After staying quiet for years, The Avalanches have finally returned with something brand new. Their latest single “Together,” released through Modular Recordings, features Nikki Nair, Jessy Lanza, and Prentiss, marking the group’s first original release in close to six years.
Anyone expecting quiet, reflective electronic music or sample heavy Motown inspired textures may be caught off guard by this one. “Together” leans into bright energy and movement, delivering a lively dance driven sound that feels playful, upbeat, and built for packed rooms and late nights.
The Avalanches, currently made up of Robbie Chater, Tony Di Blasi and Andy Szekeres, made a huge impact with their 2000 debut album Since I Left You.
What made the record stand out was its incredible use of sampling, blending fragments from hundreds of recordings by artists including Françoise Hardy, Sérgio Mendes, Raekwon, Wayne and Shuster, and Madonna into something completely unique. Tracks like “Frontier Psychiatrist” and the title song helped establish the album as both nostalgic and futuristic at the same time. According to a statement from the band’s representatives, the project left “a global footprint for collaborative sampology in the 21st century.”
Their second album arrived after an extremely long wait and explored a very different direction creatively. Sixteen years after their debut, The Avalanches released Wildflower, which debuted at No. 1 on the ARIA Albums Chart. Their next project, We Will Always Love You, arrived in 2020 and later earned the Australian Music Prize for Album of the Year.
The group briefly resurfaced again in 2024 through their collaboration with Jamie XX on the song “All You Children” from In Waves.
“Together” appears to be the beginning of another major era for the group. The release is connected to a “Superfun” campaign that features artwork of Chater gaming along with an animated visual for the track. The video brings old technology to life, including an iPod and a diskette, as they wander through a colorful world side by side.
A classic Nokia 3310 also shows up in the video, floating down from above complete with angel wings.
“How are you looking after your memories? At Takumi digital archives your most treasured moments are safe with us,” says the mysterious official statement. Fans are also invited to “visit Takumi today” through the website takumiarchives.com.
Jonathan Zawada directed and animated the music video, which can be streamed below.
NEWS
Oliver Tree’s team has provided a new update following the singer’s death in a helicopter crash on June 14, confirming that a new artist grant will soon be established in his memory to help creatives secure funding, a plan he had detailed in his will before his passing.
Accompanying a collection of photos highlighting Tree’s performances, travels and creative work through the years, a post shared Sunday (June 21) on his Instagram account revealed that the musician’s remains have been brought back to California, the state he called home and where he will be laid to rest. “His legacy will live on through his foundation/endowment named ‘Dr. Oliver Tree’s Extremely Epic Grant For Baby Geniuses’ coming soon,” the caption reads. “This is something that Oliver had put together before his passing.”
“We will make sure his wish comes to fruition so that more joy, love and art can be spread into the world, that was his final wish,” the statement continued, adding that “the constant love, support and positivity” shown by fans throughout the past week has helped his “family, friends and collaborators make it through these extremely difficult times.”
Tree was among six people who lost their lives in a helicopter collision in Rio de Janeiro. The musician was in Brazil for his The World’s First Tour run and had performed what would ultimately be his final concert on June 6 in São Paulo. The other victims of the crash were identified as passengers Lucas Vignale, Gaspar Prim and Lucas Brito Chaves, along with pilots Alexandre Souza and Charles Marsillac.
Just months before his death, Tree discussed his plans to direct his fortune and future earnings from his music toward a grant program for artists during an appearance on the Zach Sang Show. “I take no credit for anything I’ve ever done,” he said during the April interview. “Furthermore, I don’t believe that any of the wealth or things that get made from it is mine. So when I die … my will is set up so that when I pass, my family, nobody is going to get a penny.”
“If I have a wife or kids or anything, they’re not getting a penny,” he added at the time, explaining that the initiative would focus on helping artists create work rather than funding education. “I’ll get my kids through college, that’s the agreement, but there’s not gonna be a silver spoon. All the money is going to go back to artists.”
