The Pretenders have shared the first single to be taken from their upcoming album, Relentless — you can hear “Let The Sun Come In” below.
The upcoming release will mark the band’s 12th full-length LP, and follows on from 2020’s Hate For Sale. Although the band teased the release earlier this year, it has today (May 11) been confirmed that it will arrive on September 1.
“I liked the definition: ‘showing no abatement of intensity,’” said Chrissie Hynde of the meaning behind the title. “It’s the life of the artist. You never retire. You become relentless.”
The 12-track album marks the second time that The Pretenders have written an album as a collaboration between Hynde and the band’s guitarist James Walbourne, as well as the first to be released via Warner Brothers – Parlophone’s parent record label – since 1999.
“We had developed this method of working remotely and it seemed like we just kept on doing it for this album. This is something that we’ve honed down to an art in the last few years,” Hynde continued, explaining the songwriting process for the LP. “[Walbourne] always comes up with something I wouldn’t have thought of myself and I love surprises.”
One of these surprises on ‘Relentless’ will come in the form of a long-awaited collaboration between the band and Jonny Greenwood — appearing as the album’s closing track, “I Think About You Daily”. You can read the full tracklist below. Pre-order Relentless by clicking here.
The Relentless tracklist is:
Losing My Sense Of Taste
A Love
Domestic Silence
The Copa
Promise Of Love
Merry Widow
Let The Sun Come In
Look Away
Your House Is On Fire
Just Let It Go
Vainglorious
I Think About You Daily
The band are about to start a sold-out tour at some of the UK and Ireland’s most intimate venues. On June 30, The Pretenders are set to join Guns N’ Roses as special guests at London’s BST Hyde Park, followed by a number of outdoor shows in Spain, Germany, Switzerland, Italy and the Netherlands. They will also be making appearances at festivals including Midnight Sun, Bearded Theory, Black Deer and Kite.