It may have been a little over four months since iamnotshane dropped his album, One Less Year Alive, but new material is already being delivered. Fresh from signing a new deal with Snafu Records, the Los Angeles-based artist has a string of releases planned for late 2021, leading into a 2022 European tour and US dates to follow.
The first offering, “Punch Me in the Face,” is one of his most infectious to date. Aside from being an obvious ode to the synth-pop records released in the ’80s, it stays true to his sweet, melodic happy/sad songwriting skills that fans adore him for. “Hopeful, catchy, and ironic,” is how iamnotshane would describe the song in three words. “The song is about needing tough love from a real friend, not the fake friends who tell you everything you want to hear. It’s a wake-up call anthem,” he tells EUPHORIA. “I saw “Punch me in the face” written on a t-shirt in March and wrote the song the next day!”
Along with the premiere, the 26-year-old has accompanied the song with a video that features quite the storyline. “The music video involves me being punched in the face, of course, but also ran over by a car and baby stroller, trampled on and ignored,” iamnotshane reveals. “I was definitely hurt in the making of this video.”
With live shows going ahead again, 2022 will be the year iamnotshane takes his songs on the road. The first leg will kick off in Manchester, UK, on Jan. 18, and will finish that same month in Dublin, Ireland. The North American leg will commence on Jan. 31 in Brooklyn, New York, and will come to an end in Los Angeles on Feb. 17. “People can expect a demented birthday party for the One Less Year Alive tour. I’m very theatrical and have a few surprises up my sleeves,” he shares.