Villagers unveil new song ‘Fool’ from upcoming album + London shows sold out
Villagers unveil video for new song ‘Fool’ – watch below
Fourth album The Art Of Pretending To Swim out September 21st
Upcoming Europe & UK tour – London’s Hackney Arts Centre and Rough Trade East both sold out
Photo credit: Rich Gilligan
Today, Villagers are pleased to unveil new single ‘Fool’, taken from the forthcoming fourth album The Art Of Pretending To Swim, due for release on September 21st via Domino.
‘Fool’ is a romantic battle-cry from the centre of a technological dystopia. The video, directed by Bob Gallagher takes the lyrics as a starting point for the narrative: “So here is my bleeding heart… Will you take the pain away?”
Gallagher explains further: “The video is a surreal take on a marriage proposal, which is the ultimate gambit in love. The scenario pushes how much Conor’s character is willing to overlook his partner’s shortcomings, and convince himself that everything is fine. You could call it foolishness but you could also consider it a kind of optimism, striving to see the best in a situation.”
Watch the video for ‘Fool’ here.
Following the exquisitely sparse, intimate aura of 2015’s Darling Arithmetic, Conor O’Brien’s new record reconnects with the multi-faceted approach of Villagers’ 2010 album debut Becoming A Jackal and 2013’s {Awayland} while adding a new-found soulfulness, rhythmic nous and dazzling panoply of sonic detail, both analogue and digital, creating feverish moods while writing effortlessly accessible tunes. Balanced with subtle aspects and lyrical themes that embrace existential fears and hopes in this desperate, technologically-centred dystopian age, The Art Of Pretending To Swim is the most brilliantly realised Villagers album to date.
The album was written, produced, mixed and primarily performed by Conor O’Brien in his Dublin studio.
Watch the previously shared video for ‘A Trick Of The Light’ here, also directed by Bob Gallagher.
O’Brien has a string of accolades under his belt including two Ivor Novello Awards (the most recent being 2016’s Album Award for Darling Arithmetic), two Mercury Music Prize nominations and is also a previous winner of Ireland’s Choice Music Prize.
Additionally, Villagers’ music recently featured in the high profile HBO drama ‘Big Little Lies’, Conor has collaborated with the composer Nico Muhly (that track featuring in the forthcoming Paulo Sorrentino Berlusconi biopic ‘Loro 2’) and Villagers’ Spotify session of ‘Nothing Arrived’ has hit over 100 million streams.
Villagers live dates
Tues 25th September – Rough Trade East, London **SOLD OUT**
Wed 17th Oct – Rescue Rooms, Nottingham
Thurs 18th Oct – Art School, Glasgow
Fri 19th Oct – Gorilla, Manchester
Sun 21st Oct – Wardrobe, Leeds
Mon 22nd Oct – O2 Academy 2, Oxford
Tues 23rd Oct – Hackney Arts Centre, London **SOLD OUT**
Thurs 25th Oct – Arts Club, Liverpool
Sat 27th Oct – Metropolis Festival, RDS, Dublin
Tues 30th Oct – Trinity, Bristol
Wed 31st Oct – Old Market, Brighton
Thurs 1st Nov – La Madeleine, Brussels
Sat 3rd Nov – Zoom, Frankfurt
Mon 5th Nov – Vega, Copenhagen
Tues 6th Nov – Gruenspan, Hamburg
Thurs 8th Nov – Kesselhaus, Berlin
Fri 9th Nov – Hybrydy, Warsaw
Sat 10th Nov – Futurum, Prague
Mon 12th Nov – Doornroosje, Nijmegen
Tues 13th Nov – Melkweg (Old Hall), Amsterdam
Wed 14th Nov – Trabendo, Paris
Fri 16th Nov – Le Boucau, Biarritz
Sun 18th Nov – Kafe Antzokia, Bilbao
Mon 19th Nov – Chango, Madrid
Tues 20th Nov – Razzmatazz 2, Barcelona
Thurs 22nd Nov – Ridotto Teatro Regio, Parma
Fri 23rd Nov – Spazio 211, Turin
Sat 24th Nov – Port-Franc, Sion
Mon 26th Nov – Papiersaal, Zurich
Tues 27th Nov – Kulturkirche, Cologne
Wed 28th Nov – Tivoli Vredenburg, Utrecht
The Art Of Pretending To Swim is available to pre-order on Domino Mart-exclusive deluxe LP (includes 10” of a 12-minute version of ‘Ada’ and B-side ‘This Is The Art Of Pretending To Swim’ plus signed lyric booklet), Deluxe LP (includes ‘Ada’/’ This Is The Art Of Pretending To Swim’ 10”), Standard LP, CD and Digitally. Pre-order: Dom Mart | Digital
Villagers Online:
Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram