The New Pornographers talk new album ‘Continue As A Guest’ and “vocals-obsessed” single ‘Angelcover’ 

The New Pornographers have shared punchy new monitor ‘Angelcover’ and spoken to NME about their upcoming ninth album, ‘Proceed As A Visitor’. Test it out beneath together with our interview with frontman Carl Newman.

‘Angelcover’ marks the second style the brand new album – their first for Merge Data – and follows on from January’s lead single ‘Actually Actually Gentle’.

Talking to NME, the band’s chief Newman mentioned the track straight addresses his rising curiosity within the capabilities of his voice that defines the album as a complete.

“The refrain is: ‘Melody, melody / Ain’t acquired nothing on supply’,” he mentioned. “I wrote that as a result of I used to be serious about the way in which folks take heed to music. Have you ever ever listened to music and thought, ‘That is the worst fucking track, however it’s sung so superbly’? I believe there’s quite a lot of music on the market that’s simply extremely polished turds, no track, however so superbly produced and so superbly sung that individuals simply don’t care. In order that track is somewhat bit meta, singing concerning the course of as I used to be doing it.

He continued: “I used to be obsessive about the vocals on this document, I wished to sing otherwise. I believe that whenever you’ve been taking part in music a very long time, you’re all the time looking for that steadiness the place it sounds such as you however you’re not repeating your self.”

Newman took the newfound time afforded by the coronavirus lockdown to show himself residence manufacturing. The actual fact he was studying as he went alongside additionally helped preserve issues recent as The New Pornographers enter their twenty fifth 12 months as a band, as he defined.

“I believe everyone who’s been doing music for a very long time is attempting to determine a brand new strategy to strategy it,” he mentioned. “I bear in mind there was an album the place The Walkmen switched devices simply to vary issues up.

“On this case, me turning into the producer/engineer was thrilling, I used to be studying issues I ought to have already got recognized. Additionally, for no matter motive I discovered it altering the way in which I used to be writing songs. Lyrically I believe I’ve all the time written bizarre, outsider lyrics like David Byrne or Eno or somebody like that. I used to be by no means very involved with narratives, I by no means wished to be Bruce Springsteen, however I began considering, ‘Possibly it might be enjoyable to try to write songs that make sense!’”

For the album’s lead single ‘Actually Actually Gentle’, in the meantime, Newman revisited an unused recording with The New Pornographers’ former member Dan Bejar, aka Destroyer. “It’s the refrain from a track we didn’t use on [2014 album] ‘Invoice Bruisers’. I assumed, ‘I’m going to take this refrain and write a complete new track round it. I’d been listening to that track ‘I’m The Man’ by Aloe Blacc the place he interpolates Elton John’s ‘Your Track’, and so I assumed ‘I’m going to interpolate a Dan track that nobody else has ever heard!’”

Newman added: “Talking of attempting to determine methods to maintain doing issues which can be new, it was a enjoyable problem attempting to make all of it match collectively, it took fairly some time. I wished it to sound prefer it was all written by the identical individual, although it’s verse by Newman, refrain by Bejar. It was fairly excessive idea.”

The document additionally contains a collaboration with Speedy Ortiz frontwoman Sadie Dupuis, ‘Firework In The Falling Snow’, which additionally took an unconventional type.

“It’s humorous, I’ve nonetheless by no means met her!” Newman mentioned. “I’m a fan, I had the music, so I simply cold-called her and mentioned ‘Hey, would you be prepared to write down some lyrics?’ Then inside a few days she despatched me again a track together with her singing alongside. She had all these lyrics that I assumed have been actually nice, particularly the road ‘Firework In The Falling Snow’. I began chopping bits out, chopping up her lyrics and including my very own, however I felt like I wanted any individual to return in and present me what the centre of the track was.

“Collaboration could be robust. I’ve tried doing it with varied people who find themselves extremely proficient, and typically it’s not what you need. It’s not a New Pornographers track.”

His most uncommon collaboration, he recalled, was for an deserted Broadway musical undertaking primarily based on the Archie Comics universe. “That’s the bizarre lifetime of a musician. Bizarre issues dangle in entrance of you after which they only go away.”

The title of the brand new album, ‘Proceed As A Visitor’, displays a way of alienation that Newman sources from various totally different locations. “There’s quite a lot of ranges to it,” he mentioned. “Everyone who’s spent a while shopping for one thing on-line sees that phrase, ‘Would you prefer to proceed as a visitor’? and I’m continually clicking on it like ‘Sure, sure, I’ll proceed as a visitor!’ The world was such an unpleasant place [when the album was being made]. Trump was president, the far proper was taking on. I felt like I used to be attempting to determine a strategy to be on the planet, however not of the world.

“It brings you again to the rationale you turned an artist or a musician too. Since you felt like an outsider, exterior of the mainstream, and the way you carry that with you thru life. I hope, after I say ‘I believe I wish to proceed as a visitor’, that it doesn’t come off as unfavourable. Typically I learn the lyrics of [the title track] and I fear it reads like a suicide word!”

Whereas Newman’s enthusiasm for his craft has not dimmed since he started his profession with different rock outfit Superconductor within the early ’90s, he admitted that “I’m sort of jaded by quite a lot of the music enterprise”.

“I hate promoting myself, I used to be by no means the child who wished to stand up on stage and carry out for folks, I used to be all the time the child who beloved music,” he mentioned. “I believe there’s all the time that aspect that can stay pure to me. That’s why you encompass your self with likeminded folks.”

The band’s latest signing to Merge displays this need. “They strategy music from a pure and honourable place,” mentioned Newman. “I’ve recognized these folks for a very long time as a result of Destroyer has been on the label for 20 years. They’ve had bands like Arcade Hearth so that they’ve had information that went to Quantity One, however they’re additionally OK with placing out information that solely promote 1,000 copies.

“To them, that may coexist. That’s why I used to be so pleased to signal with Merge, as a result of they appear like people who find themselves simply in it for the love of it, and so they’re in it for all times. Hopefully it may be an extended relationship.”

Newman revealed that The New Pornographers are already making good progress on the follow-up to ‘Proceed As A Visitor’. “I really feel a sure satisfaction in our stubbornness,” he added. “We don’t give a fuck, we’re staying. You don’t like this one, nicely we’re gonna make one other one, and we’re gonna preserve doing this till we die. It’s what we do!”

‘Proceed As A Visitor’ will likely be launched on March 31. Try the complete tracklist beneath.

1. ‘Actually Actually Gentle’
2. ‘Pontious Pilate’s House Films’
3. ‘Cat And Mouse With The Gentle’
4. ‘Final And Stunning’
5. ‘Proceed As A Visitor’
6. ‘Bottle Episodes’
7. ‘Marie And The Undersea’
8. ‘Angelcover’
9. ‘Firework In The Falling Snow’
10. ‘Want Computerized Suite’