The new project drops ahead of a series of tour dates
Bastille’s Dan Smith unveils “&” (Ampersand), Part Two – a two-track release featuring new singles, “Blue Sky & The Painter” and “Leonard & Marianne,” taken from the forthcoming full-length album “&” (Ampersand) out October 25th via Republic Records.
A beautiful new project from Bastille’s Dan Smith, “&” (Ampersand) is a collection of story songs that explores the worlds of fascinating figures from history, mythology, and pop culture, fed by instinctive new collaborations with friends and family, dazzling arrangements, and an infectious spirit of musical freedom.
The new single, “Blue Sky & The Painter” is inspired by the Norwegian expressionist painter Edvard Munch and his relationship with his depression and the difficult engine that allowed him to create. Uplifting and euphoric, the song is about seeing a crack of light in life after a long period of darkness. “Leonard & Marianne” is a mesmerizing love song about longing and loss—inspired by the complex relationship between Leonard Cohen and Marianne Ihen, it’s one of the first tracks that Smith wrote for the “&” (Ampersand) project back in 2020.
“&” (Ampersand), Part Two follows the recently released “&” (Ampersand), Part One, which includes the four tracks, “Intros & Narrators,” “Eve & Paradise Lost,” “Seasons & Narcissus,” and “Emily & Her Penthouse In The Sky.”
A deeper dive into the characters on the album can be heard on, Muses: An Ampersand Podcast, a new podcast blending music, history, and storytelling, which launches on September 18th. Smith and academic/podcaster Emma Nagouse (BBC Radio 4’s “You’re Dead to Me” and BBC Sounds’ “Homeschool History”) collaborate to uncover the lives of the poets, artists, anthropologists, and trailblazers featured on the record and break down Dan’s journey of transforming their lives into songs for “&” (Ampersand).
To celebrate the album’s release, the “&” Live Tour will take place in November with seven special one-off shows across seven global cities, including Paris, Belgium, Amsterdam, Berlin, Los Angeles, New York, and at London’s Shepherd’s Bush Empire on November 17th. Pre-sale tickets will be available on September 18th followed by the general sale on September 20th.
