Canadian band Austra are to release their second album, Olympia, later this year.
The Toronto-based outfit will release the follow-up to 2011’s Feel It Break on June 17, when they will also play a lone UK date at the Hoxton Bar & Grill in London. The album sees band leader Katie Stelmanis take her outfit in a new direction, described as a “quantum evolution” from their debut effort which hit the scene under the banner of ‘electro-goth’.
The record is a more collaborative piece of work than Feel It Break. Stemanis explains: “Previously, I would flesh out songs before I brought them to the band, but this time I left them bare and let the others fill them in. We are really into dense harmonies and big beautiful melodies, but I also love techno and dance music. I wanted to bring those elements together.”
Austra have unleashed lead single ‘Home’ to promote their new album, a song about waiting up for a loved one to come home. “I was mad and upset and the song just wrote itself,” says Stemanis.
Olympia is released on June 17 on Domino. For more information, check out the band’s website.