As they continue celebrating 20 years as a band, Mayday Parade – the Tallahassee, Florida-formed quintet featuring vocalist Derek Sanders, guitarists Alex Garcia and Brooks Betts, bassist Jeremy Lenzo and drummer Jake Bundrick – have announced Sad, the second installment in their emotionally charged, self-released album trilogy. The new record arrives 3rd October 2025, and today the band offers a preview with the first single “Under My Sweater”.
“It’s difficult to sing about a sweater without invoking Weezer, but that’s part of what I love about this song,” says Sanders. “‘Under My Sweater’ wears its inspirations on its sleeve and feels both a part of old school nostalgic emo as well as something modern and a step forward for Mayday Parade.”
Where Sweet delivered energetic anthems and expansive textures, Sad slows the tempo and deepens the mood. Once again produced by longtime collaborators Zack Odom and Kenneth Mount, part two of the new album leans into atmosphere and introspection while retaining the soaring melodies, sharp hooks, and emotional honesty that have defined the band’s most enduring work.
From the heartbreak of “Promises” to the falsetto-laced balladry of “One Day At A Time” and the wistful nostalgia of “I Miss The 90s,” Sad explores the softer edges of the band’s sound. The release closes with the bold, multi-part suite “I Must Obey The Inscrutable Exhortations Of My Soul,” a dynamic, genre-shifting track that ranks among their most ambitious recordings to date.
Following a career-defining, sold-out anniversary tour that drew over 70,000 fans across North America — and a triumphant main-stage return at the 30th anniversary of Vans Warped Tour, a full-circle moment for a band that got their start selling self-released CDs in those same sweltering parking lots — Sad marks the next chapter in Mayday Parade’s new era of independence and creative freedom.
With over 1.43 billion streams, platinum and gold singles, and a catalog that helped define a generation of emo and alternative music fans, Mayday Parade remains as vital and creatively energized as ever. Catch them on tour this fall with All Time Low as well as at this year’s When We Were Young festival.
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