John Coffey wrote their new single for the man who threw the beer

John Coffey have released 'Not Alone', the title track of their new album, and dedicated it to Niels van den Ham.

The moment that brought the two together has been watched seven and a half million times. At Pinkpop on 13 June 2015, during 'Dirt & Stones', John Coffey singer David Achter de Molen was being carried over the crowd when a plastic cup of beer came flying towards him. He caught it out of the air and drank it. The clip, filmed by 3voor12, went around the world. The man who threw it was Niels van den Ham, and that is how the band came to know him.

Van den Ham was a father of three. He died by suicide two years ago.

"Two years ago, when we had just started writing what would become our new album, we learned that Niels van den Ham had taken his own life," the band wrote this week. "After his death, people close to Niels reached out to us. They told us about the struggles he had been carrying, much of which seemed to remain hidden behind his big smile. We kept thinking about that."

What they kept thinking about, they wrote, was "how heavy life can become when you're carrying something alone. How exhausting it can be to fight the same battle inside your own head, over and over again. How scary it can feel when you start believing that this is forever. That nothing will change. That you are the only one who feels this way."

The song came out of that. "We wrote 'Not Alone' as a reminder that thoughts are not permanent. That speaking up can matter. To a friend. To family. To a stranger. To anyone. Because connection matters."

Then they tie it to the rooms they play in, and this is the part of the statement worth reading twice:

"It's why the loud-music scene has always meant so much to us. You step into a room full of strangers. Then someone falls, and the people around them pick them up. Someone jumps from a stage, trusting dozens of hands to catch them. Bodies crash into each other, people scream the same words, and for a moment, a room full of strangers carries each other. That feeling is real."

"This song is for Niels and for everyone carrying weight on their shoulders: You're not alone."

The album and the shows

Not Alone is out on 9 October via Long Branch Records. 'Hang the choir', 'Push Push Push' and 'I don't care, I won't give up on you' are also on it.

The three Utrecht shows in October, at ACU, De Helling and dB's, are sold out. After that the band play La Zone in Liège on 13 November, De Casino in Sint-Niklaas on 14 November, Luxor in Köln on 25 November and Hole 44 in Berlin on 27 November, then Burgerweeshuis in Deventer on 10 December, Vera in Groningen on the 11th, Rotown in Rotterdam on the 17th and Dynamo in Eindhoven on the 18th.

If you are struggling, you can talk to someone. In the Netherlands, 113 Zelfmoordpreventie is free and available 24/7 on 113 or 0800-0113, and by chat at 113.nl. Elsewhere, your local crisis line will be listed online.