Glass Animals

On his way to medical school, Glass Animals frontman Dave Bayley took a detour with classmates Drew MacFarlane, Edmund Irwin-Singer and Joe Seaward and hasn’t returned yet. 

Terence Patrick/CBS ©2016 CBS Broadcasting – Glass Animals

The four formed the band while attending St Edward’s School in Oxford and Bayley made plans for med school. But a 2012 EP, Leaflings, and a London performance with Adele producer Paul Epworth in attendance changed all that. 

Glass Animals proceeded to release a string of singles that eventually became its debut long-player, ZABA, which produced hits in “Black Mambo” and “Gooey” and appearances on American late-night television. A lengthy global tour followed. 

But it was a shared studio with American hip hop recording star Joey Bada$$, which resulted in the track “Lose Control,” that drove Glass Animals onto American singles charts in late 2015. 

The quirky indie-rockers were no longer thinking much about medical school. They were on their way to signing label and agency deals, including with United Talent Agency’s Greg Lowe and Jeremy Norkin, and CAA’s Bobby Cory for North American representation. 

– Glass Animals

Glass Animals quickly became road warriors. A lengthy global tour was followed by more studio time and a second album, How to Be a Human Being, and Glass Animals became a darling on the festival circuit, performing at radio shows and fests including Coachella, Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, the UK’s Bestival and Australia’s Laneway series. 

They will be at it again in 2017. Glass Animals is currently trekking across Europe, followed by a South American tour built around an appearance at Lollapalooza Brazil in Sao Paulo. The foursome returns Stateside in April for a short round of headline dates, culminating with a repeat appearance at Coachella. 

The band will return to Europe for another leg, but American fans shouldn’t fret. They’ll be back in the U.S. for another headline tour from June through August, including appearances at Firefly and Panorama festivals and a show at Red Rocks Amphitheatre near Denver.