With Buzzin' Fly on hiatus, I am excited to announce the launch of my new imprint and production company, Unmade Road. The first project will be my new solo album, 'Hendra', out this spring. We are also planning to shoot live concert footage, commission videos and make a short documentary on the making of the album. More news soon.
News — In Full
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New album ready
I am crackling with pride and very excited to announce that my new solo album is ready. With time of the essence we squeezed in a session to master the album at Abbey Road Studios just after new year when most of you were probably still recovering from New Year's Eve! Once again, we used the brilliant Miles Showell to add the final sweetening, and after a couple of last-minute tweaks we have signed off on it all. I'll be working on artwork this week with long-time collaborator John Gilsenan at iwantdesign and hoping to release mid-Spring. The exact date and more info about who is releasing it and where will be announced soon.
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The songs of Molly Drake
Journalist and friend Pete Paphides has made a half-hour documentary for BBC Radio 4 about the mother of acclaimed folk singer, Nick Drake. Molly Drake wrote her own songs which until recently were unknown to the general public. Alongside Nick's sister, actress Gabriella Drake, and producer Joe Boyd, Tracey Thorn takes part in the programme; she talks about Molly's songwriting and sings two of her songs and I accompany her on electric piano and guitar. You can listen again for seven days here.
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Live: 6 Music session
Last night I went down to the BBC 6Music studios in central London to record a live session and interview with Gideon Coe. Premiering three of my new songs, and accompanied by my current collaborator and guitarist, Bernard Butler, I chatted about my current work, the upcoming album, picked a few records and generally had a great time.
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Some thoughts
Work began on my new solo album - my first for thirty years - on September 10. I am recording eleven new songs and if anything the musical approach is a return to the folk-rock and electronic influences of my growing up. When Neil Young and Brian Eno were new discoveries. When I didn't know the names of any genres. Before I met Tracey. Before Everything But The Girl. I've asked Ewan Pearson to produce it for me, and I've put together a great band: Bernard Butler is playing lead guitar; the rhythm section is made up of Leo Taylor (Hot Chip, The Invisible) on drums; and Steve Pearce on bass, whom I have played with for twenty-five years; long-time friend and percussionist Martin Ditcham is also involved. Meanwhile Ewan is rummaging around in his vintage synth collection for lovely atmospherics. The lyrics are very personal, many of them triggered by all the research and thinking I did around the time of writing my new book ('Romany and Tom') due out in February, and then by the unexpected death of my half-sister last year. But I hope they are muscular and true too. A couple of the others were begun as spoken word pieces for my abandoned 'Outspoken' project, and have been remoulded into songs. We laid down all the backing tracks as a live band in the first few days, and since then I have been adding vocals and extra touches. I think my voice has a new strength. Before the album, I went down into my basement and wrote and sang to myself for six months, almost every night, to try and be good, to try and impress myself. I hope people hear the results. We are working in short bursts to fit around everyone's other commitments, and there is still some work to be done, but I want to have it all finished and ready for a late Spring 2014 release. I think we are making something good. It is people in a room together giving of their best in a communal effort. Feels real. And the best we can do. You can come and hear me and Bernard play the songs in their raw form in November around the UK if you like. Picture of me singing in Hoxton recently by Edward Bishop.
