Forest Swords share new track “Panic”

Forest Swords share new track "Panic"

Forest Swords, aka producer Matthew Barnes, has released the single “Panic,” the third track off his forthcoming release Compassion, out May 5th via Ninja Tune. Forest Swords has also revealed fall European and North American live tour dates.

The track journeys between a rumbling cello loop, chiming bells and clattering beat, pulling in a reworked northern soul sample for the track’s ecstatic hook. It is accompanied by a video directed by Barnes and AV collaborator Sam Wiehl, produced by Barnes’ new experimental creative studio Dense Truth.

“Most of the tracks on Compassion were started in quite a heavy place but all managed to move towards the light the longer I worked on them” says Matthew. “”Panic” is the point where tension and stress boils over into a sort of euphoria.”

Barnes will be Skype screening, one-on-one, an extended edit of the song and video to a number of people who add him (username: densetruth) over the next two days. It follows an experiment earlier this month where Barnes sent out unreleased tracks to anyone who messaged him personally via Whatsapp.

“I’d been thinking about communication and connections while I was making the record” says Barnes of the experiments, “and ways we can perhaps use all these existing channels in different ways. Social media still feels impersonal and clunky to me, like you’re shouting over a wall at someone, so I wanted to try to connect a bit more directly and see what would happen”.

Forest Swords will tour Europe and North American across September to December, including a headline performance at London’s Village Underground and festival stops at Glastonbury, Field Day, Sonar, Latitude and Dekmantel. Dates below.

Forest Swords
Compassion
(May 5th – Ninja Tune)

War It
The Highest Flood
Panic
Exalter
Border Margin Barrier
Arms Out
Vandalism
Sjurvival
Raw Language
Knife Edge

NA Fall Tour Dates

Nov 14: Good Room – NYC, US
Nov 15: Lincoln Hall – Chicago, US
Nov 18: Echo – Los Angeles, US

EU Fall Tour Dates

Sept 21: Atlas – Aarhus, Denmark
Sept 22: Jazzhouse -Copenhagen, Denmark
Sept 23: Sodra Teatern – Stockholm, Sweden
Sept 26: Berghain – Berlin, Germany
Sept 27: UT Connewitz – Leipzig, Germany
Sept 28: Meet Factory – Prague, Czech
Sept 29: Waves – Vienna, Austria
Sept 30: Dürer Kert – Budapest, Hungary
Oct 02: Drugstore – Belgrade, Serbia
Oct 03: Mocvara – Zagreb, Croatia
Oct 04: Kino Siska – Ljubljana, Slovenia
Oct 06: Locomotiv – Bologna, Italy
Oct 07: FAB – Prato, Italy
Oct 08: Lanificio 25 – Naples, Italy
Oct 10: Dachstock – Bern, Switzerland
Oct 11: Rote Fabrik – Zurich, Switzerland
Oct 12: Uebel & Gefährlich – Hamburg, Germany
Oct 13: Bitterzoet – Amsterdam, Netherlands
Oct 14: Badaboum – Paris, France
Oct 16: The Lantern – Bristol, UK
Oct 18: Village Underground – London, UK
Oct 19: The Haunt – Brighton, UK
Oct 20: Headrow House – Leeds, UK
Oct 21: Gorilla – Manchester, UK
Oct 25: Teatr Warsawy – Warsaw, Poland
Oct 27: Six Dogs – Athens, Greece
Oct 28: Salon ISKV – Istanbul, Turkey
Nov 29: GNRation – Braga, Portugal
Nov 30: ZDB – Lisbon, Portugal
Dec 01: Caracol – Madrid, Spain

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