If you needed any more proof that KNEECAP are operating in a league entirely their own right now, here it is: the Belfast trio have just become the first Irish language artists ever to appear on COLORSxSTUDIOS — the Berlin-based platform that’s basically the gold standard for live music performance content. They marked the moment with a blistering rendition of their latest single, Smugglers & Scholars, and honestly, it suits them perfect.
“We are honoured that this is the first time to have the Irish language on COLORS,” the band said. “It’s something we’ve wanted to do for a few years, and we now have one as our video for ‘Smugglers and Scholars’. Hope yis all enjoy it.”
Yis definitely will.
A Sonic Balaclava From the Underbelly
Smugglers & Scholars arrives as the lead single from KNEECAP’s forthcoming album ‘FENIAN,’ produced by Dan Carey and out April 24 via Heavenly Recordings — and it hits like a door being kicked off its hinges. Built on a low-end three-note bass riff that feels ripped straight from the Detroit hip-hop records the band grew up on, the track crackles with menace and fearlessness. It premiered in late February on Zane Lowe’s Apple Music 1 show and has been rattling around in people’s heads ever since.
This is KNEECAP’s world — and it’s not the Ireland you think you know. As they put it themselves: “Ya think it’s all poetry and clovers, when it’s raincoats and police Land Rovers. Salt of the earth, looking over their shoulder. Someone shot in turn, chopper hovering over.”
Stream Smugglers & Scholars HERE
The Kneecap Effect Is Very Much Still in Effect
It’s no secret that KNEECAP have been on an absolutely unstoppable run. Their 2024 self-titled film and the music surrounding it sparked what’s now widely referred to as “The Kneecap Effect” — a genuine, measurable surge in interest in the Irish language among young people in Ireland. They dragged a language out of the classroom and into the mosh pit, which is a sentence we never expected to write but here we are.
The past 12 months alone: one of the most talked-about Glastonbury sets in recent memory on the West Holts stage, headline slots at Wide Awake, 2000 Trees and Green Man, arena-level leaps to the 3Arena Dublin, Wembley Arena and OVO Hydro in Glasgow, a Coachella appearance that put them in the middle of a full-blown media and political storm (for speaking up for peace and Palestinian freedom), and three killer standalone singles — THE RECAP ft. Mozey, “Sayōnara” with Paul Hartnoll of Orbital, and “No Comment” featuring Sub Focus.
Not bad for a year’s work.
‘FENIAN’: More Darkness, More Craic, More Everything
[ALBUM ARTWORK]
‘FENIAN’ is KNEECAP’s second album and by all accounts it’s the record that confirms them as artists at the absolute peak of their powers. It’s darker, sharper and more assured than anything they’ve done before — but it never loses the energy and irreverence that made people fall for them in the first place.
The album opens with Éire go Deo, a rallying cry for the Irish language, and barely pauses for breath from there. It moves fluently between punk-rave, acid house and hip-hop — sometimes all in the same track — with standout moments including the riotous Liars Tale, the anthemic title track, and the frenetic Big Bad Mo. Carnival and Smugglers & Scholars are built for packed rooms and late-night chaos, while Palestine (feat. Fawzi) widens the lens entirely, placing KNEECAP’s work in a global conversation about resistance and solidarity.
And then there’s the other side of the coin. FENIAN also finds the trio turning inward — tackling masculinity, addiction, fame and grief with an honesty and tenderness that catches you off guard. It all closes with Irish Goodbye featuring Kae Tempest, which sounds like it might just break your heart a little.
The album was premiered on Zane Lowe’s Apple Music 1 show, and is available on CD, cassette, black vinyl, tricolour splatter vinyl, and exclusive editions via WhatsApp, Bandcamp and Rough Trade. Pre-order it [HERE].
‘FENIAN’ track list
1. Éire go Deo
2. Smugglers & Scholars
3. Carnival
4. Palestine (ft. Fawzi)
5. Liars Tale
6. FENIAN
7. Big Bad Mo
8. Headcase
9. An Ra
10. Cold At The Top
11. Occupied 6
12. Gael Phonics
13. Cocaine Hill (ft. Radie Peat)
14. Irish Goodbye (ft. Kae Tempest)
EU/UK Tour Dates
May 29–30 — AVA, Belfast, IE
Jun 6 — Primavera, Barcelona, ES
Jun 8 — Santana 27, Bilbao, ES
Jun 9 — La Riviera, Madrid, ES
Jun 11 — Primavera, Porto, PT
Jun 13 — Festi’Neuch, Neuchatel, FR
Jun 15 — Magnolia, Unaltrofestival, Milan, IT
Jun 16 — Sequoie Music Park, Bologna, IT
Jun 17 — Cavea, Auditorium Parco Della Musica Ennio Morricone, Rome, IT
Jun 18 — Fiera del Levante, Bari, IT
Jun 20 — Terra Vibe Park, Rockwave, Attica, GR
Jun 24 — Allas Live, Helsinki, FIN
Jun 27 — Crystal Palace Park, London, UK
Jul 1 — Open’er Festival, Gdynia, PL
Jul 2 — Roskilde Festival, Roskilde, DK
Jul 4 — Rock Werchter, Werchter, BE
Jul 18 — PhilGood Festival, Plovdiv, BG
Jul 20 — KüçükÇiftlik Park, Istanbul, TR
Jul 30–Aug 2 — All Together Now, Waterford, IE
Aug 12–16 — Boomtown, Winchester, UK
Aug 28–30 — Reading & Leeds Festivals, UK
Nov 6 — Rockhal, Esch-Sur-Alzette, LU
Nov 9 — BK, Stockholm, SE
Nov 10 — Oslo Spektrum, Oslo, NO
Nov 20 — Le Zénith, Paris, FR
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