Mogwai announce new compilation, and team up with Iggy Pop

Mogwai have announced a new 30-year, career-spanning compilation "Happy Tears", heralded by the release of a pulverising brand new song "Underground", featuring the legendary Iggy Pop.

In his book Spaceships Over Glasgow: Mogwai, Mayhem and Misspent Youth, Mogwai’s Stuart Braithwaite writes of how Iggy - solo and with his band The Stooges - is a defining artist in his life: “Hearing the Stooges had been a life-changing moment for me. Their self-titled album was pretty much my bible. It was druggy, dumb and completely primal. I’d never heard anything quite like it and even though that band had pretty much fallen apart by the time I was born, I grew to love the three Stooges albums as much as any music I’d heard. I had a VHS video of Iggy playing live and I watched it over and over. His performance was unlike anything or anyone I’d seen before. The spectacle was great but it was his voice and songs that really captured me.”

Speaking about their collaboration, Iggy says: “I’ve always liked Mogwai. The opening of the track reminded me of the crushing modern loneliness. The sung vocal, which was arranged by Matt Sweeney, felt like it was made for someone who is pissed off and doesn’t mind saying so.”

As with their debut single "Tuner" in 1996, "Happy Tears" is being released via the band’s self-owned and run record label Rock Action Records, also celebrating its 30 year anniversary this year. Alongside the new single, "Happy Tears" features highlights and rarities from across the band’s discography, including a previous digital only single and a special new re-working of "New Paths to Helicon 1", titled "Brand New Paths to Helicon 1", featuring the Budapest Art Orchestra and  orchestrated by Adam Wiltzie (A Winged Victory For The Sullen, Stars Of The Lid). 

"Happy Tears" will be released on 8th January 2027 and available in 2xLP and 4xLP versions, as well as 2xCD and digital download. The special 4xLP edition of the collection features 13 additional tracks, six of which are previously unreleased, alongside two remixes, two live tracks and three rarities.