Breakout alt-rock band The Bends are getting ready to release their debut album with new single “Sticking To The Plan.” The track arrives just two weeks before the album If You Insist, which is set to be released September 18 via Warner Records.

The 12-track album follows the band’s journey from playing college bars in Louisiana to touring across the country and turning music into their full-time career. What started as a group of friends playing together at LSU has quickly turned into something much bigger. If You Insist captures that transition, while leaving room for all of the excitement and uncertainty that comes with figuring out what happens next.

The album’s title comes from a lyric in its opening track, “Off My Chest.” According to lead singer and guitarist Hayden Field, the phrase represents how the band’s plans changed over time. What began as something they did simply for fun eventually became an opportunity to build a career around music, which was something they had always hoped could happen but never knew for sure would.

“This line encapsulated what we feel our journey as a band has been thus far. We started the band in college for the fun of playing at our local bar. But after releasing music and beginning to tour the Southeast, the chance to commit to being a band as our livelihood became a reality. Everything had fallen into place in a way we’d only dreamed of, and so we replied, ‘If You Insist.’”

“Sticking To The Plan” follows the band’s recent singles “Hanging Around,” “Seasons Change,” and “Smoking In Bed,” which recently broke into the Alternative Airplay Top 100, adding to the momentum The Bends have been building throughout the year. The band has also recently appeared on “Track Star” and Zach Bryan’s “Belting Bronco” series.

The Bends have spent much of the year on the road for their first-ever North American “If You Insist” Tour. The tour kicked off in April in New Orleans and has taken the band across the country, including stops in Boston, Chicago, Dallas, San Francisco, and New York City. Along the way, they have shared the stage with The Killers, Inhaler, and Ole 60, while also making an appearance at Lollapalooza.

IF YOU INSIST TRACK LIST
1. Off My Chest
2. Loadout
3. Seasons Change
4. Dance Away
5. Lebowski
6. Smoking In Bed
7. Hanging Around
8. Young Love
9. Whatever
10. Keeps Me Going
11. Last Forever
12. Sticking To The Plan

“IF YOU INSIST” NORTH AMERICAN TOUR DATES
September 8—Tuscaloosa, AL—Two Dimes
September 9—Oxford, MS—The Lyric Oxford+
September 11—Austin, TX—Scoot Inn+
September 12—Dallas, TX—The Echo Lounge & Music Hall+
September 17—Baton Rouge, LA—Texas Club
September 23—Boulder, CO—Fox Theatre+
September 24—Denver, CO—Bluebird Theater+
September 25—Salt Lake City, UT—Kilby Court+
September 26—Boise, ID—Shrine Social Club+
September 28—Vancouver, BC—Biltmore Cabaret=
September 29—Seattle, WA—Chop Suey=
September 30—Portland, OR—Hawthorne Theatre=
October 2—San Francisco, CA—Rickshaw@
October 3—Felton, CA—Felton Music Hall@
October 4—San Luis Obispo, CA—SLO Brew@
October 7—San Diego, CA—House of Blues San Diego@
October 9—Los Angeles, CA—Troubadour@
October 12—Santa Ana, CA—The Observatory@
October 13—Phoenix, AZ—Crescent Ballroom@
October 17—Thibodaux, LA—Acadia Music Fest
October 30—Nashville, TN—The Basement East
November 1—Indianapolis, IN—Hi-Fi Indy$
November 4—Minneapolis, MN—Fine Line
November 5—Madison, WI—High Noon Saloon$
November 6—Chicago, IL—Lincoln Hall
November 7—Chicago, IL—Lincoln Hall
November 10—Ann Arbor, MI—The Blind Pig&
November 11—Toronto, ON—The Garrison&
November 13—Boston, MA—Paradise Rock Club&
November 14—New York City, NY—Irving Plaza&
November 15—Philadelphia, PA—The Foundry at The Fillmore&
November 17—Washington, DC—Union Stage&
November 18—Carrboro, NC—Cat’s Cradle%
November 20—Atlanta, GA—Terminal West
November 21—Charlotte, NC—Neighborhood Theatre+
November 22—Charleston, SC—Music Farm+

+with Foxtide
=with Flamingos In The Tree
@with Margot Sinclair
$with The Braymores
&with Common People
%with Fudge
#Festival

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