Soulwax

Last year, Belgian dance outfit Soulwax released From Deewee, their first new album in more than a decade. Now, in addition to numerous upcoming festival dates, the group has announced new record is slated for release on June 22nd via DEEWEE / [PIAS].

Called Essential, the 12-track effort was recorded in just under two weeks at the band’s DEEWEE studio in Ghent, Belgium. For it, they eschewed the live, one-track approach they adopted for From Deewee, choosing instead to draw upon “the gear” they ignored last time.



Soulwax says the album was born out of a single word, “essential,” which is not just the name of the album but also all of its tracks. It all began when they were asked to create a BBC Radio 1 Essential Mix, with the band saying in a press release that, in response, “we chose to do what every sane human being would do, we decided to lock ourselves into our studio for two weeks and make an hour of new music based around the word ‘Essential’, instead of preparing a mix of already existing music.”

They continue: “It felt like a challenge and something no-one had done. We loved the challenge of releasing a full record live on a radio show without people having any advance notice, and we always wanted to release it on DEEWEE after it was aired on Radio 1.” The result established Soulwax as the first artists to ever submit an entire hour’s worth of original material for a BBC Radio 1 Essential Mix.

In conjunction with the album’s announcement, Soulwax have shared “Essential Four”, a bright, danceable cut featuring breezy harmonies, birdsong, and guest vocals from Belgian artist Charlotte Adigéry. Listen to it below.

Soulwax will play LA’s Fonda Theater in advance of tomorrow’s set at Coachella. Later this summer, they’ll be playing festivals such as the UK’s All Points East and France’s Festical Beauregard; see their tour itinerary below. Pre-order Essential here, and scroll down for its artwork and tracklist.

Essential Artwork:

Essential Tracklist:

01. Essential One

02. Essential Two

03. Essential Three

04. Essential Four

05. Essential Five

06. Essential Six

07. Essential Seven

08. Essential Eight

09. Essential Nine

10. Essential Ten

11. Essential Eleven

12. Essential Twelve

Soulwax 2018 Tour Dates:

04/19 – Los Angeles, CA @ Fonda Theater

04/20 – Indio, CA @ Coachella Music Festival

05/26 – London, UK @ All Points East

07/07 – Caen, FR @ Festical Beauregard

07/13 – Clitheroe, UK – Beat Herder

07/19 – Carhaix, FR – Vielles Charrues Festival