Bartees Strange has released his first single for the year, ‘Heavy Heart’. It arrives alongside news the Washington-based singer-songwriter has signed with iconic label 4AD.

The new song, which follows on from last year’s ‘Weights’ and 2020 album ‘Live Forever’, opens with a sparse, slow-burning guitar line before pivoting into an emotive, high-energy indie rocker. “This song is a culmination of some beautiful things,” Strange says of the track.

‘Heavy Heart’ arrives alongside a music video directed by Marisa Dabice of Mannequin Pussy. Watch that below:

“I’ve signed to my dream label,” Strange wrote on Instagram when sharing the news of joining 4AD. “I never thought that shit would happen. Everybody who knows me knows how much I’ve dreamed about working with this team. Many of my favorite artists did their best work there and I’m so excited that I’ll have the same chance.”

Strange has also announced a slew of rescheduled European and UK tour dates for July. Check those out below. Later this month, he’ll also kick off a North American tour supporting Car Seat Headrest. See dates and details for those here.

In addition to releasing ‘Weights’, Strange kept plenty busy throughout 2021. He performed his ‘Live Forever’ cut ‘Boomer’ while appearing on Late Night with Seth Meyers, and played four songs from the record during his NPR Tiny Desk Concert the following month.

Last year also saw Strange share covers of Bon Iver‘s ‘Skinny Love’ and TV on the Radio‘s ‘Province’ (with Dr. Dog drummer Eric Slick and Ohmme). He also remixed Phoebe Bridgers‘ ‘Kyoto’ and opened for a handful of shows on Courtney Barnett‘s North American tour.

NME described ‘Live Forever’ as one of the 20 best debut albums of 2020, writing: “The record resists conforming to genre at every turn, blending shades of indie rock, hip-hop, punk, country and more — often within the same song.”

“It’s more than just a signifier of Cox’s varied musical appetite: it’s a deliberate defiance of the racist pressure on Black artists to subscribe to a single mould.”

Bartees Strange’s rescheduled UK and European 2022 tour dates are:

JULY
Sunday 3 – Werchter, Rock Werchter
Monday 4 – Cologne, Helios37
Tuesday 5 – Hamburg, Molotow 
Thursday 7 – Berlin, Badehaus
Saturday 9 – Madrid, Mad Cool Festival
Monday 11 – Munich, Milla
Wednesday 13 – Rees-Haldern, De Haldern Pop Bar
Thursday 14 – Amsterdam, Paradiso
Saturday 16 – Leeds, Brudenell Social Club
Sunday 17 – Manchester, Night & Day Cafe
Tuesday 19 – Cardiff, Clwb Ifor Bach
Wednesday 20 – Brighton, Patterns
Thursday 21 – London, Powerhaus