THE THE to Release First New Studio Album in A Quarter Century 'Ensoulment'
The album, their first since 2000, will be released on September 6.
By: Josh Sharpe May. 17, 2024
THE THE, one of the most acclaimed and cherished bands of the last few decades, have announced the forthcoming release of their first album in a quarter century. Ensoulment - a 12-song album - will be released on September 6 on Cinéola / earMUSIC.
Encompassing characteristic topics ranging from love & sex, war & politics, life & death – to the meaning of what it is to be human in the 21st century – Ensoulment was written, demoed and mixed at Studio Cinéola in London, the base of THE THE’s main creative force, Matt Johnson.
The songs were further refined in rehearsals ahead of a six-day session at Real World Studios near Bath, where Matt was joined by long-standing THE THE members James Eller (bass), DC Collard (keyboards), Earl Harvin (drums), and Barrie Cadogan (lead guitar). The album also marks the return of co-producer and engineer Warne Livesey, who previously worked on landmark THE THE albums Infected (1986) and Mind Bomb (1989). Additional performances include Gillian Glover (backing vocals), Terry Edwards (horns), Sonya Cullingford (fiddle) and Danny Cummings (percussion).
Now, THE THE release theiir first single “Cognitive Dissident,” written by Matt Johnson and Barrie Cadogan. Out now across all DSPs it will also be released as one of three strictly limited 7” Vinyl Singles, made available until album release, including an additional previously unreleased B-side on June 7.
Over the years, THE THE’s releases have developed a distinct aesthetic style, which in no small part owes to the artwork of Matt Johnson’s late brother Andrew (AKA artist Andy Dog). Ensoulment proudly features some of Andrew’s previously unpublished works on the cover, in the exquisitely designed 32-page booklet for the vinyl and CD formats, as well as on the covers of all singles.
The album will be available in retail as Ltd. CD Hardcover Mediabook, CD Jewelcase, Black 2LP Gatefold and Ltd. Crystal Clear 2LP Gatefold. Further exclusive formats will be available in the official album store.
In support of Ensoulment THE THE have also announced a world-wide tour with dates kicking off August 28 with many European and UK dates already sold-out. The North American run starts in Atlanta, GA on October 11 and concludes on November 8 at The Shrine in Los Angeles, CA. The band will play at the Beacon Theatere in New York City on October 17. The “Ensouled Tour” will mark the band’s first since their hugely successful “The Comeback Special” world tour in 2018. All dates are listed below and tickets for North American shows are on sale Friday, May 24 at 10am local here.
Having last released a studio album in 2000 (NakedSelf), Johnson’s lengthy absence was partly explained in his 2017 multimedia project, The Inertia Variations, which took inspiration from British poet John Tottenham’s 2005 book of the same name – particularly the idea of “brooding, abstraction and evasion” getting in the way of the creative process – resulting in a feature-length documentary and the Radio Cinéola Trilogy triple album box set.
At the end of The Inertia Variations documentary, Johnson was filmed performing a new song live in his studio; ‘We Can’t Stop What’s Coming’ is an elegy to his elder brother Andrew (AKA artist Andy Dog), who passed away in 2016. “It was not an easy song to write,” he says. “That was the first time I’d sung in many years. I enjoyed it but found it very emotional.”
The experience prompted Johnson to revive THE THE as a live band, leading to The Comeback Special sold out world tour of 2018. Unfortunately, COVID delayed the release of the accompanying live film and album until 2021 – as well as hampered the intended start on the writing and recording of Ensoulment. Instead THE THE released a series of 7” inch singles: ‘We Can’t Stop What’s Coming’ was followed by ‘I WANT 2 B U’ (2020) and ‘$1 ONE VOTE!’ (2023).
Ensoulment contains echoes of THE THE’s multi-faceted musical past, however it is richly representative of the mercurial band’s here and now. Johnson is characteristically unafraid to tackle the emotional complexity inherent in the human condition – intimacy in an age of alienation; democracy in a post-truth age; empire and vassalage; and the inexorable rise of AI – yet the album is equally shot through with hope.
“It’s vital to be hopeful,” Johnson states. “And I hope people get out of the album what we put into it. It was created under very happy circumstances, with a great vibe amongst the band and all the people that worked on it. There was a lot of thought, a lot of work, a lot of love, a lot of laughter!”
