New York synth-rockers Nation of Language skewer outrage-fueled newscasts in the video for their latest single, “Too Much, Enough,” with a little help from friends such as Reggie Watts, Kevin Morby, the Moldy Peaches’ Adam Green, Tomberlin, and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia/Westworld actor Jimmi Simpson. The clip was directed by Robert Kolodny.
“We knew we wanted the video to be a newscast, as the song is about media outrage bait, but we also wanted it to be absurdist and fun so it didn’t feel like we were trafficking in the same negative emotional manipulation as our subject matter,” the group tells SPIN of the clip, which features a masked character dubbed the Strange Disciple absorbing the frenetic footage on an old-school TV.
“Too Much, Enough” will be found on Nation of Language’s upcoming album, Strange Disciple, due Sept. 15 from PIAS. “The guests are all friends of the band from one walk of life or another,” the group says of the video cast. “Reggie Watts performed on a west coast run of shows with us earlier this year, Jimmi Simpson is a fan of the band who we finally got to meet in L.A. this year, and Kevin Morby is a fellow Kansas City-an to [group member] Aidan [Noell].”
Nation of Language has been performing “Too Much, Enough” in its live show for some time, and group members say the “response has been great so far. Before the pandemic, we were constantly playing songs that were new to people, both because we had a limited number of singles out and because we were often playing to strangers [and] opening for other bands. Since our return to touring, the vibe shifted: audiences at our shows had the lockdown to get to know the music inside and out, and we were able to sell out shows for the first time. The feeling of looking out into a crowd and seeing them sing all of the words to your music back to you was new and thrilling. But now, on our third album cycle, we are back to trying out material to people for the first time in years. It’s an exciting test and gives us a lot of energy.”
The group is touring extensively in support of Strange Disciple, which it describes as “if Bob Ross replaced Alizarin Crimson and Phthalo Blue with Kraftwerk and Slowdive. We’re just looking to expand our notions of what a Nation of Language record can sound like — trying to pull in more influences and smear them together in ways that feel interesting to us.”
Here are Nation of Language’s tour dates:
8/3 – Haldern, DE – Haldern Pop
8/4 – Diepholz, DE – Appletree Garden
8/5 – Katowice, PL – OFF Festival
8/11 – San Francisco, CA – Outside Lands
8/12 – Portland, OR – Revolution Hall
8/13 – Seattle, WA – Day In Day Out
8/14 – Vancouver, BC – Rickshaw Theatre
9/7 – Baltimore, MD – First Thursday Festival
9/15 – Berlin, DE – Astra
9/16 – Hamburg, DE – Uebel & Gefährlich
9/17 – Malmo, SE – Plan B
9/18 – Copenhagen, DK – Pumpehuset
9/20 – Kӧln, DE – Gebäude9
9/21 – Amsterdam, NL – Paradiso
9/22 – Brussels, BE – Orangerie
9/23 – Paris, FR – Trabendo
9/25 – Tourcoing, FR – Le Grand Mix
9/27 – London, UK – Heaven
9/28 – Brighton, UK – Concorde 2
9/29 – Bristol, UK – Marble Factory
9/30 – Nottingham, UK – Rescue Rooms
10/4 – Manchester, UK – New Century
10/5 – Leeds, UK – Stylus
10/6 – Sheffield, UK – Foundry
10/7 – Newcastle, UK – Boiler Shop
10/13 – Pittsburgh, PA – Mr. Small’s Theatre
10/14 – Cleveland, OH – Grog Shop
10/15 – Chicago, IL – Metro
10/16 – Madison, WI – High Noon Saloon
10/18 – Milwaukee, WI – Back Room @ Colectivo
10/19 – St. Paul, MN – Amsterdam Bar & Hall
10/20 – Kansas City, MO – RecordBar
10/22 – Denver, CO – Gothic
10/23 – Salt Lake City, UT – Urban Lounge
10/25 – San Francisco, CA – The Independent
10/26 – San Francisco, CA – The Independent
10/28 – Los Angeles, CA – The Roxy
10/29 – San Diego, CA – Belly Up Tavern
10/30 – Phoenix, AZ – Crescent Ballroom
11/2 – Austin, TX – Scoot Inn
11/3 – Fort Worth, TX – Tulips FTX
11/4 – Houston, TX – White Oak Music Hall – Upstairs
11/7 – Nashville, TN – Basement East
11/8 – Asheville, NC – Grey Eagle
11/9 – Carrboro, NC – Cat’s Cradle
11/10 – Philadelphia, PA – Union Transfer
11/11 – Washington, DC – The Atlantis
11/30 – Boston, MA – The Sinclair
12/1 – Montreal, QC – Studio TD
12/2 – Toronto, ON – Phoenix
