“This is a punk move from us.” Benefits unveil new direction with new single Land Of The Tyrants, announce UK and European shows

(Image credit: Tom White)

Benefits have released a new single Land Of The Tyrants, and announced shows in the UK and Europe next month.

Now a duo, with frontman Kingsley Hall joined by 'electronic virtuoso' Robbie Major, Benefits' new single is their first new material since the release of their debut album, NAILS, and finds the band exploring a more dance/industrial-inflected, bass-heavy sound. Zera Tønin, vocalist of queerpop-electro duo Arch Femmesis, provides guest vocals on the song.

“Our songs are still angry, WE are still angry” says Hall, “but we are approaching it all in a different way. This is a punk move from us, this IS punk, but not as you might know it.”

Directed by Teesside filmmaker John Kirkbride, the song’s accompanying video takes inspiration from classic British gangster film The Long Good Friday.

“I’m not very good at being Bob Hoskins but Robbie is surprisingly good at being Pierce Brosnan, that’s my hot take," says Hall. “If the people who make Bond movies want to get in touch our DMs are open! There’s something really gratifying about having a daft idea in the middle of the night - like wanting to recreate the final scene in The Long Good Friday - and then seeing it materialise with a few wonky edges, a few days later on your laptop screen. Our amazing friend Martin Fox came to the rescue with lending us his car, a lovely motor, and because he looks incredible AND hard as nails, he also agreed to play an important role in the video too. Result.”

Watch the video below:

Benefits feat. Zera TÃ¸nin - Land of the Tyrants - YouTube

Watch On

Benefits will tour the UK and Europe next month, calling at:

Oct 05: Huddersfield The Parish, UK
Oct 06: Lancaster Kanteena, UK
Oct 07: Glasgow The Hug and Pint, UK
Oct 08: Edinburgh The Wee Red Bar, UK
Oct 09: Aberdeen Tunnels, UK
Oct 10: Stirling Tolbooth, UK
Oct 11: Middlesbrough Play Brew, UK
Oct 12: Liverpool Shipping Forecast, UK
Oct 13: Preston The Ferret, UK
Oct 17: Rotterdam Left of the Dial, Holland
Oct 18: Utrecht acu, Holland
Oct 19: Rotterdam Left of the Dial, Holland
Oct 20: Ostend Cafe de Zwerver, Belgium
Oct 22: Southampton Joiners, UK
Oct 23: Brighton Hope and Ruin, UK
Oct 24: Margate Where Else, UK
Oct 25: London The George Tavern, UK
Oct 26: Newport Le Pub, UK

Tickets are on sale here.

The band will also be performing at the Iceland Airwaves festival in November.

A music writer since 1993, formerly Editor of Kerrang! and Planet Rock magazine (RIP), Paul Brannigan is a Contributing Editor to Louder. Having previously written books on Lemmy, Dave Grohl (the Sunday Times best-seller This Is A Call) and Metallica (Birth School Metallica Death, co-authored with Ian Winwood), his Eddie Van Halen biography (Eruption in the UK, Unchained in the US) emerged in 2021. He has written for Rolling Stone, Mojo and Q, hung out with Fugazi at Dischord House, flown on Ozzy Osbourne's private jet, played Angus Young's Gibson SG, and interviewed everyone from Aerosmith and Beastie Boys to Young Gods and ZZ Top. Born in the North of Ireland, Brannigan lives in North London and supports The Arsenal.