Mark Lanegan has announced that his new album, Straight Songs Of Sorrow – a swift follow-up to last year’s Somebody’s Knocking – will be released by Heavenly on May 8.
The album features guest appearances from Greg Dulli, Warren Ellis, John Paul Jones and Ed Harcourt. Listen to lead track “Skeleton Key” below:
Straight Songs Of Sorrow was inspired by Lanegan’s unsparing new memoir Sing Backwards And Weep, to be published by White Rabbit on April 30.
“Writing the book, I didn’t get catharsis,” says Lanegan. “All I got was a Pandora’s box full of pain and misery. I went way in, and remembered shit I’d put away 20 years ago. But I started writing these songs the minute I was done, and I realised there was a depth of emotion because they were all linked to memories from this book. It was a relief to suddenly go back to music. Then I realised that was the gift of the book: these songs. I’m really proud of this record.”
As well as the musicians mentioned above, Straight Songs Of Sorrow also features Portishead’s Adrian Utley, Simon Bonney of Crime & The City Solution and Mark’s wife Shelley Brien, who co-writes two songs as well as duetting on the ballad “This Game Of Love”. “Let’s put it this way,” says Lanegan. “Every girlfriend I’ve ever had, for any amount of time, left me. All the good ones left me! Until my current wife. It was great to sing that with Shelley, it really shows she’s a great singer. And it has a depth of emotion that I’m not used to. This is a more honest record than I’ve probably ever made.”
Pre-order Straight Songs Of Sorrow here, and check out Mark Lanegan’s UK tourdates below:
Tuesday 12th May – Brighton – Concorde 2
Wednesday 13th May – Cardiff – Tramshed
Thursday 14th May – Leeds – Brudenell Social Club
Friday 15th May – Glasgow – Garage
Sunday 17th May – Liverpool – Invisible Wind Factory
Monday 18th May – Norwich – Waterfront
Tuesday 19th May – Oxford – O2 Academy