Defects Announce New Album ‘Artificial Icons,’ Share ‘Signs’ Video Featuring Matt Heafy

Sep 28, 2026

Defects have announced their new album, Artificial Icons, due 16 October via Mascot Records, and revealed the dystopian single ‘Signs’ featuring Matt Heafy of Trivium.

Artificial Icons, produced by Jim Pinder (Sleep Token, Bring Me the Horizon), fizzes with anger, frustration, and the balance of survival. These songs are not just stories, they are personal fights through homelessness and addiction, broken systems, and severed connections. It follows 2024’s Modern Error, which documented singer Tony Maue’s anguish at being taken into care at a young age. Grief and trauma do not vanish overnight, and this record continues to chronicle that journey.

One of the album’s standout moments is ‘Signs,’ which places the listener in a war-torn setting. “I want to write songs that matter. To make people think,” Maue affirms.

People are dying. This needs to be addressed. It’s about looking for meaning. Trying to find a place to belong. There’s frustration, but also determination, even when the world feels like it’s crumbling. I’m so excited that this one features Matt.
Tony Maue, Defects

The band toured hard across 2024 and 2025, sweeping Europe alongside Trivium, Northlane, Of Mice and Men, Orbit Culture, and Funeral for a Friend, and racking up festival appearances at Download, Slam Dunk, Rock Im Park, Rock Am Ring, Impericon, Rockharz, Summer Breeze, Rock for the People, Jera On Air, Graspop, and Parkpop.

Elsewhere, the album careers through the socio-political title track ‘Artificial Icons’ and ‘Heresy,’ a confrontation with blind faith and false hope, while ‘All For Nothing’ is aimed inwards. “When I was younger, overthinking led me to drugs. I nearly died. The worst part was feeling alone,” Maue reflects. “When I did drugs, I gave up. If I stop moving forward, I fall back.”

On the writing process, guitarist James Threadwell adds, “On this album, we really had the space to develop and grow into ourselves. It’s an exciting metamorphosis.” Artificial Icons goes deeper than before, tethering itself to profound life experiences, with Maue concluding, “I can’t give up. I’ve given up before. I know what that looks like, and I’m not doing that again,” and Threadwell adding, “There’s no limit at this point. We have a vision, and there’s nothing out of reach.”

Pre-order and pre-save Artificial Icons here.