Antony Szmierek releases new album 'Decoding Birdsong'

Manchester-born poet, writer, and producer Antony Szmierek releases his remarkable second album, Decoding Birdsong today. Made alongside longtime creative partner Max Rad, the album brings together an eclectic cast of artists, including Australia’s Pretty Girl, London band Los Bitchos, Bristol producer 1-800 GIRLS, Imogen and the Knife, and indie-pop star Ellur. Out now on Mushroom Music / Virgin Music Group.

Decoding Birdsong draws heavily on Antony’s love of electronic music, with influences including Four Tet, Caribou and LCD Soundsystem. Dance music has been part of his life since childhood, from hearing ‘Rhythm Is A Dancer’ at Blackpool Illuminations to losing himself in warehouse raves as a student. On the new album, house, techno, electro and disco sit alongside his distinctive spoken-word style, with the beats giving his lyrics a new sense of movement and energy. In his words, “A repetitive beat and a dark room is womb-like to me.”

Decoding Birdsong arrives just eighteen months after Antony Szmierek’s critically acclaimed debut album Service Station at the End of the Universe, which launched the artist into a whirlwind of Glastonbury, Jools Holland, and repeat BBC airplay. He’s sold out venues across the UK and Europe, and in February 2026, performed to 20,000 while closing Solomun’s Alexandra Palace shows.

“Decoding Birdsong is about choosing to believe in something. Coincidence as a religion. Making your own luck in the face of loneliness and doubt. The smallest things can feel seminal, seismic and life-affirming if you just choose to lean in, but it also asks if this is a dangerous way to live.
- Antony Szmierek

"A remarkably self-aware record, that recognises its own tendency to mythologise experience." - DIY ★★★★★

"Antony Szmierek’s rise over the past few years has felt unstoppable, but ‘Decoding Birdsong’ looks set to be his biggest statement yet." - Dork

“If Pulp had one foot in the rave, you’d be near Szmierek’s signature shtick: expressive, vivid storytelling… over floaty electro-pop and house beats.” - Rolling Stone UK

“Pop-poet Antony Szmierek has a talent for finding beauty in mundanity” - London Standard

“Over 13 tracks, Szmierek grapples with the idea of fate, coincidence, and purpose with typically stunning lyricism and some of the best electronic production you will have heard this year.” - ★★★★★ Hive Magazine