The Lumineers' Jeremiah Fraites Releases 'Extra Lives' From 'Piano Piano 2' LP

The Lumineers' co-founder, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Jeremiah Fraites shared his new single “Extra Lives.” 

The track is the latest to release off his new solo album Piano Piano 2, out worldwide on March 29th through Dualtone Records/Mercury KX. Created while on a massive world tour with The Lumineers, “Extra Lives” recalls the need for recharging, feeling healthy, and striving for a new beginning in order to become better.  

“Life can be weird and unpredictable,” stated Fraites. “You can never be ready for what's gonna happen next - sometimes it's beautiful and sometimes it's difficult. Recently it has been a very difficult one for me. Another piece of my heart is gone: I lost my dear dad Joel earlier this week. This song has sort of taken on a dark ironic twist of fate for me - an ‘extra life' is a video game term that refers to increasing a player's number of lives.

I wish I had that power to bestow upon my dad but I don't, the only thing I have is the power to keep in mind and my heart the great memory of him. My dad gave my mother, my brother and I all extra lives through years of his hard work and paying his dues to provide and put food on the table. He taught me what it meant to work hard to achieve my dreams and stay humble - I'm a proud and grateful son. I Love you dad, this song is for you.”  

“Extra Lives” follows the release of the lead single “No Surprises,” a cover of Radiohead's classic song featuring guest vocals by Gregory Alan Isakov and strings from Macedonian FAME'S Studio Orchestra.  

Fraites charts new territory with Piano Piano 2. It's not a companion piece to his 2021 debut Piano Piano as much as an outright evolution. If his debut was sparse and minimalist, then Piano Piano 2 is expansive and adventurous, pairing his piano with layers of percussion, acoustic guitar, strings, spoken-word snippets, and bubbling synths. The result is a cinematic record stacked high with mood and melody, unfolding like the soundtrack to a film that doesn't actually exist.  

Where Piano Piano was recorded at home in his living room, Fraites began capturing Piano Piano 2's mix of ambiance and atmosphere at various studios across the world while The Lumineers toured the globe. String arrangements were tracked in Macedonia while other instruments were recorded in Rio de Janeiro, Boston, Denver, and the Catskill Mountains. While Fraites primarily used his eccentric upright piano (nicknamed “Firewood”) for his debut, seven different upright pianos were used on Piano Piano 2, with each one lending its own unique tone and timbre heard throughout the album.  

Piano Piano 2 is an album that demands to be heard, felt, and actively experienced, with songs that soothe one moment and stun the next. Listen closely and you won't just hear Fraites' twinkling ivories — you'll also hear footage of his children at play, audio from a phone call with his wife, and even dialogue lifted from a late-1980s home movie. Those clips are tucked into the far corners of Piano Piano 2 like mementos of the man who made the album, and they add a human touch to a record that's often otherworldly.

For an artist who's never been afraid to scale new peaks, Piano Piano 2 finds Jeremiah Fraites climbing skyward.   Known for a propulsive, roots-rock sound that has topped charts and summoned crowds to sing along at arenas around the world, Fraites revealed an alternate side of his musical personality when he unveiled Piano Piano. The revelatory effort featured a gorgeous collection of intimate, piano instrumental songs that he had been working on for the better part of a decade.

It debuted at #1 on Billboard's Classical Crossover Albums Chart and earned critical praise from NPR's Weekend Edition, American Songwriter, World Cafe, Earmilk, Associated Press, and led to a performance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. The album was also nominated for a Libera Award in the category of Best Classical Record in 2022.

The following year, Fraites partnered with ambient artist Taylor Deupree for Northern (Redux), a complete reimagining of his acclaimed 2006 album featuring new piano contributions written and recorded by Fraites along with renewed versions of the original tracks composed by Deupree.

Photo Credit: Rachel Deeb

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