Who Is the Sky?
| Who Is the Sky? | ||||
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | September 5, 2025 | |||
| Genre | Art pop | |||
| Length | 37:33 38:49 (Apple Music version) | |||
| Label | Matador | |||
| Producer | Kid Harpoon | |||
| David Byrne chronology | ||||
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| Ghost Train Orchestra chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Who Is the Sky? | ||||
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Who Is the Sky? is an upcoming studio album by David Byrne, scheduled for release on September 5, 2025. The album, recorded in 2024, features instrumentation by Ghost Train Orchestra and production by Kid Harpoon.[1] This will be Byrne's first studio album since American Utopia (2018). The album was announced on June 10, 2025 alongside the release of the first single, "Everybody Laughs", with tour dates from September 2025 to March 2026 also announced on the same day. Byrne has stated that the Who Is the Sky? Tour will involve aspects of his previous American Utopia Tour, such as mobile performers, alongside more visual aspects including "locations". The album features contributions from recurring Byrne collaborator St. Vincent as well as Hayley Williams of Paramore, Tom Skinner of The Smile, and Hamilton Leithauser of The Walkmen.
Recording
In May 2024, a Rolling Stone interview with Talking Heads ended with a note that Byrne was working on a new studio album. Recording sessions began later the same month at Power Station studios in New York City. The recording sessions included large involvement from Ghost Train Orchestra, who had performed with Byrne (as well as Kronos Quartet and various guests) at The Town Hall covering songs by Moondog in April. Ghost Train Orchestra and its member shared photos and videos from the sessions on social media. A second set of recording sessions took place in September 2024 at the same studio.
Songs
One of the upcoming songs for the album, "Moisturizing Thing", explores a story about magic moisturizer making David Byrne look like he's three years old. This song has been performed live twice, in January 2024 and October 2024, and was revealed in a 2023 interview at 92NY.
Coinciding with the announcement of the album and tour, the first single and opening track of the album, "Everybody Laughs", was released on June 10, 2025 with a music video directed by Gabriel Barcia-Colombo.
Another song recorded for the album, "She Explains Things To Me", was performed at two events in May 2025.
Track listing
All tracks are written by David Byrne
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Everybody Laughs" | 3:48 |
| 2. | "When We Are Singing" | 3:24 |
| 3. | "My Apartment Is My Friend" | 3:03 |
| 4. | "A Door Called No" | 2:35 |
| 5. | "What Is the Reason for It?" (featuring Hayley Williams) | 3:11 |
| 6. | "I Met the Buddha at a Downtown Party" | 3:14 |
| 7. | "Don't Be Like That" | 3:01 |
| 8. | "The Avant Garde" | 3:42 |
| 9. | "Moisturizing Thing" | 2:42 |
| 10. | "I'm an Outsider" | 3:32 |
| 11. | "She Explains Things to Me" | 2:19 |
| 12. | "The Truth" | 3:02 |
| Total length: | 37:33 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 13. | "DefCon" | 1:16 |
| Total length: | 38:49 | |
Sources
- ↑ Ghost Train Orchestra. “Instagram.” Www.instagram.com, 26 May 2024, www.instagram.com/p/C7dFlA-gGAr/?img_index=10. Accessed 30 July 2024.