New single release for December
Lanarkshire band December are set to release their new single this week.
They will release their take on U2’s 1983 track The Refugee.
The U2 song is from their third album, War.
December have gained international attention and acclaim for their innovative covers of U2 tracks in the past three years.
And this track will be the final U2 cover from December.
Currently working with LA filmmaker BK Garceau III, their track will be released with a video highlighting the international refugee crisis and in particular the acute problems at the US border.
Paul Ferrie, guitarist with December, said:“it’s arguable that War was the greatest album of the 80s – when you think about the songs on it.
“When the rest of the charts in the early 80s were arguably totally self-absorbed, U2 released this album full of protest and bravery – and amazing songs which have never been more relevant.
“We have been playing The Refugee live for a few year’s now and it felt like the right song to release to end our project of trying to reinvent some U2 classics.
“We spent years saying you should never cover U2 but hey, we ended up doing it and it’s been a joy.”
The Refugee will be available to stream and download from November 6.
The band’s influences include U2 and The Alarm.
They gained international recognition with the release of their first album I Will Let You Have Your Say in 2016.
It was a collection of songs inspired by the band’s heroes and includes tracks named after Barack Obama, country legend George Jones, The Waterboy’s Mike Scott and includes the singles Alison Stewart and Kenneth Mathieson Dalglish.
December got together after seeing the original Joshua Tree tour in 1987 in Scotland.
The band released 33 – a 10-song album of re-interpretations of U2 classics – in 2017 as a celebration of the work of the Irish legends.
December have become favourites of the U2 online fan community and played the fan-led celebrations of U2’s 40th birthday in Dublin in September 2016; invitations to play in Sao Paulo, Berlin, Montreal and all over Europe followed.