The Twilight Sad © Abbey Raymonde 2026
The wait is over!
Today, THE TWILIGHT SAD release their critically-acclaimed new album IT’S THE LONG GOODBYE via Rock Action Records. The band were recently the subject of an in-depth and moving interview in The Guardian and the album has landed to rave reviews across-the-board. Ahead of an extensive UK/EU tour that begins next month, and following the singles “WAITING FOR THE PHONE CALL”, “DESIGNED TO LOSE” and “ATTEMPT A CRASH LANDING – THEME”, to celebrate the album’s release today the band share the track “CHEST WOUND TO THE CHEST”.
Click HERE to listen to the new album.
Acclaim for IT’S THE LONG GOODBYE:
“The Twilight Sad’s first album since reducing to founding duo James Graham and Andy MacFarlane yields the most powerful version of the band’s cathartic soundworld… a transcendent blend of New Order, MBV and The Cure… Summoning bright light from the heart of darkness, Robert Smith’s protégés have done him proud.” MOJO ****
“Pristine, unrestrained alternative rock symphonies… The record is very much about Andy MacFarlane’s orchestration of their grand, dramatic, often raucous guitar sound, alongside singer James Graham’s spirit-dredging lyrical honesty… Their best album yet.” Record Collector ****
“A visceral collection of tracks… These are songs as therapy – about alienation and inner turmoil, rich in metaphor, with Graham’s evocative Scottish brogue capable of sounding tender and threatening against guitarist Andy MacFarlane’s turbulent guitar.” The Guardian
“It’s The Long Goodbye is deeply personal and as vulnerable as it is ferocious. A devastating blend of crashing shoegaze, subtle electronic and melancholic soundscapes. A powerful and truly wonderful return from The Twilight Sad.” Clash 9/10
IT’S THE LONG GOODBYE is both cathartic and inspirational… an astonishing body of work that firmly emphasizes what an important band The Twilight Sad are. This might just be the band’s masterpiece.” Under The Radar 9/10
“It’s The Long Goodbye is the culmination of all the subtle evolution that has progressed from the very beginning… Wrestling with heartbreaking themes of loss and aguish, this confident collection shines light on the dark.” The Skinny ***** Album of the Month
“The album carries a subtle expansion of their sound without losing what makes them unique. This is still unmistakably The Twilight Sad, just operating at a deeper level. Six albums in, they’ve delivered something both intensely personal and completely universal.” xs Noize 9/10
“The band sound more majestic than ever on the awesome ‘Attempt A Crash Landing’, while ‘Inhospitable/Hospital’ is the kind of widescreen anthem Smashing Pumpkins last made in 1995. Mighty band, all the mightier for their time away.” Classic Pop ****
“There’s something of a gothic beauty to their tales and unfurling distorted swells… In trademark fashion, this much-anticipated record is an evolved fixture in their dense discography. Like the band themselves, we keep on moving forward in this dark, noisy trip everyone has to endure – bolstered by such a fitting soundtrack.” The Soundboard
“With MacFarlane on production, the album sounds enormous, with great big slabs of stadium-sized rock… Waiting for the Phone Call is an absolute banger, their best song in years, propulsive keyboards combined with a relentless guitar riff, like the best post-punk you’ve ever heard.” No More Workhorse
“The best record they’ve ever made and the most complete journey they’ve ever taken us on.” live4ever ****
THE TWILIGHT SAD headline shows:
Sun 12 April – Italy, Milan, Legend Club
Tues 14 April – Switzerland, Zurich, Bogen F
Weds 15 April – Germany, Munich, Ampere
Thurs 16 April – Germany, Berlin, Gretchen
Sat 18 April – Denmark, Copenhagen, Loppen
Sun 19 April – Norway, Oslo, Parkteateret
Mon 20 April – Sweden, Stockholm, Slaktkyrkan
Weds 22 April – Germany, Hamburg, Grünspan
Thurs 23 April – Netherlands, Utrecht, Tivolivredenburg Pandora Hall
Sat 25 April – Germany, Cologne, Gebäude 9
Sun 26 April – Belgium, Brussels, Rotonde – Botanique
Mon 27 April – France, Paris, Le Trabendo
Weds 29 April – UK, Bristol, Electric Bristol
Thurs 30 April – UK, London, Roundhouse
Sat 2 May – UK, Manchester, New Century Hall
Sun 3 May – UK, Newcastle upon Tyne, Boiler Shop
