PALACE Release Fifth Album OX, Launch 30-Date North American Tour

London alt-rock band Palace have released their fifth studio album, Ox, via Palace Presents/AWAL. The band will launch a 30-date North American tour beginning October 1 in Austin, Texas, with an appearance at Austin City Limits.

The album arrives, according to the band, entirely on their own terms, marking a new era of independence shaped by the freedom to write songs for no one else but themselves. Having each become a father for the first time, Ox sees lifelong friends Leo Wyndham (vocals, guitar), Rupert Turner (guitar), and Matt Hodges (drums) find wisdom in the most human of revelations: watching a child encounter music for the first time, feeling overcome by a sudden swell of gratitude, or sensing that the possibilities ahead are endless. Fatherhood becomes a lens through which the everyday is rendered luminous, and the songs trace the immense vulnerability that comes with witnessing another life unfold.

Hodges describes the record as having 'a lightness and a momentum to it.'

Recorded in Deptford with longtime producer Adam Jaffrey, the album's 10 tracks take inspiration from acts such as The Band, Micheal Hurley, and Townes Van Zandt, alongside artist Edward Hopper's hushed Americana and life on tour. 'The album is rooted in the idea of letting the guitars tell the story, and bringing our sound back to something more pure and classic,' explains Wyndham.

Following last year's Greyhound EP, the band's first release on their own label Palace Presents, Ox embraces an almost familial sense of artistic connection between its creators. Taking a turn from the atmospheric layers that colored their 2024 album Ultrasound, the new record puts a newfound emphasis on dynamics and space: Wyndham describes the title track as an 'epic journey, a constantly changing thing,' pointing to its immersive, ever-shifting riffs, while the six-minute 'Brown Bread' unfolds with a slow-burning intensity.

Other highlights, such as lead single 'Kid' – an affirmation of love written about longing for one's child while on the road – or the rhythmic surge of 'Kicking Up Shadows' were crafted with the stage in mind, a setting through which the band say they have realized their ambitions. Across sold-out tours in North America and Australia throughout 2025, the band discovered the true reach of their music.

What began in 2016 as Palace Presents – a monthly takeover of The George Tavern in east London following debut LP So Long Forever – has since evolved into something far bigger than the band itself. Part label, part creative platform and part global community, Palace Presents is shaped by the same intrinsic sense of belonging that formed around those early gigs, connecting listeners across continents through a shared love of the music and the values behind it.

'Palace Presents is about opening up an ongoing conversation between the band and our fans, where they have a voice,' Hodges explains. 'We want it to be something bigger than the band.'

10 years on and the band are playing bigger rooms than ever, thriving outside the usual constraints of the industry. Their North American run is scheduled for October, including an appearance at Austin City Limits alongside 29 headline dates at venues such as Brooklyn Paramount, Massey Hall in Toronto and Los Angeles' Greek Theatre.

'While we were recording Ox, I was daydreaming about how it'll feel to play these songs live in front of our fans,' Hodges explains. 'With their help, we've got to this point where we're self-releasing a record, which to us is an amazing achievement. We're really grateful; to share the excitement we're feeling about this music with them is going to be incredible.'

'It doesn't matter how old you are or where you're from, the Palace Presents community offers an open door; it's inclusive and safe,' concludes Hodges. 'There's a lot of love here.'

PALACE 2026 USA & CA TOUR DATES

OCTOBER 1 – Emo's, Austin, TX

2 – House of Blues, Dallas, TX*

3 – Austin City Limits, Austin, TX (festival)

4 – House of Blues, Houston, TX*

6 – Sunshine Theater, Albuquerque, NM*

7 – The Van Buren, Phoenix, AZ*

9 – The Warfield, San Francisco, CA*

10 – Greek Theatre, Los Angeles, CA*

12 – Channel 24, Sacramento, CA*

14 – Showbox SoDo, Seattle, WA*

15 – Chan Centre, Vancouver, BC*

17 – Crystal Ballroom, Portland, OR*

19 – Rockwell at the Complex, Salt Lake City, UT*

20 – Mission Ballroom, Denver, CO*

22 – First Avenue, Minneapolis, MN*

23 – The Truman, Kansas City, MO*

24 – Tower Theatre, Oklahoma City, OK*

*with support from Rollo Doherty

NOVEMBER With support from Willie J Healey:

3 – Franklin Music Hall, Philadelphia, PA

4 – Brooklyn Paramount, Brooklyn, NY

5 – Citizens House of Blues, Boston, MA

7 – MTELUS, Montreal, QC

8 – Massey Hall, Toronto, ON

10 – Saint Andrews Hall, Detroit, MI

11 – House of Blues, Cleveland, OH

13 – The Salt Shed, Chicago, IL

14 – Newport Music Hall, Columbus, OH

15 – The Caverns, Pelham, TN

17 – The Eastern, Atlanta, GA

18 – The Fillmore Charlotte, Charlotte, NC