Joe Keery has shared a new single under his musical alias Djo, ahead of this Friday’s release of his third album The Crux.
The track, ‘Potion’, shows off a more acoustic, stripped-back side of the record. Keery handles every instrument on the song himself, from the falsetto vocals and fingerpicked guitar to bass, percussion, and Mellotron.
“’Potion’ is like your favourite pair of blue jeans,” he says. “I’d been working on Travis picking when I wrote this song, so it’s kind of like if Harry Nilsson and Lindsey Buckingham had a baby.”
The new single follows previous previews ‘Basic Being Basic’ and ‘Delete Ya’, with the former earning a spot on BBC Radio 1’s playlist. The full album, produced by Keery and collaborator Adam Thein, leans into lush 60s and 70s-inspired instrumentation, recorded in part at New York’s Electric Lady Studios. It was written during a period of emotional drift while Keery was working and travelling away from family and friends.
The Crux arrives following the global success of Djo’s 2022 album DECIDE and last year’s viral hit ‘End of Beginning’, which peaked at number 4 on the UK Singles Chart and became one of Spotify’s most-streamed songs of 2024. With over 1.5 billion streams and 60 billion TikTok views, it remains a defining moment in Keery’s musical career.
Djo’s world tour kicks off this week with a sold-out North American run, including stops at Coachella, Lollapalooza, and a Glastonbury debut. His UK headline shows in June include three nights at London’s O2 Forum Kentish Town. He also joins Noah Kahan for select EU and UK summer dates.
The Crux is out Friday 4th April on AWAL.
Editors’ Picks
- R.E.M., The Smiths, Nirvana – who might reunite next?
If Oasis is possible, is anyone off the table? Here are the reunions we’d love to see next. - ★★★★☆ Glory review | Perfume Genius tones down the distortion, turns up the intimacy
The new Perfume Genius album shows restraint, intimacy, and moments of heart-wrenching clarity. - Why, 20 years later, Dig! is still the ultimate music doc
As Dig! returns to cinemas, we revisit the chaos, creativity and collapse at the heart of a cult classic. - ★★★★☆ Till The Morning by Brian D’Addario review | A tender, baroque-folk detour from one half of The Lemon Twigs
Brian D’Addario of The Lemon Twigs steps out solo with Till The Morning, a tender, subtly political and beautifully crafted album blending baroque pop, folk and jangly 60s romanticism with moments of emotional gravity. - Overwhelmed? A guide to music’s most daunting discographies
Some bands release albums faster than you can listen to them. Here’s how to navigate the most overwhelming discographies in music history, from Johnny Cash to King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard. - ★★★★☆ Joy Crookes at Islington Assembly Hall | South London songstress makes a ravishing return
Joy Crookes cut a figure of elegance at Islington Assembly Hall, as she reeled off new tracks from her soon-to-be-announced album for BRITs Week’s charitable run of shows in support of War Child.
Keep up to date with the best in UK music by following us on Instagram: @whynowworld and on Twitter/X: @whynowworld
