Arab Strap announced their ninth album, Half Told Tales, scheduled for release on September 4 via Rock Action. Aidan Moffat and Malcolm Middleton framed the album as a celebration of reaching thirty years, focused on making new music. Middleton described the album’s appeal as coming from differing tastes between band members, resulting in songs that neither person would have chosen alone, but that work for the band. The lead single “You You You” is presented as a RESIST protest anthem disguised as a love song, built on an Italo disco beat and notable guitar work. The lyrics directly confront hypocrisy, demagogues, and abhorrent behavior, while the song aims to remind listeners that not everyone is awful.
"“We're thirty years old this year,” say Aidan Moffat and Malcolm Middleton, “So we decided to celebrate by doing what we enjoy most: by making new music.”"
"“The excitement comes because me and Aidan like and hate different things,” says Middleton. “There are things in the record that individually we might not choose but that's why I like this album so much, because it's not the one I wanted to make. I don't think it's what Aidan wanted to make either, it's this bit in the middle. It might not be 100% what we want but it's good for the band, and it works.”"
"The first single definitely works: “You You You” is a “RESIST” protest anthem disguised as a love song and set to an Italo disco beat and impressive fretwork from Middleton. It gets more fiery as it goes and here's the last verse where the intentions are made very clear: And if you're streaming this song on Spotify, then we both fund weapons-grade AI. But if it wasn't here, then how would you hear it? We're over a barrel, but we don't have to cheer it. I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE FUCK TO DO when hypocrisy reigns and nothing is true, and nobody pays for abhorrent behaviour - FUCK THESE DEMAGOGUES COSPLAYING SAVIOURS"
"“'You You You' is an attempt to remind ourselves, and hopefully others, that the world's not full of awful people,” says Moffat. “That there are millions of us out there dealing with the same worries every day: from the rising costs of absolutely everything, our mental and physical health, the constant slaughter and tyranny in our newsfeeds, to playing an unwitting part in the military-industrial complex, and the endless warping of reality. It can often feel like a complete absence of human decency - it's no wonder that despondency can feel like our defaul"
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