New Video: JOVM Mainstays Nation of Language Share Woozy “I’m not Ready for the Change”

Acclaimed Brooklyn-based synth pop act and JOVM mainstays Nation of Language — Ian Richard Devaney (vocals, guitar), Aidan Noell (synths) and Alex MacKay (bass) — have managed to amass a rapidly growing and devout national and international fanbase as a result of a dance floor friendly sound that draws from New Wave, post-punk and shoegaze. The JOVM mainstays three albums, 2020’s Introduction, Presence, 2021’s A Way Forward and 2023’s Strange Disciple have received coverage from Billboard, The New York Times, Document Journal, BrooklynVegan, MOJO, NME, Pitchfork, Stereogum and lengthy list of others, including this site.

Adding to a rapidly rising profile, the band has performed on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Recently,  “Weak In Your Light” was featured in the series finale of the Netflix hit show You. They’ve also become a mainstay on the international festival circuit, playing sets at Austin City Limits, Desert Daze, Pitchfork Festival, Primavera Sound, Pukklepop, Corona Capital, Outside Lands, Bonnaroo, and a growing list of others globally.

Last month, the acclaimed JOVM mainstays announced they signed to Sub Pop Records, who will be releasing their new material globally in 2025 and beyond, including the band’s highly-anticipated fourth album, Dance Called Memory. Slated for a September 19, 2025 release, the 10-song album was recorded, produced and mixed by Holy Ghost‘s Nick Millhiser, who produced 2023’s Strange Disciple. “What’s so great about Nick is his ability to make us feel like we don’t need to do what might be expected of us,” says Nation of Language’s Aidan Noell. The album was mastered by Heba Kadry, who has worked on some of the most acclaimed records of the past decade or so.

Sonically, the album is imbued with a subtly shifted palette: On some tracks percussion is smashed through a synthesizer to nod at early-2000’s electronic music. Chopped-up drum break samples make appearances, too.

Ultimately, for the trio, the hope was to weave raw vulnerability and humanity into a synth-heavy album. “There is a dichotomy between the Kraftwerk school of thought and the Brian Eno school of thought, each of which I’ve been drawn to at different points. I’ve read about how Kraftwerk wanted to remove all of the humanity from their music, but Eno often spoke about wanting to make synthesized music that felt distinctly human,” Nation of Language’s Ian Richard Devaney says. “As much as Kraftwerk is a sonically foundational influence, with this record I leaned much more towards the Eno school of thought. In this era quickly being defined by the rise of AI supplanting human creators, I’m focusing more on the human condition, and I need the underlying music to support that… Instead of hopelessness, I want to leave the listener with a feeling of us really seeing one another, that our individual struggles can actually unite us in empathy.”

Dance Called Memory will feature the previously released “Inept Apollo,” which continues a run of nostalgia-inducing, 80s New Wave-inspired material, while furthering their unerring knack for crafting slickly produced dance floor numbers anchored around earnest lyricism.

“I’m Not Ready for the Change,” Dance Called Memory‘s second and latest single features chopped up drum breaks seemingly inspired by Loveless-era My Bloody Valentine, glittering arpeggiated synths paired with whirring guitars and the band’s long-held penchant for enormous hooks and lived-in lyrics.

Directed by longtime collaborator John McKay, the accompanying, stylishly shot video features the trio performing the song in a studio — and for you fellow old heads, will subtly remind you of early 1980s MTV.

Along with the single and album announcements, the JOVM mainstay will be busy throughout the summer and fall. They’re will be opening for Death Cab for Cutie on their Plans: 20th Anniversary Tour for four dates: Seattle’s Climate Pledge Arena on July 31, 2025 and August 2, 2025 and for two-sold out shows in Chicago’s Chicago Theatre, August 5, 2025 and August 6, 2025. 

After opening for Death Cab for Cutie, the acclaimed Brooklyn-based trio will then embark on a lengthy international headlining tour, which features stops across North America through the fall. During the late fall, they’ll head over to the European Union and the UK.

The North American leg of the tour includes a three-night, hometown stand at Warsaw — September 18, 2025, September 19, 2025 and September 20, 2025. 

The EU and UK tour dates will feature the band headlining some of their largest venues across the continent they’ve played to date. Support for the North American and UK/EU shows will come from Safe Mind (Aug. 21st-23rd), Deathwish Inc.’s Greet Death (Sep. 21st-Oct. 5th), Sub Pop labelmates Deeper (Oct.17th-30th), and Partisan Records act Westerman (Oct. 8th-13th + Nov. 8th-22nd).

