THUMPER - Confirm new single 'Topher Grace' - out 26th June

Ireland’s favourite noise makers THUMPER have announced a release date for their brand new single “Topher Grace”, out Friday 26th June 2020.

“The song is about going out on the rip as an act of self-destruction, thinly disguised as a voyage of self-reflection. It swings from sincerity to hyperbole and back again, in the voice of someone who’s too deep in it to see the wood for the trees. Honesty and braggadocio form a potent cocktail, as the narrative is bent to breaking point.

Speaking about the writing process for Topher Grace, singer Oisin Leahy Furlong says;

“In writing the song I wanted to see if I could free myself of the song writing crutches I would normally reach for - like structure and melody - and replace them with a more considered approach to lyric writing and performance. It’s a terrifying thing to hone your craft only to tear the rule book up, but the results were very rewarding. I spent the best part of 3 months writing the song on scraps of paper and iPhone notes, recording several different demos until I plucked up the courage to bring it to the band. It ended up being a very cathartic experience and tapped into a creative space we had never gone before.”

I took inspiration from songwriters like Courtney Barnett and James Murphy, to Mark E. Smith and Nick Cave, with the latter especially influencing the bridge between lyrical sentiment and true performance.

To hammer this point home, we payed homage to Beckett’s “Not I” in the music video, which features a mouth manically bleating the words at the viewer. As the song progresses the video strays further and further into a fever dream of grinding teeth and flashing images before the uncomfort plateaus and the viewer is left out of breath with the images fading away…”

With touring on hold, THUMPER have spent their time in the studio writing and recording, as well as hosting live streams on social media for their fans with the support from Culture Ireland, IMRO and First Music Contact.

THUMPER’s last single ‘Ad Nauseam’ received overwhelming support from Irish and UK media, as well as prime placement on Spotify's New Music Friday playlist. “Such a huge band. Really really massive sound. This is Thumper right now with ‘In My Room’ !" - Abbie McCarthy, BBC Radio 1

"Two drummers making an epic noise on stage. Such a huge band. Really really massive sound.” - Abbie McCarthy, BBC Radio 1

“A sonic thrust impossible to ignore”- Tony Clayton Lea, The Irish Times

“Pop hooks and ragged guitar noises collide on THUMPER’s bratty, frenetic punk rock.” - Q Magazine “A band so far up my street they might as well be kicking my front door in” - Phil Taggart, BBC Radio 1 "Cult heroes in their native Dublin, the band's crunching sound and intense live shows are shot through with a dynamic, ultra-infectious sense of energy." CLASH Magazine "In Dublin it's been thrilling to witness The Murder Capital, Fontaines D.C. & THUMPER to see who can be the most visceral on stage and on record" - Hot Press Magazine

“The group have been conjuring a storm with a roaring indie rock sound that’s sharp, punchy and damn right epic” - Tap The Feed, Bristol, UK