Considering U.K. seven-piece Black Country, New Road had only three singles to their names before today, this may not be saying all that much, but their latest, “Track X,” is unlike anything the band has released to date. Taken from their much-anticipated debut album For the first time, coming Feb. 5 on Ninja Tune, the new song arrived Monday alongside its music video, both of which are unexpectedly soothing.
“‘Track X’ is a song we first worked on in 2018 but one that never made it out into our live performances,” says frontman Isaac Wood. “We decided to resurrect it during the recording of For the first time and assemble it in the studio. The story is old but a good one and worth telling. We believe that people will enjoy singing along.”
Director Bart Price says of the track’s accompanying video:
The music video for “Track X” is about nostalgia for being a kid and happy times with family, stupid moments with friends like feeding Cheetos to a giant horde of birds in a Walmart parking lot, and for Tumblr and YouTube videos of cats. But at the same time balanced with this is a comment on the transience of the past, like with the shots of the abandoned houses, and a sense that maybe what we remember isn’t quite real, like the idealised stock footage. I wanted to combine all of those emotions and thoughts together and make a 2000s-style American home video.
Paste recently tapped Black Country, New Road as one of 2020’s best new artists, praising their artfully unpredictable blend of post-punk and jazz instrumentation. “Track X” shows a new side of the band, leaning more on their melodic instincts by foregrounding a subdued guitar riff, string and synth accents, and Wood’s vocals, which are far less snarly than usual.
Black Country, New Road will headline a March 6 livestream at London’s Queen Elizabeth Hall (Southbank Centre) to celebrate For the first time’s release. The band recently rescheduled their U.K/E.U. tour dates, previously planned for April, for obvious reasons.
Watch the “Track X” video below.
