The Radio Dept. – “The Absence Of Birds”
![](https://static.stereogum.com/uploads/2020/02/radio-dept-absence-of-birds-1580764852.jpg)
Swedish dream-poppers the Radio Dept. haven’t released a full-length album since 2016’s Running Out Of Love, but they’ve spent the last few years reissuing some of their older work. They also put out a handful of tracks, including “Your True Name” and “Going Down Swinging,” in 2018. Today, they’re returning with a new song called “The Absence Of Birds.”
The track comes with an opaque announcement about impending new material to come from the band:
‘The Absence of Birds’ is a song about missing someone. And about forcing the hand of chance to make new and unexpected things happen. There’s more to come this year, ten or more songs will be released in some way or another during 2020. Release formats to be decided from what we feel suits the songs.
They’ve also announced a new reissue of their 2006 sophomore album, Pet Grief, which you can pre-order through their website, and a new string of tour dates, which you can check out alongside the new song below.
TOUR DATES (tickets):
04/26 Washington, DC @ The Black Cat
04/27 Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer
04/28 New York, NY @ Webster Hall
04/29 Boston, MA @ Brighton Music Hall
04/30 Montreal, QC @ L’Astral
05/01 Toronto, ON @ The Mod Club
05/02 Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle
05/03 St. Paul, MN @ Turf Club
05/06 Seattle, WA @ Neumos
05/07 Vancouver, BC @ Venue
05/08 Portland, OR @ Hawthorne Theatre
05/10 San Francisco, CA @ Great American Music Hall
05/11 Los Angeles, CA @ The Fonda Theatre
“The Absence Of Birds” is out now.