There’s so much good stuff here we don’t know where to start… let’s kick off with First Aid Kit have announced their fifth album will be called Palomino and it’ll be out November 4th. A statement explained:

“This is the first record we’ve recorded in Sweden since we made our debut album ‘The Big Black & The Blue’ 12 years ago! We worked with Swedish producer Daniel Bengtson at his lovely studio Studio Rymden in Stockholm. It was such a fun experience. We really let the recording take time, we didn’t want to rush it.

“The songs were mostly written during the pandemic. In such dark times, music felt like an escape from all the horrible things going on in the world. We wanted this album to feel more upbeat and cheerful than our previous album Ruins, which was a break-up record. It’s probably our most pop sounding record yet.”

And “We took inspiration from all over the place – old acts such as Fleetwood Mac, Carole King, Tom Petty, T Rex, Elton John but also Angel Olsen, Whitney, and Big Thief. The title is a reference to freedom, learning how to stand on your own two feet. Growing older and feeling more comfortable in your own skin. Riding off on a Palomino!”

Hold that thought, because they’ve said something similar about new single Out of my Head: “We produced the song with Daniel Bengtson in Stockholm. It has a bit of a different sound from our previous songs. We wanted the production to feel like an old rock song from the 80s. We were inspired by Fleetwood Mac, Kate Bush and Tom Petty. This is one of our favourite songs we’ve ever written, we’re so proud of it and are so excited to finally get to share it.”

And also “We wrote this song last year together with songwriter and producer Björn Yttling. It was the first time we wrote for First Aid Kit with someone else and it was very inspiring. The song was written in the spur of the moment, almost like a stream of consciousness. It’s about feeling stuck inside your own thoughts and desperately wanting to escape.

Damn good it is too.

Meanwhile there’s seven UK dates this winter:

November 28 Glasgow, O2 Academy
November 30 Manchester, O2 Apollo
December 2 Cambridge, Corn Exchange
December 3 Birmingham, O2 Academy
December 5 Liverpool, Eventim Olympia
December 6 Cardiff, Motorpoint Arena
December 8 London, Eventim Apollo