Singer-songwriter Newton Faulkner announces new album ahead of Peak District show

The 36-year-old, who shot to fame when his debut album Hands Built By Robots went to number one in 2007, releases his seventh studio album, Interference (Of Light) on August 20.

And he will play tracks from it when he performs at Castleton’s Peak Tavern on Saturday, September 25, a show rescheduled from May 2020.

Newton has been working throughout lockdown from his recording studio in East London, developing his sound.

He says: “The music is a bit chunkier, it’s definitely way heavier and much less acoustic than previously.

“I feel like the stuff I’ve written recently is simpler, but it’s tasteful. It works as songs. I can feel it.”

“I want to boil things down to their strongest form.

“It’s about the songs. However good you are at playing, if the voice isn’t up to scratch and the songs aren’t good enough, no-one is going to listen to them.”

‘Grizzly new sound’

Together, the first single from his latest album, will be released in early June.

Talking about his new material, Newton says: “It’s grizzly, soulful and a step further.

“Vocally, I’ve learned a huge amount over the years. I was a guitarist and a writer who sang. That’s kind of where I came from.

"Now I feel like my voice has caught up with the stuff I was doing on guitar.”

The album will be released on vinyl, CD and digital formats – featuring different track lists.

Newton, whose 2007 top-10 single Dream Catch Me has attracted more than 11 million views on YouTube, says: “The way people listen to music has changed dramatically. Each medium has a different purpose and requires a different approach.

“Interludes, which played a huge part in Hand Built by Robots, make no sense being streamed on an online playlist, but work on a CD and vinyl is a different experience again.

“I’ve decided to package this album differently for each format. Streaming sites will get a 17-track album with no interludes, the CD will be 17 tracks, plus interludes, for a smoother flow, and the vinyl will be 11 tracks curated by me to work on one disc with the best possible flow from one side to the other and the best possible sound.”

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