Panic Shack don’t ease into anything. The Cardiff quintet return with “grin & bear it,” their first new music since their self-titled debut album, and they’re bringing it straight into the biggest stretch of their career so far.
Recorded with producer Ross Orton, whose credits include Arctic Monkeys, Amyl and the Sniffers, and Yard Act, “grin & bear it” is a blazing, beefy punk barnstormer built around lyrics vocalist Sarah Harvey scribbled on a scrap of paper during a long, lonely nightshift in 2023. The track almost made the debut album but wasn’t ready. Now it is, and it sounds massive.
“It’s a song we’ve felt really passionate about getting right, but the music was never fully hitting,” the band explains. “We reworked it from the start of the year in any spare time we had around working our jobs and gigging. We really clicked with Ross in the studio and are super proud of what the track has become.”
The accompanying video was shot entirely by the band during their recent German headline tour. Every graffitied wall, green room, and monument got pressed into service. It captures exactly the kind of chaotic, close-knit energy that has made Panic Shack one of the most talked-about punk acts to come out of the UK in years.
That debut album arrived in July 2025 and landed with real force. It entered the Official UK Albums Chart at #32, hit #1 on the Official Downloads Chart, #1 on the Rock and Metal Albums Chart, #2 on the Official Independent Albums Chart, and #4 on the Official Vinyl Albums Chart. Singles “Gok Wan,” “Girl Band Starter Pack,” and “Thelma & Louise” all earned BBC 6 Music playlist support, and the band made their UK national TV debut on Later With Jools Holland in November 2025.
The Guardian called them “a fizzy, riffy, irreverently hilarious bundle of buzzsaw guitars, vim and vinegar.” NME declared them “a brilliant new punk force and a word-of-mouth sensation.” Kerrang said their debut was “an absolute riot of sound and colour.” The press consensus is consistent, and the live shows back every word of it.
Now comes North America. Their debut headline tour kicks off June 9 in Washington, DC, running through June 29 in Los Angeles across 15 dates. They return in September opening for The Sex Pistols across the US and Canada, and also play CBGB Festival in New York. European summer highlights include opening for Super Furry Animals in Llangollen, Green Man Festival, Latitude, and further dates in Portugal, Switzerland, Belgium, and the Netherlands.
“We’re really excited to play ‘grin & bear it’ live this summer,” the band says. “Hopefully it’ll give people a release, where they can let loose with us and maybe even let out a big fat scream.”
Panic Shack Live 2026:
May 22 — Derby, UK — Bearded Theory Festival
May 23 — North Shields, UK — A Stone’s Throw Festival
May 28 — Brussels, BE — Les Nuits Botanique
May 29 — Hellendoorn, NL — Dauwpop Festival
Jun 9 — Washington, DC — The Atlantis
Jun 10 — Somerville, MA — The Rockwell
Jun 12 — Philadelphia, PA — PhilaMOCA
Jun 13 — New York, NY — Mercury Lounge
Jun 14 — New Kensington, PA — Preserving Underground
Jun 16 — Toronto, ON — Hard Luck Bar
Jun 18 — Chicago, IL — Cobra Lounge
Jun 19 — Milwaukee, WI — Summerfest
Jun 21 — Denver, CO — Hi-Dive
Jun 24 — Portland, OR — Polaris Hall
Jun 25 — Vancouver, BC — The Cobalt
Jun 26 — Seattle, WA — Baba Yaga
Jun 28 — San Francisco, CA — Rickshaw Stop
Jun 29 — Los Angeles, CA — Zebulon
Jul 2 — Llangollen, UK — Live at Llangollen (w/ Super Furry Animals)
Jul 5 — Ewijk, NL — Down The Rabbit Hole Festival
Jul 11 — Halifax, UK — Piece Hall (w/ Sex Pistols)
Jul 26 — Southwold, UK — Latitude Festival
Aug 1 — Cardiff, UK — Cardiff Castle (w/ Sex Pistols)
Aug 15-16 — Winchester, UK — Boomtown Festival
Aug 23 — Crickhowell, UK — Green Man Festival
Aug 28 — La Tour-de-Peilz, CH — Nox Orae Festival
Aug 30 — Lisbon, PT — Meo Kalorama Festival
Sept 11 — Dallas, TX — Longhorn Ballroom (w/ Sex Pistols)
Sept 12 — Austin, TX — Emo’s (w/ Sex Pistols)
Sept 13 — Houston, TX — House of Blues Houston (w/ Sex Pistols)
Sept 15 — Nashville, TN — Marathon Music Works (w/ Sex Pistols)
Sept 17 — Kansas City, MO — Uptown Theater (w/ Sex Pistols)
Sept 20 — Ottawa, ON — CityFolk Festival
Sept 21 — Toronto, ON — HISTORY (w/ Sex Pistols)
Sept 22 — Montréal, QC — L’Olympia (w/ Sex Pistols)
Sept 24 — Quebec City, QC — L’Anti (w/ Sex Pistols)
Sept 25 — Northampton, MA — Iron Horse Music Hall (w/ Sex Pistols)
Sept 26 — New York, NY — CBGB Festival