ANTONY SZMIEREK RELEASES NEW SINGLE ‘SEMINAL’ AHEAD OF SOPHOMORE RECORD ‘DECODING BIRDSONG’
Manchester-born poet, writer and producer Antony Szmierek today shares another preview of his forthcoming second album Decoding Birdsong with the release of ‘Seminal’ - a propulsive electronic track built around garage-inflected rhythms, hypnotic synth textures and euphoric, rave-fuelled energy. Featuring Serra Petale from pan-continental band Los Bitchos, the single arrives alongside an official music video directed by frequent collaborator Zak Watson.
Speaking about the song, Szmierek shares “seminal (adjective):
1. attaching meaning to seemingly meaningless everyday occurrences and objects. microwave clocks, the sky, birds
2. important, life changing, monumental
are you reading the signs from the universe correctly or are you only seeing what you want to see? an anthemic chorus screams loneliness and lack of control, but the verses remain hopeful. a push and pull that sees the whole thing collapse in on itself at the end over fizzing UKG and soaring guitar".
Seminal’ will feature alongside previous singles ‘Chalk’ and ‘The Heron’ on Decoding Birdsong, which will be released on 21st August via Mushroom Music / Virgin Music Group. Just eighteen months after his critically acclaimed debut, Szmierek returns with a new body of work that signals a clear evolution in both sound and scope.
Decoding Birdsong follows the wild success of his debut album, 2025’s Service Station at the End of the Universe, which launched Antony into a whirlwind of Glastonbury, Jools Holland, and repeat BBC airplay. He’s sold out venues across the UK and Europe, and in February 2026 performed to 20,000 while closing Solomun’s Alexandra Palace shows. The former English teacher had been working at a college for special needs students when his blend of spoken word and dance music started taking off, earning him accolades such as 6Music’s Artist of the Year in 2023 following his Poems To Dance To EP, and frequent comparisons to Mike Skinner, Jarvis Cocker and John Cooper Clarke.
Service Station at the End of the Universe was rooted in Greater Manchester, its locals and landmarks, such as the Stockport Pyramid. And he began feeling the consequences of that: suddenly, everyone knew his name at the pub – on some days, that felt good; on others it made him feel like he was in The Truman Show. Feeling like something needed to change after a year of experiencing the industry’s high highs and low lows, Antony recently relocated to Bristol, trading the familiar for distance and peace. Decoding Birdsong was made in his new home city, with his long-time collaborator Max Rad.
Where his debut had been a solo endeavour, Decoding Birdsong brims with collaboration, including Australia’s Pretty Girl, London band Los Bitchos, and Bristol producer 1-800 GIRLS, as well as Imogen and the Knife and indie pop star Ellur.
Speaking about the new record, Antony explains “Decoding Birdsong is about choosingto believe in something. Coincidence as a religion. Making your own luck in the face of loneliness and doubt. The smallest things can feel seminal, seismic and life affirming if you just choose to lean in, but it also asks if this is a dangerous way to live.
What happens when your numbers come in? What are the consequences of luck? Should you listen to the birds, or are you only ever going to hear what you want to hear? To help us explore this: a heron, dice, a plummeting airplane, the late-night TV show Aussie Gold Hunters and a fibreglass replica of Godzilla.”
Following a run of European shows and tour dates - including his first ever US tour - Antony Szmierek is set to join The Streets as a special guest on a series of summer dates, before a run of in-store performances and his own UK headline tour. The run includes major shows at London’s O2 Kentish Town Forum and Manchester Academy. Later in the year, he will also appear as a special guest for John Cooper Clarke at his Manchester Apollo show. See full date listings below:
04/07 — Westival, Tenby, UK
10/07 — Castlefield Bowl (w/ The Streets), Manchester, UK
11/07 — Castlefield Bowl (w/ The Streets), Manchester, UK
24/07 — Kirkstall Abbey (w/ The Streets), Leeds, UK
13/08 — Sziget Festival, Budapest, Hungary
19/08 — Fighting Cocks, Kingston (Banquet Records performance)
20/08 — Resident, Brighton (in-store performance)
22/09 — Rough Trade East, London (in-store performance)
23/09 — Rough Trade, Bristol (in-store performance - tickets available)
24/09 — Rough Trade, Nottingham (in-store performance - tickets available)
25/09 — Jacaranda Baltic, Liverpool (in-store performance - tickets available)
15/08 — Boomtown Festival, UK
21/08 — Rock N Roll Circus (w/ The Streets), Norwich, UK
28/08 - Big Feastival, UK
01/09 — The Crown, Nantwich (Apple Stump Records performance)
02/09 — Night and Day, Manchester (Picadilly Records performance)
05/09 — Concerto Record Store, Amsterdam, NL (in-store performance)
07/09 — Music Mania, Ghenet, BE (in-store performance )
09/09 — Rough Trade Berlin, Berlin, DE (in-store performance)
08/10 — O2 Academy Leeds, Leeds, UK
09/10 — The Level, Nottingham, UK
11/10 — Cambridge Junction, Cambridge, UK
12/10 — O2 Academy Oxford, Oxford, UK
14/10 — CHALK, Brighton, UK
15/10 — O2 Forum Kentish Town, London, UK
16/10 — O2 Academy Bournemouth, Bournemouth, UK
17/10 — O2 Academy Bristol, Bristol, UK
20/10 — Queen Margaret Union(QMU), Glasgow, UK
21/10 — Newcastle University, Newcastle, UK
23/10 — Manchester Academy, Manchester, UK
28/10 — The Button Factory, Dublin, IE
21/11 — Manchester Apollo (w/ John Cooper Clarke), Manchester, UK