Wolf Alice return with 'The Last Man On Earth' and announce new album 'Blue Weekend'

Wolf Alice have shared their new single ‘The Last Man On Earth‘ as well as announcing details of their third album ‘Blue Weekend’.

After teasing fans of their comeback for the last week, now the Mercury-winners are back with the dreamy and atmospheric ‘The Last Man On Earth’ – an adventurous sonic departure for the band, drifting into an orchestral, latter-day Beatles-esque waltz in the final third as frontwoman Ellie Rowsell sings: “When your friends are talking, you hardly hear a word – you were the first person here, and the last man on the earth“.

“It’s about the arrogance of humans,” said Rowsell, explaining the lyrics. “I’d just read Kurt Vonnegut’s Cat’s Cradle and I had written the line ‘Peculiar travel suggestions are dancing lessons from god’ in my notes. But then I thought: ‘Uh, your peculiar travel suggestion isn’t a dancing lesson from god, it’s just a travel suggestion! Why does everything need to mean something more?’”

The song also comes with some stunning visuals by director Jordan Hemingway (Gucci, Raf Simons, Comme Des Garçons). The video will premiere at 7pm. Check it out below.

In a five-star review of the single, NME concluded: “Wolf Alice have long proven themselves to be one of the best and brightest bands in Britain, but here they give us yet more evidence that they’re still setting the standard for UK music and beyond.

“If ‘The Last Man On Earth’ is even just a hint at the greatness to come on their third album, ‘Blue Weekend’ should propel them to the level of major festival headliners and arena conquerors with ease.”

Today also sees Wolf Alice reveal details and a release date for the follow-up to their Mercury Prize-winning second album, ‘Visions Of A Life‘ – with ‘Blue Weekend’ set to drop in June.

After the success of the record and months of hard touring took their toll on the band, they headed to an Airbnb in Somerset to “reconfigure who they were together” and find a new sound and chemistry, before recording the album in a converted church with Markus Dravs (famed for his work with Arcade Fire, Björk, Brian Eno, Florence + The Machine).

Guitarist Joff Oddie described the tracks as “the best songs Ellie’s ever written”, showcasing her knack for personal and confessional storytelling.

Wolf Alice announce new album 'Blue Weekend'. Credit: Jordan Hemingway
Wolf Alice announce new album ‘Blue Weekend’. Credit: Jordan Hemingway

“This album is for other people,” said Rowsell. “Sometimes you hear a song and it makes you feel better, or you hear a song and it makes you feel seen. I remember feeling blue about something, and thinking, ‘I wonder what songs I can listen to that will be about what I’m feeling right now’.”

She continued: “It was almost as if I was desperate to feel better about something, and I would go down any path to feel not alone in something, or to understand it more. And I’ve never really done that before intentionally, I’d never really sought it out.”

Wolf Alice return with 'The Last Man On Earth' from new album 'Blue Weekend'. Credit: Press
Wolf Alice return with ‘The Last Man On Earth’ from new album ‘Blue Weekend’. Credit: Press

Wolf Alice release ‘Blue Weekend’ on June 11 via Dirty Hit. You can pre-order it here and see the tracklist below.

1. ‘The Beach’
2. ‘Delicious Things’
3. ‘Lipstick On The Glass’
4. ‘Smile’
5. ‘Safe From Heartbreak (if you never fall in love)’
6. ‘How Can I Make It OK?’
7. ‘Play The Greatest Hits’
8. ‘Feeling Myself’
9. ‘The Last Man On Earth’
10. ‘No Hard Feelings’
11. ‘The Beach II’