James Vincent McMorrow announces new album ‘Wide Open, Horses’ out on 14 June and shares new single ‘Never Gone’
James Vincent McMorrow | Credit: Rich Gilligan
Today, Irish singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer, James Vincent McMorrow, returns with the announcement of his seventh full-length album Wide Open, Horses. The album marks his first release on Nettwerk Music Group and is due out 14th June. To mark the news, McMorrow has shared the lead single ‘Never Gone’, following the release of a live video of the track earlier this week.
James has beckoned listeners to open their minds and hearts since his emergence in 2010. Along the way, he gathered over 1 billion streams across an expansive catalog. Among many standouts, ‘Higher Love’ went BPI Gold in the UK and ARIA platinum in Australia. His cover of Chris Isaak’s ‘Wicked Game’ soundtracked the trailer for Season Six of HBO’s Game of Thrones and generated over 130 million Spotify streams on its Live At Killkenny Arts Festival version. Toppling charts, 2016’s We Move notably debuted at #1 in Ireland. At the same time, he lent his voice to ‘Hype’ from Drake’s multiplatinum blockbuster Views, ‘I’m In Love’ from Kygo’s Cloud Nine, and ‘Run Away’ from dvsn’s Morning After, among others. 2022’s surprise album The Less I Knew arrived to critical acclaim as Variance attested, “It makes for the perfect listen in the midst of these complicated times, brimming with emotion and candidly confronting struggle while also looking to a brighter day.” Meanwhile, he’s sold-out tours on multiple continents, even packing the world-famous Sydney Opera House twice.
In 2023, he brought Wide Open, Horses to life—on stage. He booked two nights at The National Concert Hall in Dublin, recorded a handful of lo-fi demos, practiced the material for a week, and then hit the stage. Phones weren’t allowed, but James recorded it to “see what worked and what didn’t work.”
“I literally performed the album before it was recorded,” he smiles. “The whole point was to expose the flaws and also highlight the special little moments. It was an odd experiment, but it worked great. The notion is so simple, ‘Write songs and perform them live’. Without cameras, they were the best shows I’ve ever played—which is interesting because no one knew the music! Everyone was just experiencing it though. I had friends in the lobby talking to strangers. Who talks to strangers anymore? It was lovely. It was a heartening experience for everyone involved.”
Galvanized by this energy, he hit the studio and assembled Wide Open, Horses. The opener and single ‘Never Gone’ hinges on finger-picked guitar, soft tambourine, and steady handclaps as he wonders, “Cuz what the fuck are any of us really doing here? Do we even exist at all?”
“It’s the anchor of the record,” he notes. “It sums up the whole album; you’re just trying to fight meaninglessness. I always felt like I’ve been trying to find meaning so I could be remembered. When you don’t find it, it doesn’t feel good. I got to a point where I was like, ‘I fucking love this. I don’t care. If my friends, family, and people who know me as a musician love it, then I’m happy’. I regretted missing so many beautiful moments, because I’d get off stage like, ‘What’s the next opportunity?’ I’ve come to terms with the fact that when I die, I’ll be forgotten, and it’s okay. We all will. It felt ridiculous to fight it. Embracing it was very freeing. ‘Never Gone’ is just about appreciating what’s here for you in the moment.
Hear / share ‘Never Gone’ here
Fans got to preview the track earlier this week with a live video of McMorrow performing the track in Wicklow mountains outside of Dublin.
Watch / share the live video here
“To me, the album is about finding relief from the cycle of life’s pressure,” McMorrow continues. “I don’t think the theory ‘modernity equals better’ holds much water these days. The more technology we add, the more unhappy everyone seems to be. I don’t want to move backwards, but I felt a sense of nostalgia and happiness in the album. It would be grandiose of me to think I could offer you some profound release through words and lyrics, but maybe I can…The job is to make a record I love and hopefully offer a respite. Maybe we can all get back to a life where we aren’t so obsessed with trying to seek out meaning from absolutely everything.”
In the end, James Vincent McMorrow simply sounds alive on Wide Open, Horses.
“I’m grateful to be here,” he leaves off. “The whole process was rebuilding myself and my connection to music, who I am, and what I wanted to be when I was starting out at 20-years-old. I struggle like everyone else does, but I’m going to appreciate the fuck out of every moment I get now. When I play shows, I want them to be shows you talk about for years. Going through hardship, I’m back to a point where I can see myself very clearly in the music and I know what I can do.”
Wide Open, Horses is out 14th June via Nettwerk Music Group
Pre-order/save here
Tracklisting:
1. Never gone
2. Look up!!!
3. No One Get's What They Wanted
4. Stay Cool
5. Wide Open, Horses
6. The Day All The Lights Went Out
7. Give Up
8. The Standard
9. Things We Tell Ourselves
10. White Out
11. Darkest Days Of Winter
12. Call Me Back
13. Meet Me In The Garden
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