Amyl and The Sniffers‘ anticipated new album Cartoon Darkness is out this Friday, and as one final teaser, they’ve shared the video for new single “Jerkin’.” The song itself has singer Amy Taylor spewing a stream of invectives while trying to stay positive against those trying to bring her down: “Don’t wanna be stuck inside that negativity / Keep jerkin’ on your squirter / You will never get with me.”
“It’s good to express your anger when someone’s been pissing you off and it’s good to have humor in life, especially as a woman, when you’re meant to just passively say ‘everything’s good’ to keep everyone else comfortable,” says Amy. “The best part about this song is that a squirter can be anybody’s genitals. I wanted to write a song to big-up the self while putting down the ‘other; because sometimes, even if it’s just for a small window, that’s the best way to laugh something off and empower yourself. World’s pissing me off and breaking my heart more than ever right now, might as well poke it back. It’s pointless but it’s cathartic.”
“Jerkin'” comes with a video made by John Angus Stewart (who also directed the clips for “Big Dreams,” “Chewing Gum” and “U Should Not Be Doing That”) that is available on YouTube in censored form (watch below) and in flagrante on Amyl’s website.
“The level of offense that a vagina or penis can generate is absolutely bizarre,” says Stewart. “Once, Amy said to me, ‘If the world wasn’t so fucked up, I’d never wear clothes.’ It’s the context we stamp onto our sex organs that makes them innately ‘offensive.’ This is why we wanted to strip away the artifice and examine the body in an open, conversational way. We approached the project as if it were a performance in itself. From concept to crewing to casting, we (the production) let the project evolve in the most natural way possible, allowing our subjects to dictate their level of input based on their comfort on the day. We were learning what it was as we were making it, which is basically the opposite approach I’m used to. But because this idea was driven by people’s personalities, it felt wrong to do it any other way. We just kept pulling things further and further back until we were left with just a white wall and the human body. I want to come out of everything I do with a different perspective. Just as one’s perspective changes with an Amyl song, I want to change in the same way. I think we all walked away from the shoot with an innate need to be less prudish and give less of a shit.”
You can hear Cartoon Darkness early via listening parties held at 150 indie retailers across the US. Check out the full list in Amyl’s Instagram below.
Amyl and The Sniffers will celebrate the release of Cartoon Darkness with a few shows in the UK, Ireland and Europe in November. Not much has been announced for 2025, but dates include Fontaines D.C.’s big show at London’s Finsbury Park on July 5 with Kneecap, and London’s Alexandra Palace on November 15, which will be their biggest headline show to date. Hopefully North American dates will be announced soon (they were here this summer with headline shows in between opening for Foo Fighters).
Current dates are listed below.
AMYL AND THE SNIFFERS – 2024/2025 TOUR DATES
Nov 5, 2024- The National Stadium- Dublin, County Dublin
Nov 6, 2024- O2 Academy Glasgow- Glasgow, UK
Nov 7, 2024- NX Newcastle- Newcastle upon Tyne, England
Nov 9, 2024- Manchester Academy- Manchester, UK
Nov 10, 2024- O2 Academy Birmingham- Birmingham, UK
Nov 11, 2024- O2 Academy Bristol- Bristol, UK
Nov 13, 2024- Roundhouse- London, England
Nov 14, 2024- Roundhouse- London, England
Nov 15, 2024- Roundhouse- London, England
Nov 17, 2024- Ancienne Belgique- Brussels, Brussels-Capital Region
Nov 18, 2024- TivoliVredenburg- Utrecht, NL
Nov 19, 2024- Carlswerk Victoria- Cologne, NRW
Nov 21, 2024- Vega- Copenhagen, Denmark
Nov 22, 2024- Grosse Freiheit 36- Hamburg, HH
Nov 23, 2024- Columbiahalle- Berlin, Berlin
Nov 25, 2024- TonHalle München- Munich, Bavaria
Nov 26, 2024- Les Docks- Lausanne, Switzerland
Nov 27, 2024- L’Olympia- Paris, France
Nov 29, 2024- Floyd- Athens
Jun 25, 2025- Zitadelle Spandau- Berlin, Germany
Jul 5, 2025- Finsbury Park- London, England- Fontaines DC, Kneecap
Nov 15, 2025- Alexandra Palace- London, England