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Jul 27, 2023 By Kat Ramkumar Photography by Shervin Lainez

Nation of Language have shared a music video for their new song “Too Much, Enough” which is the latest single from their upcoming album Strange Disciple. This LP, which was produced by Nick Millhiser (Holy Ghost!, LCD Soundsystem), is due out September 15 via [PIAS]. Check out the star-studded video directed by Robert Kolodny below, followed by previously announced tour dates.

With “Too Much, Enough,” the band takes aim at the angering, addictive and anxiety-inducing TV cycles that keep viewers hooked. Crescendoing into a bursting chorus, the song combines a ricocheting pattern of synths with an unrestrained bassline.

The music video stars Emmy-nominated actor Jimmi Simpson (Westworld, It’s Always Sunning In Philadelphia, Reggie Watts, Kevin Morby, Tomberlin, Moldy Peaches’ Adam Green, and LVL UP’s Greg Rutkin. The video is a parody of outrageous TV broadcasts that inspired the song.

Of “Too Much, Enough,” the band offer this statement in a press release:

“Too Much, Enough” is a song born out of an exhaustion with the 24 hour news cycle and the outrage bait it uses to get everyone permanently wound up. It seems the only way to find an edge in the media business is to appeal to our most base instincts of disgust (see: the high ratings of Fox News, etc.), and we end up suffering both individually and collectively for it.

When it came to creating a visual to go alongside the song, we didn’t want the music video to be its own form of outrage bait so we went with a more absurdist approach, gathering some friends of ours, and of our incredible director Robert Kolodny, to make something fun and outlandish to that effect. We also laced the video with as many NOL-related Easter eggs and iconography as possible to give anyone watching an opportunity to play along at home and be a part of that absurdity. It felt good to try to name a problem for ourselves without leaning on fear and rage.

It’s a powerful thing to deny someone the ability to manipulate your most destructive emotions, and that’s something we want to celebrate here.

The overarching theme of Strange Disciple is infatuation and how one’s reality can be warped by it. We went a more romantic route with that on the previous video, but News is one of those less interpersonal activities it feels like everyone takes part in, so we wanted to show our disciple is just as susceptible to it as any other figure.

-Nation of Language”

Nation of Language are Ian Devaney, Aidan Noell, and Alex MacKay.

Read our interview with Nation of Language on A Way Forward.

Nation of Language also took part in our 20th anniversary Covers of Covers album, where they covered Broken Social Scene’s “Stars and Sons.”

Nation of Language Tour Dates:

5/17 - Los Angeles, CA - The Fonda Theatre*
5/18 - Seattle, WA - The Crocodile*
5/19 - Seattle, WA - The Crocodile*
6/2 - Barcelona, ES - Primavera Sound Barcelona
6/6 - Madrid, ES - Primavera In The City
6/9 - Madrid, ES - Primavera Sound Madrid
6/10 - Porto, PT - Primavera Sound Porto
6/11 - Hilvarenbeek, NL - Best Kept Secret
6/14 - London, UK - KOKO
6/16 - Glasgow, UK - QMU
6/18 - Lido di Camaiore, IT - La Prima Estate
7/21 - Chicago, IL - Pitchfork Music Festival
8/3 - Haldern, DE - Haldern Pop
8/4 - Diepholz, DE - Appletree Garden
8/5 - Katowice, PL - OFF Festival
8/11 - San Francisco, CA - Outside Lands
8/12 - Portland, OR - Revolution Hall^
8/13 - Seattle, WA - Day In Day Out
8/14 - Vancouver, BC - Rickshaw Theatre^
9/7 - Baltimore, MD - WTMD’s First Thursday Festival
9/15 - Berlin, DE - Kesselhaus
9/16 - Hamburg, DE - Uebel & Gefährlich
9/17 - Malmo, SE - Plan B
9/18 - Copenhagen, DK - Pumpehuset
9/20 - Kӧln, DE - Gebäude9
9/21 - Amsterdam, NL - Paradiso
9/22 - Brussels, BE - Orangerie
9/23 - Paris, FR - Trabendo
9/25 - Tourcoing, FR - Le Grand Mix
9/28 - Brighton, UK - Concorde 2
9/29 - Bristol, UK - Marble Factory
9/30 - Nottingham, UK - Rescue Rooms
10/4 - Manchester, UK - New Century
10/5 - Leeds, UK - Stylus
10/6 - Sheffield, UK - Foundry
10/7 - Newcastle, UK - Boiler Shop
10/13 - Pittsburgh, PA - Mr. Small’s Theatre#
10/14 - Cleveland, OH - Grog Shop#
10/16 - Madison, WI - High Noon Saloon#
10/18 - Milwaukee, WI - Back Room @ Colectivo#
10/19 - St. Paul, MN - Amsterdam Bar & Hall#
10/20 - Kansas City, MO - RecordBar#
10/22 - Denver, CO - Gothic#
10/23 - Salt Lake City, UT - Urban Lounge#
10/26 - San Francisco, CA - The Independent#
10/29 - San Diego, CA - Belly Up Tavern#
10/30 - Phoenix, AZ - Crescent Ballroom#
11/2 - Austin, TX - Scoot Inn#
11/3 - Fort Worth, TX - Tulips FTX#
11/4 - Houston, TX - White Oak Music Hall - Upstairs#
11/7 - Nashville, TN - Basement East#
11/8 - Asheville, NC - Grey Eagle#
11/9 - Carrboro, NC - Cat’s Cradle#
11/10 - Philadelphia, PA - Union Transfer#
11/11 - Washington, DC - The Atlantis#
11/30 - Boston, MA - The Sinclair#
12/1 - Montreal, QC - Studio TD#
12/2 - Toronto, ON - Phoenix#

*w/ Reggie Watts
^w/ Curling
# w/ Miss Grit

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