Category: Penguin Artists

TO DO LIST (AFTER THE BREAKUP) IS THE FIRST NEW MUSIC FROM BLOSSOMS SINCE THEIR NUMBER 1 ALBUM RIBBON AROUND THE BOMB IN 2022

Blossoms have revealed their brand-new single To Do List (After The Breakup) featuring Findlay and produced by long-term producer James Skelly. The single is the first new music from Blossoms since their third Number 1 album Ribbon Around The Bomb, released in April 2022. To Do List (After The Breakup) is inspired by Rupi Kaur’s poem of the same name, taken from her book Milk and Honey, which shot her to fame on its initial release in 2014, selling more than 3 million copies. Joining Blossoms on the single, which launched with a world premiere on Clara Amfo’s BBC Radio 1 show, is the band’s friend and Manchester musician Findlay.

Speaking about the new single the band’s singer and lyricist Tom Ogden said:

‘We initially kicked the song around as a band in a way that we did when we first started – all in the round together at our rehearsal room. It’s something we’ve not really been able to do for a long time but it felt so natural and euphoric for the five of us! Some of the song’s DNA lies within the local Manchester bands we grew up listening to from our parents’ record collections, bands like New Order and James.

Lyrically our songs have sometimes been inspired by books and short stories. Last January we came across the poem ‘To Do List (After The Breakup)’ by Rupi Kaur and thought it captured the feeling of heartbreak so accurately and it struck a chord with us (literally!). We thought it was a great concept for a song and reached out to Rupi about using some of her words and she kindly gave us permission to use them. We had always imagined the track as a duet, so we got in touch with singer Findlay who’s work we’ve been fans of for years. She loved the song and was up for getting involved and that really was the final piece of the puzzle for us.’

To Do List (After The Breakup) is the first song to be released on Blossoms new record label ODD SK, in partnership with The Orchard. The new label takes cues from the band’s surnames, as well as their hometown of Stockport.

Blossoms are supporting Inhaler at their 3 Arena show in Dublin on 11th November before they play a small number of US dates that month, including a support slot with New Order in Los Angeles. The band are also supporting Tom Grennan at Finsbury Park in London in August 2024 and further live dates will be announced in the coming months. For more information, visit the band’s website.

Since forming in 2013, Blossoms have enjoyed widespread success and acclaim. Their 2016 debut Blossoms topped the album charts for two consecutive weeks and went on to earn the band BRIT Award and Mercury Prize nominations, while 2018’s Cool Like You charted at Number 4 in the UK album chart, spawning the anthemic singles I Can’t Stand It, There’s A Reason Why (I Never Returned Your Calls) and How Long Will This Last? Their third studio album, 2020’s Foolish Loving Spaces was the band’s second UK Number 1 album, while their fourth studio LP Ribbon Around The Bomb gave the band their third UK Number 1 album, with the record’s standout tracks Ode To NYC, The Sulking Poet and Care For well established as fan favourites. Blossoms have had five top 5 albums in the UK, including their In Isolation/Live From The Plaza Theatre, Stockport release.

Natalie Findlay, known as Findlay, is a singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist originally from Stockport who crafts her own intimate reality within her songwriting. She has released two full length albums Forgotten Pleasures and The Last of the 20th Century Girls under her own name and also works on another musical project, TTRRUUCES with her longtime collaborator Jules Apollinaire. They are releasing their new album JJUIICES this month. Natalie is a prolific songwriter and has collaborated and co-written with multiple artists across different genres, most notably Suki Waterhouse, who she worked with on the gold certified track Good Looking.