Maxïmo Park have announced their eighth studio album Stream Of Life set for release on 27th September via Lower Third. In addition the band have released lead single ‘Your Own Worst Enemy’. Lead singer Paul Smith, the most lit-pop of lyric writers, took the album title from a short story by Ukrainian-born Brazilian writer Clarice Lispector, inspired by both its stream of consciousness style and the way it prompts reflection on the inner mechanisms of people’s minds. It begs the question of why they do the things that they do, even when they can seem counterintuitive to the outsider. There’s an inner flow to every individual – a stream of life.
Both form and concept bleed satisfyingly into how Stream Of Life itself was created – recorded quickly, making fast decisions, not overly-editing oneself – and more specifically how ‘Your Own Worst Enemy’ becomes a study in deception. It considers the things we conceal from ourselves, and others, in order to maintain some inner equilibrium. Commenting on the single, lead singer Paul Smith says:
“’Your Own Worst Enemy’ has a different feel to anything we’ve done before – loose and lean, yet still rocking! It’s about that horrible feeling where you suddenly realise you’ve made a familiar error, and also the lies we tell each other on a daily basis to avoid confrontation or turmoil.”
Continuing, he says:
“We’ve always tried to document the world around us at each stage of our lives while subtly nudging the music forward each time – this record continues that mission. It was great to be back in a studio after recording remotely last time. Working with Ben in Atlanta, and Burke in Byker, was as stimulating as it’s ever been, and I think we captured that energy. Thematically, the record covers passion, politics, and privilege amongst other topics.”
Maxïmo Park Tour Dates
October
8 – Academy, Dublin, IE
9 – Limelight 2, Belfast, NI
11 – Queen’s Hall, Edinburgh, UK – SOLD OUT
12 – New Century Hall, Manchester, UK – SOLD OUT
13 – New Century Hall, Manchester, UK
15 – Beckett Students’ Union, Leeds, UK
16 – Waterfront, Norwich, UK
18 – Islington Assembly Hall, London, UK – SOLD OUT
19 – Islington Assembly Hall, London, UK – SOLD OUT
20 – Concorde 2, Brighton, UK
22 – Trinity, Bristol, UK – SOLD OUT
23 – Town Hall, Birmingham, UK
24 – Leadmill, Sheffield, UK
26 – Boiler Shop, Newcastle, UK – SOLD OUT
27 – Boiler Shop, Newcastle, UK – SOLD OUT
November
4 – Melkweg Oz, Amsterdam, NL
5 – Point Ephémère, Paris, FR
6 – Stollwerck, Cologne, DE
8 – Markthalle, Hamburg, DE
9 – VEGA, Copenhagen, DK
10 – Metropol, Berlin, DE
12 – Exil, Zurich, CH
13 – Technikum. Munich, DE
14 – Substage, Karlsruhe, DE
For more information on Maximo Park please check their facebook and instagram.
