Having recently announced that their new album, WEATHER, is due out July 12 via Mom + Pop Music/Ninja Tune, Tycho are sharing their new single, “Japan.” The track comes in two forms — the first features the addition of vocals from Hannah Cottrell (Saint Sinner) and the second is an instrumental piece featuring the vivid signature soundscapes present in the classic Tycho sound for Tycho purists.
Listen to both versions of the song now below.
“I had just returned from spending some time in Hakone, Japan with my wife’s Japanese relatives,” says Tycho’s Scott Hansen. “I was thinking a lot about the kinds of electronic music instruments I had been using when I first started making music in the late ’90s. With ‘Japan,’ I was trying to recapture a part of that sound and combine it with the imagery and experiences from my trip to Hakone. I sent the song to Hannah with nothing more than the title of ‘Japan’ and she wrote all of the lyrics.”
“Similar to ‘Pink & Blue,’ the instrumental versions are not just the songs with vocals muted, they are different arrangements with different instrumentation and melodies in place of the vocals,” Hansen adds. I wanted to explore the idea of approaching songs from two entirely different perspectives.”
Tycho is also releasing a companion video to the song. The clip was directed by Charles Bergquist (who also collaborated with Hansen on the video for “Ascension”), and filmed in the historic San Francisco neighborhood, Japantown. Watch the video now below.
The follow-up to 2016’s chart-topping, GRAMMY® Award-nominated EPOCH, WEATHER‘s street date announcement was celebrated by the arrival of the second song from the album, “Pink & Blue,” also featuring vocals by Saint Sinner. Both “Japan” and “Pink & Blue” are available now at all DSPs and streaming services following their exclusive “World Record” and “World First” premieres, respectively, on Apple Music’s Beats 1.
“‘Pink & Blue’ is a proper pop song, and a good one at that,” says Stereogum. “Like ‘Easy,’ it features vocals from Saint Sinner, the singer born Hannah Cottrell. But this time, rather than merely adding atmospheric coos to Tycho’s electro-organic textures, she’s breathily intoning lovesick lyrics…Matched with a gently thwacking beat that calls back to early dubstep and eventually ambient synth-pop…”
PRE-ORDER WEATHER
“When setting out to record WEATHER I wanted to finally fulfill what had been a vision of mine since the beginning: to incorporate the most organic instrument of all, the human voice,” says Hansen. “While developing the initial concepts, I met Hannah Cottrell, aka Saint Sinner, and the vocal component of the album immediately came into focus. Our initial sessions were incredibly productive and I strongly identified with the imagery in her lyrics. Her vision folded effortlessly into mine and her voice integrated seamlessly into the sonic landscape opening new spaces for me as a songwriter and producer. It has been inspiring working with Hannah’s voice and hearing Tycho evolve into something that I had always hoped it someday would. My philosophy in life is that when you see a path clearly laid out you must follow it to see where it leads. As an artist you have to continuously challenge yourself and evolve to make genuine artistic statements. Looking back it’s clear that every step of the past 18 years has lead to this moment and I couldn’t be happier with the result.”
The first song that was released from WEATHER is called “Easy,” which Consequence of Sound called “a perfectly titled track as there’s a serenity to the song’s drive. Even with a quick and snappy groove skittering beneath the layers of airy synths, there’s a peaceful essence to the whole thing.”
LISTEN TO “EASY”
In support of WEATHER, Tycho will embark on an extensive world tour spanning 2019 and 2020, including stops at the Sydney Opera House, Japan’s Fuji Rock Festival, both the Los Angeles and Berkeley Greek Theatres and Summerstage in New York City. Longtime collaborators Zac Brown (bass/guitar) and Rory O’Connor (drums) along with touring member Billy Kim (keyboards/guitar/bass) will join Hansen on the “Weather World Tour.” Saint Sinner will also join the live band on all dates as the first touring vocalist with Tycho. WEATHER intends to reveal a more human side to the live show with the new energy of a vocalist.
Poolside will open every headlining show except for Los Angeles where Chrome Sparks will support. Tickets for all announced headline dates are onsale now. For updates and ticket availability, please visit http://www.tychomusic.com/#tour.
TYCHO
“WEATHER WORLD TOUR”
2019
JULY
21 – Byron Bay, Australia – Splendour In The Grass *
23 – Melbourne, Australia – Forum Melbourne
24 – Sydney, Australia – Sydney Opera House
26 – Niigata Prefecture, Japan – Fuji Rock Festival ’19 *
SEPTEMBER
5 – Los Angeles, CA – Greek Theatre **
6 – Berkeley, CA – Greek Theatre #
7 – Portland, OR – Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall #
8 – Seattle, WA – Paramount Theatre #
11 – Denver, CO – The Mission Ballroom #
13 – Minneapolis, MN – Palace Theatre #
15 – Chicago, IL – Aragon Ballroom #
16 – Toronto, ON – Sony Centre for the Performing Arts #
18 – Boston, MA – Wang Theatre – Boch Center #
19 – New York, NY – Summerstage #
20 – Philadelphia, PA – Franklin Music Hall #
21 – Slippery Rock, PA – Resonance Music & Arts Festival *
23 – Detroit, MI – The Masonic #
24 – Columbus, OH – Express Live #
26 – St Louis, MO – The Pageant #
27 – Kansas City, MO – CrossroadsKC #
# # #
2020
FEBRUARY
9 – Oslo, Norway – Rockefeller #
10 – Stockholm, Sweden – Vasteatern #
11 – Copenhagen, Denmark – Vega Main Hall #
13 – Hamburg, Germany – Uebel & Gefahrlich #
14 – Cologne, Germany – Live Music Hall #
15 – Paris, France – Elysée Montmartre #
17 – Brussels, Belgium – AB Ballroom @ Ancienne Belgique #
18 – Amsterdam, Netherlands – Paradiso #
19 – Berlin, Germany – Huxley’s #
21 – Warsaw, Poland – Praga Centrum #
23 – Prague, Czech Republic – Roxy #
24 – Budapest, Hungary – Akvarium #
25 – Vienna, Austria – WUK #
27 – Milan, Italy – Fabrique #
28 – Bologna, Italy – Estragon #
MARCH
1 – Barcelona, Spain – Sala Apolo #
5 – London, UK – Printworks #
* Festival Performance
** Chrome Sparks
# Poolside