William Crighton Announces New Album ‘Colonial Drift’, Reveals Australian Tour Dates

Colonial Drift, William Crighton’s fourth studio album, is out March 20 via ABC Music.

ARIA award winner William Crighton has revealed his new album, Colonial Drift, is dropping on Friday 20 March via ABC Music (pre-order/pre-save here).

The follow-up to the bush-psych artists 2022 record Water and Dust, Colonial Drift has been preceded by the singles ‘Further Down the Road’ and ‘Sex, Death and Choices’.

Written in collaboration with his wife Julieanne Crighton and with contributions from the late, great Midnight Oil drummer Rob Hirst, Colonial Drift was recorded at The Grove Studios by Damian Charles, and in William’s own home studio, with the record marking the next chapter in Crighton’s ever-evolving career.

Speaking on working with Crighton, Hirst said, “It's been a real honour for me to co-write a few tracks with William Crighton for his new album. In the manner of Midnight Oil, William's context and subject matter have always been uniquely Australian. William's voice is an emerging national treasure, still growing in gravitas, intensity and power.”

Crighton has also announced he’s hitting the road for a run of shows across Australia and New Zealand this April and May to celebrate the release of Colonial Drift.

The tour commences in Brisbane with a gig at Old Museum on Saturday 11 April. This is followed by concerts at Adelaide’s Lion Arts Factory on Friday 17 April, Perth’s The Rechabite on Saturday 18 April, Lower Belford’s The Gum Ball on Saturday 25 April, Castlemaine’s Theatre Royal on Thursday 7 May, Brunswick’s Howler on Friday 8 May and Anglesea’s The Sound Doctor on Saturday 9 May.

Crighton then heads to New Zealand for two shows at Wellington’s San Fran on Wednesday 20 May and Auckland’s Tuning Fork on Thursday 21 May before returning to Australia for the last shows of the tour at Wollongong’s La La La’s on Friday 29 May and Sydney’s Crowbar on Saturday 30 May.

Tickets for all shows are on sale now at williamcrightonmusic.com.au.

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William Crighton has been a pioneer of bush-psych, a genre of music that incorporates Australian roots, folk, rock and psych with a narrative focus on life in Australia.

Self-releasing his debut EP Change in 2001, Crighton spent almost a decade playing music across America and China before returning home in 2015.

He’s since gone on to release three studio albums over the journey – William Crighton, Empire and Water and Dust, which won the 2022 ARIA Award for Best Blues and Roots Album.

Ahead of the release of Colonial Drift, Crighton is supporting The Dead South on tour across Europe before returning to Australia for his own headline tour.

Catch William Crighton at Lion Arts Factory on Friday 17 April. Tickets on sale at williamcrightonmusic.com.au. Colonial Drift is out on Friday 20 March via ABC Music (pre-order/pre-save here).

William Crighton Australian and New Zealand Tour Dates 2026

Saturday 11 April - Old Museum, Brisbane, QLD

Friday 17 April - Lion Arts Factory, Adelaide, SA

Saturday 18 April - The Rechabite, Perth, WA

Saturday 25 April - The Gum Ball, Lower Belford, NSW

Thursday 7 May - Theatre Royal, Castlemaine, VIC

Friday 8 May - Howler, Brunswick, VIC

Saturday 9 May - The Sound Doctor, Anglesea, VIC

Wednesday 20 May - San Fran, Wellington, NZ

Thursday 21 May - Tuning Fork, Auckland, NZ

Friday 29 May - La La La's, Wollongong, NSW

Saturday 30 May - Crowbar, Sydney, NSW