Dublin’s Basht have made a concept album about the Catholic Church, the military industrial complex and the poor advice handed down by both

Dublin four-piece Basht have announced their debut album ‘Poor Advice’, due 9th October via LAB Records, alongside lead single ‘Perfume’.

The album was produced by Ali Chant, whose credits include Dry Cleaning, Perfume Genius and PJ Harvey, and is described as a concept record tracing the relationship between institutional power and those shaped by it.

Its ten tracks move between the influence of the Catholic Church on Irish private life and what vocalist Jack Leavey describes as the present-day equivalent: moral authority outsourced to boardrooms and the military industrial complex. “Poor Advice is the title because it’s all the counsel handed down from above,” Leavey has said. “Keep your head down, say your prayers, trust the deal.”

‘Perfume’ opens the campaign with considerable force. The track deals with the specific Irish history of couples pressured into marriage by the Church to avoid social shame, told from the perspective of a son watching his parents’ union unravel.

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It arrives foreboding and spare before erupting in its second half, Chant’s production giving the band’s atmospheric post-punk the space and weight it needs. Leavey has said the song reflects “how personal lives were shaped by external pressures, where duty could outweigh desire and a single moment could determine the course of an entire future.”

Basht have spent the past two years building their reputation relentlessly on the road, supporting Deadletter, Everything Everything and Wunderhorse and playing festivals including The Great Escape, Live at Leeds, Truck and Other Voices. Their 2025 EP ‘Bitter and Twisted’ established a devoted following. A heavy run of live dates follows the announcement, including Leeds Festival and Rock Werchter, with more to be confirmed.

24 Apr – Roisin Dubh, Galway

25 Apr – Ulster Sports Club, Belfast (SOLD OUT)

2 May – Liverpool Sound City, Liverpool

22 May – Mi Ami Festival, Milan

23 May – Neighbourhood Weekender, Warrington

24 May – Bearded Theory, Derbyshire

27 May – Les Etoiles, Paris

28 May – Ekko, Utrecht (SOLD OUT)

29 May – Vestrock Festival, Hulst

29 May – Dauwpop, Hellendoorn

20 Jun – TRNSMT, Glasgow

2 Jul – Rock Werchter, Belgium

9 Aug – Boardmasters Festival, Newquay

29 Aug – Rock N Roll Circus, Sheffield

30 Aug – Leeds Festival, Leeds

5 Sep – Zero Four Three Festival, Maastricht

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