Soda Blonde announce second album with the intense 'Bad Machine'

Irish band Soda Blonde are returning with a storming second album this September, titled Dream Big.

They've dropped the energised lead single 'Bad Machine today', alongside news of an Irish and UK tour in November and December. Tickets go on sale this Monday, July 17th at 10am GMT for the upcoming Dream Big Tour, which features dates at Connollys of Leap, The Lexington (London), Dolan's, Roisin Dubh, Black Box Belfast, Cyprus Avene and Vicar Street.

Filled with cathartic, anthemic pop tunes, their second album is described as "a mission statement from four lifelong friends. It’s their promise to themselves, and a message to all who come along for the ride: A reminder that life is precious, fragile, and fleeting, so we might as well dream big and hold nothing back."

'Bad Machine' artwork.

Following two successful introductory EPs (2019's Terrible Hands and 2020's Isolation Content), the quartet released their debut album, Small Talk, in 2021. The LP was nominated for RTÉ’s Choice Music Prize for Album of the Year and received rave reviews at home and abroad.

Pat Carty of Hot Press wrote in his verdict: "For those who fell hard for their great singles, the good news is that this album has more hooks than an angler’s tackle bag and each track earns its spot under that neon light."

The band have grown massively in the two years since their debut. While Small Talk was an anxiety-fuelled coming-of-age record about navigating their twenties, Dream Big is a mature awakening to the world at large.

'Bad Machine' sees Faye O'Rourke's crystal clear vocals sound even more powerful and fresh than ever before, controlling her voice effortlessly over glimmering, punchy synths.

“We can be slaves to our own impulses,” says guitarist Adam O’Regan of the turbulent, sonically charged song. “This idea that ‘every part of me is a bad machine breaking everything all the time, every part of me has been wired to repeat, I’ve got a bad desire by design,’ it’s this idea of recognising that this is just a part of who you are and going with that; but it’s a double-edged sword. Sometimes taking a chance, being spontaneous and taking a risk - they’re not always the safest moves to make, but that propensity to dare is what makes us great. We wouldn’t exist without it.”

Listen to 'Bad Machine' below.

DREAM BIG TOUR 2023

THE LEXINGTON, LONDON - WED 22 NOV
ROISIN DUBH, GALWAY - FRI 24 NOV
DOLANS WAREHOUSE, LIMERICK - SAT 25 NOV
CONNOLLYS OF LEAP, CORK - SUN 26 NOV
CYPRUS AVENUE, CORK - THU 30 NOV
THE BLACK BOX, BELFAST - THU 07 DEC
SPIRIT STORE, DUNDALK - FRI 08 DEC
VICAR ST, DUBLIN - THU 14 DEC