Saint Etienne have announced that their twelfth studio album The Night will arrive in stores December 13th courtesy of Heavenly Recordings. The follow-up to 2021’s acclaimed I’ve Been Trying To Tell You, the trio’s forthcoming LP features fourteen new songs and is preceded by today’s unveiling of the lush, ambient lead single “Half Light.”
“We wanted The Night to be a calming album, warm and serene, but at the same time we wanted to create something gorgeous and dense,” group co-founder Bob Stanley explains in an official statement. “We were trying to find the state that’s between being awake and asleep, that dream space, with half forgotten thoughts drifting in, bits of TV dialogue, place names, streets, or football grounds you’ve never even been to. You feel very receptive to sound and half-covered memories when you’re in that state.”
“We wanted to continue the mellow and spacey mood of the last album, perhaps even double down on it, but it’s a very different album, not based on samples; Songs, moods and spoken pieces drift in and out whilst rain pours down outside,” co-founder Pete Wiggs continues. “It’s the kind of record I like to listen to in the dark or with my eyes closed. ‘Half Light’ is about the edge of night, the last rays of the sun flickering through the branches of trees, communing with nature and seeing things that might not be there.”
“It was so good to be back in the studio together after recording the last album remotely,” vocalist Sarah Cracknell adds.
The Night will be available to pre-order via Saint Etienne’s official store beginning November 20th, in CD, standard vinyl and limited-edition Coke Bottle Green transparent vinyl formats. Each purchase from the group’s store will also include an exclusive six-track CD of bonus material entitled Deep Into The Night.
Listen to “Half Light” and the B-side “Daydream” below.
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