AMIE LENMAN can announce his brand new album ‘Shuffle’, which will be released on July 5th through Big Scary Monsters. The record is preceded by the new single ‘Popeye’, a one minute short, sharp blast of classic frenetic ‘heavy’ Lenman, which is released today and you can watch the video!
Also, to celebrate the album launch, Lenman will be playing a secret invite-only show at an undisclosed location this weekend….attendees are advised to watch his socials closely from today…..
Following on from his debut solo double album ‘Muscle Memory’ in 2013 and the highly acclaimed ‘Devolver’ album from 2016, ‘Shuffle’ is another huge step forward for ex-Reuben front man JAMIE LENMAN and again will do away with any notion he has settled comfortably into a ‘sound’ or style as a solo artist.
At its very heart, ‘Shuffle’ is a covers (or reinterpretations) album, one where the listener can go on a ‘shuffle’ journey of their own, through all media – music, movies, books, games, cartoons. Every now and then the ‘shuffle’ will throw a curveball and maybe the listener skips it, or maybe they keep listening and it becomes their favourite. Like ‘Devolver’, producer Space (Idles, Black Futures) returns and helps Jamie realise his hugely ambitious artistic vision for ‘Shuffe’, a record LONG in the making. “I’ve always wanted to make a covers record” says JAMIE LENMAN,“some of these versions have been in the works for many years, so this was a real career goal for me. I was originally going to do it straight after ‘Muscle Memory’, but ultimately I felt that I needed to press on with another album of originals to fully establish my sound as a solo artist. I think ‘Devolver’ achieved this, making now exactly the right time to get a bit creative.”
“I feel like the phrase ‘covers album’ has become a bit of a dirty word, which is odd to me – they’re a vital part of our musical landscape. Some of my favourite records are cover albums – Annie Lennox’s Medusa, Johnny Cash’s American, even those early records by the Beatles and The Specials were mostly covers, and still utterly their sound. I want to redefine the concept of a covers album – not just lazy sound-alikes of 80s classics, not just ironic metal versions of pop tunes – there’s no passion or invention in that, it’s just a smug joke. I may have covered a handful of childhood chart hits on this album, but I’ve also covered songs by relatively unknown artists, and I’ve covered songs by artists from my local music scene who I grew up with and admire.”
‘Shuffle’ artwork was all painstakingly created by Jamie as well “The symbols on the album cover are all made up of the same group of graphics, shuffled together to represent each track. Every graphic appears at least twice, in different combinations. It was a real challenge to put the whole thing together.” RE the music, the album is also not limited to reimagined songs – Jamie has covered television themes, film scores, and the music from his favourite video game. It’s not even limited to music – there is a cover of a chapter from his favourite book and a scene from his favourite short film, in his debut acting performance alongside his favourite actor. “For me, this album has been a dream come true – total creative freedom, a chance to push myself into terrifying new territories. There are so many parts of it that I still can’t believe we actually managed to achieve, from singing in ancient languages to acting with one of my heroes and so much more besides. I can’t wait for everyone to hear it.”
‘Shuffle’ track-listings:
1. Tomorrow Never Knows
2. Killer
3. Taxi Driver
4. Popeye
5. You’re The Boss
6. Song Of Seikilos
7. Coda
8. She Bop
9. Adamantium Rage
10. Love Song For A Vampire
11. The Pequod Meets The Delight
12. A Handsome Stranger Called Death
13. Hey Jude
14. The Remembrance
Live wise – Following his recent 2018 support tours with Biffy Clyro, Marmozets and Tonight Alive, as well as appearance at last years Download Festival (UK), Reeperbahn (Germany), Boomtown and ArcTanGent festivals, JAMIE LENMAN will this year be headlining his own stage/mini festival at 2000trees Festival in July as ‘Lenmania II’. He will also be taking it on the road with two ‘Road To Lenmania’ shows in Glasgow (St Lukes, July 5th) and London (The O2 Academy Islington, July 7th) before the festival, featuring 3 bands from the Trees bill (Orchards, False Advertising and Frauds).
ALL confirmed and announced JAMIE LENMAN dates:Sun 21 April – Bad Ponds Festival, Brighton
Sun 05 May – Handmade Festival, Leicester
Thu 11 July – 2000trees Festival ‘Lenmania 2’, Nr Cheltenham
WITH main support TBA, Conjurer, Loathe, Orchards, Frauds and False Advertising
Fri 26 July – Trebur Open Air Festival, Hamburg, Germany
‘Road To Lenmania’ dates, with support from Frauds, Orchards and False Advertising:
Fri 05 July – St. Lukes, Glasgow
Sun 07 July – O2 Islington Academy, London