Big Special Released Debut Album “Postindustrial Hometown Blues”

BIG SPECIAL have released their highly-anticipated debut album POSTINDUSTRIAL HOMETOWN BLUES.

A run of blistering and dynamic single releases in recent months finally sees the release of BIG SPECIAL’s debut album via SO Recordings. Their 2024 singles ‘DUST OFF / START AGAIN’, ‘BUTCHER’S BIN’ and ‘BLACK DOG / WHITE HORSE’ have each shown a different side to the many talents the duo have at their disposal. Traversing sounds that walk a tightrope from the abrasive to the soulful, they’ve picked at the fabric of what it is to be human in the modern world: inspiring resistance and openness in the face of decay.

Lead singer Joe Hicklin says about the album: “POSTINDUSTRIAL HOMETOWN BLUES is an album about depression. It’s about the different shapes it takes; personal, social, generational… and it’s about coming face to face with those ghosts and what we do or how we feel when that happens.

The album offers no answers, it is just an honest expression of a working-class experience in modern England through the eyes of ill mental health, a pursuit of art and political disenchantment; a story of rumination, realisation and reaction.

POSTINDUSTRIAL HOMETOWN BLUES is about learning that we are connected by our common struggles and though dark and rageful, the album holds a quiet sentiment of love and hope. It’s about laughing at the face of the void, recognising its oppressive weight, holding hands and moving forward.”

The band now looks forward to a run of UK headline shows, a huge summer of UK and European festivals, as well as tour dates with PIXIES in August. Full dates below.

BIG SPECIAL UK INSTORE PERFORMANCES

10 May – Assai, Edinburgh (1pm) – Tickets here
11 May – Jacaranda, Liverpool (1pm) / Eclipse, Walsall (6pm) – Tickets here
12 May – Rough Trade, Bristol (1pm) – Tickets here
14 May – Rough Trade, Nottingham (6pm) – Tickets here
15 May – Banquet, Kingston upon Thames, London (6pm) – Tickets here

BIG SPECIAL 2024 TOUR DATES

Tickets on sale now here.

07 May – District, Liverpool, UK
08 May – The Key Club, Leeds, UK
09 May – XOYO, Birmingham, UK
10 May – King Tuts, Glasgow, UK
12 May – Strange Brew, Bristol, UK
16 May – Jazz Café, London, UK – SOLD OUT
17 May – Horatio’s, Brighton, UK (The Great Escape 2024)
18 May – Deaf Institute, Manchester, UK
20 May – Kasbah Club, Limerick, Ireland
21 May – Workman’s Cellar, Dublin, Ireland
22 May – Ulster Sports Bar, Belfast, Norther Ireland
24 May – Netherlands, Den Haag, Zwarte Ruiter (Sniester Festival)
26 May – Bearded Theory Festival, Derbyshire, UK
27 May – Paradiso Upstairs, Amsterdam, Netherlands
28 May – Effenaar, Eindhoven, Netherlands
30 May – Block Party Festival, Paris, France
31 May – Vestrock, Hulst, Netherlands
01 Jun – Dauwpop Festival, Hellendoorn, Netherlands
28 Jun – Glastonbury Festival, UK
11 Jul – Jardin Sonore, Vitrolles, FR
19 Jul – Deichbrand, Cuxhaven, DE
26 Jul – Low Festival, Benidorm, Spain
27 Jul – Secret Garden Party, Huntingdon, UK
28 Jul – Latitude Festival, Suffolk, UK
07 Aug – Den Atelier, Luxembourg (w / Pixies)
10 Aug – Forum Karlin, Prague (w / Pixies)
13 Aug – House of Culture, Helsinki (w/ Pixies)
14 Aug – House of Culture, Helsinki (w/ Pixies)
17 Aug – Cinzella Festival, Brindisi, IT
18 Aug – Green Man Festival, Bannau Brycheiniog, UK
23 Aug – Reading Festival, Reading, UK
24 Aug – Leeds Festival, Leeds, UK
29 Aug – Rock N Roll Circus, Sheffield (w/ Richard Hawley)
31 Aug – End Of The Road Festival, Dorset, UK
07 Sep – Surfana Festival, Bloemendaal aan Zee, NL
08 Sep – Misty Fields Festival, NL
15 Nov – Rolling Stone Beach Festival, DE
30 Nov – O2 Forum, Kentish Town, London, UK