DMA’s – “Life Is A Game Of Changing”

Over the course of their first two albums, it’s like the Sydney trio DMA’s were flitting through whole histories of British and Australian alternative music. Prime-era Oasis, Creation Records, Madchester, radio-friendly post-Britpop — it was all in the mix. They’ve grown slicker and more anthemic over time, but also left you guessing what sounds they might explore next. We’ll find out soon: Today, DMA’s announced their third album, The Glow, due out in late April.

The band first teased the album with a single called “Silver” back in December, and today’s announcement comes with another new track titled “Life Is A Game Of Changing.” And, once more, DMA’s have changed their whole vibe successfully. Where “Silver” was a slow-burn ballad built for soundtracking a dramatic prom scene, “Life Is A Game Of Changing” is a pulsing, yearning, catchy dance-inflected left turn.

Over insistent beats, the band layers all kinds of lush synths that are a bit hard to place. It sort of sounds like a marriage between Eurodance and Britpop; it sort of sounds like something late-era New Order might come up with. (The latter makes more sense when you consider that The Glow was produced by Stuart Price, who worked with New Order and Madonna in the mid-’00s.) These might seem like odd and, perhaps, inauspicious reference points but it’s sort of refreshing how “Life Is A Game Of Changing” feels like it’s totally in its own lane. It also helps that it is a very addicting banger. If The Glow has more of this, that would not be a bad thing at all.

The single comes with a video directed by Bill Bleakley and filmed in Bangkok and Pattaya, Thailand. Check it out alongside The Glow’s tracklist below.

TRACKLIST:

01 “Never Before”
02 “The Glow”
03 “Silver”
04 “Life Is A Game Of Changing”
05 “Criminals”
06 “Strangers”
07 “Learning Alive”
08 “Hello Girlfriend”
09 “Appointment”
10 “Round & Around”
11 “Cobracaine”

The Glow is out 4/24. Pre-order it here.