New Video: Weird Nightmare Returns with Rousingly Anthemic and Earnest “Where I Belong”

Almost every band that’s worth a damn has had a member, who at some point worked in a record store. With JOVM mainstay acts METZ and Weird Nightmare, it was frontman and creative mastermind Alex Edkins. Slinging indie rock and hardcore records at his hometown record store while attending university, Edkins became an ardent student of rock ‘n’ roll from the psychedelic 1960s to the DIY 1990s and beyond. 

Hoopla, Edkins’ sophomore Weird Nightmare album, which is slated for a May 1, 2026 release through Sub Pop globally and Dine Alone Records in Canada, reportedly sees the JOVM mainstay mixing and matching these wide-ranging influences in fun, exhilarating combinations, showcasing his sophisticated musical mind, while continuing to showcase his unerring knack for ridiculously catchy and rousingly anthemic hooks and choruses.

Co-produced by Edkins and Spoon‘s Jim Eno at Providence‘s world famous Machines With Magnets, Hoopla also sees the acclaimed Canadian artist expanding upon Weird Nightmare’s musical palette with the addition of piano, bells and castanets, which give his long-held straightforward songwriting a shiny luster. 

The album will feature the previously released “Forever Elsewhere,” the Cheap Trick-like “Might See You There,” the punchy punk rock-like “Pay No Mind,” and the album’s fourth single “Where I Belong.” “Where I Belong” continues to showcase Edkins’ long-held penchant for rousingly anthemic hooks and choruses paired with some of the most introspective and deeply honest songwriting of the JOVM mainstay’s career. The song captures a narrator who’s recognizing that he’s getting older, that the road ain’t what it always is cracked up to be — especially since he has a family. The self-doubt and confusion at the core of the song are real and deeply lived in yet they feel universal and familiar to anyone, who’s inching into middle age.

Directed by boy wonder, the accompanying video for “Where I Belong” features Edkins in a thrift shop, playing his guitar and singing while trying on different outfits and personalties.

Edkins and company will be embarking on a lengthy international tour that includes North American, UK and European Union headlining dates. The tour includes a June 27, 2026 stop at Union Pool. The tour includes a set at the inaugural Soundscape NW Festival in Portland, OR. Check out the tour dates below. Additional dates will be announced soon. 
 

Tour Dates

Fri. Apr. 24 –  San Diego, CA – Soda Bar
Sat. Apr. 25 – Los Angeles, CA – Gold Diggers ^
Sun. Apr. 26 – Oakland, CA – Thee Stork Club ^
Tue. Apr. 28 – Portland, OR – Soundscape NW Festival *
Wed. Apr. 29 –  Seattle, WA – Baba Yaga
Fri. May 01 – Toronto, ON – Sonic Boom in-store
Sun. May 03 –  Brantford, ON –  zBTFD in-store 
Tue. May 12 – Kingston, ON – Broom Factory
Wed. May 13 – Montreal, PQ – Bar le Ritz
Sat. May 16 –  Halifax, NS – Marquee Ballroom #  
Wed. Jun. 17 –  London, ON – London Music Hall #
Thu. Jun. 18 – Hamilton, ON –  Bridgeworks #
Fri. Jun. 19 – Toronto, ON –  Masonic Temple #
Sat. Jun. 20 –  Ottawa, ON – The Bronson #
Wed. Jun. 24 – Richmond, VA – Richmond Music Hall
Thu. Jun. 25 – Washington, DC – Songbyrd
Fri. Jun. 26 – Philadelphia, PA  – Ortlieb’s
Sat. Jun. 27 – Brooklyn, NY – Union Pool
Sun. Jun.  28 –  Medford, MA – Deep Cuts
Fri. Aug. 28 – Malaga, ES – Canela Party Festival
Wed. Sep. 2  – Glasgow, UK – Hug & Pint
Thu. Sep. 3 – Birmingham, UK –  Hare & Hounds
Sat. Sep. 5 – London, UK –  The Lexington
Sun. Sep. 6 –  Rotterdam, NL – Rotown
Tue. Sep. 8 – Berlin, DE – Urban Spree
Wed. Sep. 9 – Koln, DE – Bumann
Thu. Sep. 10 – Paris, FR –  Point Ephemere
Fri. Sep. 11 – Lille, FR- Aeronef
Sun. Sep. 13 Asten, NL – Misty Fields Festival
 
* with Bully
^ with Mrs. Magician
# with Wintersleep

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