Anna B Savage has announced the upcoming release of her new album, You and I are Earth, set to be released on January 24th via City Slang. This album, produced by John ‘Spud’ Murphy, follows her 2022 album in|FLUX. The announcement comes with the release of a new single titled ‘Agnes’, featuring Irish musician Anna Mieke. The album artwork and tracklist have also been revealed.
Speaking about the inspiration behind the new song, Savage shared:
This song draws inspiration from Irish folklore, therapy practices, and a tweet. During therapy sessions, we engaged in meditation and visualization, which alternated between being both frightening and deeply comforting. At the same time, I was immersed in stories of Selkies and Faeries, and it was through reading a tweet that I found a connection between folklore and my personal therapeutic journey. The song captures the moment of relief followed by fear, symbolized by the act of turning your clothes inside out to free yourself from the ‘stray sod’.
‘Agnes’ and the character it represents embody the mix of fascination and fear, joy and reverence that I experienced during these lessons. Agnes is portrayed as both benevolent and kind with lines like ‘you can come here any time’, as well as deeply unsettling with phrases like ‘she’s tucking me [under the ground]… leaving me over here’. Through this song, I explored the idea of embracing conflicting emotions and being at peace with them. When I thought of who could voice Agnes, Anna Mieke immediately came to mind. I admire her music, and her vocals and lyrics have a delicate and ethereal quality that perfectly captures the essence of Agnes. I am grateful to her for bringing Agnes to life through her interpretation of the song.
You and I are Earth features contributions from Kate Ellis and Caimin Gilmore of Crash Ensemble, Cormac MacDiarmada of Lankum, and Anna Mieke on vocals, strings, harmonium, bouzouki, taishōgoto, and clarinets. Savage describes the album as “a love letter to a man and to Ireland.”
She added, “While writing my first album, I was grappling with difficult emotions and trying to make sense of things I didn’t fully understand. With the second album, I had undergone therapy and was beginning to understand myself better, but my past self was still holding me back. However, with this new album, the process was different.”
For the full Artist Spotlight interview with Anna B Savage, click here.
You and I are Earth Cover Artwork:
Tracklist for You and I are Earth:
1. Talk To Me
2. Lighthouse
3. Donegal
4. Big & Wild
5. Mo Cheol Thú
6. Incertus
7. I Reach For You In My Sleep
8. Agnes [feat. Anna Mieke]
9. You & I Are Earth
10. The Rest Of Our Lives