AX AND THE HATCHETMEN Announce STICK & POKE EP, Share Title Track
The Late Check Out Tour will follow the release, with the EP produced by longtime collaborator Jake Sinclair.
Chicago's Ax and the Hatchetmen have announced details of their new EP, Stick & Poke, set to arrive September 25th on Arista Records. The band has also unveiled the collection's title track, which is available today on all streaming platforms.
Commenting on the title track, Ax and the Hatchetmen's frontman Axel Ellis shared, ''Stick & Poke' takes me back to a sunny trip to Minnesota with my friends from high school, staying up late with too much beer and a stick and poke kit, giving each other tattoos. To me, a tattoo preserves a moment forever, even when the love and people attached to it have moved on. Everybody eventually goes their separate ways, but the ink on my body takes me right back to that garage, to being young and in love.'
Produced by longtime collaborator Jake Sinclair, Stick & Poke captures the highs, lows, and lingering memories of young love through a series of vivid, deeply personal vignettes. From the pure joy of late-night tattoos and teenage romance to heartbreak, missed connections, and relationships that were never meant to last. The EP turns those fleeting experiences into anthems of self-discovery, nostalgia, and the universal search to make sense of where they've been, and who they're becoming.
Available for pre-order / pre-save today, Stick & Poke also includes the previously released single 'Loser.' An ode to falling short, 'Loser' arrived this past July amid a breakout summer for Ax and the Hatchetmen which saw their song 'Hotel Room' - off their 2025 debut album So Much To Tell You - explode across platforms, amassing over 48.6 million streams globally.
Having recently completed a summer run of sold-out U.S. headline dates, and a stint supporting Australia's Royel Otis, Ax and the Hatchetmen are now gearing up to support The Revivalists at the iconic Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Colorado on September 25th, before embarking on their own North American fall headline run.
Ax and the Hatchetmen's headline 'The Late Check Out Tour' is set to get underway on October 14th in Indianapolis, IN and will hit major markets across the U.S. before eventually wrapping in Miami, FL on December 13th. For tickets and more information on Ax and the Hatchetmen's upcoming live dates, visit www.axandthehatchetmen.com.
Tracklist
1. Stick & Poke
2. Loser
3. Funny Valentine
4. Prius
5. Dance to Different Songs
The Late Check Out Tour
9/25 - Morrison, CO - Red Rocks Amphitheatre^
10/14 - Indianapolis, IN - HI-FI Annex
10/15 - Nashville, TN - The Basement East
10/16 - Athens, GA - 40 Watt Club
10/17 - Charleston, SC - The Windjammer
10/20 - Dallas, TX - Granada Theater
10/21 - Austin, TX - Mohawk - Outdoor
10/22 - Waco, TX - Foster Pavillion*
10/23 - Santa Fe, NM - Meow Wolf
10/24 - Phoenix, AZ - Crescent Ballroom - SOLD OUT
10/25 - San Diego, CA - Music Box - SOLD OUT
10/27 - Los Angeles, CA - The Bellwether
10/28 - San Francisco, CA - August Hall
10/30 - Portland, OR - Aladdin Theater
10/31 - Seattle, WA - The Crocodile
11/2 - Salt Lake City, UT - Metro Music Hall
11/3 - Denver, CO - Summit Music Hall
11/5 - Minneapolis, MN - First Avenue
11/6 - Milwaukee, WI - Turner Hall Ballroom
11/7 - Lansing, MI - Grewal Hall
11/8 - Lakewood, OH - Mahall's
11/10 - Boston, MA - Citizens House of Blues Boston
11/11 - New York, NY - Irving Plaza
11/13 - Philadelphia, PA - Union Transfer
11/14 - Washington, DC - Howard Theatre
11/15 - Richmond, VA - The Broadberry
11/16 - Carrboro, NC - Cat's Cradle
11/17 - Greenville, SC - Radio Room Greenville
11/19 - Columbus, OH - Skully's Music Diner
11/20 - St. Louis, MO - Delmar Hall
11/21 - Chicago, IL - Riviera Theatre
12/7 - Atlanta, GA - The Loft
12/8 - Wilmington, NC - Bowstring Brewyard
12/10 - Orlando, FL - The Abbey
12/11 - St. Augustine, FL - Colonial Oak Music Park - SOLD OUT
12/12 - Tampa, FL - Jannus Live
12/13 - Miami, FL - ZeyZey Miami
^ Supporting The Revivalists
* Supporting Mt. Joy
About Ax and the Hatchetmen
Since forming in 2018, Chicago's Ax and the Hatchetmen have gone from a tight-knit group of music school friends to one of the most electrifying young bands in modern rock. Led by guitarist and singer Axel Ellis alongside Sal Defilippis on guitar, Hunter Olshefke on bass, Chaandmon Crofton on drums, Phil Pistone on trumpet, and Quinn Dolan on saxophone, the six-piece first came together while studying jazz at Chicago's Columbia College. But while their musical foundation may be formal, the band's sound is anything but. A freewheeling collision of rock, soul, funk, and pop that channels the timeless energy of their wide-ranging influences into something distinctly their own.
That chemistry has carried Ax and the Hatchetmen from packed hometown rooms to sold-out headline tours and the stages of Lollapalooza, the Chicago institution they once looked at with stars in their eyes. Along the way, they released a live album, signed with Arista Records, and built an impressive catalog of releases culminating in the band's debut album So Much To Tell You. Released in 2025 and produced by Jake Sinclair (Panic! At The Disco, Weezer, Avril Lavigne), the project features the breakout smash 'Hotel Room' and 'Blurry Lights' featuring The Strokes' Albert Hammond Jr. All while Ellis simultaneously expanded his creative world with a featured role in Amazon's The Runarounds.
Now, Ax and the Hatchetmen open their next chapter with Stick & Poke, a collection that brings new depth and color to the band's irrepressible sound. Moving through the euphoria of young love, the sting of heartbreak, and the memories that linger long after the moment has passed, the EP finds the band transforming fleeting experiences into vivid, open-hearted songs built for both late-night reflection and full-room singalongs. It's another step forward for a band still fueled by the same sense of friendship, spontaneity, and aspirational optimism that has carried them from the beginning, only now with even more stories to tell.
Photo Credit: TIM PACZYNSKI
Photo Credit: TIM PACZYNSKI
