In case you still haven’t heard, Bastille will be down on this part of the earth for a concert!
Safe to say it’s been one hell of a year for Bastille. Having sold out two Alexandra Palace shows and a U.S Arena tour; earned themselves a BRIT Award plus two AMA nominations and having surpassed the three million sales mark for their debut album (Bad Blood), most bands would be content to end the year quietly. Not this band.
The four-piece are broadening their horizons and discography further by releasing a brand new mixtape, aptly titled ‘VS. (Other People’s Heartache Pt. III)’ on December 8th. An eight-track offering, the mixtape follows similar footsteps to their previous mixtapes, ‘Other People’s Heartache Pt.I’ and ‘Pt.II’ by melding together an array of genres, styles and production techniques, alongside some rather special collaborations.
“With the mixtapes,” offers frontman Dan Smith, “it’s about working with as many people as possible and having fun with people that we know and the friends we’ve made through touring.” Take a look at the tracklisting and you’ll find larger-than-life stars like Haim, Angel Haze and Lizzo alongside the new and raw talents of MNEK, Rag’N’Bone Man, Rationale and Grades.
Having taken a year to put together, Smith describes it as “a patchwork of stuff that we’ve been working on and people we’ve been working with throughout 2014”, the results are bound to take some listeners by surprise. From the distorted string introduction of ‘Fall Into Your Arms’ to the groove-infused guitars of ‘Bite Down’; the heavy hip hop feel of ‘Weapons’ to the surprising final guest on closer ‘Remains’, every track reveals a new facet to one of Britain’s most successful bands.
Bastille will be performing at KL Live in Kuala Lumpur on 3rd January 2015. Phase 1 & 2 tickets had been sold out and now it’s in Phase 3 of ticket sales!
The first taste of ‘VS.‘ comes in the form of new single ‘Torn Apart’ out November 30th. A collaboration with London producer Grades and incendiary rapper Lizzo, it’s a tune of two halves, an imagined heartbreak song with Smith playing the lovelorn narrator and Lizzo taking on the role of venomous cheat.
Their first new music since their debut album’s re-release ‘All This Bad Blood’ last autumn, it’s an opportunity for fans to hear something new ahead of their second album, “It’s always been really important to me to constantly make new music and also to collaborate with people, something we don’t really do on our proper albums. I love having the side lane of our mixtapes as a place where we can make music people might not expect” the frontman says. “This mixtape is very much a reflection of our 2014. It was really enjoyable to make and a nice way to get together with people that we like and respect and have fun with it!”
Tracklisting:
1. Fall Into Your Arms (Bastille vs. The Gemma Sharples Quartet)
2. Bite Down (Bastille vs. HAIM)
3. Bad_news (Bastille vs. MNEK)
4. The Driver
5. Axe To Grind (Bastille vs. Tyde vs. Rationale)
6. Torn Apart (Bastille vs. Grades vs. Lizzo)
7. Weapon (Bastille vs. Angel Haze vs. F*U*G*Z vs. Braque)
8. Remains (Bastille vs. Rag N Bone Man vs. Skunk Anansie)
For more details on tour dates & gigs, visit their official Facebook page and via Twitter @bastilledan