Today, British trio The Wandering Hearts announced the release of their new album, MOTHER, out March 22. Produced by Steve Milbourne, their Chrysalis Records debut is a handcrafted patchwork of folk-style storytelling, pop hooks and rock energy threaded together by their luminous signature harmonies. You could think of it as a long-lost seventies album originally made in Laurel Canyon and dusted off in some vintage London record store 50 years later. The Wandering Hearts, who recently completed an extensive North American tour are soon to embark on a tour of US radio stations across the US, and will be performing a special intimate shows at Rockwood Music Hall in NYC, Tuesday January 23 and WMOT’s Finally Friday live broadcast from 3rd & Lindsley on February 2. They will also tour the UK in March and April, dates below.
Available now for pre-order, Mother will be released digitally, on CD and LP, including exclusive, signed coloured vinyl and a limited number of test pressings. Taken from the new album, single “River To Cry” is available now, premiere by HOLLER MAGAZINE, who stated, XXX.
On the new single, A.J. Dean of The Wandering Hearts stated, "Our friend and wonderful songwriter Dee Adam played us a rough demo of ‘River To Cry’ sometime last year. We loved it straight away and decided to mess around with it. Jamming it out in the studio felt incredible and it just became so much fun to play live with the band, as it has this huge classic sound and big shift of gear in the middle. We got carried away and it runs a little longer than what they tell us as right for streaming these days, but it had to be done - we channelled some pivotal Fleetwood Mac and The Band style energies whilst keeping it very uniquely us. It follows themes that run throughout our new album - holding on to things from the past, struggling to let go, but eventually having to make painful decisions and owning them. It comes at a great point in the running order of the record, we’ve been closing our recent live sets in the U.S. with it too and it certainly brings a ton of energy."
WATCH VIDEO TO NEW SINGLE “RIVER TO CRY”
LISTEN TO NEW SINGLE “RIVER TO CRY”
PRE-ORDER NEW ALBUM MOTHER
Motherhood changes everything. Little moments assume a much greater significance, and every memory holds the potential to last forever. Responsibilities expand, yet joy does as well. The Wandering Hearts intimately explore this maternal transformation on their aptly titled third full-length offering Mother. The band, Tara Wilcox [vocals], A.J. Dean [vocals, acoustic guitar] and Francesca “Chess” Whiffin [vocals, mandolin], chronicle this season of growth and change across eleven tracks.
“I was pregnant when we started making the record, and Tara was pregnant when we finished it,” notes Chess. “During the process, we really found ourselves as a band. Motherhood has helped us grow and find meaning. It brought our writing and performing to a different level.”
The group worked out of Chess’s home studio in Darlington, drawing on everything from folk to rock. Surrounded by guitars, a vintage piano and classic equipment, the music gestated in a room affectionately dubbed, “The Music Womb.” A.J. goes on, “This album started as a folk EP and grew into something entirely different. It has elements of folk, rock, blues, pop and more with our voices tying it all together. We were really just making an album for us. We think the result is the best music we've ever made.”
Earlier releases had brandished a bit of a subtle pop sheen. With Mother, The Wandering Hearts peeled back this layer, sanded it down and stripped the sound to its bare essentials—captivating lyrics, organic instrumentation, and, as always, starkly powerful harmonies. In doing so, they realised their vision at its purest and most powerful. On “About America,” bright acoustic guitar and tambourine offset the heavy weight of an intense story given life by breathy harmonies. Echoes of a soft vocal line ripple over a steady beat on “Still Waters,” piano bookending the vulnerable refrain, “My body’s made up, but my mind is a mess, so hard to focus when I feel like this.”
Crystalline harmonies transmit a tender message uplifted even higher by organ on “Letter To Myself.” As electric guitar wails, “Hold Your Tongue” pierces passive-aggressive “compliments” with sharp lyrics and angular vocal melodies. Album highlight “Not Misunderstood,” broods and builds, warning of a looming emotional storm. “What Fools Believe” concludes on a breezy chant laced with whistling and lithe strumming. “It’s an anthem to everyone to keep on going—even if life is hard,” A.J. notes. In the end, motherhood has ultimately enabled The Wandering Hearts to be themselves. “The album has all of the elements of who we are, but we’ve landed in a place that feels like us,” reflects Chess.
Mother Track Listing:
1. About America
2. Still Waters
3. Tired
4. Letter To Myself
5. Hold Your Tongue
6. Waiting
7. Dance Again
8. Not Misunderstood
9. River To Cry
10. Will You Love Me
11. What Fools Believe
Febuary
Tue 23 NYC Rockwood Music Hall
Fri 2 Nashville WMOT’s Finally Friday @ 3rd & Lindsley
March
Tues 26th Edinburgh The Queen’s Hall
Weds 27th Belfast The Deer’s Head
Thurs 28th Dublin The Workman’s Cellar
Sun 31st Birmingham The Mill
April
Tues 2 Manchester Gorilla
Weds 3rd Leeds Brudenell Social Club
Thurs 4th Nottingham Rescue Rooms
Fri 5th Sheffield Leadmill
Sun 7th Bristol The Fleece
Mon 8th Brighton Komedia
Tues 9th Oxford O2 Academy
Thurs 11th Norwich Arts Centre
Fri 12th London Electric Brixton
Sat 13th Cardiff Tramshed
Ticket link here: https://tix.to/TWHPR
