Brian Eno has shared a new track, “We Let It In”, from his latest studio album, FOREVERANDEVERNOMORE, set for release on October 14 on vinyl, CD, and digital formats. The record was made at his studios in West London and Norfolk. A song-based album, Brian’s vocals are featured on the majority of the 10 tracks, which makes it a first since 2005’s Another Day On Earth.
Unveiled today is the track “We Let It In”, a haunting hymnal in which Eno’s daughter Darla sings an angelic counterpoint to Brian’s vocal. An ominous snarl of sound is detectable, but when Brian concludes “the whole of it in gorgeous flame,” we are left in no doubt that “We Let It In”. The new video for the song, also out today, takes its inspiration from the song’s lyrics, and was created by London-based, multi-disciplinary artist, Orfeo Tagiuri and Brian. The handwriting was provided by his granddaughter, Anya. You can watch it below.
A vocal album as mentioned, FOREVERANDEVERNOMORE is made up of 10 distinct songs and Brian has experimented on the record using tonal over major chord changes, “My voice has changed, it’s lowered, it’s become a different personality I can sing from. I don’t want to sing like a teenager, it can be melancholy, a bit regretful. As for writing songs again – it’s more landscapes, but this time with humans in them.
“I like creating worlds, that’s what I do as an artist, creating sonic worlds. Now after quite a long absence of humans in those worlds I have tried putting one in and seeing how they feel in the world I’ve made.”
Released in July as an introduction to the new album, “There Were Bells” was written by Brian Eno for a performance by him and his brother Roger at UNESCO World Heritage site, the Acropolis in August 2021. It was 45 degrees in Athens on the day of the concert with wildfires raging just outside the city, prompting his introductory comment “I thought, here we are at the birthplace of Western civilization, probably witnessing the end of it.”
“We Let It In” and “There Were Bells” provide a poignant reminder of the current climate emergency, a theme that is explored throughout the album.
