Simple Minds Announce New Album With Two Distinct 'Sides'

(Gibson) Simple Minds have announced that they will release Walk Between Worlds, their first album of new material since 2014's Big Music. Release date is February 2 on BMG.

Produced by the veteran Glasgow band with Andy Wright and Gavin Goldberg, who each worked on Big Music, the album is just eight tracks and a concise 42 minutes of two distinct "sides." It's an old-school format that recalls albums from the days when founder members Jim Kerr and Charlie Burchill were growing up as music fans.

"Side One" tracks such as "Summer" and "The Signal And The Noise" revisit the glassy guitars and new wave grooves of the post-punk era. "Side Two" explores more cinematic sounds, with the title track and "Barrowland Star" featuring dramatic orchestrations recorded at Abbey Road.

Guitarist Charlie Burchill recently told Gibson.com how playing the Acoustic shows, which relied on Burchill's new Gibson Hummingbirds, was affecting the band's developing sound. "Everyone has commented on the space in the music, particularly with Jim's vocal. If you don't have a lot of space around a vocal, you do lose a lot of expression and I think that's going to affect the sound in the future. The whole thing has taught us a lot. Unexpectedly so, but in a really good way."

But on the some songs, Burchill revisits the feel of some of his boyhood heroes. "Barrowland Star" features a glistening solo reminiscent of Burchill's Les Paul-playing idol Mick Ronson, of David Bowie's Spiders From Mars. "I met him a few times 'cos he produced a band, The Visible Targets, who supported us in the '80s, and he was a really sweet guy too. With Mick Ronson, it's not just his playing, but his arranging, production, everything. Absolute hero." here.

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