I know it’s been a very long and testing wait for a whole new record of Bag Raiders songs, but boy, has our patience been well rewarded! Jack Glass and Chris Stracey released their self-titled debut album in 2010. On September 6th, nearly 10 years after that first full length, Horizons arrives. The now fabled Australian indie dance and electro pair, whose greatest hit Shooting Stars had a sudden revival not too long ago (that even spawned Bongo Cat memes), began unleashing new tracks off of Horizons earlier this year. Wild At Heart, featuring Mickey Kojak, is a luscious, dance genre blurring treat, while Lightning with Kite String Tangle is easily one of my dance favorites of the year, a song worthy of its name, a true banger of a dance track that feels like Bag Raiders teamed up with Caribou and Rüfüs. You can listen to both of those below. But let’s revel in brand new track How Long, featuring our Australian fave, Panama, shall we? It’s a more introspective piece compared to the prior two, with a glossy sheen and more of that Caribou and Rüfüs multi-dimensional sonic magnificence, with the hypnotic rhythm of Elderbrook and Camelphat. How Long, which premiered on Triple J’s Home & Hosed, stemmed from a concept brewed in Bag Raiders’ LA home about waiting for love to come back around. It was brought to life by lyricist and Panama founder Jarrah McCleary. The track represents one’s strong emotional longings in love, while its instrumentals balance a cold and icy vibe. Bag Raiders say on the single: “From the first meeting to being in the studio, he’s [Jarrah] been great to work with. It’s great working with people who bring something different and help you get out of your own headspace - which is sometimes exactly what you need in order to do something new." Panama says: “I was immediately into the idea as I grew up hearing a lot of Bag Raiders and other Modular artists of that era. I think Bag Raiders are very unique as their music has been able to transcend that earlier period and still stay relevant today. I tend to shy away from writing big pop songs and focus more on the emotion of the music. I think 'How Long' is a strong representation of that way of thinking.”
Buy/stream the excellent new song, here. Pre-order Horizons, here. Bag Raiders will be touring Australia this month. Ticket info can be found, here.
