Cult emo project Armlock today announce their local label signing to radius, alongside the release of a brand new single, ‘Half Time’ out now. LISTEN HERE + WATCH HERE.

Armlock shine on ‘Half Time’, featured in their live set for some time. Today’s release basks in the hallmarks of their slowcore sphere – syncopated guitar strumming, almost imperceptible backing vocals and fleeting nuggets of electronic sampling. Known to strike a primal chord through lyrics, ‘Half Time’ chases moments that trigger deeper feelings. In the face of languishing, the everpresent lucky charm totem is a prayer wheel. Signalling their next phase, Armlock step into the light.

“Half Time is mostly trying to describe the gap between existing and feeling,” Armlock reveal of the new release. “‘Tell me how to hear it’ became a central lyric, treating emotion as an elusive frequency I’m trying to hear but can’t quite tap into. It’s not meant to be a sad song, it’s more anchored in the frustration of trying to extract more from every passing moment and wanting to feel what’s under the surface.” 

Elsewhere they revel in the refractive phenomenon of rainbows, manifesting in some of their brightest visuals to date. The music video by Tom Dunphy and Bridgette Winten enhances ‘Half Time’s fleeting tone. They continue, “It was important to us that the video had a lot of colour, in reference to the lyric ‘Just another rainbow’. We shot everything in double time with quite a lot of over-the-top energy, though when we play it back in half time it looks pretty subdued, which is kind of perfect for the meaning of the track.”

WATCH: ‘Half Time’ (Official Video)

radius, launching with first signing Armlock, is the new label venture of Rad Music Management’s Daniel Radburn (Hockey Dad, Belair Lip Bombs, dust) and Virgin Music Australia. “radius represents a natural extension of what Rad Music has built across management, touring and events, with community and the development of sustainable artist careers at its core,” Radburn says. “Rad Music is constantly connecting with artists across its broader creative network and building meaningful relationships both in Australia and internationally. The launch of radius, in partnership with Virgin Music, creates an opportunity to extend those relationships into the label space and provide a dedicated home for artists whose music and long-term potential the team genuinely believes in.”

The cult project of multi-instrumentalists/producer duo Simon Lam and Hamish Mitchell, as Armlock their music is minimal with lived-in, human textures. Bringing an intimate tinkering, bedroom quality to their approach, the project’s subdued tone is not to be mistaken for their shrewd production smarts. They have steadily cultivated a spectral mystique together just as they have separately. From Lam’s extensive production/engineering credits including Charli xcx, Skin On Skin, Phoebe Go to Mitchell’s graphic design and production work for Swapmeet, Garage Sale, Good Morning, Chet Faker, Darcy Baylis, Juice Webster – their harmony as Armlock bridges whispers with thrashing.

Where their debut Trust was a faultless introduction to their world landing fbi.radio’s Album of the Week, second album Seashell Angel Lucky Charm confirmed their widespread appeal, embraced by NME, Bandcamp, Paste, Northern Transmissions, triple j Unearthed and community radio. With inventively sparse music that does a lot with little talking, tracks as ‘Ice Cold’ and ‘Fear’ boast lyrics so intimate, FLOOD said “it often feels like an invasion of privacy to read them.” Their last single ‘Strobe’ chased moments of joy, as a reminder of “how good it feels sometimes to just slow the hell down” (Stereogum).

Consistently rated as ‘your favourite artist’s favourite artist’ (just ask Shady Nasty, Mallrat or Folk Bitch Trio), in their time, Armlock have toured across the UK, EU and US with their own headlines and supports for Wisp, Mannequin Pussy, Snail Mail, Momma, Slow Pulp, Horse Jumper Of Love, Cloud Nothings, Farmer’s Wife, Fiddlehead, to performances at Laneway Festival, The Great Escape, Outbreak, Pitchfork Festival London and coveted sessions at Audiotree and Phoenix Central Park.

This month, Armlock are joining The Belair Lip Bombs across North America, before they join Spacey Jane’s Heading Back Down Under tour in late November, including the prestigious Sydney Opera House Forecourt. See all tour routing details below.