Singular psych-folk-pop-rock wanderers, The Coral announce they will release two albums later this year at the same time, thus revealing their first new music since 2021. In addition, they have shared the single ‘Wild Bird‘ which imagines the scorched sand, cardboard cowboys and flooded sets of a never-made Italian spaghetti western. It comes from the band’s eleventh studio album Sea Of Mirrors, set for release on 8th September. The album was based on a script written by keyboard player, Nick Power, and vintage cinema foyer poster artwork created by drummer, Ian Skelly. The film’s envisaged opening theme, ‘Wild Bird’’s evocative sunlit shadows come laced with deft string arrangements courtesy of the album’s co-producer, Sean O’Hagan (The High Llamas, Stereolab) just one of a number of guests and collaborators featured across Sea Of Mirrors’ 13-tracks.
Between the two albums, the band additionally have actors Cillian Murphy and John Simm, plus Love guitarist, Johnny Echols, as contributors. Former band member, Bill Ryder-Jones joins the songwriting credits for Sea Of Mirrors. The Sundowners are also amongst guests adding their voices to the album.
James Skelly says of new single ‘Wild Bird‘:
“Like most of The Coral’s best known songs you could pick out, it was written in about five minutes. Once the album concept was clear, this was us imagining the theme tune for an Italian western directed by Fellini with a Richard Yates-written script. It’s us asking ourselves: what would have happened if Lee Hazlewood had produced a Gene Pitney song written by Townes Van Zandt?”
A second album titled Holy Joe’s Coral Island Medicine Show, will also be released this September and it brings James and Ian Skelly’s grandad a.k.a The Great Muriarty back into the fold for the narrated post-script to one of The Coral’s most successful albums to date.
Sea Of Mirrors and Holy Joe’s Coral Island Medicine Show became the last albums to be recorded at Liverpool’s legendary Parr Street Studios, a long-term home to The Coral and numerous other bands from inside and outside Liverpool prior to its closure last year. Thus the albums find themselves to be a part of music history for reasons beyond it’s place in The Coral’s extensive catalogue.
For more information on The Coral please check their facebook and instagram.