THE THE tour dates
8/21 - Cambridge Junction - Cambridge, England SOLD OUT
8/22 - The Waterfront Norwich - Norwich, England SOLD OUT
8/23 - Picturedrome - Holmfirth, England SOLD OUT
8/25 - National Museum Of Ireland - Dublin, Ireland
9/10 - Sentrum Scene - Oslo, Norway
9/11 - Sentrum Scene - Oslo, Norway SOLD OUT
9/13 - Filadelfia - Stockholm, Sweden
9/14 - Store Vega - Copenhagen, Denmark SOLD OUT
9/15 - Store Vega - Copenhagen, Denmark SOLD OUT
9/17 - Huxleys - Berlin, Germany
9/18 - Carlswerk Victoria - Köln, Germany
9/19 - Ancienne Belgique - Brussels, Belgium SOLD OUT
9/21 - De Roma - Antwerp, Belgium SOLD OUT
9/22 - Paradiso - Amsterdam, Netherlands SOLD OUT
9/23 - Paradiso - Amsterdam, Netherlands SOLD OUT
9/25 - Usher Hall - Edinburgh, Scotland SOLD OUT
9/27 - The Civic At The Halls - Wolverhampton, England
9/28 - Alexandra Palace - London, England SOLD OUT
9/30 - O2 Apollo - Manchester, England SOLD OUT
10/1 - O2 Academy Brixton - London, England
10/11 - Tabernacle – Atlanta, GA
10/12 - Durham Performing Arts – Durham, NC
10/14 - The Anthem – Washington, DC
10/15 - The Fillmore – Philadelphia, PA
10/17 - Beacon Theatre – New York, NY
10/19 - Orpheum Theatre – Boston, MA
10/20 - MTELUS – Montreal, QC
10/22 - Massey Hall – Toronto, ON
10/23 - Masonic Cathedral Theatre – Detroit, MI
10/25 - The Salt Shed – Chicago, IL
10/26 - Palace Theatre – St. Paul, MN
10/29 - Mission Ballroom – Denver, CO
10/30 - Eccles Theater – Salt Lake City, UT
11/2 - Paramount Theatre – Seattle, WA
11/3 - Roseland Theater – Portland, OR
11/4 - Orpheum – Vancouver, BC
11/7 - Fox Theater – Oakland, CA
11/8 - Shrine Auditorium – Los Angeles, CA
11/14 - Kiri Te Kanawa Theatre - Auckland, New Zealand SOLD OUT
11/16 - Palais Theatre, Melbourne, Australia SOLD OUT
11/17 - Palais Theatre, Melbourne, Australia
11/18 - Hindley Street Music Hall, Adelaide, Australia
11/21 - Sydney Opera House, Sydney, Australia
11/22 - Sydney Opera House, Sydney, Australia
11/23 - Fortitude Music Hall, Brisbane, Australia SOLD OUT
11/24 - Fortitude Music Hall, Brisbane, Australia
11/27 - Fremantle Arts Centre, Perth, Australia
About THE THE:
THE THE was formed by Matt Johnson in 1979 and the music inhabits a genre of its own: music of long shadows, high hopes, channelled anger, feverish passions and sweetly disturbing poignancy. It is pop and rock, blues and folk, soul and polemic. It spans alienated electronics to twisted cinematic soundtracks, guitar tumbling swing to crimson ballads, rants and prayers to diaries and hymns.
In over four decades, THE THE have released just five studio albums of original songs –Soul Mining (1983), Infected (1986), Mind Bomb (1989), Dusk (1993) and NakedSelf (2000). But always unpredictable, during this time THE THE have also made diversions into cover albums, such as Hanky Panky; film soundtracks including Hyena, Tony, Muscle and Moonbug; art installations; a podcast series, Radio Cinéola; a beautiful and moving 84-minute documentary, The Inertia Variations; and various book publications, including biography Long Shadows, High Hopes: The Life and Times of Matt Johnson & THE THE.
Ensoulment Tracklisting (CD/2LP)
Side A
1. Cognitive Dissident
2. Some Days I Drink My Coffee By The Grave Of William Blake
3. Zen & The Art Of Dating
Side B
4. Kissing The Ring Of POTUS
5. Life After Life
6. I Want To Wake Up With You
Side C
7. Down By The Frozen River
8. Risin’ Above The Need
9. Linoleum Smooth To The
Stockinged Foot
Side D
10. Where Do We Go When We Die?
11. I Hope You Remember
(the things I can’t forget)
12. A Rainy Day In May
Photo credit: Gerald Jenkis
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