The Beths have shared another sample of their upcoming album Expert in a Dying Field. The New Zealand indie rockers return today with “Knee Deep” along with an accompanying music video, and they’ve also expanded their tour dates with a North American leg in spring 2023.
“Knee Deep” is tried-and-true Beths, driven by a pummeling guitar riff courtesy of the band’s Jonathan Pearce. Lyrically, the song takes the metaphor of “getting cold feet” quite literally, as vocalist Elizabeth Stokes uses a body of water to resemble the fear of baring all her emotions: “I wish that I could say what I’ve been thinking/ But I never have done and never will do/ Still only knees deep/ I’ll never be brave like you.”
“I’m the kind of person who wants to go swimming, but takes like ten minutes to get all the way into the cold water, slowly and painfully,” Stokes explains in a press release. “I hate this about myself, and am kind of envious of people who can just jump straight in the deep end. In a shocking twist, this is also a metaphor?! For how I wish I was the kind of person who was brave and decisive instead of cautious and scared.”
If swimming is a treacherous experience for Stokes, it’s hard to imagine how she must’ve felt filming the thrilling music video for “Knee Deep.” In the clip, the quartet take turns bungee jumping off the Auckland Harbour Bridge — keep your ears peeled for when the music cuts out to reveal a very funny, very authentic scream.
After wrapping up their first North American leg next month, The Beths will spend some time in their native New Zealand before coming back stateside next February in Portland. They’ll hit cities including Boston, Philly, New York, Chicago, Minneapolis, Austin, and more, before wrapping things up in San Fransisco in March. Tickets for the newly announced dates go on sale Friday, August 19th at 10:00 a.m. local time, and you can get yours at Ticketmaster.
Listen to The Beths’ “Knee Deep” below, and then keep scrolling to see their tour itinerary.
The Beths 2022-2023 Tour Dates:
08/16 — Chicago, IL @ Here and There Festival, Salt Shed
08/18 — St. Louis, MO @ Blueberry Hill
08/19 — Indianapolis, IN @ Hi-Fi
08/20 — Covington, KY (Cincinnati) @ Madison Live
08/22 — Durham, NC @ Motorco Music Hall
08/23 — Richmond, VA @ The Broadberry
08/25 — Baltimore, MD @ Ottobar
08/26 — Asbury Park, NJ @ Asbury Lanes
08/27 — Portland, ME @ Portland House of Music & Events
08/28 — Montreal, QC @ Bar Le Ritz
08/31 — Pittsburgh, PA @ Spirit Hall
09/01 — Columbus, OH @ A&R Music Bar
09/15 — Melbourne, AU @ 170 Russell
09/16 — Sydney, AU @ Metro Theatre
09/17 — Brisbane, AU @ The Triffid
09/20 — Adelaide, AU @ The Gov
09/21 — Perth, AU @ Magnet House
09/23 — Wellington, NZ @ Opera House
09/24 — Nelson, NZ @ Theatre Royal
09/30 — Christchurch, NZ @ James Hay Theatre
10/01 — Dunedin, NZ @ The Glenroy
10/07 — Auckland, NZ @ Auckland Town Hall
02/16 — Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom
02/17 — Seattle, WA @ Neumos
02/22 — Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue
02/24 — Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall
02/26 — Toronto, ON @ Phoenix Concert Theatre
02/28 — Boston, MA @ The Sinclair
03/02 — New York, NY @ Brooklyn Steel
03/03 — Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer
03/04 — Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
03/06 — Asheville, NC @ The Orange Peel
03/07 — Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade — Heaven
03/08 — Nashville, TN @ Brooklyn Bowl
03/10 — Austin, TX @ Scoot Inn
03/11 — Dallas, TX @ Tulips
03/14 — Denver, CO @ Summit
03/16 — Phoenix, AZ @ Crescent Ballroom
03/17 — Los Angeles, CA @ The Fonda
03/18 — San Francisco, CA @ The Fillmore