Having first gained attention with their 2014 album ZABA and single “Gooey,” which eventually went platinum in the U.S., the band later received global attention for the hit “Heat Waves” in 2022. The catchy single peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 after spending a record-breaking 59 weeks (!) on the charts—and we’ll bet it’s still living rent-free in your mind today.
Following that slow-burn success, Glass Animals’ fourth studio album debuted at No. 11 on the Billboard 200—their second-highest charting album in the U.S.—and now they’re taking the world by storm. Here, we caught up with half of the foursome, drummer Joe Seaward and guitarist/vocalist Drew MacFarlane, ahead of their City of Oaks show for insight on the new album and fresh sound.
Your newest album feels less experimental. How has your sound matured over your four-year hiatus?
JS: I think [our music] definitely matured. We have grown and changed as people, and with that comes a slightly different way of looking at the world and thinking about music. … Maybe it’s slightly less psychedelic, but it feels very normal to be inside it, so when you try and put yourself on the outside where you guys are looking in, it’s an interesting thought experiment. This album is really focused on space, which does lend itself to psychedelic stuff.
DM: There is definitely a retro element to it, with the instruments we used and the environment we were in. This time we shut ourselves away—just the four of us in the studio for the whole process. That was the first time we ever made an album start to finish by ourselves.
How did you land on space for the theme?
DM: I think the album started coming out of an existential crisis, and space is the biggest thing you can imagine—that itself gives you an existential crisis just thinking about it. The album ended up being a collection of love songs with a backdrop of the universe and its vastness. So I think it was that complement and contrast that rounded it off.
Who were your biggest musical influences for this album?
JS: One of the things that is great about Glass Animals is we all have different tastes—we have a Venn diagram of things we are interested in, with a lot of stuff around the edges. Dave [Bayley] has been listening quite a lot to music that was made in the ’60s and ’70s that was trying to sound like [the future]. … We experimented with the sounds and tried to match them with the tools at our disposable, more modern influences.
Tell me about the album art.
JS: The eyes on the cover are intimate. It’s that thing with human connection. Eyes are the most simple way of seeing somebody, but it’s set in the darkness of space.
Will your setlist mainly stick to your newest album?
DM: A lot of the new album, but we will definitely bring out the nuances from older albums… in the context of the new set.
Fave song to perform live?
DM: I love performing ‘Show Pony’ and ‘How I Learned to Love the Bomb.’
JS: To make things interesting, I love performing some of the old songs… but I’ve enjoyed this new set. It starts hard and fast, takes an emotional moment in the middle and comes back again. It’s going to be really fun.
Any songs you don’t like playing live?
DM: Oh, yeah, absolutely. And they have been consigned to the bin. There are some songs, but my relationship with them live doesn’t represent my feelings about them as music. There are some that are just really hard to play live. Some don’t work, and it’s not the ones you would think.
Save the stress for once you’re inside the airport with these parking tips.
POV: You allowed yourself just enough time to scrape through security and *barely* catch your flight—only to arrive at RDU Airport to full parking decks. If only your yesterday self had you covered…
Enter ParkRDU. Though parking is perhaps the most stressful part of flying—causing anxiety before you even step into the airport—RDU offers a pre-booking option online for flyers to reserve a spot ahead of time. Read: No more spontaneously backtracking to a remote lot and bussing in (hey, missed flight!).
So in the interest of sanity and no missed connections, here’s how to book… so you can use that spare time to stock up on plane goodies before you head to your gate. Trust us, your tomorrow self will thank you.
When? Book your parking as soon as you book your flight—it can sell out and you have to book at least 24 hours in advance anyway. But don’t stress about the commitment—RDU allows changes to be made up to ParkRDU reservations up to 24 hours in advance without penalty.
What should I bring? When booking online, print out your QR code just in case—it will save you from being that person and having to press the call button and hold up the line if there’s a technological difficulty. And, upon your return to Raleigh, the nonstop (!) process will read your license plate as you fly out of the lot in your own separate lane.
Why? The new parking guidance system in the terminal deck allows ParkRDU Premier and Central customers to forgo circling the lot and easily find an empty space thanks to electronic wayfinding. And, ICYMI, the ParkRDU Express lot added nearly 1,000 parking spaces for travelers—NTM it offers luggage assistance at your car and shuttles to the terminals running at all hours of the day, ideal for overpackers and large families alike. Bon voyage!