The band announced a few new shows to their previously announced headlining tour dates. The expanded tour dates are, as always, below.

Nation of Language 
Summer 2025 Support Shows w/ Death Cab for Cutie
Thu. Jul. 31 – Seattle, WA – Climate Pledge Arena **
Sat. Aug. 02 – Seattle, WA – Climate Pledge Arena ** [Sold Out]
Tue. Aug. 05 – Chicago, IL – Chicago Theater ** [Sold Out]
Wed. Aug. 06 – Chicago, IL – Chicago Theater ** [Sold Out]
 
August – October 2025 
North American Headline Shows
Thu. Aug. 21 – Hamden, CT – Space Ballroom !
Fri. Aug. 22 –  Woodstock, NY – Bearsville Theater !
Sat. Aug. 23 – Portland, ME – State Theatre !
Thu. Sep. 18 – Brooklyn, NY – Warsaw %
Fri. Sep. 19 – Brooklyn, NY – Warsaw +
Sat. Sep. 20 – Brooklyn, NY – Warsaw #
Sun. Sep. 21 – Boston, MA – Royale #
Tue. Sep. 23 – Detroit, MI – The Majestic #
Wed. Sep. 24 – Chicago, IL – Thalia Hall #
Fri. Sep. 26 – Minneapolis, MN – First Avenue #
Sat. Sep. 27 – Milwaukee, WI – Turner Hall Ballroom #
Mon. Sep. 29 – Omaha, NE – Slowdown #
Tue. Sep. 30 – Kansas City, MO – The Truman #
Thu. Oct. 02 – Denver, CO – The Gothic Theatre #
Sat. Oct. 04 – Boise, ID – Knitting Factory #
Sun. Oct. 05 – Missoula, MT – Top Hat #
Wed. Oct. 08 – Vancouver, BC – The Pearl ^
Sun. Oct. 11 – Portland, OR – Revolution Hall ^
Mon. Oct. 13 – San Francisco. CA – The Fillmore ^
Wed. Oct. 15 – Los Angeles, CA – The Fonda Theater ^
Thu. Oct. 16 – Los Angeles, CA – The Fonda Theater  *
Fri. Oct. 17 – San Diego, CA – Music Box *
Tue. Oct. 21 – Austin, TX – Mohawk *
Wed. Oct. 22 – Dallas, TX – The Studio at The Bomb Factory *
Thu. Oct. 24 – Houston, TX – White Oak Music Hall *
Sat. Oct. 25 – Atlanta, GA – Variety Playhouse *
Sun. Oct. 26 – Chapel Hill, NC – Cat’s Cradle *
Mon. Oct. 27 – Richmond, VA – The Broadberry *
Wed. Oct. 29 – Philadelphia, PA – Union Transfer *
Thu. Oct. 30 – Washington, DC – 9:30 Club *
 
November 2025
UK/EU Headlining Shows
Thu. Nov. 06 – Dublin, IE – Opium $
Fri. Nov. 07 – Dublin, IE – Opium $ [Sold Out]
Sat. Nov. 08 – Manchester, UK – O2 Ritz Manchester ^
Sun. Nov. 09 – Glasgow, UK – St. Luke’s ^
Tue. Nov. 11 – Cardiff, UK – Tramshed ^
Wed. Nov. 12 – London, UK – The Roundhouse ^
Fri. Nov. 14 – Paris, FR – Elysee Montmartre ^
Sat. Nov. 15 – Amsterdam, NL – Melkweg ^
Sun. Nov. 16 – Nijmegen, NL – Doornroosje ^
Tue. Nov. 18 – Cologne, DE – Gloria ^
Wed. Nov. 19 – Hamburg, DE – Uebel & Gefährlich ^
Fri. Nov. 21 – Berlin, DE – Columbiahalle ^
Sat. Nov. 22 – Munich, DE – Technikum ^
Sun. Nov. 23 – Milan, IT – Magazzini Generali
Wed. Nov. 26 – Barcelona, ES – Razzmatazz
Thu. Nov. 27 – Madrid, ES – La Riviera
Fri. Nov. 28 – Lisbon, PT – LAV
 
** w/ Death Cab For Cutie
! w/ Safe Mind
# w/ Greet Death
* w/ Deeper
^ w/ Westerman
+ w/ Horse Jumper of Love
% w/ A. Savage
$ w/ Telekura