Phoenix have shared a new version of their track ‘After Midnight’, featuring Clairo.
The original song appears on the French band’s seventh studio album ‘Alpha Zulu’, which came out last November.
The band teased the new version earlier this week, taking to social media on March 13 to share a brief clip of a revamped take on the tune. The file name in the video reads ‘After Midnight ft.??.wav’, confirming that a collaboration was incoming.
The special guest has now been confirmed as Clairo, which marks the second time the band have had a guest feature, following last year’s ‘Tonight’ with Vampire Weekend’s Ezra Koenig.
“We’ve loved Claire since day 1,” Phoenix said in a statement. “What a treat it is to have her sing with us! We hope you’ll enjoy it as much as we do.”
“I’ve been a massive fan of Phoenix for as long as I can remember,” Clairo added, “and I’m very grateful that they asked me to sing on this remix.”
Currently, Phoenix are out on the Asian leg of their world tour and are due to make various European festival appearances this spring/summer. Thomas Mars and co will perform at Glastonbury 2023 in June, as announced earlier this month.
The band are set to embark on a North American co-headline tour with Beck this August, dubbed ‘Summer Odyssey’. They’ll be joined across the dates by special guests Japanese Breakfast, Jenny Lewis and Weyes Blood.
Speaking to NME as part of a Big Read cover interview in 2022, Phoenix likened the latest incarnation of their live show to a “digital opera”.
In a glowing five-star review of Phoenix’s London date last year, NME described the performance as “a complete assault on the senses” with some “decidedly human moments, too”.
Meanwhile, NME also reviewed Clairo in London last year, giving the show four-stars and writing: “As trying as it might have been, this final lap reaffirms Clairo’s position as an indie virtuoso, quietly taking pop music by storm.”