Our Wednesday’s been made even sunnier by the news that the new Lisa Hannigan album, At Swim, will be with us on August 19 through Play It Again Sam.
The first taster, ‘Prayer For The Dying’, has a deliciously laid-back retro feel.
The long-awaited follow up to 2011’s Mercury-nominated Passenger, it’s produced by Aaron Dessner of The National who’s a big fan of Ms. H’s.
‘Prayer For The Dying’ reflects on the death of a close friend.
“They'd had a very long and happy marriage and the loss was devastating,” Lisa recalls. “I wanted to try and express that grief but also pay tribute to their marriage.'”
The 'Your heart, my heart' refrain puts us in mind of classic Patsy Cline.
According to the press blurb: “Having first exchanged ideas over email and iPhones, At Swim surfaced when Lisa and Aaron finally met up in Denmark: recording then took place in a church in Hudson, New York, during a furiously-creative seven-day stint. Despite openly being written lost-at-sea, you sense that at this point in her career, Lisa Hannigan is now a strong enough swimmer to go as far out as she wants; to darker depths than before, where the treasure lies, and bring it back to us.”