Devendra Banhart has released “Fireflies,” the latest track taken from his upcoming album, Flying Wig, out September 22nd via Mexican Summer. The accompanying visualizer features Anthony Ivancich and Julia Crockett – two pillars of the Stud Country Queer Country Western Dancing community – two stepping through Los Angeles’ Club Bahia as Devendra and Mel Shimkavitz look on.
Speaking about the track, Devendra says, “This is a song of regret …. With a bit of acceptance of the temporal nature of all phenomena thrown in there….. I wanted to write something about Paradox, the space where two contradicting views can exist and both be true….”
On September 23, Devendra will kick off a global headline tour in Mexico City with US stops in Chicago, Boston, New York, Los Angeles and more.
Flying Wig, recorded in Topanga Canyon, Southern California with acclaimed Welsh musician Cate Le Bon as producer, is a landscape of recurrent dualities; a can of paradoxes, a box of worms. What goes up, must come down, eventually. “It’s about transmuting despair into gratitude, wounds into forgiveness, grief into praise,” ruminates Banhart.
The redwood and pine-surrounded cabin studio (once owned by Neil Young) somehow birthed something slick, city pop-adjacent and Eno-esque. The album’s contributing circle was kept small and familiar; its personnel drawn from both artists’ tried, tested and trusted list of collaborators (Nicole Lawrence on pedal steel and guitar, Todd Dahlhoff on bass, Greg Rogove on drums, Euan Hinshelwood on saxophone), with Le Bon playing a panoply of additional parts (synths, guitar, percussion, bass, piano) herself. The record’s finishing touches also came courtesy of Le Bon stalwarts, with mixing and engineering by Samur Khouja and mastering by Heba Kadry.
DEVENDRA BANHART WORLD TOUR DATES
Sept 23 Mexico City, MX Mexican Summer Fifteen Further at Teatro De La Ciudad Esperanza Iris
Oct 3 Iowa City, IA The Englert Theatre +
Oct 4 Chicago, IL Thalia Hall *
Oct 6 Toronto, ONT The Phoenix Concert Theatre *
Oct 7 Montreal, QC Corona Theatre *
Oct 8 Burlington, VT Higher Ground *
Oct 9 Boston, MA The Sinclair @
Oct 11 New York, NY Webster Hall @
Oct 12 Philadelphia, PA Union Transfer @
Oct 13 Asbury Park, NJ Asbury Lanes ^
Oct 14 Washington, DC The Howard Theatre #
Nov 7 Lisbon, PT Coliseu
Nov 8 Braga, PT Theatro Circo
Nov 10 Madrid, ES Palacio Municipal %
Nov 11 Valencia, ES La Rambleta %
Nov 12 Barcelona, ES Paral.lel 62 %
Nov 14 Paris, FR Le Grand Rex %
Nov 15 London, UK Troxy %
Nov 18 Lyon, FR Le Transbordeur %
Nov 19 Lausanne, CH Theatre de l’Octogone %
Nov 21 Milan, IT Auditorium Fondazione Cariplo %
Nov 22 Trieste, IT Teatro Politeama Rossetti %
Nov 23 Vienna, AT Globe %
Nov 25 Berlin, DE Passionskirche %
Nov 26 Hamburg, DE Kampnagel %
Nov 28 Amsterdam, NL Paradiso %
Nov 29 Brussels, BE Ancienne Belgique %
Dec 6 San Diego, CA Observatory North Park !
Dec 7 Los Angeles, CA The Belasco !
Dec 8 San Luis Obispo Fremont Theater +
Dec 9 San Francisco, CA The Fillmore !
Dec 11 Portland, OR Revolution Hall !
Dec 12 Seattle, Wa Neptune Theatre !
Dec 13 Vancouver, BC Commodore Ballroom !
! with Hayden Pedigo
* with Le Ren
@ with Miho Hatori
^ with Soma
% with John Moods
+ with Rogov
# with H. Hawkline