Byrne's Who Is The Sky? will be released on Sept. 5 by Matador Records. The announcement is accompanied by his lead single "Everybody Laughs," directed by Gabriel Barcia-Colombo. You can watch it below. The Talking Heads frontman has assembled a good cast of collaborators for Who Is the Sky? The album was produced by Kid Harpoon (Harry Styles, Miley Cyrus), while its 12 songs were arranged by the members of the New York-based chamber ensemble Ghost Train Orchestra.
We last saw Byrne in 2018 at the Winspear Opera House when he was touring American Utopia, his album that became a Broadway show and movie. In our review, he spoke about going full-ambition mode.
“This is the most ambitious show I’ve done since the shows that were filmed for Stop Making Sense,” Byrne said, referring to the 1984 Jonathan Deme concert film that's one of the greatest of all time.
Could this be the most ambitious album he's done? Musical friends such as St. Vincent, Paramore’s Hayley Williams, The Smile drummer Tom Skinner and American Utopia percussionist Mauro Refosco will make appearances on Who Is the Sky? In separate press statements on the album, Byrne said:
“Someone I know said, ‘David, you use the word “everybody” a lot.’ I suppose I do that to give an anthropological view of life in New York as we know it. Everybody lives, dies, laughs, cries, sleeps and stares at the ceiling. Everybody’s wearing everybody else’s shoes, which not everybody does, but I have done. I tried to sing about these things that could be seen as negative in a way balanced by an uplifting feeling from the groove and the melody, especially at the end, when St. Vincent and I are doing a lot of hollering and singing together. Music can do that – hold opposites simultaneously. I realized that when singing with Robyn earlier this year. Her songs are often sad, but the music is joyous.”Kid Harpoon added:
“It took me a second to realize, oh yeah, these songs are personal, but with David’s unique perspective on life in general. Walking around New York listening to the demo of Everybody Laughs was so joyous, because it made me feel like we’re all the same – we all laugh, cry and sing. The thing about David that resonates with a lot of people is that he’s in on the joke. He gets the absurdity of it all, and all of these personal observations are his perspective on it.”Byrne plans to tour the album extensively from the tail end of 2025 to the beginning of 2026. The touring band will comprise 13 musicians, singers, and dancers, including members of the American Utopia band, all of whom will be mobile throughout the set. The North American tour begins in September, with world tour dates in Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.
Over the weekend at Governors Ball in New York City, Olivia Rodrigo brought out Byrne for a surprise performance of "Burning Down the House." So epic.
Byrne will be in Dallas on Nov. 28 and Nov. 29, both dates at Music Hall at Fair Park. Tickets go on sale Friday, June 13, and can be purchased here.@laurjacksonn david byrne for burning down the house …i did not expect a guest omfg #govballnyc #govball #oliviarodrigo #gutstour #gutsworldtour ♬ original sound - lauren
