Toby Furlong
I’m a writer hailing from the distant land of Norfolk. With a deep love for vinyl, currently standing at over 100 in my collection. When it comes to picking a favourite artist, it will always be the sounds of Trish Keenan and Broadcast.
Virtuoso, poet, writer and producer Antony Szmierek is up and running for the year with the wonderful, disco-infused, ‘The Heron’.
Returning with a gorgeous track of the avian variety, Manchester born Antony Szmierek first shot to the top of the critical radar with the much acclaimed debut album that was 2025’s ‘Service Station At The End Of The Universe‘.
Szmierek has always beckoned the question, what if post-punk didn’t have to sound like a dirge? His knack for delicious club-tactic beats shone ever so brightly on his debut project and ‘The Heron‘ is a very welcome and similarly energetic follow-up.
Szmierek has long believed in signs from the universe. One arrived in the form of a heron nesting along the Mersey’s banks that he revisited for years. Antony saw himself in the bird: a creature of two worlds, caught between water and land, just as he found himself between his ordinary Manchester life and newfound public attention.
Speaking about the meaning behind the song, Antony shares “Many of us are adrift in a world of short form slop and a punishing news cycle, but The Heron provides a manifesto for survival. Patience, self-reliance, looping piano and relentless bass.
Relentless bass is indeed what propels this song forward, in a way that sounds influenced by artists such as contemporaries old and new, Frankie Knuckles and Jamie xx
With the sun beginning to peek out from behind the clouds, ‘The Heron‘ arrives at what can only be described as a refreshingly good moment.
Watch the video for ‘The Heron‘ below:
Catch Antony Szmierek at the following:
APRIL
8th April – Control, Bucharest (Romania)
10th April – Flex, Vienna (Austria)
11th April – Fuchs2, Prague (Czech Republic)
12th April – Hybrydy, Warsaw (Poland)
13th April – Frannz Club, Berlin (Germany)
15th April – Lila Eule, Bremen (Germany)
16th April – C/O Pop, Cologne (Germany)
17th April – Club Stereo, Nuremberg (Germany)
19th April – Karlstorbahnhof, Heidelberg (Germany)
20th April – Milla, Munich (Germany)
21st April – Exil Club, Zurich (Switzerland)
23rd April – Covo Club, Bologna (Italy)
24th April – Arci Bellezza, Milan (Italy)
MAY
7th May – Schubas, Chicago, IL (USA)
9th May – Baby’s All Right, Brooklyn, NY (USA)
15th May – The Echo, Los Angeles, CA (USA)
16th May – Brick & Mortar Music Hall, San Francisco, CA (USA)
27th May – TRIX, Antwerp (Belgium)
28th May – Rotondes, Luxembourg (Luxembourg)
29th May – Melkweg, Amsterdam (Netherlands)
30th May – Dauwpop Festival, Hellendoorn (Netherlands)
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