The Walkmen‘s Hamilton Leithauser has revealed that David Byrne is working on a brand new solo album that will feature him on it.
While opening up about the nine songs that have been the most influential in his life in a feature with The Line Of Best Fit, Leithauser mentioned ‘Heaven’ by Talking Heads as one of the tracks and shared that he kept going back to the legendary NYC band’s third album ‘Fear Of Music’ while working on his forthcoming solo album ‘This Side of the Island’.
“I think ‘Fear of Music’ is their best record. The words to that song (‘Heaven’) are amazing. He’s got a pretty voice, but then he’s not afraid to sort of ugly it up. And David Byrne’s funny,” Leithauser told the outlet.
He also revealed what Byrne has been up to, sharing that he will be singing on the iconic musician’s upcoming solo album. “I’m going to sing on it, and so I’ve got to know him a little bit and he’s really cool,” he said.
He continued: “He didn’t disappoint, meeting him was amazing. He’s very polite and one of those guys whose music I’ve loved for 30 years or whatever… When I got the first message from him, I thought I was being punked.”
Byrne’s last solo album was 2018’s ‘American Utopia’. In support of the album, the musician went on a tour that went on from March until November 2018. The extensive run of dates saw Byrne perform an elaborate show which featured an empty stage surrounded by metal chains and a cast of twelve musicians.
He and the musicians all wore grey suits and bare feet. The show also used cutting-edge technology in wireless audio, MIDI, lighting and real-time tracking to allow Byrne to be free of any cables in order for him to move freely and partake in complex choreography. The show was also turned into a cinematic marvel courtesy of Spike Lee.
“As the show was conceptually coming together, I realised that once we had a completely empty stage the rulebook has now been thrown out,” Byrne told NME as part of The Big Read back in 2020. “Now we can go anywhere and do anything. This is completely liberating. It means that people like drummers, for example, who are usually relegated to the back shadows, can now come to the front – all those kinds of things – which changes the whole dynamic.”
Back in 2023, Talking Heads celebrated 40 years of their concert film by sharing a re-release via A24. This was followed by a tribute album that arrived in May of last year, and saw artists like The National, Miley Cyrus, Paramore and more deliver their own covers of the band’s most famous tracks.
In other news, Leithauser’s solo album ‘This Side of the Island’ is set for release on March 7 via Glassnote – you can pre-order or pre-save your copy here.
The LP was co-produced by Leithauser and his wife Anna Stumpf, with co-production work from The National‘s Aaron Dessner on seven of its nine tracks.
Speaking of the album, Leithauser shared: “I cannot wait for you to hear the whole thing. I worked on it for eight years… yes, 8. Barack Obama was president when I recorded the piano for the first song 
. I mostly wrote and recorded it at my home studio, and the entire record is produced by myself and my wife Anna, while seven songs are also produced by my friend, the amazing @aarondessner. To be honest, after I worked with Aaron I remixed the other two with his input in mind, so his fingerprints are really on the whole thing!”
Leithauser has also confirmed that he will continue his annual residency at New York’s Cafe Carlyle for his seventh consecutive year in March – tickets to that are on sale now.
Leithauser, whose previous solo album ‘The Loves Of Your Life’ arrived in 2020, is also set to play a run of intimate gigs in early 2025 – including a performance at EartH in London. Other dates are scheduled for Los Angeles, Toronto and Chicago. Tickets are on sale now. You’ll be able to buy yours here (London) and here (US).
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