheduled North American tour, Dry Cleaning dropped stand-alone single “Sliced by a Fingernail.” Shaw explains, via the band’s most recent press release, that this follow-up to Secret Love – which is accompanied by an official visualizer courtesy of BULLYACHE, who are responsible for the choreography of all of the Secret Love videos – revolves around a protagonist who hates attention.
“A lot of attention makes them feel sliced up. So they fantasise about being hidden inside a huge flower bud and about being anonymous in a crowd at night. The image of a brown mark from a finger nail pressed into a petal inspired some of the lyrics. I thought about peony buds not opening and then browning, and their tightness. The lyrics were also inspired by illustrator Jooyoung Kim’s picture book about a dog who has a long body, called ‘Welcome to My Life’.”
Last night Dry Cleaning kicked off their rescheduled North American run at Thalia Hall in Chicago with a 20-song set that began with “Sliced by a Fingernail” and featured all 11 of Secret Love’s tracks, in addition to handfuls from the band’s first two LPs and 2018 debut EP, Sweet Princess. Get tickets to see Dry Cleaning’s current show May 6th at Union Transfer below and check out Morgan Kelley’s pics from the first time the band headlined the venue, in February of 2023 while touring behind sophomore LP Stumpwork.
*Get your tickets here.
