Today is a good day for fans of acclaimed singer-songwriter José González. The Argentine-Swedish musician, who first came to prominence with his 2005 debut album Veneer, announced the upcoming release of his first album in five years…in addition to a string of 2026 tour dates.
As Pitchfork reported, Against the Dying of the Light, the indie-folkster’s follow-up to 2021’s Local Valley, is scheduled for release on March 27 of this year. Curious fans can already check out Fredrik Egerstrand’s video for the title track, in addition to the recent single “Pajarito.”
In a press release, González described the song “Against the Dying of the Light” as a reflection “on humanity in 2025.”
“It’s about accepting who we are and what led us here, since the past can’t be changed,” he continued. “Then, about refocusing our attention on the challenges ahead, like pervert incentives and algorithms that aren’t in line with human flourishing. Even though natural selection led us here, we don’t have to do what is in the gene’s best interest. And even though cultural evolution led to our societies, we don’t have to keep all the narratives if they drag us down. And even though we have enormous opportunities with new technology that can eventually design and copy itself, we don’t have to build it right away if it has the potential to make us obsolete. We can rebel against these replicators, rebel against the dying of the light.”
González went on to say that as a “concerned world citizen,” he “wrote these songs as a reflection of our times.”
“Times of amazing progress, but also worrying backslides to dogmatic tribal ideologies and an extremely uncertain future,” he added. “These are songs about how we can navigate humanity towards flourishing on an individual and a collective level. They can be listened to just for the sounds, harmonies, and rhythms, but the lyrics are meant to inspire people to engage and take action by collaborating to solve collective problems. For humanism and enlightenment values and against the dying of the light.”
José González is heading out on tour this spring
González, who grew up in a suburb of Gothenburg, Sweden, will be kicking off a tour of the U.S. in April, with the first show scheduled for 21st of the month in Boston. He’ll go on to visit cities including New York, Chicago, Minneapolis, Seattle, San Francisco and Los Angeles before wrapping things up on May 11 in Denver.
Tickets will be available through the artist presale tomorrow, Jan. 14, at 10am local venue time.