Passport or no, here’s where to go wheels up this summer—and beyond.
Skipping Borders In a relationship with: our passports. All we need is a three-month vacation four times a year—really not asking too much. But until that happens, fun fact: It takes less time for these international direct flights from RDU to Europe than it does to travel to many indirect West Coast locales. So catch flights and feelings with these five destination hot spots worth digging out your passport for—or peep a trio of tropical hot spots you can go wheels up without the added paperwork—plus the hotels worth booking your vacation around. Once again, we rest our suitcase.
RDU DIRECT | Freeport, Bahamas| Our pick: Pelican Bay—Because it’s the “happiest hotel on Grand Bahama Island” duh. Where better to live out your White Lotus fantasy?! pelicanbayhotel.com
RDU DIRECT | Frankfurt, Germany | Our pick: Roomers—The swank, dark and seductive atmosphere makes for an ultrahip stay nestled between the train station and the Main River. roomers-hotels.com
RDU DIRECT | Paris | Our pick: Hyatt Regency Paris Étoile—Joie de vivre found atop Paris’ highest skyscraper hotel with nonparallel Eiffel Tower and City of Lights views. hyatt.com
Cancun | Our pick: Excellence Playa Mujeres—No bad rooms exist at this luxe adults-only 2022 “World’s Best Winner” (!) idyllic beachfront paradise that pretty much defines the bueno life. excellenceresorts.com
No Passport? No Problem Tropic like it’s hot at a trio of tropical destinations sans passport.
St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands | Resort pick:The Fred—And we’ll never be royals at these adults-only King Frederik V-dubbed boutique beachfront digs inviting you to “sleep with Fred.” sleepwithfred.com
San Juan, Puerto Rico | Resort pick: Condado Vanderbilt Hotel—Nee 1919, PR’s first luxe hotel is an art deco beachfront haven for luminaries and wanderlusters alike. If it’s good enough for JFK… condadovanderbilt.com
Tumon Bay, Guam | Resort pick: The Tsubaki Tower—Dubai feels, but make it on a U.S. island territory towering over azure waters so vibrant you’ll have to squint to see it. tsubakitower.kenhotels.com
Handy Passport Hacks Need a passport—or yours expiring soon? Navigate “law & border” with our handy hacks.
Here’s who is officially running for mayor and City Council.
Election season is upon us, and 26 candidates with a deep desire to bring change to Raleigh have thrown their names into the ring for mayor and City Council. Now that the filing period is officially over, the ballot is set, with all incumbents seeking reelection except for Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin.
Raleighites haven’t been known to race to the polls for location elections, but keep in mind those who are elected and the decisions they make will directly affect you. Hot button issues this year include development and infrastructure, law enforcement shortages, affordable housing, DTR crime, transit, and so on.
As campaign season kicks off, here’s a district-by-district snapshot of who’s running and the issues at stake.
For full interviews with the incumbents and other candidates that declared intent earlier this year, see our extended ballot guide.
Thanks to recruitment efforts, employment gaps in Raleigh law enforcement are trending downward.
After a year seeking solutions to the staffing shortage in the Raleigh Police Department, recruitment efforts have paid off. A rise in violent crime last fall highlighted the department’s staffing shortage and even led the city to turn to private security to fill the gaps. Now, the RPD has just 45 vacancies*, compared to around 84 vacancies at this time last year. In addition, there are 42 new recruits in the current academy.
“We are trending in the right direction regarding filling in those gaps, and our recruitment efforts are credited with reducing the number of vacancies,” says Chief Public Information Officer Lieutenant Jason Borneo. “These include recruitment events where our recruiters attend career fairs, or hiring events where potential recruits can learn about the RPD. Our social media pages have played an integral role in communicating our message to the community.”
With these reduced gaps in the force, RPD is hoping to improve response times. “It’s a concern to us,” maintains Chief Estella Patterson. “We serve a community that expects when they call 911, an officer is coming. We are going to do everything we can to make sure our officers are coming, but we do recognize we live in a city of almost half a million… so that is going to task resources. We have to be committed to customer service.”
*These numbers are prone to fluctuate weekly with resignations, retirements and new hires.
