THE BRIAN JONESTOWN MASSACRE
ANNOUNCE NEW SINGLE
‘MAKES ME GREAT / OUT OF BODY’ ON 10” VINYL OUT APRIL 25TH ON A RECORDINGS
RETURNING TO NORTH AMERICA THIS FALL FOR EXTENSIVE RUN OF LIVE SHOWS
TICKETS ON SALE NOW 
Photo: Joe Eley
THE BRIAN JONESTOWN MASSACRE announce a new single, 'Makes Me Great / Out Of Body', on red transparent 10” vinyl, released April 25th via Anton Newcombe’s record label A Recordings. Pre-save
here. Following a hugely successful UK and Europe tour earlier this year, the band will return to North America this fall for an extensive run of live shows, including two dates with special guests, Cast, making their first US appearance in nearly 30 years. Tickets on sale
now.
It is over 30 years since Anton Newcombe – frontman, songwriter, composer, studio owner, multi-instrumentalist, producer, engineer, father, force of nature – and his band The Brian Jonestown Massacre released their first single She Made Me / Evergreen. Released in 1992, as the British music press descended on the US to anoint the next US guitar band as flavour of the month and major labels were on the hunt for the compliant hopefuls to be their latest quick fix, Anton Newcombe had an idea: say no. As leader of the Brian Jonestown Massacre, Newcombe had already established himself as a visionary songwriter, a man to whom making music wasn’t a lifestyle choice or a hipster haircut but the very fabric of existence itself, and he had observed in silent horror as his peers meekly acquiesced to everything – yes to contracts, yes to management, yes to suggestions, yes to this, yes to that, yes, yes, yes. But he was different. Anton Newcombe was going to say no to everything. “I just knew I would be more successful in a certain way by saying no, just being contrary because I figured that if people liked me they were gonna like me anyway,” he says. “Or dislike me. It doesn’t matter.”
Much of this was documented on the controversial documentary ‘Dig!’, which is still hailed as one of the best rock documentaries ever made, and celebrates its 20th Anniversary this year with the remastered, expanded version “Dig! XX.”
Brian Jonestown Massacre’s shoegazing-tinged debut album Methodrone was released in 1995 and since then numerous band members have joined Newcombe on his sonic escapades, but he has remained the sole constant, the creative mastermind at the centre of one of music’s most fascinating bands. There have been a further 20 albums under the Brian Jonestown Massacre moniker since then, each embarking on their own mind-expanding adventure and exploring the outer realms of rock’n’roll; psychedelic rock, country-blues, snarling rock’n’roll, blissed-out noise-pop and more.
Along the way, Newcombe has established himself as a once-in-a-lifetime talent who saw the direction in which mainstream indie-rock was heading and opted to take the long way round. He’s emerged as a revolutionary force in modern music, an underground hero. There was no other way, this was how it had to be. “My only option with everything in life has always been that you just jump into the fire,” he declared. “It doesn’t matter what it is.”
It's with that spirit that he’s hopped around the globe, from the West Coast to New York, from Manhattan to Iceland, and then to Berlin, where he’s lived for 15 years and has two flats, one to live in and one that’s been converted into his studio.
After a hugely prolific 2010s that saw the release of eight long-players and one mini-album, Newcombe had been going through a period of writer’s block when one day he picked up his 12-string guitar and
The Real (the opening track on previous album
Fire Doesn’t Grow on Trees) came out of him. Like the kraken, it was as if he’d summoned it. “All of a sudden, I just heard something,” he says. “And then it just didn’t stop. We tracked a whole song every single day for 70 days in a row.” By the end of it they had 2 albums ready to go. Joining Newcombe in the studio for The Future Is Your Past were Hakon Adalsteinsson (guitar) and Uri Rennert (drums).
Brian Jonestown Massacre released their 20th full-length studio album
The Future Is Your Past, in February 2023 on Anton’s record label, A Recordings. In 2022 / 2023, they completed a massive world tour that saw them play 34 dates in North America, 25 dates across Europe and 16 dates in the UK. Towards the end of 2024, they released ‘
Don’t Look At Me’ ft. Aimee Nash. It is a delicious slice of hypnotic shoegaze with Nash lyrically casting a spell with the mantra “Do No Harm.”
There is no such thing as a defining statement in Anton Newcombe’s world anymore, just more chapters that contribute to the tale. “Nobody can stop me, I’m not asking somebody, I’m not making the rounds at Warners, saying ‘please put out my record!’. It’s just for me,” he says. He hopes he can be an inspiration to others. “I would love to see more groups, people playing music in the UK and everywhere else because I really enjoy it. That’s the only reason I need. It’s the only reason to do stuff.” That hits to the core of what makes Anton Newcombe and Brian Jonestown Massacre tick. He’ll keep jumping in that fire. That’s how he rolls. Savor it.
LIVE SHOWS:
Sept. 3 – Cat’s Cradle – Carrboro, NC
Sept. 4 – Variety Playhouse – Atlanta, GA
Sept. 5 – Basement East – Nashville, TN
Sept. 6 – Orange Peel – Asheville, NC
Sept. 8 – 9:30 Club – Washington, D.C.
