"She's already slept with that guy from work, when are you gonna admit your life hasn't gone to plan." That's the scene Noah Learmonth paints in the first verse of "Big Ideas". There's little embellishment—it's like lifting an awkward conversation straight into the song.
The new track from Radio Free Alice features Water From Your Eyes frontwoman Rachel Brown on a duet, and marks the latest preview single from the Melbourne band's—also named on NME's 100 list of rising artists—debut studio album "What's In Between", set for release via Atlantic on October 30, following "Kick In The Shins" and "Crying For You".
Speaking about the collaboration, frontman Noah Learmonth said: "From pretty early on we felt like this song needed a second voice, like a call and response thing. We've loved Water From Your Eyes for years, and we went to see them when they played Melbourne. We thought Rachel would be perfect—her voice is so distinctive and recognizable."
In the song's back half, Learmonth sings "I'd rather be stuck in hell than stuck in Melbourne writing reports," before Brown joins in with: "Honey won't you rescue me / I got a barb in my eye / I got a thorn in my side / Don't get any big ideas". The two voices weave in and out throughout the track, with neither overpowering the other.
The official music video for "Big Ideas" was directed and edited by Owen Schatz, carrying a grainy, '90s VHS aesthetic.
Speaking to NME at Reading Festival this summer, Radio Free Alice discussed the creative direction behind the new album. "Looking back, I've always been drawn to coming-of-age stories," Learmonth said. "Most of my favorite films growing up had that kind of vibe. There's a 'young person left behind' theme running through the album, though it's certainly not the only one." They also talked about the experience of opening for Geese in Australia: "It was genuinely strange talking to Cameron Winter backstage, because Geese had been on repeat on my phone all day. Sharing a stage with the most talked-about band in the world felt pretty surreal."
Radio Free Alice will head out on a UK and European tour next month, kicking off November 4 at Ideal Bar at Vega in Copenhagen, before hitting Berlin, Hamburg, Cologne, Amsterdam, and Brussels. From November 14, they move into the UK, playing Thekla in Bristol, O2 Institute2 in Birmingham, Electric Ballroom in London (November 17), Brudenell Social Club in Leeds, Academy 2 in Manchester, The Art School in Glasgow, Ulster Sports Club in Belfast, and Button Factory in Dublin, before wrapping up with a show at Sidecar in Barcelona on November 27 and finishing at Point Ephémère in Paris on November 29.
