Swim Deep have shared a new single, ‘Mud’ – you can listen to it below.
The soaring, romantic anthem is the latest preview of the Birmingham band’s fifth studio album, ‘Hum’, which is set for release on June 19 via Submarine Cat Records.
“‘Mud’ was born in our label’s studio, where we would meet up and jam with no real pressure or goal, just friends playing music together and expressing ourselves the only way we know how,” explained frontman Austin Williams.
“The chorus came to me, which I immediately thought was too good for it to be an original thought; it’s like seeing a magic trick and being told it’s actually magic, no trick.”
He added: “With all the other things going on in our lives, I often forget that the one constant thing is the love I have for my wife every day. This song is about that.”
‘Mud’ was produced by Bill Ryder-Jones, who also helmed Swim Deep’s 2024 record ‘There’s A Big Star Outside’, and reunited with the group on the forthcoming ‘Hum’.
Guitarist J.J. Buchanan commented: “The outro was a three-month-long battle in which we were all trying to steer the ship in the same direction (a Teenage Fanclub‘s ‘The Concept’-inspired instrumental) but just via different routes.
“Luckily, captain Bill stepped up to the wheel and got us out of the storm unscathed.”
When speaking to the band earlier this year, NME noted “the slow, grungy stomp of ‘Mud’” while James Balmont discussed the “guiding lights” of Swim Deep’s new album. “Each song should go on a journey,” he told us.
At the time, Ryder-Jones said he thought there was “still a lot of work to be done” on the LP, as the group wrapped up sessions. “It still feels like we haven’t quite cracked some things,” he continued.
“They’re definitely going in the right direction. Sometimes it takes two or three records to settle into a new era. It can be a challenge to your audience, so you [just have to] keep putting out good quality records, which I think we are doing,” he added.
Williams also half-joked that ‘Hum’ could be summed up as “live, loss, love”, following the birth of his daughter, Mary, and the death of his wife’s father. “The love makes the loss harder, but the love makes the live easier,” he told NME.
Swim Deep are due to embark on a UK headline tour this autumn, with shows in Leeds, Manchester, Glasgow, Nottingham, Cardiff and London. Find any remaining tickets here, and see the full list of gigs below.
Swim Deep’s 2026 UK headline tour dates are:
SEPTEMBER
24 – Brudenell Social Club, Leeds
25 – YES Pink Room, Manchester
26 – McChuills, Glasgow
30 – Bodega, Nottingham
OCTOBER
1 – Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff
2 – Moth Club, London
3 – Moth Club, London
