The Temper Trap have finally announced a new album.
Their first in a decade and fourth studio album overall, Sungazer was created after a four-year hiatus from touring and writing. It will arrive on Friday, July 10th.
The Australian mainstays tentatively headed back into the studio and immediately felt an inspiring energy before working between continents, sending demos back and forth, and convening in Melbourne for studio dates. The resulting record delivers an impassioned and immediate sound, led by the title track “Sungazer”, out today (April 2nd).
The album veers from yearning intimacy to full-throttle catharsis, from guitar-riffing indie tunes to heavy electronica, all anchored in frontman Dougy Mandagi’s expansive, instantly recognisable voice.
“With time apart and much personal growth from us all, Sungazer feels like it’s captured the most pure collection of music we’ve ever made,” the band shared. “We had more fun making this record and in the writing room than on any of the previous records we’ve done. We’re in a great place creatively and in our friendships, we’re closer than ever. Being back into the studio together really felt like coming home.”
The title track is a heartfelt offering from Mandagi to his son – a promise to stand beside him through his life, capturing the quiet, enduring love of parenthood. “Sungazer” channels the moody introspection of trip hop with a ballad-like build, before a rip-roaring outro returns the band to its explosive best.
“’Sungazer’ is a song I wrote as a declaration to my little boy Ziggy before he was born. The lyrics are a promise to him, to be with him throughout his life,” Mandagi said.
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“Sungazer” follows other recent releases including February’s “Into the Wild”, and 2025’s “Giving Up Air” and “Lucky Dimes” – their first piece of new music in a nearly decade.
Since exploding onto the scene 15 years ago, the Melbourne four-piece have racked up two ARIA No. 1 albums (The Temper Trap and Thick as Thieves), platinum certifications across multiple continents, and played festival main stages from Glastonbury to Lollapalooza, as well as local favourites past and present like Big Day Out and Laneway.
Their 2009 breakthrough hit and debut album Conditions remain streaming staples, with the band’s catalogue clocking well over a billion plays. Collaborations like “Love Lost” with Mac Miller and Mandagi’s feature on a rework of Moby’s “Extreme Ways” have also reintroduced them to a new generation of fans.
In last year’s Hottest 100 of Australian Songs countdown by triple j, their iconic track “Sweet Disposition” landed in at No. 11.
The Temper Trap’s “Sungazer” is out now. Pre-order the album here.
