Having already released its incendiary singles ‘The Sound’ and ‘Big Mouth’, Petrol Girls’ second album is finally here. ‘Cut & Stitch’ is out today via Hassle Records and the band have also revealed a new music video for album track ‘Weather Warning’. “I struggled to put lyrics to this track for a really long time,” admits vocalist Ren. “But following a week of spectacularly shit mental health in the studio, I made it into a motivational sonic kick up the arse and back into action. I personally find a lot of the discourse around mental health a bit claustrophobic and babying, and that contributes to me feeling worse. Independence, activity and purposefulness are what I need to keep my shit together. I wrote this song for myself – if it’s useful for other people that’s cool, but everyone’s different, and I really want to underline that.”
A companion Rough Trade Publishing ‘Edition’, written by Ren, is also available to buy via the band’s official store. It’s a collection of “some of the in-betweens and the afterthoughts of our latest record ‘Cut & Stitch’, from my perspective”, she says. “It’s a chance for me to think about where some of the lyrics have come from, to write in and out of them and make links between them. It’s set out as a series of mini-essays, using cutting and stitching as a way of thinking about topics such as community, building solidarity, resisting perfectionism, emotional labour, gender & craft.”
Petrol Girls will be touring extensively in the coming months, with shows including in-stores at Rough Trades next week, tours with War On Women and La Dispute, plus appearances at festivals like 2000trees and Roskilde.
PETROL GIRLS ON TOUR:
MAY
27 – Rough Trade Instore, Nottingham
28 – Rough Trade Instore, Bristol
29 – Rough Trade Instore, London East
31 – New Cross Inn, London (w/ War on Women)
JUN
01 – Hell Hath No Fury Fest, Manchester
03 – Autonomour Space, Glasgow (w/ War on Women)
04 – Red Rum, Stafford (w/ War on Women)
05 – The Cavern, Exeter (w/ War on Women)
07 – Magasin 4, Brussels BE (w/ War on Women)
09 – Booze Cruise, Hamburg DE
10 – Bei Chez Heinz, Hannover DE (w/ War on Women)
11 – Underdogs, Prague CR (w/ War on Women)
12 – Schlachthof, Wiesbaden DE (w/ War on Women)
13 – AJZ Bahndamm, Wermelskirchen DE (w/ War on Women)
14 – Jugendhaus West, Stuttgart DE (w/ War on Women)
15 – Gibus Club, Paris FR (w/ War on Women)
16 – Le Farmer, Lyon FR (w/ War on Women)
18 – Dynamo Werk 21, Zurich CH (w/ War on Women)
19 – EKH, Vienna AT (w/ War on Women)
20 – Kapu, Linz AT (w/ War on Women)
21 – Glockenbachwerkstatt (w/ War on Women)
22 – Bollwerk 107, Moers (w/ War on Women)
28 – Trabendo – Paris, France (w/ La Dispute)
29 – Carlswerk Victoria – Cologne, Germany (w/ La Dispute)
30 – Gorilla – Manchester, United Kingdom (w/ La Dispute)
JUL
01 – Saint Luke’s – Glasgow, United Kingdom (w/ La Dispute)
02 – Electric Brixton – London, United Kingdom (w/ La Dispute)
05 – Astra – Berlin – Berlin, Germany (w/ La Dispute)
06 – Roskilde Festival
07 – Conne Island – Leipzig, Germany (w/ La Dispute)
08 – Schlachthof – Wiesbaden, Germany (w/ La Dispute)
09 – Legend Club – Milan, Italy (w/ La Dispute)
11 – 2000Trees Festival, Cheltenham UK
13 – Kliko Fest, Haarlem, NL