Imelda May shares first track from upcoming poetry EP Slip Of The Tongue

After sharing her stunning composition 'Stay' as part of our 'Letters From Home' series in the current issue of Hot Press, Imelda May has announced her first poetry EP, Slip Of The Tongue – out on June 12 via Decca Records.

Imelda will share one poem every week leading up to the release of the 9-track EP – beginning with 'Home', out today.

Famed for her prowess as a wordsmith, the upcoming EP sees her dissect her own experiences with characteristic sincerity – exploring issues such as obsession, heartbreak, Covid-19 isolation and love.

“I constantly write," Imelda says."Writing pads are filled, backs of envelopes, scraps of paper are scribbled on and scattered around me in between books, trinkets and photos. Melodies swirl in my head. Footsteps become the rhythm to a song. But often words don’t feel like they need anything more than to be spoken aloud or read alone. They just feel good as they are. But I still hear music. It evokes such strong emotion. So I decided to combine my two loves. I think they dance beautifully. I hope you agree.”

At last year’s Latitude Festival, Imelda premiered an exclusive performance and immersive art piece entitled ‘Hallowed’ – welcoming festival-goers inside a sensory space to watch her write within an illuminated cube: "Art in all its forms should never get comfortable”, she says.

‘Home’, the first track from the upcoming EP, is a heartfelt reflection on love, set against a backdrop of strings.

“My friend Sara was getting married and I decided to write a poem as a gift," she says of the track. "It made me sit and really think about Love and what it is in all its forms and to look at it purely from loves own point of view. I surmised what it might tell us if we simply took the time to listen and realised, for me, true love is where I can be my true self, it feels like home.”

Imelda’s last album, 2017’s ‘Life Love Flesh Blood’, landed at No.5 on the UK's Albums Chart.