Their own modifier may no longer prove so accurate, but for the first time in 28 years (!), New Radicals are back with new music. “One Night Only (Break Loose Break Free!)” serves as the title track for a new Monica Barbaro and Callum Turner romcom, One Night Only, that’s effectively like The Purge — but only with premarital sex.
“One Night Only” isn’t all that far removed from the core New Radicals sound, which makes sense given both the timeline of the single’s release and the band’s general inactivity. That said, ’90s-flavored, piano-forward power pop will never go out of style, and we’re happy to wait another 28 years (maybe?) if New Radicals can keep scratching that same itch. Check out the song below.
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The track is demonstrably the first New Radicals tune since their 1998 smash album, Maybe You’ve Been Brainwashed Too. In 2024, they released a new version of “Lost Stars,” which band masterminds Gregg Alexander and Danielle Brisebois originally co-wrote and produced for Adam Levine as part of their soundtrack to the 2014 film Begin Again, starring Keira Knightley and Mark Ruffalo.
Alexander effectively bailed on New Radicals following their 1999 tour with Goo Goo Dolls, offering almost zero interviews or performances in the last three-ish decades after souring on life as a rock star. However, he’s nonetheless stayed quite busy as a songwriter on hits like Santana’s “The Game of Love” featuring Michelle Branch and Sophie Ellis-Bextor’s “Murder on the Dancefloor.”
The New Radicals reunited in 2021 to perform at President Joe Biden’s virtual inauguration parade. More recently, the duo released their own version of “Murder on the Dancefloor” in 2024, and just last month, they teamed up with Michelle Branch for a fun little remake of “The Game of Love.”
In addition to securing a piece of New Radicals history, One Night Only also features King Princess and Este Haim, both of whom contributed songs to the film. King Princess covered John Paul Young’s 1977 hit “Love Is in the Air,” and HAIM reunited with collaborator Christopher Stracey (Suncoast) for the score. Check out that cover and a medley — titled “One Haim Only Plus a Stray (Score Suite)” — following New Radicals’ contribution.
One Night Only also features Maya Hawke, Julia Fox, Molly Ringwald, Ben Marshall, and LeVar Burton, among others. In the film, Callum’s Owen and Barbaro’s Allie join forces to find each other a one-night stand in a world where premarital sex is illegal for all but 12 hours once every calendar year. It hits theaters on August 7th.
For more, read Liz Shannon Miller’s review of One Night Only.