Tues 5 May – Scotland, Glasgow, Barrowlands
Weds 6 May – Scotland, Glasgow, Barrowlands
Sat 9 May – Ireland, Dublin, Button Factory
Live dates with The Cure + festival appearances:
Sun 24 May – Derbyshire – Bearded Theory
Sun 14 June – Italy, Firenze, Visarno Arena
Sun 21 June – Isle Of Wight – Isle Of Wight Festival
Weds 24 June – Cardiff, Blackweir Fields
Fri 26 June – Dublin, Marley Park
Sun 28 June – Belfast, Belsonic
Weds 8 July – Slovakia, Pohoda Festival
Fri 10 July – Germany, Berlin, Wuhlheide
Sat 11 July – Germany, Berlin, Wuhlheide
Sun 12 July – Germany, Berlin, Wuhlheide
Fri 24-Sun 26 July – Topcliffe – Deer Shed Festival
“It had to contain every element of emotion I was feeling,” says singer/lyricist James Graham of THE TWILIGHT SAD’s deeply resonant sixth album. On their first record in seven years, Scotland’s post-punk outfit return with a story to share: a cogent story of loss and personal crisis, rooted in specific experience yet mounted with a palpable emotional power that feels universal. Set to urgent and guitar-rich arrangements from bandmate Andy MacFarlane, IT’S THE LONG GOODBYE reflects on James’s mother’s illness, her subsequent death and his own mental health struggles, exploring profound human vulnerability with tenderness and tempestuous force.
The result is the most personal yet relatable album to date from a band whose portraits of bruised humanity have forged close ties with their audience. As James says, “In the past I’ve used a lot of metaphors within my lyrics. With this, there’s not as much. The record is heavily influenced by my mental health, grief and loss, and the need to be strong in positions where you’re not feeling it. It’s a very human story, I think – this is just my version of it. I feel that everybody goes through something like this. Everybody loses somebody. Everybody questions life.”
Back in 2016, James and Andy returned from the “pinch yourself” high of a tour with The Cure to find that James’s mother had been diagnosed with early onset frontotemporal dementia. Roughly 80 per cent of the record was written as James wrestled with the contrast between the joys in his life – marriage, parenthood – and the cruelty of his mother’s decline. In November 2023, another tour with The Cure was brought to a necessary halt as his mental health deteriorated. “And then my mum passed away in the January afterwards,” says James.
The record was developed over seven years, with the London-based MacFarlane stockpiling musical ideas during lockdown while exchanging words and sounds with Graham. The Cure’s Robert Smith, by now a longtime close friend of the band, provided invaluable input on the demos and guested on the record, supplying extra guitars on ‘WAITING FOR THE PHONE CALL’, guitars/“Tron keys” on ‘DEAD FLOWERS’ and six-string bass on ‘BACK TO FOURTEEN’. “Then we had to piece together a band,” says Andy, with THE TWILIGHT SAD now centred on him and James after former bandmates were drawn away by life commitments. Sometime Arab Strap player David Jeans and Mogwai live team-member Alex Mackay play drums and bass respectively, while the album was produced by MacFarlane at Willesden’s Battery Studios – a location rich in cherished Cure history, notably – with additional production from Andy Savours (My Bloody Valentine) and mixing by Chris Coady (Slowdive).
The result is a pinnacle for THE TWILIGHT SAD in a career of tremendous integrity and artistry, and a record that honours the band’s ability to turn lived experience into fully felt music. “To know that I’m saying things that connect with other people, that’s such a powerful thing,” says James. “I want to be a relatable person that talks about things that can happen and give an opportunity for people to go, well, you’re not alone. I want people to be able to listen to this record and hear that it comes from a place of raw emotion. The album is an opportunity to share my experience and move forward with my life.”
IT’S THE LONG GOODBYE album artwork and tracklist:
- GET AWAY FROM IT ALL
- DESIGNED TO LOSE
- ATTEMPT A CRASH LANDING – THEME
- WAITING FOR THE PHONE CALL
- THE CEILING UNDERGROUND
- DEAD FLOWERS
- INHOSPITABLE/HOSPITAL
- CHEST WOUND TO THE CHEST
- BACK TO FOURTEEN
- TV PEOPLE STILL THROWING TVS AT PEOPLE
