Windwaker Announce New Album and 2026 US Tour Dates with Beartooth

Australia’s genre-bending Windwaker — vocalist Liam Guinane, guitarist Justin Keurntjes, bassist Indey Salvestro, drummer Chris Lalic, and synths/samples specialist Connor Robins — will release their third album, Smile, You’re On Camera. on October 23 through Fearless Records. Pre-order it here.

Alongside the album announcement, the band, who wrapped its first-ever headline US tour this past spring, has shared the video for new single “Closer,” which was co-written by and with additional production from Dan Braunstein. Watch it here.

The song explores the arrival at a crossroads and deciding whether to give up and pursue normalcy or keep going and fight the good fight; it’s an existential battle that most of us face and Windwaker effectively set it to a post-industrial, alt-metal anthem. The lyrical “Do I or Don’t I“ is matched by the song’s push and pull intensity. Alternately smooth and glitchy verses are folded into stadium-ready choruses and breakdowns so deep they could cause an oceanic earthquake.

As a whole, Smile, You’re On Camera ruminates on the weight of time and growth, struggles and sacrifice for the better life, and authenticity in spite of a world full of superficial and sinister characters and bad actors. It’s a collection of catchy, energetic, and heartfelt songs. The album offers a more guitar-forward and gritty, analog-focused backdrop, compared to its predecessor, HYPERVIOLENCE, while encapsulating the eclectic signature sound of Windwaker up to this point. The album is highly introspective and does not follow a linear narrative, instead presenting a series of personal reflections and snapshots that capture the emotional highs and lows of this period. It’s a celebration of how far the band has come and a candid look at the pressure of being seen, leaving listeners with a sense of both resolution and ongoing evolution.

Ultimately, Windwaker’s music effectively results from a chemical reaction between rock, alternative, metal, pop, punk, electronic, and hip-hop. The band serves as the common denominator on an endlessly rotating carousel of styles, splicing stadium-size hooks, swaggering rhythms, gnashing guitars, and jaw-droppingly dynamic vocals into one unpredictable sound. The band has constantly pushed the envelope, taking flight into rarified air as an outlier. They already made a hyperspace-size jump musically from Love Language [2022] to HYPERVIOLENCE [2024]. The latter spawned “SIRENS,” which gathered 9 million Spotify streams and counting. In response to the highlight,”Fractured State of Mind,” OnesToWatch raved, “Simultaneously brutal and beautiful, the ferocious new track explores the aftershocks of lost love and is sure to be an instant hit for those in need of a therapeutic rage session.” In a 10/10 review, Distorted Sound predicted, “HYPERVIOLENCE has the energy of a band about to make it big.” Plus, Melodic Magazine hailed “their genre-warping take on modern metalcore.” Along the way, they notably shared stages with everyone from Motionless In White and I Prevail to Beartooth and Caskets, among others.

Smile, You’re On Camera. Tracklist:
1. low
2. closer
3. click.(w/ RinRin)
4. do or die
5. dna
6. burn
7. victory lap
8. lie to me
9. wait for me
10. loser (With Mikaila Delgado)
11. overlord
12. some days

Windwaker are touring with Beartooth and Don Broco this fall. All dates are below.

Windwaker 2026 US Tour Dates w/ Beartooth, and Don Broco:
11/11/26: Boston, MA — MGM Music Hall at Fenway
11/12/26: New York, NY — Hammerstein Ballroom
11/13/26: Philadelphia, PA — Franklin Music Hall
11/15/26: National Harbor, MD — The Theater at MGM National Harbor
11/18/26: Pittsburgh, PA — Stage AE
11/20/26: Chicago, IL — Aragon Ballroom
11/21/26: St. Paul, MN — Myth
11/22/26: Omaha, NE — Steelhouse Omaha
11/28/26: Nashville, TN — The Truth
11/29/26: Atlanta, GA — Coca-Cola Roxy
12/1/26: Charlotte, NC — The Fillmore
12/2/26: Charleston, SC — The Refinery
12/4/26: St. Augustine, FL — St. Augustine Amphitheatre
12/5/26: Fort Lauderdale, FL — War Memorial Auditorium
12/7/26: New Orleans, LA — The Fillmore
12/9/26: Austin, TX — ACL Live — Moody Theater
12/10/26: Dallas, TX — South Side Ballroom
12/12/26: Denver, CO — The Fillmore
12/13/26: Salt Lake City, UT — The Union
12/15/26: Albuquerque, NM — Revel Entertainment Center
12/16/26: Phoenix, AZ — Arizona Financial Theatre
12/18/26: Los Angeles, CA — Hollywood Palladium
12/19/26: Wheatland, CA — Hard Rock Live