The new EP is marked by the release of focus single ‘Playing God‘. Inspired initially by a Hinge date gone awry, the track is a cathartic highlight from the band’s well renowned live sets.
“Playing this song live so many times over the last year or so, it has taken on a new meaning – one that is deeper and darker than we originally intended,” Clara explains. “Thereby we would like to kindly dedicate this song to the many men in power who are wonderfully running this ship aground. When there’s so much power being abused all the time, we don’t want to become numb to that and forget about it.”
Offering further proof of their status as one of London’s most compelling emerging pop acts, new EP I Am Obsessed is a volatile, hyper-saturated expansion of their self-described “aggressive hopecore” world – where everyday life is pushed to breaking point.
Driven by pounding percussion, snarling guitars and soaring synths, singer Clara’s instantly recognisable vocal cuts through the chaos; moving between sugar-rush pop hooks and moments of defiant release, she zooms in on the smallest details until they become grotesque and impossible to ignore.
Speaking on the release of their second EP, PUNCHBAG said: “If our first EP was a selfie, these new songs are like zooming in and thinking, ‘fucking hell my pores look huge’. This EP is turning up the contrast on everyday life, rinsing the disgusting dish towel so far that all the gunk comes out. It’s pushing PUNCHBAG’s sonic world even further, into a grander landscape, and dramatising the everyday more than ever before.”
Across its five tracks, PUNCHBAG stretch their distortion-heavy alt-pop into something bigger and more unhinged, each track pulling at a different thread.
From the glitching, overstimulated clutter of ‘What’s In My Bag‘ and the tongue-in-cheek anxiety-ridden ‘Pile Of Clothes‘, to live favourite ‘Playing God‘, which began as a missed Hinge reply and spiralled into something far wider, absorbing the noise of the world around them. Elsewhere, ‘I Love This!’ plays like an anti-depression anthem – a high-speed collision of euphoria and exhaustion – while the cathartic EP-closing title track captures obsession not as romance, but as something invasive and all-consuming.
With each new release, Clara and Anders push their instincts further, tightening their sound and leaning harder into the extremes that define it – all part of a wider mission to distil the most intense, concentrated version of who they are as artists.
That intensity spills directly into their live shows, where the duo’s sibling chemistry and unfiltered energy have earned a reputation for turning rooms into something closer to group therapy than a gig.
The new EP marks the band’s first-ever physical release, arriving as a Dinked Early Doors12″ vinyl pairing ‘I Am Obsessed’ with their debut EP ‘I’m Not Your Punchbag’ in one combined release, available to order now.
PUNCHBAG‘s new EP ‘I Am Obsessed’ is out now via Mute. PUNCHBAG embark on their debut UK & Europe headline tour this month – tickets here. Follow PUNCHBAG on Instagram for news of new tour dates.
PUNCHBAG’s new EP I Am Obsessed is out now on Mute. Follow PUNCHBAG on Instagram for news of more live shows in the coming months.
I Am Obsessed EP tracklisting (cat # MUTE692)
1. I Am Obsessed
2. I Love This!
3. Pile Of Clothes
4. Playing God
5. What’s In My Bag
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PUNCHBAG LIVE
13 April – Paris (FR), Supersonic
15 April – Dresden (DE), Polimagie Festival
16 April – Rotterdam (NL), MOMO Festival
17 April – Osnabrück (DE), Popsalon Festival
21 April – Leeds (UK), Oporto
22 April – Glasgow (UK), Nice N Sleazy
23 April – Manchester (UK), YES Basement
24 April – Cardiff (UK), Clwb Ifor Bach
26 April – Bristol (UK), Louisiana
9 May London, (UK), The Lexington
Clocking in at just under 15 minutes, PUNCHBAG’s debut EP I’m Not Your Punchbag (released May 2025) was a breathless introduction. Veering between chaos and clarity where sweetness clashed with distortion, every track felt like a full-body jolt. The EP saw the band receive early tastemaker press: NME (Radar Interview), Dork (HYPE Cover + ★★★★ review), CLASH (Next Wave), Wonderland (New Noise), DIY (★★★★ review), plus further tips from PAPER Mag, The Line of Best Fit, Stereogum, Brooklyn Vegan, Popjustice and many more.
PUNCHBAG were also named a Spotify RADAR: First Listen artist and sold out their debut headline show at Bermondsey Social Club, before further sold out headlines in the capital at Windmill Brixton and The George Tavern, alongside festival slots at Reeperbahn, Iceland Airwaves, The Great Escape, Bergenfest, Pstereo, Twisterella, Live At Leeds In The City, Sŵn, Ritual Union & more, as well as a live performance on Made In Chelsea.
