Citizen Announce Australian Tour + Share New Song “Highs and Lows”
Citizen have returned! Today the Toledo, Ohio rock powerhouse announce their new album, Halcyon Blues, due out Friday 7 August via Run For Cover/Civilians – available to pre-order on vinyl and CD here. To celebrate, the band have also unveiled the huge lead single Highs and Lows and confirmed their Australian return for February 2027, joined by very special guests Drug Church. Tickets will go on sale Friday 1 May at 10am local time via Destroy All Lines.
Citizen have always been determined to follow their own path, taking creative risks and challenging expectations at every turn. It’s all led to Halcyon Blues, a dynamic, confident release that draws on nearly two decades of musical and personal growth to emphatically declare what their dedicated fans already know: Citizen are one of our great modern rock bands–and they’re at the absolute top of their game.
Highs and Lows is a bold cut of technicolour alternative that steadily builds from a dark, pulsating bass line into the kind of euphoric chorus that few bands can come close to achieving. Prepare to hit repeat because the best rock song of the summer just arrived a little early.
Last in Australia in 2024 as headliners of New Bloom Festival, Citizen now return next February for their biggest Australian headline run to date. The tour will hit The Tivoli in Brisbane, Liberty Hall in Sydney, The Forum in Melbourne, The Gov in Adelaide and Magnet House in Perth.
Joining them on every date are Drug Church. For the past few years, the Albany and Los Angeles-based five-piece have been staunchly creating their own singular path in making distinctly outsider music that’s somehow at once welcoming and instantly satisfying. The band’s songs revel in sonic contradictions, seamlessly combining crushing aggression with bulletproof hooks, while the lyrics unflinchingly explore life’s darkness and discomfort with sardonic wit—and without judgement. Their last Australian visit came in 2023 for intimate Melbourne and Sydney shows, this time, they return for a full national run and first-time appearances in new cities.
17 years into an impressive career, Citizen still feel like underdogs who have never quite fit in. The band have had an unlikely rise from a group of Toledo high schoolers to long-running headliners capable of selling out shows around the world, and they got there through persistent sonic evolution. Over the years they’ve moved deftly through raw emo, menacing post-hardcore, anthemic alternative, garage-y indie pop, and so much more, now Halcyon Blues combines elements from throughout their entire catalog together into a singular and instantly satisfying record that just sounds like Citizen.
Recorded by vocalist Mat Kerekes then mixed by Tom Lorde-Alge (U2, Weezer, Blink182), Halcyon Blues taps into the urgency and ferocity of Citizen’s early albums while embracing the epic scope and undeniable hooks of their more recent work. The group’s determination and focus on pushing themselves musically has allowed them to grow steadily–and for their audience to grow with them. “A lot of bands try to do anything they can to be the hottest thing of the moment and we’ve just never operated like that,” says guitarist Nick Hamm. “We don’t think in moments, or months, or record cycles. Some bands end up getting sick of whatever walls they exist in, but I see Citizen as this long term creative project where there’s always somewhere new to go, and that’s kept me exhilarated through all these years. And we’ve trusted that people who like our band will want to come along. A lot of people grew with us and we’re really thankful for that.”
As well as Australian dates, Citizen have also announced a massive run of worldwide tour dates in support of Halcyon Blues. First the band will be hitting the road in September with support from Anxious, Hotline TNT, Rocket, and Cryogeyser, followed by the UK and EU with Modern Color, then finally Australia with Drug Church.
Tickets for Citizen’s Australian Tour will be available Friday 1 May at 10am local time via Destroy All Lines. Highs and Lows is out now and streaming everywhere. New album, Halcyon Blues, will be available Friday 7 August via Run For Cover/Civilians. Available to pre-order on vinyl and CD here.
TRACK LISTING
- Good Fortune
- I Can See You From Here
- Halcyon Blues
- Is It In My Brain
- Always The Last One to Leave
- Either Way
- Matador
- Ether
- Smooth Talker
- Highs and Lows
- Anne
Destroy All Lines Presents
CITIZEN (US)
Halcyon Blues Australian Tour 2027
with very special guests DRUG CHURCH (US)
Friday 26 February – The Tivoli, Brisbane Lic AA
Saturday 27 February – Liberty Hall, Sydney Lic AA
Sunday 28 February – Forum, Melbourne 18+
Wednesday 3 March – The Gov, Adelaide Lic AA
Thursday 4 March – Magnet House, Perth 18+
Tickets on sale Friday 1 May at 10am local time via Destroy All Lines
