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Jan 31, 2023 By Mark Redfern Photography by Pooneh Ghana

Australian singer/songwriter Alex Lahey has announced a new album, The Answer Is Always Yes, and shared a new song from it, “Good Time,” via a music video. She has also announced a North American tour. The Answer Is Always Yes is due out May 19 via Liberation. Lahey co-directed the “Good Time” video with Jon Danovic and stars as a standup comic. Watch it below, followed by the album’s tracklist and cover art, as well as the tour dates.

“This song was inspired by a night out I had at the pub with my friend soon after Melbourne came out of lengthy lockdowns,” says Lahey of “Good Time,” in a press release. “We were watching all these strangers around us have this ‘whatever it takes’ attitude towards making the most of the night (aka getting lit). It was a bit of a shock after being cooped up for so long, but also kind of invigorating.”

Of the new album as a whole, Lahey says: “Living in a world that wasn’t made for you makes you pretty strong and adaptive, and you find the fun in it. It also makes you realize how absurd everything is. With this record, I wanted to get weird because the world is weird, and it’s even weirder when you realize you don’t fit into it all the time.”

The Answer Is Always Yes is the first time Lahey has worked with outside producers and songwriters. Jacknife Lee (U2, Taylor Swift) co-wrote and co-produced “Good Time,” for example.

“I’ve made two records doing it all by myself and now I’ve proved to myself that I can do it,” Lahey says. “But it was also at a point where I was like, ‘If I do that again, I kind of know what it’s gonna sound like’ and I don’t think I’m interested in that right now.”

Of the album’s title, Lahey adds: “I feel like if you’re saying yes and you’re exploring, you’re always moving. That’s the part of life that I’m in right now. I just don’t wanna stop.”

The Answer Is Always Yes is Lahey’s third album and the follow-up to 2019’s The Best of Luck Club. It includes two 2022 singles. In August 2022 Lahey shared the new song, “Congratulations,” via a video where she married herself. “Congratulations” was one of our Songs of the Week. In November 2022 she shared “Shit Talkin’,” which was also one of our Songs of the Week.

In 2021, Lahey shared the song “On My Way” from the animated Netflix film The Mitchells vs. the Machines, and it nabbed a spot on our Songs of the Week list. That was followed by another new song, “Spike the Punch,” shared in October 2021 and also one of our Songs of the Week. Neither song is on The Answer Is Always Yes.

Lahey was also one of the artists on our 20th anniversary Covers of Covers album, where she covered St. Vincent’s “New York.”

Read our 2017 interview with Alex Lahey.

The Answer Is Always Yes Tracklist:

1. Good Time
2. Congratulations
3. You’ll Never Get Your Money Back
4. The Sky Is Melting
5. On the Way Down
6. Makes Me Sick
7. Shit Talkin’
8. Permanent
9. They Wouldn’t Let Me In
10. The Answer Is Always Yes

Alex Lahey Tour Dates:

Fri. May 19 - Santa Ana, CA @ Constellation Room
Sat. May 20 - Los Angeles, CA @ Zebulon
Sun. May 21 - San Francisco, CA @ Bottom of the Hill
Tue. May 23 - Portland, OR @ Polaris Hall
Wed. May 24 - Seattle, WA @ Madame Lous
Fri. May 26 - Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court
Sat. May 27 - Denver, CO @ Lost Lake
Tue. May 30 - Minneapolis, MN @ 7th Street entry
Wed. May 31 - Chicago, IL @ Schubas
Fri. June 2 - Columbus, OH @ Ace of Cups
Sat. June 3 - Cleveland, OH @ Mahalls
Sun. June 4 - Toronto, ON @ Velvet Underground
Tue. June 6 - Boston, MA @ Crystal Ballroom
Wed. June 7 - New York, NY @ Baby’s All Right
Fri. June 9 - Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brendas
Sun. June 11 - Washington, DC @ Songbyrd
Mon. June 12 - Durham, NC @ Motorco Music Hall
Tue. June 13 - Atlanta, GA @ Masquerade Purgatory
Thu. June 15 - Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall Upstairs
Fri. June 16 - Austin, TX @ Parish
Sat. June 17 - Dallas, TX @ Club Dada
Tue. June 20 - Phoenix, AZ @ Rebel Lounge
Wed. June 21 - San Diego, CA @ Soda Bar

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