London-based trio Dream Wife – vocalist Rakel Mjöll (she/her), guitarist Alice Go(she/her), bassist Bella Podpadec (they/them) – announce their electrifying third album today. Social Lubrication, to be released via Lucky Number on June 9th, is an entirely self-written and self-produced album, mixed by duo Alan Moulder (Nine Inch Nails, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, The Killers, Depeche Mode) and Caesar Edmunds (Wet Leg, Beach House). The album finds the band once again playfully tackling big subjects like bodily autonomy, dismantling the patriarchy and using your platform for the greater good, while truly translating the visceral nature of their riotous live shows to tape for the first time.
Social Lubrication follows their UK Top 20 breakthrough with their sophomore record So When You Gonna…. What came next was remixes for the likes of Rina Sawayama, Nova Twins and Porridge Radio, and international touring at festivals such as Lollapalooza (US), Laneway (AU), Summersonic (JP), Primavera (ES) and Pitchfork (FR) as well as opening slots for Garbage, The Kills, and even the Rolling Stones at Hyde Park.
To celebrate the announcement of Social Lubrication, Dream Wife share the cheeky “Hot (Don’t Date A Musician).” Inspired by Mjöll’s grandmother’s sage advice – despite the fact that she, herself, dated many musicians in her day – the angular track wryly pokes fun at musicians, the band included. “Dating musicians is a nightmare,” explains Mjöll. “Evoking imagery of late night make-outs with fuckboy/girl/ambiguously-gendered musicians on their mattress after being seduced by song-writing chat. The roles being equally reversed. Having a laugh together and being able to poke fun at ourselves is very much at the heart of this band. This song encapsulates our shared sense of humour. Sonically it is the lovechild of CSS and Motorhead. It has our hard, live, rock edge combined with cheeky and playful vocals.”
“Hot (Don’t Date A Musician)” follows “Leech”, the albums bold and explosive first single, a rock-heavy, call-to-arms for empathy, in a world still propped up by patriarchal systems and underhand codes of silence. These themes – exhaustion with the patriarchy, a rejection of the systems built to contain us – simmer and spit throughout Social Lubrication.
Dream Wife have come a long way since their 2018 self-titled debut. Their last album,smashed the Official UK Top 20 album charts (the only indie album recorded and produced by all women at the time to do so), and earned them universal praise and countless sold-out shows Alongside their accolades, however, Dream Wife have always advocated for upholding the community on a truly ground level and paying it forward. Proceeds from direct digital sales of So When You Gonna… went to Black Minds Matter and Gendered Intelligence. In 2021, the band released a megamix for Rainbow Mind, a mental health charity for LGBTQIA people, with contributions from Shirley Manson, The Big Moon, Big Joanie and Girli among others.
