Nickel Creek announce first album in 9 years, share "Strangers"
Nickel Creek–the trio of Chris Thile, Sara Watkins, and Sean Watkins–have announced their first new album in nine years, Celebrants, due March 24 via Thirty Tigers. It was produced by longtime collaborator Eric Valentine, and it features bass by Mike Elizondo (50 Cent, Fiona Apple, Turnstile), who also worked with Thile as the music director on Live from Here with Chris Thile. “This is a record about embracing the friction inherent in real human connection,” the band says. “We begin the record yearning for and pursuing harmonious connection. We end the record having realized that truly harmonious connection can only be achieved through the dissonance that we’ve spent our entire adult lives trying to avoid.”
The first single is “Strangers,” a propulsive track that finds the band’s indie-friendly bluegrass in fine form. “This song is an exploration of the ostensibly rewarding but often awkward, even excruciating act of catching up with an old friend,” Thile says. “Can the connection be reforged? Should it be?” Check out the song and the album’s 18-song tracklist below.
Nickel Creek also have upcoming shows, including a sold-out three-night run at the Ryman in Nashville, Railbird Festival, and more. All dates below.
Tracklist
1. Celebrants
2. Strangers
3. Water Under the Bridge, Part 1
4. The Meadow
5. Thinnest Wall
6. Going Out…
7. Holding Pattern
8. Where the Long Line Leads
9. Goddamned Saint
10. Stone’s Throw
11. Goddamned Saint, Reprise
12. From the Beach
13. To The Airport
14. …Despite the Weather
15. Hollywood Ending
16. New Blood
17. Water Under the Bridge, Part 2
18. Failure Isn’t Forever
Nickel Creek — 2023 Tour Dates
January 27—London, U.K.—Union Chapel* (SOLD OUT)
January 28—London, U.K.—Union Chapel* (SOLD OUT)
January 29—Glasgow, U.K.—City Halls, Celtic Connections* (SOLD OUT)
April 27—Nashville, TN—Ryman Auditorium (SOLD OUT)
April 28— Nashville, TN—Ryman Auditorium (SOLD OUT)
April 29— Nashville, TN—Ryman Auditorium (SOLD OUT)
June 4—Lexington, KY—Railbird Festival (SOLD OUT)
June 15-18—Telluride, CO—Telluride Bluegrass Festival (SOLD OUT)
September 1— London, U.K.—Barbican Centre (on-sale 1/27)
*with Lau Noah
