Wunderhorse have launched their 2026 North American tour and introduced two unreleased tracks titled ‘Kerosene’ and ‘Promises’.
The British rock band began their first headline run of the year at Washington DC’s 9:30 Club on July 23. They opened the 15 song performance with ‘Midas’, the title track from their second album, before moving through ‘Butterflies’, ‘Emily’, ‘Girl’, ‘Cathedrals’, and other favourites.
Midway into the concert, the group gave fans their first preview of an unheard song called ‘Promises’. The restrained yet emotionally strong track finds frontman Jacob Slater exploring betrayal, uncertainty, and personal turmoil.
“Promise me you’ll take all of it/ keep it in a thousand miles/ twist this cruise and tell her that I have darkest snakes and lies,” he appears to sing during its dark and intense chorus. Other lines include “It’s just a little rain” and “But far away, the fear shows”.
Following performances of ‘Silver’ and ‘Arizona’, Wunderhorse unveiled another fresh track named ‘Kerosene’. The song presents a heavier, bolder, and more self assured direction for the band.
“It’s time to go/I know you can dance because I’ve seen it/ I’ve seen you by the water with an angel,” Slater sings during the number, which draws from 1990s grunge while incorporating elements of punk.
After recordings appeared across social media, listeners began discussing the direction of the new material. Many compared ‘Kerosene’ to Queens Of The Stone Age, while others noticed connections to Slater’s former group Dead Pretties, whose music carried a stronger punk influence than Wunderhorse.
Since beginning the tour in Washington DC, the band have visited Brooklyn, Boston, and Philadelphia, performing both unreleased songs at every stop. Their next appearance will take place at The Phoenix Concert Theater in Toronto on Thursday, July 30, followed by Osheaga Festival on Friday, July 31.
Back in the UK, Wunderhorse will headline Sheffield’s Rock N Roll Circus on Saturday, August 29. The event will be one of only two outdoor British concerts for Jacob Slater and his bandmates this year, before they support Twenty One Pilots at All Points East 2026.
Baxter Dury, Mercury Prize winners English Teacher, and former NME Cover artists Fat Dog will also appear at the Sheffield event.
There is currently no confirmed release date for ‘Kerosene’ or ‘Promises’, and the band have not revealed whether either song will feature on a future album.
Wunderhorse issued their praised second record, ‘Midas’, in 2024. It was selected for NME’s ranking of the year’s 50 greatest albums, where the publication called it “visceral [and] impulsive”.
During Glastonbury 2025, the musicians spoke to NME about the project’s success and suggested they had started considering their next material.
“There’s a few ideas flying around, but nothing concrete yet,” Jacob Slater told us at the time. “We’re just focusing on doing shows and getting those to a high standard.”
Asked about the possible direction of Wunderhorse’s third record, Slater replied: “I’ve got a couple [of] ideas but I’ll keep them under here”, while gesturing toward his hat.
