THE THE Release Ensoulment
RELEASE THEIR FIRST NEW STUDIO
ALBUM IN A QUARTER CENTURY
ENSOULMENT OUT TODAY VIA CINÉOLA / EARMUSIC
World-Wide Tour This Fall
Dates Include A North American Run In October And November
NYC On October 17 + Los Angeles On November 8
Today marks the release of Ensoulment, THE THE’s first studio album in a quarter century. Co-produced by Matt Johnson and Warne Livesey, the album encompasses characteristic topics ranging from love & sex, war & politics, life & death – to the meaning of what it is to be human in the 21st century. It contains echoes of THE THE’s multifaceted musical past, however it is richly representative of the mercurial band’s here and now. Johnson is characteristically unafraid to tackle the emotional complexity inherent in the human condition – intimacy in an age of alienation; democracy in a post-truth age; empire and vassalage; and the inexorable rise of AI – yet the album is equally shot through with hope. “The last 25 years seem to have flown by don't they? But finally, the day has arrived for our new album – Ensoulment – to be shared with our wonderful, loyal audience. I hope you enjoy listening to it as much as we enjoyed creating it. I've been blessed in working with so many wonderful people (both in front of and behind the microphones) with whom I’ve shared much creativity and laughter. We look forward to seeing many of you soon on our forthcoming Ensouled world tour.” – Matt
THE THE tour dates
9/10 - Sentrum Scene - Oslo, Norway
9/11 - Sentrum Scene - Oslo, Norway SOLD OUT
9/13 - Filadelfia - Stockholm, Sweden
9/14 - Store Vega - Copenhagen, Denmark SOLD OUT
9/15 - Store Vega - Copenhagen, Denmark SOLD OUT
9/17 - Huxleys - Berlin, Germany
9/18 - Carlswerk Victoria - Köln, Germany
9/19 - Ancienne Belgique - Brussels, Belgium SOLD OUT
9/21 - De Roma - Antwerp, Belgium SOLD OUT
9/22 - Paradiso - Amsterdam, Netherlands SOLD OUT
9/23 - Paradiso - Amsterdam, Netherlands SOLD OUT
9/25 - Usher Hall - Edinburgh, Scotland SOLD OUT
9/27 - The Civic At The Halls - Wolverhampton, England
9/28 - Alexandra Palace - London, England SOLD OUT
9/30 - O2 Apollo - Manchester, England SOLD OUT
10/1 - O2 Academy Brixton - London, England
10/11 - Tabernacle – Atlanta, GA
10/12 - Durham Performing Arts – Durham, NC
10/14 - The Anthem – Washington, DC
10/15 - The Fillmore – Philadelphia, PA
10/17 - Beacon Theatre – New York, NY
10/19 - Orpheum Theatre – Boston, MA
10/20 - MTELUS – Montreal, QC
10/22 - Massey Hall – Toronto, ON
10/23 - Masonic Cathedral Theatre – Detroit, MI
10/25 - The Salt Shed – Chicago, IL SOLD OUT
10/26 - Palace Theatre – St. Paul, MN
10/29 - Mission Ballroom – Denver, CO
10/30 - Eccles Theater – Salt Lake City, UT
11/2 - Paramount Theatre – Seattle, WA
11/3 - Roseland Theater – Portland, OR
11/4 - Orpheum – Vancouver, BC
11/7 - Fox Theater – Oakland, CA
11/8 - Shrine Auditorium – Los Angeles, CA
11/14 - Kiri Te Kanawa Theatre - Auckland, New Zealand SOLD OUT
11/16 - Palais Theatre, Melbourne, Australia SOLD OUT
11/17 - Palais Theatre, Melbourne, Australia
11/18 - Hindley Street Music Hall, Adelaide, Australia
11/21 - Sydney Opera House, Sydney, Australia
11/22 - Sydney Opera House, Sydney, Australia
11/23 - Fortitude Music Hall, Brisbane, Australia SOLD OUT
11/24 - Fortitude Music Hall, Brisbane, Australia
11/27 - Fremantle Arts Centre, Perth, Australia
In support of Ensoulment THE THE will embark on a world-wide tour with dates kicking off August 28 with many European and UK dates already sold-out. The North American run starts in Atlanta, GA on October 11 and concludes on November 8 at The Shrine in Los Angeles, CA. The band will play at the Beacon Theater in New York City on October 17. The “Ensouled Tour'' will mark the band’s first since their hugely successful “The Comeback Special” world tour in 2018. All dates are listed below and tickets for North American shows are here.
The B-sides for all Ensoulment singles have been composed, performed and produced by Matt Johnson especially for each limited edition 7” vinyl. In this case, the B-side, “Frozen Clouds” will also feature in the soundtrack for director Gerard Johnson’s forthcoming film, Odyssey. Additionally, The The’s “Lonely Planet” from their 1993 album Dusk will be featured as the end credits music in Francis Ford Coppola’s forthcoming new film Megalopolis out September 26.
“It’s vital to be hopeful,” Johnson states. “And I hope people get out of the album what we put into it. It was created under very happy circumstances, with a great vibe amongst the band and all the people that worked on it. There was a lot of thought, a lot of work, a lot of love, a lot of laughter!
More about the Ensoulment artwork
The single cover features a previously unpublished work of Matt Johnson’s late brother Andrew (AKA artist Andy Dog) who, over the years, was very much responsible for the distinctive aesthetic style of THE THE’s releases.
THE THE has partnered with Ticketmaster Face Value Exchange (USA & CA) and Twickets (ROW) to enable fans to buy / sell tickets in an ethical manner at face value.
The artist wants to give fans, not scalpers, the best chance to buy tickets at face value. To help achieve this, the NA leg of the tour will be using and Ticketmaster’s Face Value Exchange where, if needed, you can resell your ticket to other fans at the original price paid. To help protect the Exchange, THE THE has also chosen to make tickets for this tour mobile only and restricted from transfer.* Please note, a valid bank account or debit card within the country of your event is required to sell on the Face Value Exchange.
*New York, Illinois, Colorado, Virginia and Connecticut have passed state laws requiring unlimited ticket resale and limiting artists’ ability to determine how their tickets are resold. To adhere to local law, tickets in these states will not be restricted from transfer but the artist encourages fans to use the Face Value Exchange.
About THE THE:
THE THE was formed by Matt Johnson in 1979 and the music inhabits a genre of its own: music of long shadows, high hopes, channelled anger, feverish passions and sweetly disturbing poignancy. It is pop and rock, blues and folk, soul and polemic. It spans alienated electronics to twisted cinematic soundtracks, guitar tumbling swing to crimson ballads, rants and prayers to diaries and hymns.
In over four decades, THE THE have released just five studio albums of original songs – Soul Mining (1983), Infected (1986), Mind Bomb (1989), Dusk (1993) and NakedSelf (2000). But always unpredictable, during this time THE THE have also made diversions into cover albums, such as Hanky Panky; film soundtracks including Hyena, Tony, Muscle and Moonbug; art installations; a podcast series, Radio Cinéola; a beautiful and moving 84-minute documentary, The Inertia Variations; and various book publications, including biography Long Shadows, High Hopes: The Life and Times of Matt Johnson & THE THE.
Find THE THE online: