Firm favourites in the UK, Canadian roots rock band The Commoners will be setting foot on British soil this coming December for a ten date headline tour.
“The UK has become a second home for us,” said The Commoners’ bassist, Ben Spiller. “Over the last few years, we’ve had the pleasure of rocking dozens of shows over the course of five unforgettable UK tours and festivals.
North Devon alt-rock duo Candar will join the tour as special guests, bringing melodic vocals, gritty guitar riffs, and bombastic drums. Fresh from two Glastonbury appearances and a sold-out UK/Ireland run with Bôa in 2024, they’re primed to light up the stage each night.
Following hot on the heels of the live album The Commoners – Live in the UK, the band has released a new song in ‘Just Watch Me’ ahead of their new UK tour.
“’Just Watch Me’ is the moment you stop apologising for the weight on your shoulders and lean into it,” said The Commoners’ guitarist Ross Hayes Citrullo. “The main guitar riff feels like a rising charge, before the chorus kicks the doors open, and a jam section that refuses to back down. It’s a statement piece for the stage. We’re looking forward to playing it live on tour.”
The Commoners‘ new single ‘Just Watch Me’ evokes imagery of The Stones and The Faces playing pool together in a backroom honky tonk in the middle of nowhere when some big bad dude thinks he’s being clever pushing the backend of someone’s cue; glasses smash; a crowd backs off; then the smallest guy in the room steps forward, determined, to make things right – Musically it follows suit slow dancing round the room getting moody, reflective and a little romantic too, then builds to a cathartic emotional release before tearing up in a haze of rocking guitar frenzy.
The new single is a bold, defiant anthem about ownership, resilience, and stepping into leadership when the moment calls. The lyrics rally against self-doubt while musically, ‘Just Watch Me’ transitions from reflective verses into a hook-rich chorus before a searing guitar solo, built for big rooms and louder nights.
It’s available to stream on Spotify, just like previous single ‘Too Soon To Know You’ – And you can check out videos to them here at RAMzine.
The Commoners‘ drummer, Adam Cannon said of ‘Too Soon To Know You’ that it was “a reflection on the fleeting nature of connection, and the bittersweet feeling of having had someone in your life when the timing wasn’t quite right to make the connection last.
“We wanted to capture that fragile moment when everything feels both urgent and uncertain. Recording it was a real collaborative effort — We tracked live off the floor and layered it with raw vocals and textured guitars and organ to evoke that sense of vulnerability.
“The song is about the human tendency to cling to what might have been and the hope that, maybe, there’s still a chance to understand each other before it’s too late.”
Taken from The Commoners’ Restless album, you could quite easily mistake their ‘Too Soon To Know You’ single for a Black Crowes number, but with added subtly and devoid of ego. Suitably so, since it’s a tale of a person changing, or not being the same as when last you saw them.
‘Too Soon To Know You’ moves a little capriciously through ballad styled changes, shifting between electric and acoustic before driving hard towards a soulful conclusion that may just leave that big tattooed geezer standing next to you shaking inexplicably in tears.
The news of the new single and December UK tour follows the release of The Commoners – Live in the UK album available on CD and vinyl here, and digitally here. Featuring nine live tracks, the album includes Commoners anthems with added parts, extended sections, performed live on the band’s 2024 UK tour.
Tickets for the December tour are available via Planet Rock, Gigantic.com and direct from The Commoners’ website.
