Frank Turner has released a new song celebrating the imminent return of live gigs.
The Gathering features guest appearances from Jason Isbell and Muse drummer Dom Howard (recorded remotely from the US) and opens with the lyric “The first time that the beat drops in the bar, it’s going to be biblical. The second that the singalong starts, it'll be sensational.”
The collaboration is Turner’s first original material since 2019’s No Mans Land and is the first release from his forthcoming ninth studio album, on which he is currently working. As of yet, there has been no announcement of a title, release date or tracklisting for the album.
Talking about The Gathering, which anticipates the return of live music post-lockdown, Turner says, “It’s a song about what we’ve been missing, that sense of coming together, and how ready I am to get back to it.{
“The last year has been incredibly difficult and frustrating for everyone, not least the people who work and revel in live music. I am the guy who tours, this is who I’ve been since I was sixteen. This is the longest period of time I’ve slept in the same bed continuously since I was seven.”
As an indication of his hunger to return to the stage, the singer-songwriter has announced a run of outdoor Gathering shows from June through to September. Depending on the government guidelines at the time, the upcoming dates will either be socially distanced or full capacity show.
Frank Turner will play:
Jun 19: Bideford, The Big Sheep
Jun 20: Bideford, The Big Sheep
Jun 26: Frome, Cheese & Grain
Jun 27: Frome, Cheese & Grain
Jul 8: Liverpool, Top Rope Brewery (competition winners only)
Jul 17: Gloucester, Guildhall
Jul 18: Gloucester, Guildhall
Aug 21: Manchester, Urmston Sports Club (full band show)
Sep 3: Hull, Zededees Yard
Tickets for the tour are already on sale.
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