Katie Malco releases ‘When You’re Sleeping’ featuring Mui Zyu - UK & US tour dates announced
Tour Dates:
UK (with And the Agony)
July
16 – Hare & Hounds, Birmingham
17 – The Green Room (Soho), London (Sold Out)
18 – Folklore Rooms, Brighton
USA (with Mui Zyu)
September:
9 – Afterglow Coffee, Richmond, VA
10 – Pie Shop, Washington DC
11 – Ortlieb's 4333 Collective, Philadelphia PA
12 – TBD, Providence RI
13 – Red Room at Cafe 939, Boston MA
14 – Nightclub 101 (Early), New York NY
16 – Fremont Abbey, Seattle WA
17 – TBD, Portland OR
19 – 4 Star Theater (Folk Yeah), San Francisco CA
20 – Permanent Records Roadhouse, Los Angeles CA
"Deeply impressive - a work of real tenderness and stark honesty that finds Katie Malco in full command of her artistry."
CLASH
"A soaring string of marvellous, ever-grander choruses."
NPR
“Katie Malco captures the zeitgeist of a generation lost” 4*
DIY
"Phoebe Bridgers if she was from Peckham… [Katie can] capture fleeting beauty and resilient war with brilliant flair"
Dork
“Strong melodies throughout give some tracks a quietly anthemic quality”
Loud And Quiet
"Potently beautiful vocal and sincere, brutally honest lyrics… bittersweet splendor informed by honesty and emotional intelligence"
Under the Radar Magazine
"Soon enough, up-and-coming U.K. singer-songwriter Katie Malco won’t be so up-and- coming anymore."
Paste Magazine
"If you’re into stuff like, say, the new Ratboys and Soccer Mommy albums, you’ll probably wanna hear this too."
Brooklyn Vegan
"Trembling and raw"
Stereogum
Following a year of UK and US touring with Julien Baker (boygenius), SOAK (Rough Trade), and Advance Base — including a sold-out London headline show at Moth Club — Birmingham-based alt. rock / indie singer-songwriter Katie Malco (they/she) returns with their highly anticipated new single, ‘When You’re Sleeping’, featuring British Hong Kong artist Mui Zyu (she/her). A fan favourite, the track quickly became Malco’s most requested song on tour, with audiences already singing every word before its official release.
Talking about the single, Malco said “Have you ever broken up with someone, but you have to carry on living together for a while? I think it’s a pretty relatable experience in the current climate, when you cohabit with someone, you might not be able to move out straight away. So, then you just have to change your entire dynamic with your now-ex and figure out how to be around each other in uncomfortably close quarters, with all this unbearable tension.”
The lyrics depict a situation in which the protagonist ex-partner (who has to sleep on the couch) is already texting someone else and wishing they could invite her into their sleeping bag - yet clearly racked with guilt when they hear their ex making indistinguishable crying sounds from their room – unable to be the person that comforts them as they would have done only weeks or days earlier. They pass each other in the hall, prompting the protagonist to apologise just for existing; “with my hands up like there’s a gun between my eyes.” They long for some of the familiar comforts of the terminated relationship, however toxic, yet they’re clearly looking towards a future without them; “Can we laugh about how I don’t know anything, take a swipe, this time I’m listening.”
“So that’s why I wrote ‘When You’re Sleeping’ from the perspective of the person that ends the relationship” says Malco. “We’re so used to hearing songs from the viewpoint of the heartbroken one, the perceived “victim” – and it’s rarer to hear from the person who makes that difficult life-changing decision.”
The song hints at what they might be escaping – in this case a relationship where they couldn’t be authentic.
The track is released alongside a tongue-in-cheek, yet morose music video centred around Malco playing a dead body. “It’s really a metaphor for the point at which one person mentally checks out of a long-term relationship, yet they’re still present in body only” says Malco. “Then the twist is, it was the partner that killed them! Again, a metaphor for when one partner is consistently trying to change the other and ultimately pushing them away.”
“We filmed the video in one house, all in just one day – and by the time we got to filming the birthday party scene and I was made to wear that hideous dress and a party hat, it was a real struggle to pretend to be dead because the absurdity of this video concept was suddenly revealing itself to me.”
Acclaimed Belfast-born artist Mui Zyu (Father / Daughter Records) features in both the video and on the track. “I had been following Mui Zyu’s musical output for a while, and I knew her voice would be perfect for what I was going for with this song” says Malco. “Not only did she sing vocals and some beautiful harmonies, but she also sent stems with all these dark atmospheric sounds she recorded using a hologram chroma console, which really placed the whole song in this Mui Zyu world. I love how it turned out.”
Following critical acclaim for Katie Malco’s debut album ‘Failures’ during lockdown, followed by numerous tours in the UK, US and Europe, Malco began releasing new music in July 2024, with her first single in 4 years. ‘Fatal Attraction’ features US singer-songwriter Laura Stevenson, and the track was announced as part of a ‘singles series’ with collaborations from some of Malco’s favourite artists. ‘Babette’ (featuring SOAK) followed in October ’24, released whilst Malco opened for Julien Baker on her full USA tour.
Malco recorded the singles at home in between tours in the UK, US and Europe with Alvvays, Fenne Lily, Hurray for the Riff Raff, Julien Baker, Lucy Dacus, SOAK, Laura Stevenson, Ratboys, Medium Build, Charlotte Cornfield, Land of Talk, Peter Buck (REM), and Bob Mould (Husker Du). Malco also opened for The Lumineers at their sold-out Crystal Palace Park show in summer 2023. The tracks were featured on NPR, The Line of Best Fit, CLASH, Dork, Stereogum, Brooklyn Vegan and more.
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