Cigarettes After Sex — the great indie-pop act that delivered one of the finest live sets we saw during the three-day Outside Lands music festival in San Francisco in 2023 — is set to return to the Bay Area.
The El Paso, Texas dream-pop outfit, led by Greg Gonzalez, performs Oct. 5 at Oakland Arena.
Tickets go on sale to the general public at 10 a.m. March 8, cigarettesaftersex.com. There are also some presale opportunities.
The show is part of a 2024 tour in support of the group’s forthcoming album, “X’s,” which is due in stores July 12.
“The record feels brutal,” Gonzalez says in a news release. “I could sit and talk about this loss to someone, but that wouldn’t scratch the surface. I have to really write about it, sing about it, have the music, and then I can start to analyze and learn from it. Or just relive it — in a good way. I don’t have that Eternal Sunshine-thing of wanting to forget.”
The album’s first single, “Tejano Blue,” was released today. The song is “a nod to the music of bandleader Greg Gonzalez’s Texas childhood, resulting in the most instantly memorable version (and liveliest tempo) yet of the band’s signature sensual, timeless, love songs,” according to the news release.
“I grew up in El Paso and Tejano music is huge there,” Gonzalez says. “You could go to a lot of the bars in the city and hear artists like Selena, Los Ángeles Azules and La Mafia playing over the speakers. It was in the atmosphere around me back then, but I always rejected it and gravitated towards anything else I was attracted to really.
“Years later when I was living in New York City I finally started listening to Selena’s ‘Como La Flor’ at the same time that I was also listening to a lot of Cocteau Twins. I had the idea then to try to combine both of their sounds somehow, which felt a bit strange, but also felt like it was coming from a genuine place of rediscovering & finally connecting with the music that I heard around me in my youth.”
CIGARETTES AFTER SEX TOUR DATES
North American Dates
15 JUN 2024 / US / Manchester, TN / Bonnaroo
31 AUG 2024 / CA / Montreal, QC / Centre Bell
01 SEP 2024 / CA / Toronto, ON / Scotiabank Arena
03 SEP 2024 / US / Philadelphia, PA / Wells Fargo Center 04 SEP 2024 / US / Boston, MA / TD Garden
06 SEP 2024 / US / New York, NY / Madison Square Garden
10 SEP 2024 / US / Columbia, MD / Merriweather Post Pavilion
11 SEP 2024 / US / Raleigh, NC / PNC Arena
13 SEP 2024 / US / Orlando, FL / Kia Center
14 SEP 2024 / US / Atlanta, GA / State Farm Arena
17 SEP 2024 / US / San Antonio, TX / Frost Bank Center
18 SEP 2024 / US / Houston, TX / Toyota Center
20 SEP 2024 / US / Austin, TX / Moody Center
21 SEP 2024 / US / Fort Worth, TX / Dickies Arena
23 SEP 2024 / US / Chicago, IL / United Center
24 SEP 2024 / US / Saint Paul, MN / Xcel Energy Center
27 SEP 2024 / CA / Vancouver, BC / Rogers Arena
28 SEP 2024 / US / Seattle, WA / Climate Pledge Arena
30 SEP 2024 / US / Portland, OR / Moda Center
02 OCT 2024 / US / Greenwood Village, CO / Fiddler’s Green Amphitheatre
03 OCT 2024 / US / Salt Lake City, UT / Delta Center
05 OCT 2024 / US / Oakland, CA / Oakland Arena
07 OCT 2024 / US / San Diego, CA / Viejas Arena
08 OCT 2024 / US / Phoenix, AZ / Desert Diamond Arena
11 OCT 2024 / US / Los Angeles, CA / Kia Forum
15 OCT 2024 / MX / Mexico City / Palacio de los Deportes
EU/UK Dates
25 OCT 2024 / GR / Athens / OAKA Indoor Arena
28 OCT 2024 / NL / Amsterdam / Ziggo Dome
29 OCT 2024 / BE / Brussels / Forest National
01 NOV 2024 / IT / Milan / Forum
03 NOV 2024 / AT / Vienna / Wiener Stadthalle
05 NOV 2024 / PL / Warsaw / COS Torwar
07 NOV 2024 / DE / Berlin / Uber Arena
09 NOV 2024 / CH / Basel / St Jakobshalle
10 NOV 2024 / DE / Cologne / Lanxess Arena
12 NOV 2024 / UK / London / The O2
16 NOV 2024 / FR / Paris / Accor Arena
17 NOV 2024 / FR / Lyon / Halle Tony Garnier
20 NOV 2024 / ES / Madrid / WiZink Center
21 NOV 2024 / PT / Lisbon / Altice Arena
Asia Dates
9 JAN 2025 / HK / Hong Kong / Asia World-Expo, Hall 5
11 JAN 2025 / MY / Kuala Lumpur / Sunway Lagoon
14 JAN 2025 / PH / Manila / MOA Arena
17 JAN 2025 / ID / Jakarta / Beach City International
21 JAN 2025 / TH / Bangkok / Impact Exhibition Hall 5
South Africa Dates
5 MAR 2025 / ZA / Cape Town / Grand Arena at GrandWest
7 MAR 2025 / ZA / Pretoria / SunBet Arena
AU/NZ Dates
12 MAR 2025 / AU / Melbourne / Rod Laver Arena
14 MAR 2025 / AU / Sydney / ICC Theatre
17 MAR 2025 / AU / Brisbane / Brisbane Entertainment Centre
19 MAR 2025 / NZ / Auckland / Spark Arena
