We haven't heard from These New Puritans since before the pandemic, but the UK art-rock duo is finally back today with the announcement of Crooked Wing. It's their first new album in six years, following 2019's Inside The Rose. Two singles are out now, and one features Caroline Polachek.
“‘Industrial Love Song’ is a duet between two cranes on a building site,” Jack Barnett explains. “Caroline sings the part of one crane, I sing the other; they can’t touch (their movements are controlled by the operator), but when the sun rises they hope that their shadows will cross. I like how the title George came up with misdirects expectations — it’s not that kind of industrial.”
“It’s hard to attach a time period to this song,” George Barnett adds. “It’s progressive music made with instruments that have been around for hundreds of years.”
“As we exit the mechanical age, you realize how much we have in common with our machines, how human they are,” Jack continues. “Suddenly it didn’t feel so absurd to write a love song from their perspective.”
As for "Bells," Jack says, “This song started with a field recording we made of a bell in a small Orthodox Greek church. You can hear it in the song, and the rest of the song grew out of it. That one bell strike set a lot of the album in motion.”
Crooked Wing is produced by Jack alongside Graham Sutton and executive produced by George. Below, hear "Bells" and watch the Harley Weir-directed music video for "Industrial Love Song."
TRACKLIST:
01 "Waiting"
02 "Bells"
03 "A Season In Hell"
04 "Industrial Love Song"
05 "I’m Already Here"
06 "Wild Fields (I Don’t Want To)"
07 "The Old World"
08 "Crooked Wing"
09 "Goodnight"
10 "Return"
Crooked Wing is out 5/23 via Domino. Pre-order it here.
