The Peterborough Evening Telegraph
Travis release new album ahead of nationwide tour
Travis have unveiled a new tour which will take in venues across the country next year. The announcement follows the release of the Fran Healy-directed video to their new single The Only Thing, featuring Susanna Hoffs of The Bangles.
The track is the fourth to be taken from their new album 10 Songs which will be released on October 9 on BMG.
Travis are a Scottish rock band formed in Glasgow in 1990, composed of Fran Healy, lead vocals, rhythm guitar, Dougie Payne, bass guitar, backing vocals, Andy Dunlop, lead guitar, banjo, backing vocals, and Neil Primrose, drums, percussion.
“This is definitely my Covideo. One of the main prerequisites was to somehow get us all on the same stage and try to capture the spontaneity of a duet while the performers are in different locations,” said Fran.
“Leading up to the shoot, I would send Susanna a video of a great duet. Summer Wine, I Got You Babe, Islands In The Stream. I hired a small film crew and persuaded Glasgow’s Theatre Royal to open its doors to us.
“I directed the shoot remotely, via three phones. One in the director of photography’s ear, one FaceTime trained on the monitor and one iPhone with the band. There were so many moving parts. I’m amazed we got there and it turned out great.”
Written by Fran Healy and co-produced by Fran and Robin Baynton at RAK Studios, Susanna delivers the line, “You are the record in the record shop nobody wants to buy” - perhaps the most perfect pop moment in a Travis back catalogue that features classics like Writing To Reach You, Why Does It Always Rain On Me? and Sing.
It was a chance exchange on Twitter that propelled Fran and Susanna towards each other. She liked his voice. And he grew up adoring hers.
Now a resident of Los Angeles, Fran drove out to
Susanna’s house and played her a demo of a duet he had in mind. The results, a stunning track of married protagonists addressing each other from shifting ground.
Of the collaboration, Susanna said: “Fran and I met through a mutual appreciation on Twitter. The friendship grew from there. One day, he asked me to sing with him, and without hesitation, I burst out ‘yes’.
He showed up at my doorstep with his recording gear and we recorded my vocals in the living room. Collaborating with Fran and the band has been a pure pleasure.”
Next year will also welcome the band back on the road with a UK headline tour including a
London show at
The Roundhouse.
Dates for the 2021 tour are ...
April 30 - O2 Academy, Bournemouth
May 1 - The Forum, Bath May 2 - Symphony Hall, Birmingham
May 4 - Albert Hall, Manchester
May 5 - Royal Concert Hall, Glasgow
May 7 - O2 Academy, Leeds
May 8 - O2 City Hall, Newcastle
May 9 - Victoria Hall, Stoke-On-Trent
May 11 - Roundhouse, London
May 12 - Corn Exchange, Cambridge Co-produced by both Fran and Baynton, 10 Songs is about the way life comes at love and what love does to weather those challenges. The album comes available as Standard CD, Heavyweight vinyl plus Deluxe 2CD and deluxe 2LP - red and blue vinyl - including 10 demos. In addition to the limited edition 10-inch of Valentine, the band’s official store features exclusive album merch bundles with limited signed art prints. Tickets via http://www. travisonline.com/live site.