South Wales trio Holding Absence have released their new single, “Modern Life Is Lonely,” the title track for their forthcoming fourth album, due out September 18 via new label partner Sumerian Records. The song arrives with an official lyric video.
“After the release of our album was pushed back a few weeks, we knew we had to offer something special to our fans to tide them over until the new release day. And what better song to do that than the title track! Modern Life Is Lonely, the song, is steeped in Lofi, whilst still being able to juxtapose itself against one of the heaviest moments in our discography. We’re hoping this’ll get people even more excited for the whole record to drop in just under a month!”
– Lucas Woodland
With their fourth full-length, Holding Absence have made something that speaks directly to the seemingly universal experience of loneliness in 2026. Serving as a reference to, and in many ways an update on, Blur’s 1993 album Modern Life Is Rubbish, the record is an introspective look at the assets and practices that have become part of the external every day, distilling how it feels to be so connected yet so desolate.
“This album was really the first time that I thought, ‘Let’s speak about the world that I live in, rather than the world that I am.’ In theory, everyone knows me now; they’ve heard my journey, but I’m still struggling in this big, bad world. It doesn’t matter how much enlightenment you can find within yourself; the world is still a scary place right now.”
– Lucas Woodland
Rather than pushing these feelings solely through himself, the band crafted an individual to embody them: Y4-BBO, as much a mascot for the band as a physical manifestation of the technological confusion of the era, giving the record a dual concept with his own story woven through the songs. His helmet, seen on the album’s cover art, was built by the same people who made the Cybermen for Doctor Who. Musically, Lucas, alongside guitarist Scott Carey and bassist Benjamin Elliott, pulled influence from the chaotic boldness of hyper-pop and the tranquillity of lo-fi while keeping post-hardcore grit at the heart, taking inspiration from boundary-pushing artists such as Julia Wolf and Paledusk. With Daniel Braunstein on production, his first time working with a British band, it is the longest Holding Absence have ever spent on a record: two and a half years of writing, demoing and crafting.
“We pushed ourselves in ways that we’d never had before, while maintaining what that language of Holding Absence is. As pretty famous victims of what AI is capable of, I wanted to do shit that no AI idiot would ever try and do, or even understand how to do. We’re at a new frontier where things are changing very fast, and where we are right now is essentially at a point of instinctive rebellion against that.”
– Lucas Woodland
Modern Life Is Lonely tracklist
- Reanimate
- Reflection
- Heaven
- Modern Life Is Lonely
- Take Me With You
- shells_like_us.int
- Whisper Of A Dream
- Lucid Love
- Scorched Earth
- lullaby.int
- Kyoto Snow
Holding Absence hit the road across the US on a co-headlining tour with Arm’s Length starting September 19, with Bloom and House & Home as support, plus festival appearances at Louder Than Life (September 18) and Aftershock (October 1).
Holding Absence 2026 tour dates
- 09.18 – Louisville, KY – Louder Than Life*
- 09.19 – St. Louis, MO – The Sovereign
- 09.20 – Chicago, IL – Riot Fest
- 09.22 – Grand Rapids, MI – Intersection
- 09.24 – Minneapolis, MN – Varsity
- 09.25 – Lawrence, KS – Granada
- 09.26 – Ft Collins, CO – Washington’s
- 09.27 – Colorado Springs, CO – Black Sheep
- 09.29 – Las Vegas, NV – Area15
- 09.30 – Pomona, CA – Glass House
- 10.01 – Sacramento, CA – Aftershock*
- 10.02 – Los Angeles, CA – The Regent Theater
- 10.04 – Albuquerque, NM – Sunshine Theater
- 10.06 – San Antonio, TX – Paper Tiger
- 10.07 – Houston, TX – Warehouse Live
- 10.09 – Jacksonville, FL – Five
- 10.10 – Greensboro, NC – The Pyrle
- 10.11 – Allentown, PA – Archer Music Hall
- 10.13 – New York, NY – Irving Plaza
- 10.14 – Worcester, MA – The Palladium
- 10.15 – Pittsburgh, PA – Roxian
- 10.17 – Nashville, TN – Ceremony Fest
*Holding Absence only
Holding Absence is Lucas Woodland (vocals), Scott Carey (guitar/vocals) and Benjamin Elliott (bass).
