Declan McKenna shares the next track from his forthcoming album, What Happened To The Beach? (February 9th via Tomplicated Records) which Pitchfork highlighted a notable new music release in 2024. McKenna shares about the new song, “Elevator Hum was a tune that came in the latter stages of my first trip to LA working on the album with Luca. He threw the chords down and the riff fell into my hands. It’s a song that felt like it captured some nostalgic essence of friendship as we built a relationship through creating music together. The freedom and playfulness of the lyrics, and the gentle but fun glide of the track, take me back to being a kid in a way.”
“Elevator Hum” channels the LA sunshine under which the new album was recorded and is built on a loose groove and a laidback, almost calypso rhythm which underpins the track. The song is colourful and confident and follows the leftfield pop of Sympathy and restless euphoria of Nothing Works that reintroduced him earlier this year. It was produced by Gianluca Buccellati. What Happened To The Beach? is available to preorder on all formats here.
Following extensive US touring throughout the year, playing to over 60,000 fans, Declan recently announced his UK/Ireland tour for the Spring, with additional dates since added in both Dublin and Glasgow.
For What Happened To The Beach? McKenna landed in California last year to work with producer Gianluca Buccellati, whose previous projects include Arlo Parks and Lana Del Rey. On his third studio album, McKenna taught and trusted himself to take his time and let the listener soak in the ambience. The result is an album that revels in both space and atmosphere. “The songs sound a lot like the music I listen to,” McKenna says about the new tunes, citing St Vincent (“She takes the guitar to a really cool place. Everything can be manipulated”) and Unknown Mortal Orchestra’s hypnotic and spacey energy as influences. Musically, you feel the freedom in the sound of a songwriter enjoying himself. “I wanted to open up and not worry about things so much,” McKenna says, “I was putting a lot of pressure on myself in the past when I just needed to drop the intensity a bit and have some fun.”
McKenna is in his early 20s and is approaching a new era in his journey as a songwriter. He is aware that writing a more personal album, particularly one that focuses on joy over disaster, might suggest a line drawn in the sand between Declan and Declan 2.0. “If every song features a lyrical statement then it loses some of its impact, too. I haven’t let go of that aspect of myself but I don’t want to live out that style forever.”
McKenna has always been a smart, literate songwriter. With What Happened To The Beach? he’s still all those things – he’s just down for a good time.
Declan McKenna: What Happened To The Beach? Track listing
- Mystery Planet Pt. 1
- WOBBLE
- Elevator Hum
- I Write The News
- Sympathy
- Mulholland’s Dinner and Wine
- Breath Of Light
- Mystery Planet Pt. 2
- Nothing Works
- It Takes 4
- The Phantom Buzz (Kick In)
- Honest Test
- Mezzanine
- It’s an Act
- 4 More Years
- Mystery Planet Pt. 3
Declan McKenna Live:
23rd March – Great Hall, Cardiff University
24th March – UEA, Norwich
25th March – O2 City Hall, Newcastle
27th March – O2 Academy, Glasgow
28 March – O2 Academy, Glasgow *NEW DATE*
29th March – O2 Academy, Sheffield
1st April – Ulster Hall, Belfast
2nd April – 3Olympia Theatre, Dublin
3rd April – 3Olympia Theatre, Dublin *NEW DATE*
5th April – O2 Apollo, Manchester
8th April – De Montfort Hall, Leicester
9th April – Beacon, Bristol
10th April – The Halls, Wolverhampton
12th April – Alexandra Palace, London
13th April – Brighton Centre, Brighton
14th April – O2 Academy, Bournemouth
16th April – Ancienne Belgique, Brussels
17th April – Paradiso, Amsterdam
18th April – Tivoliredenburg Ronda, Utrecht
21st April – Kantine, Cologne
22nd April – Uebel & Gefährlich, Hamburg
23rd April – Astra, Berlin
25th April – Stodola, Warsaw
26th April – Kwadrat, Krakow
27th April – SaSaZu, Prague
29th April – Le Transbordeur, Lyon
30th April – Rock School Barbey, Bordeaux
2nd May – Le MeM, Rennes
3rd May – La Cigale, Paris
25th May – Live At Leeds, In The Park
12th July – TRNSMT Festival, Glasgow
