16/11/21

Damon Albarn releases new album The Nearer The Fountain, More Pure The Stream Flows

Damon Albarn’s second solo album is out now! The Nearer The Fountain, More Pure The Stream Flows is available to stream and purchase everywhere. Check out Damon performing new single Darkness to Light on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon below.

Originally conceived as an orchestral piece inspired by the landscape of Iceland, The Nearer The Fountain, More Pure The Stream Flows evolved during lockdown to the 11 new tracks included on the album.

Albarn has performed the record in full at sold-out shows throughout the summer, a highlight being a headline show and global live stream from the iconic Shakespeare’s Globe in September, and he will perform a select number of solo piano dates in the UK for the first time next month. This run of very special shows, presented in association with local record stores, will start on 2 nd December in York Minster ahead of Norwich, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Glasgow and Coventry. The stripped back solo set will feature Albarn performing tracks from his new album, as well as selected favourites from across his songbook, for a series of short, intimate piano performances.

In a career of perpetual musical shifts and exploration, this new record uncovers yet more ground, finding expansive orchestral arrangements nestling with intimate melodies, discordance brushing up against infectious majesty, all set to some of Albarn’s most arresting vocal performances to date. Much like the beauty and chaos of the natural world it soundtracks, The Nearer The Fountain, More Pure The Stream Flows vividly documents the emotional ebb and flow of the human condition, in all its extremes, serving as a soul enriching document for our times.

To mark the album release, Damon Albarn – The Nearer The Fountain, More Pure The Stream Flows, a special guest takeover at the Eranda Studio at The Photographers’ Gallery, London, powered by Amazon Music, will open for a limited run from 12th November – 21st November 2021. A studio space, curated by Anna Sparham, showcasing source materials and inspirations behind the new album, featuring unseen artwork, photography and film footage, plus Albarn’s own sketches and lyrics. Ticket and information here.