Brian Eno is to have his 2016 album The Ship reissued in remastered form through Univerdsal Music Recordings on October 20. The album was Eno's first to feature vocals since 2005’s Another Day On Earth and was inspired in part by the sinking of the Titanic and the First World War.
The release coincides with a series of live performances entitled Ships, which features Eno with Baltic Sea Philharmonic and its conductor Kristjan Järvi and is a newly commissioned work from La Biennale di Venezia.
There will be live performances throughout Europe, including a show at London's Royal Festival Hall on October 30. The shows will feature an orchestral adaptation of The Ship as well as new and classic Eno compositions. The shows will also feature comedian and actor Peter Serafinowicz for a live cameo appearance, guitarist Leo Abrahams and programmer/keyboardist, Peter Chilvers and additional vocals from Melanie Pappenheim. You can see all the live dates below.
"The album The Ship is an unusual piece in that it uses voice but doesn’t particularly rely on the song form," Eno says. "It’s an atmosphere with occasional characters drifting through it, characters lost in the vague space made by the music. There’s a sense of wartime in the background, and a sense of inevitability. There is also a sense of scale which suits an orchestra, and a sense of many people working together.
"I wanted an orchestra which played music the way I would like to play music: from the heart rather than just from the score. I wanted the players to be young and fresh and enthusiastic. When I first saw the Baltic Sea Philharmonic I found all that... and then noticed they were named after a sea. That sealed it!"
The Ship will be available on coke bottle green coloured vinyl.
Brian Eno Ships live dates
Oct 21:, Venice Biennale Musica 2023, Teatro La Fenice (3pm & 8pm) - Sold Out
Oct 24: Berlin Philharmonie Berlin - get tickets
Oct 26: Paris La Seine Musicale - get tickets
Oct 28: Utrecht TivoliVredenburg - Sold Out
Oct 30: LondonRoyal Festival Hall, Southbank (6.30 & 9pm) - get tickets