Swans are back to announce their 17th studio album, Birthing, out on May 30th. They’ve also offered Birthing’s first single, the 20-minute-long “I Am a Tower.”
With Michael Gira once again at the helm, Birthing was recorded and produced in Berlin over the last two years. It features a large list of contributors, including regular collaborators Kristof Hahn, Phil Puleo, Jennifer Gira, Dana Schechter, and Larry Mullens. Gira also promises that Birthing will be the last album “in this mode” of Swans, with subsequent releases and tours existing in a more pared-down fashion.
“This album, coupled with the recent live release, Live Rope, constitutes my final foray (as producer / impresario) into the all-consuming sound worlds that have been my obsession for years. We’ll do a final tour in this mode towards the end of 2025, then that’s it,” Gira said in a statement. “After that, Swans will continue, so long as I’m able, but in a significantly pared down form. Hints of that direction can be found in a few moments on the current album. In the meantime, my hope is that the music provides a positive and fertile atmosphere in which to dream.”
Swans’ new song “I Am a Tower” certainly picks up on the aforementioned “all-consuming sound worlds,” with a 20-minute runtime, slow-burning terror, and Gira chanting some sort of seance throughout. After a light reprieve in the track’s midway point, the song blooms into a driving rock groove with Gira triumphantly singing “I Am a Tower.” Listen to the new song below.
Gira has a European tour alongside Hahn coming up this spring, but more Swans dates are confirmed to arrive later this year. As Gira promised, they’ll be the final Swans shows “in this mode,” so expect their future concerts to be more intimate and/or ambient than the usual wall-of-sound fare. Get tickets to Gira’s upcoming EU tour here.
Swans’ last album was 2023’s The Beggar.
Birthing Artwork:
Birthing Tracklist:
01. The Healers
02. I Am a Tower
03. Birthing
04. Red Yellow
05. Guardian Spirit
06. The Merge
07. (Rope) Away
Michael Gira and Kristof Hahn 2025 Tour Dates:
04/09 — Prague, CZ @ Meet Factory
04/10 — Linz, AT @ Grüner Anker
04/12 — Trieste, IT @ Teatro Miela
04/13 — Milan, IT @ Spazio Teatro 89
04/15 — Brussels, BE @ Ancienne Belgique
04/17 — London, UK @ EartH
04/18 — Paris, FR @ Café de la Danse
04/20 — Tilburg, NL @ Roadburn Festival
04/21 — Cologne, DE @ Helios 37
04/23 — Leipzig, DE @ Heilandskirche
04/25 — Warsaw, PL @ Palladium
04/27 — Berlin, DE @ Heimathafen