Alt-folk / electronica act The Sei return with ‘Whale Song‘, the first single from their forthcoming EP ‘We Must Be Still Alive?‘ Out April 23rd 2026, via Paragon Records. The release marks the beginning of a new chapter for the group, continuing their steady international profile rise across music, film, and multidisciplinary arts spaces.
‘Whale Song‘— and the wider EP — emerged from an extended period of stream-of-consciousness writing.
“Each line is a different conversation with a different presence, in a different time and a different place — like a collage of time-traveling signals; the future, the past, the passed on, the ancestral, the animal and plant kingdoms. There’s no connection from line to line, other than their existence in the same song.” – Stace Gill / The Sei
The track was originally almost titled ‘We Must Be Still Alive?‘ — a question Gill sang to a close friend who had recently passed away, to herself, and now to all of us. This question ultimately became the title of the EP.
Gill describes a deep challenge to her belief in humanity, and a conscious resistance to judgement or conclusion within the work:
“My belief in our species has been deeply challenged, and I resist judgement or conclusion, because ‘who thinks they see what God is doing?’ (Kurt Vonnegut, Cat’s Cradle). These songs, and the time and process that goes into them, keep me open. They are cocoons for company as I come to terms with our reality — the brutal and the stunning.”
This music draws from multiple directions “There’s the future, the out-of-bodies, the whales, a girl murdered by her husband for writing poetry. Migration. Mountains. Pure love, endless nights. So many discoveries and processes were lived as this EP came to life” – Gill
The EP has been in conscious development for nearly six years. During that time, The Sei chose to sit with the work rather than rush it into the world, holding onto what Gill describes as “the gift of process and attention,” releasing music only when the moment felt aligned.
“Who knows when it really began or where it came from — we can only remember and sense so much so far. We took our time to release anything from the vast body of work we created, only asking for your attention when we were ready to stand behind what we made. So here it is: We Must Be Still Alive?”
The Sei – ‘We Must Be Still Alive?‘ – out April 23rd via Paragon Music Group
Tracklist:
Whale Song
Plasma
The Swallows
The Peace Process | Sandstorm/Lifeforms
Performance Dates – The Peace Process by Flora Fauna Project + The SEI
29 April – 2 May — Project Arts Centre, Dublin, Ireland
7–8 May — SpringMoves Dance Festival, Wexford Arts Centre, Wexford, Ireland
May 28-31 — C:NEN, Östersund, Sweden
24 July – 16 August — Vaasa City Art Hall and Gallery, Vaasa, Finland