How do you follow-up a Grammy-nominated debut album? With a Grammy-nominated sophomore album, of course! If you're planning to participate in a Grammy pool next year, you should probably wager a few bucks on Mumford and Sons' upcoming album Babel.
While the British quartet failed to take home a golden gramophone last year for their smashing debut album Sigh No More -- even Grammy goddess Adele called it her favorite album -- Marcus Mumford and the boys may have another shot with their highly anticipated second release.
Mumford and Sons will release Babel on Sept. 25, the same day that both the new Green Day album ¡Uno! and the new No Doubt album, Push and Shove, drop.
Mumford and Sons issued the following statement regarding Babel's upcoming release:
"We had started writing new songs well before we got into the studio to record. At first, we peeled ourselves off the road quite reluctantly. We love playing live, obviously, but it had also become an important part of our creative process, we had been writing and rehearsing in soundchecks, and sort of 'road-testing' new songs on our very gracious audiences. But then we fell in love with recording again. The album started to come together, and with the help of Markus Dravs once more (and engineer Robin Baynton), we started to relish the challenge of making this album. As a band, we've never been closer or more collaborative, all working to our strengths. And so we feel that this record is a natural progression that we're proud of, and we cannot wait to take it out on the road."
Fans of Sigh No More, can breath a sigh of relief. Band member Ben Lovett recently told Rolling Stone that the band's new album will not be all that different from their hit debut album.
"There's similarities, yeah," he said. "Nothing's really changed in our dynamic as a band. We write songs together and they're very much based in our experiences. The instruments are pretty much the same, except for a few we've picked up along the way. For the most part, it's a progression. We don't want to reinvent ourselves."
Mumford and Sons kick off their 15-date summer U.S. tour in Hoboken, New Jersey. Babel will be available to pre-order through the band's website on July 23. Listen to "Ghosts That We Knew" and "Whispers in the Dark" -- as performed live -- below.
Babel track listing:
"Babel"
"Whispers in the Dark"
"I Will Wait"
"Holland Road"
"Ghosts That We Knew"
"Lover of the Light
"Lovers' Eyes"
"Reminder"
"Hopeless Wanderer"
"Broken Crown"
"Below My Feet"
"Not With Haste"
Mumford & Sons U.S. tour dates:
8/1 Hoboken, NJ – Pier A
8/4 Portland, ME – Gentlemen of the Road Stopover Show with Mumford & Sons and St. Vincent, Dawes, the Maccabees, Apache Relay, Simone Felice and Haim
8/6 Providence, RI – Providence Performing Arts Centre
8/7 Canandaigua, NY – Marvin Sands Performing Arts Center
8/9 Portsmouth, VA – nTelos Wireless Pavilion
8/11 Bristol, Tennessee – Gentlemen of the Road Stopover Show with Mumford & Sons and Dawes, JEFF the Brotherhood, the Very Best, Apache Relay, Simone Felice, Justin Townes Earl and Haim
8/13 Louisville, KY – Louisville Waterfront Park
8/14 Columbus, OH – The LC Pavilion
8/18 – Dixon, Illinois – Gentlemen of the Road Stopover Show with Mumford & Sons and Gogol Bordello, Dawes, Abigail Washburn, the Very Best, Apache Relay and Haim
8/20 Lincoln, NE – Pinewood Bowl Theatre
8/21 Laramie, WY – Gryphon Theatre
8/22 Magna, UT – The Saltair
8/25 – Monterey, CA – Gentlemen of the Road Stopover Show with Mumford & Sons and Gogol Bordello, the Very Best, Apache Relay and Haim
8/28 Morrison, CO – Red Rocks Amphitheatre
8/29 Morrison, CO – Red Rocks Amphitheatre
9/1 Aspen, CO – Aspen Jazz Festival
Before You Go
