Melbourne pop-punk outfit Between You And Me have shared the latest preview of their forthcoming second album, today (October 22) releasing the deceptively upbeat ‘Change’.
In spite of its bubbly and sunkissed feel – notably more pop-centric than much of the band’s other material – the new track offers a sharp critique of the way many world leaders have dealt with the increasingly devastating effects of climate change.
It was written in the later months of 2019, particularly as a response to the way Prime Minister Scott Morrison (and the Liberal government at large) handled the bushfires that raged through Australia that summer. As frontman Jake Wilson said in a press release, “The world as I saw it was going through a scary period.”
Have a listen to ‘Change’ below:
Wilson elaborated on the themes explored in ‘Change’, saying: “Those that were in political power were deliberately neglecting the serious signs of global climate issues – in fact some were even making decisions that would have huge ramifications to increase carbon emissions.
“It felt as though our leaders were focused on their capitalist ideals instead of representing the people. In Australia in late 2019, whilst our country was burning from numerous bushfires, our Prime Minister was holidaying overseas. To me that was a defining moment.”
‘Change’ is the fourth single from Between You And Me’s second full-length effort, ‘Armageddon’, following ‘Supervillain’, ‘Deadbeat’ and ‘Butterflies’. The record is set to land on November 19 via Hopeless Records, and also features a collaboration with Sydney outfit Yours Truly.
Noting that ‘Armageddon’ is the most collaborative project the band have worked on thus far, Wilson said: “If this was going to be our last ever record, I wanted it to be a body of work that I could reflect on fondly – regardless of how ‘successful’ it was.”
Wilson also pointed out that most of ‘Armageddon’ was written during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, saying: “Whilst it took three years between releases, the journey to release ‘Armageddon’ has certainly shaped the way it sounds. The past 18 months has given us the chance to pause and reflect on the opportunities that we have in front of us.
The band recorded ‘Armageddon’ with Canadian producer Sam Guaiana, having secured a border exemption to fly him to Australia last year. It comes as a follow-up to their 2018 debut ‘Everything Is Temporary’.