Sept. 9 – Webster Hall – New York, NY - with special guests, Cast
Sept. 10 – Union Transfer – Philadelphia, PA - with special guests, Cast
Sept. 12 – The Sinclair – Cambridge, MA
Sept. 13 – Beanfield Theatre – Montreal, QC
Sept. 14 – Danforth Music Hall – Toronto, ON
Sept. 16 – Globe Iron – Cleveland, OH
Sept. 17 – Majestic Theatre – Detroit, MI
Sept. 18 – Mercury Ballroom – Louisville, KY
Sept. 19 – Hi-Fi Annex – Indianapolis, IN
Sept. 20 – Majestic Theatre – Madison, WI
Sept. 22 – Metro – Chicago, IL
Sept. 23 – Slowdown – Omaha, NE
Sept. 24 – recordBar – Kansas City, MO
Sept. 26 – Studio at The Factory – Dallas, TX
Sept. 28 – White Oak Music Hall – Houston, TX
Oct. 31 – Music Box – San Diego, CA
Nov. 1 – Pappy and Harriet’s – Pioneertown, CA
Nov. 2 – Observatory OC – Santa Ana, CA
Nov. 4 – SLO Brew – San Luis Obispo, CA
Nov. 6 – Swan Dive – Las Vegas, NV
Nov. 7 – The Van Buren – Phoenix, AZ
Nov. 8 – Tumbleroot – Santa Fe, NM
Nov. 10 – Gothic Theatre – Englewood, CO
Nov. 11 – Fox Theatre – Boulder, CO
Nov. 13 – Metro Music Hall – Salt Lake City, UT
Nov. 14 – Shrine Social Club – Boise, ID
Nov. 15 – The Showbox – Seattle, WA
Nov. 16 – The Pearl – Vancouver, B.C
Nov. 18 – Revolution Hall – Portland, OR
Nov. 20 – Regency Ballroom – San Francisco, CA
Nov. 21 – Rio Theatre – Santa Cruz, CA
Nov. 22 – Teragram Ballroom – Los Angeles, CA
Nov. 23 – Teragram Ballroom – Los Angeles, CA
TICKETS 
Single artwork by Francis Delacroix
PRESS FROM THE BJM’S JAN / FEB UK TOUR
"Brian Jonestown Massacre have a cult following big enough to warrant the publication of an acclaimed
memoir by percussionist Joel Gion and big enough that this large UK tour includes a date at Brixton Academy… Newcombe is really adept at coming up with melodies and guitar figures that sound immediately familiar, as if you know them already from a song you can’t quite place – a genuine skill." - Guardian
"The San Francisco band’s story is one of defiance, survival and surprise…surprise that they’re not only still here, but are seemingly bigger than ever… There’s something gloriously anachronistic about their look and sound, but also something timeless. Newcombe wears his influences on his sleeve, and the melange of The Byrds’ metallic jangle, the shoegaze of Ride and a Stones-esque swagger has given the band the feeling of always being out of time, but never out of fashion." - Louder Than War
“The Brian Jonestown’s ability to create an immersive live experience remains unparalleled and this Brixton gig was a masterclass in psychedelia, intensity, and raw musical craftsmanship.” - Music News
"A night of hypnotic grooves, kaleidoscopic guitars, and the kind of immersive psychedelia that only they can provide… The Brian Jonestown Massacre’s live show is not just a performance - it’s an experience. At the O2 Institute Birmingham, they proved once again why they remain one of the most compelling acts in modern psychedelic rock. Newcombe’s vision, combined with the band’s tight musicianship, created a night of sonic transcendence that few in attendance will soon forget." - RockShot
"I’ve never seen this band so tight before, so hyper focused on one goal, to take this crowd away from the world and into the galaxy." - Northern Exposure
“A spiritual experience.” - Essentially Pop
"One of the most unpredictable and brilliant bands of our time. Despite their underground status, the band’s influence on music is undeniable, they defy expectations and remain a vital and uncompromising force in modern music. It’s also been a reminder that, for all their psychedelic flourishes, The Brian Jonestown Massacre are a damn fine rock and roll band at heart." - All Music
"For longtime fans, this was a revelation. For newcomers, it was an entry point into one of the most enigmatic live bands in modern psychedelia. Either way, it was a night that will linger in the minds of those who witnessed it—a reminder that when the Brian Jonestown Massacre are locked in, there are few who can match their magic." - 5/5 - The Modern Record
“This is a band who are enjoying their craft and is truly authentic in their approach to rock ‘n’ roll. In a world filled with wannabees and try hards, The Brian Jonestown Massacre still prove to be one of the main driving forces in rock and psychedelic culture, forever etched into the history books as rock ‘n’ roll legends…” - Rockwell Unscene
"The Brian Jonestown Massacre delivered a night of immersive psychedelia that reminded us why they remain such a compelling force in live music.” - Glasgow Music
"Anton Newcombe lounges in his own brilliant, startling, divine genius and at the point where you want to shout something at him just to snap yourself out of his spell, in another masterful stroke he beats you to it and says, “look at this!” and blows your mind." - The Gryphon, Leeds Student
“The night ends to an exhilarating high. The final chords chime out, and The Brian Jonestown Massacre has shown that they can still create an immersive musical experience!” - Backseat Mafia
FOLLOW BJM:
Website /
Instagram /
Facebook
