‘If you fall for Teenage Fanclub, you fall hard’ – The Quietus 

Frontier Touring are thrilled to announce Scottish indie icons Teenage Fanclub will return to Australia and New Zealand in March 2024, performing their first live shows down under since 2019.  

The renowned Glasgow five-piece – led by founding members Norman Blake and Raymond McGinley, with drummer Francis Macdonald, bassist Dave McGowan and keyboardist Euros Childs – will perform six headline shows next Autumn in Perth, Sydney, Melbourne, Byron Bay, Brisbane and Auckland. Today’s tour news comes in celebration of the band’s upcoming 11th studio album, Nothing Lasts Forever – set for release on September 22. 

A rare thing, Teenage Fanclub are one of Britain’s most beloved cult outfits, with a career spanning three decades and fervent fans growing up alongside them. Ever since their formation in 1989, the band’s esteemed discography has soundtracked many a life: from the early ‘90s era-defining Bandwagonesque to albums such as Thirteen, Grand Prix, Songs From Northern Britain, Howdy!, Man Made, Shadows & Here, Endless Arcade and more. 

In June 2023 Teenage Fanclub kicked off an extensive northern hemisphere tour, playing everywhere from Madrid to Manchester, Barcelona to Berlin, with a full UK run set for November. Performing their first AU/NZ gigs here in five years next March, tickets for these just announced dates will go on sale Monday 10 July (10am local time) via frontiertouring.com/teenagefanclub. Sign up to get early access via the Frontier Members Pre-sale, which begins Thursday 6 July (10am local time) – see website for info. 

Watch: Teenage Fanclub ‘Foreign Land’ 

With music recorded in an intense ten-day period in the bucolic Welsh countryside at Monmouth’s Rockfield Studios, one of the recurring themes of upcoming, new LP Nothing Lasts Forever is light, as a both a metaphor for hope and as an ultimate destination further down the road. You can hear the effect of that environment on the band’s new record – it’s full of soft breeze, wide skies, beauty and space.  

“We never talk about what we’re going to do before we start making a record,” explains Raymond of the forthcoming release. “The record feels reflective, and I think the more we do this thing, the more we become comfortable with going to that place of melancholy, feeling and expressing those feelings.” 

“These songs are definitely personal,” adds Norman. “You’re getting older, you’re going into the cupboard getting the black suit out more often. Thoughts of mortality and the idea of the light must have been playing on our minds a lot … When we write, it’s a reflection of our lives.” 

Looking for positives while faced with the grim realities of the 21st century feels very Teenage Fanclub – a band who’ve been a force for good for over three decades and who can effortlessly turn melancholy into glorious, chiming harmony. Selling out shows across the country on their 2019 headline tour, don’t miss the incredible Teenage Fanclub when they return to Australia and New Zealand next March!