One of Belgium’s biggest alternative-rock bands, Ghinzu have today announced details of their return with their 4th studio album and their first in 17 years, W.O.W.A, out via Play It Again Sam on May 29, 2026. They also deliver the first single to be lifted from the record – Out of Control.
The record has been a work in progress for some time, with Ghinzu having written almost 90 fully fledged ideas for their new album, before whittling this down to the final tracklisting. “We had all these hard drives everywhere,” recalls Ghinzu frontman John Descamps. “We wanted to gather 10 tracks together to really represent all those years of condensed work.”
The results take Ghinzu back to basics, before blasting them into uncharted territories. Their formative influences - the energy and expression of Queen; the raucous grunge noise of Nirvana and The Melvins – remain, alongside their passion for visual art. Name-checking the painters Gerhard Richter and Francis Bacon as points of inspiration, they stepped back from their perfectionist leanings to embrace music at its most raw and powerful.
Epic lead single Out of Control erupts like a missile, testimony to the tattered legacy of 90s alt-rock – music of their adolescent emancipation – and their urgent need to start anew. “The idea was to contextualise a straight-forward rock song into something a little more thought-provoking. But it’s also a pretty simple song, at heart.”
It's music rich in character, and completely distinct. “It has to be something we’ve made with our hands,” John says. “The experts we are – as sound engineers, as creative people – it’s about making our own instrument, something that channels the personality of the musician.”
Listen to Out of Control: ffm.to/ghinzu-ooc
Travelling to Los Angeles studio Hillside Manor, Ghinzu worked alongside the hugely experienced figure of Dave Sardy on this record, a crucial individual who became an additional member of the band. “The studio is kind of a gold mine,” reflects John. “There’s an enormous amount of microphones, amplifiers, keyboards, guitars all around you. You’re sitting in the same room where Oasis and The Rolling Stones recorded. You can feel the history.”
The results speak for themselves. When Other Worlds Await is a terrific record, laced with raw pulsions and engineered tensions. The distillation of a decade’s worth of ideas, it finds Ghinzu revelling in creative maturity. “Time is important. It allows you to open your eyes on the different person you’ve become,” John notes. “We question everything a little less. We’re more grounded and don’t over-think it.”
Sessions took place at a multitude of studios. Ghinzu worked in their native Belgium and across the Atlantic in New York; they secluded themselves in the countryside, and worked at studios overlooking the sea. “Our plan was to drift away, creating ‘evolutive songs’ that could change from one week to another, or simply disappear to maybe reappear. Doubts have less room within such space, as there is nothing to finish. What is left are the survivors of that period, the wild ones who got captured.”
From first to last, these are stories built by older musicians, people with experience and maturity. “It’s about telling very specific stories in a way that is universal,” he says. “There’s an almost confrontational aspect with regards to age. We’re developing an intergenerational feel in bringing these stories out of specific narratives and pushing them into different spaces.”
Alongside the announcement of their new album, Ghinzu have revealed details of their W.O.W.A Spring EU & UK tour. The run will see the band bring their electrifying live show to Paris, Brussels, London, Utrecht, Cologne and Luxembourg.
Tickets go on general sale on Friday 6th February at 10am CET - you can purchase here.