Nothing But Thieves share bold new single & visualiser ‘Stray Dogs’

Marking a decade of Nothing But Thieves last year, with four albums, billions of streams, thousands of worldwide live shows and a global dedicated fanbase, the Southend five-piece made their musical return recently with new single ‘Evolution’ and the announcement of their 5^th record ‘Stray Dogs’ released on 25^th September via RCA/Sony Music. Today, the band share a bold alternate glimpse into their new chapter with dynamic and confident title track ‘Stray Dogs’ alongside an animated visualiser created by acclaimed British visual artist Weirdcore. PRE-ORDER: STRAY DOGS

After cryptically teasing the song to fans during live sets over the past few months, new single and title track ‘Stray Dogs’ is a compelling return to their heavier rock sound. Opening with a siren-like call to attention, the experimental track builds in unnerving intensity before escalating to a pulsating chorus of authoritative vocals, thrashing guitars and crushing drums, teasingly and discordantly bringing the atmosphere back down, before reaching its huge climax. It is an exhilarating 5-minute cacophony of sound. The accompanying visualiser marks their first collaboration with acclaimed British visual artist Weirdcore (Aphex Twin, Thom Yorke) and flits between animation and distorted footage of real fans, showcasing them as a pack of ‘stray dogs’ and continuing the collaborative and communal theme behind their new album.

The band says, “We’ve spent a long time writing about the negative aspects of pack mentality – tribalism, division. This song is the converse. ‘Stray Dogs’ is about finding your people.”

“The image that stayed with us was of our road family, when there are thirty of us gathered in some far-flung part of the world. Or the moment the doors open and thousands of people come streaming into a festival or one of our shows, becoming one.”

“It’s about belonging and shared momentum. I guess the community we have built for the last decade. Once the idea of ‘Stray Dogs’ was fully formed, it made sense to base the rest of the album around it.”

With an ever-evolving world-building approach both musically and visually, Nothing But Thieves returned to their roots – literally and thematically – during their recent time in the studio, recording at Angelic Studios where they made their debut record, looking back to how they began with a DIY spirit rooted in authenticity. Rather than carving new ideas out on the road, their new record was written in unison over a dedicated 5-month period, resulting in the band creating their most liberating and cohesive work to date. New album ‘Stray Dogs’ speaks to the power of community, belonging and the collective shared experiences that unite outsiders, including the immediate ‘stray dogs’ in the band’s own world and their dedicated legion of fans.

Nothing But Thieves leaned into their trusted fanbase around the announcement of ‘Stray Dogs’ with guerilla posters, a 4-day cryptic Youtube channel building to a global livestreamed performance, and a secret gig billed as ‘stray dogs’ at Think Tank in Newcastle following their set at Radio 1’s Big Weekend. The first taster of the band’s new music launched with the euphoric single ‘Evolution’, which was showcased to 250 in-person and millions of global fans as part of a YouTube livestream, alongside receiving its first play with Jack Saunders as Radio 1’s Hottest Record.

In 2023, Nothing But Thieves scored their debut #1 album with ‘Dead Club City’, which marked their fourth Top 10 record following ‘Moral Panic’, ‘Broken Machine’ and ‘Nothing But Thieves’. They accompanied their last record with the ‘The DCC World Tour’, which included two sold-out nights at London’s Wembley Arena alongside multiple sold-out arenas and shows across Europe and North America. Amassing over 1.2 million worldwide album sales, 2 billion worldwide streams and 250 million video views, they have built up a loyal and wide following for their impactful alt rock sound and achieved global success with multiple gold and platinum records around the world.

Last week saw the band support Biffy Clyro at Finsbury Park in London, ahead of supporting them in Edinburgh next month, and this summer includes further festival performances across Europe. Recently the band announced their biggest headline tour to date commencing in January 2027 with shows across the UK & Ireland, Europe, the United States and Canada. Dates include Manchester’s Co-Op Live, London’s O2 Arena and European shows at the 23,000 capacity AFAS Dome in Antwerp and two nights at Amsterdam’s Ziggo Dome, which both sold out straight away. Full tour dates are below.

July:

Wed 15^th – Athens, Greece – Ejekt Festival
Sat 18^th – Cluj, Romania – Electric Castle Festival

August:
Fri 21^st – Edinburgh – Royal Highland Showgrounds (with Biffy Clyro)

Headline 2027 Tour Dates:

January 2027:
Tues 12^th – Paris – Zénith
Weds 13^th – Cologne – Lanxess Arena
Fri 15^th – Amsterdam – Ziggo Dome *sold out*
Sat 16^th – Amsterdam – Ziggo Dome *sold out*
Mon 18^th – Zurich – The Hall
Wed 20^th – Munich – Olympiahalle
Thurs 21^st – Lodz – Atlas Arena
Fri 22^nd – Prague – O2 Universum
Sun 24^th – Milan – Unipol Forum
Mon 25^th – Vienna – Gasometer
Wed 27^th – Ludwigsburg – MHP Arena
Fri 29^th – Berlin – Max-Schmeling-Halle
Sat 30^th – Hamburg – Sporthalle
Sun 31^st – Antwerp – AFAS Dome

February 2027: 
Tues 2^nd – Dublin – 3Arena
Thurs 4^th – Nottingham – Motorpoint Arena
Fri 5^th – London – The O2
Mon 8^th – Cardiff – Utilita Arena
Wed 10^th – Glasgow – OVO Hydro
Fri 12^th – Manchester – Co-Op Live
Sat 13^th – Birmingham – bp pulse LIVE

March 2027:
Tues 30^th – Vancouver – Queen Elizabeth Theatre
Wed 31^st – Seattle – Paramount Theatre

April 2027:
Thurs 1^st – Portland – Crystal Ballroom
Sat 3^rd – Oakland – Fox Theatre
Sun 4^th – Los Angeles – Hollywood Palladium
Tues 6^th – San Diego – SOMA
Wed 7^th – Phoenix – The Van Buren
Fri 9^th – Denver – Mission Ballroom
Sun 11^th – Minneapolis – The Fillmore
Mon 12^th – Chicago – The Salt Shed
Tues 13^th – Detroit – The Fillmore
Thurs 15^th – McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania – Roxian Theatre
Fri 16^th – Philadelphia – The Fillmore
Sat 17^th – New York – Brooklyn Paramount
Mon 19^th – Boston – House of Blues
Tues 20^th – Montreal – Mtelus
Wed 21^st – Toronto – Massey Hall