Black Midi impressed a lot of folks with their 2019 album Schlagenheim and now they’re ready to return with more. Today, the UK experimental group announced Cavalcade, a new album that’s set for release on May 28. They’ve also shared a new song, the erratic and aggressive “John L.”
Morgan Simpson described writing the album, which was largely written by individual band members at home, “The experience this time round was completely the flipside to Schlagenheim. A lot of the material was really fresh but that was something that played into our hands and we relished it.” Geordie Greep added of working with John “Spud” Murphy on the album:
“It worked really well with John. We wanted a natural, open sound combined with fourth wall breaks – for lack of a better expression. Do you know on record when you can hear the tape screeching, the things that make you aware that you’re listening to a recording? [With a lot of records,] it feels like either you’re listening to the ECM, high-fidelity, 25 mic amazing sound or you have the lo-fi album full of crazy effects. And I thought, ‘Why not have an album where you combine the two?’ That was one of the main ideas going into it and John was very keen on that idea.”
Watch the “John L” video above and find the Cavalcade art and tracklist below.
1. “John L”
2. “Marlene Dietrich”
3. “Chondromalacia Patella”
4. “Slow”
5. “Diamond Stuff”
6. “Dethroned”
7. “Hogwash And Balderdash”
8. “Ascending Forth”
Cavalcade is out 5/28 via Rough Trade. Pre-order it here.