Nashville-based Australian singer songwriter Emma Swift has announced her new record Blonde on The Tracks, a reimagining of Bob Dylan songs.
The album available for pre-order now and release date is August 14.
Swifts says that six of the songs were recorded during a severe bout of depression in 2017, and the final two were recorded during lockdown. It’s produced by Patrick Sansone from Wilco and features many beloved East Nashville folks.
The pre-lockdown songs were recorded at Magnetic Sound on Dickerson Pike. The lockdown tunes at Swift’s house and overdubbed by Sansone at his. The first single, ‘I Contain Multitudes’, is a song Dylan himself only released in April this year.
Emma Swift – I Contain Multitudes from Emma Swift on Vimeo.
Swift wrote about the song on the socials: “When Bob Dylan released “I Contain Multitudes” this year, I quickly became possessed. It’s magnificent and heartbreaking, a love letter to words and art and music, to all that has been lost and all that might be redeemed. To me this song has become an obsession, a mantra, a prayer. I can’t hope to eclipse it, all I hope to do is allow more people to hear it, to feel comforted by it, and to love it the way I do.”
Swift has been been critical on the socials about exploitation of artists by streaming services, so has opted to release the new album exclusively through Bandcamp.
“With touring cancelled for the foreseeable future and the fate of the live music industry unknown, I decided to release this album through Bandcamp, rather than share across all platforms. I have made music videos and will make them available more broadly, but as for streaming of the album itself (as well as purchase of physical and digital downloads), Bandcamp is the platform where I feel most at home. They are the most ethical company working in digital music right now. They care about musicians and have shown genuine support for us. Bandcamp’s decision to waive revenue on March 20, May 1 and now June 5 is a show of solidarity in a time where we need it more than ever. I’d like to see all musicians embrace this platform as a cool alternative to those who don’t have our best interests at heart.”