Aldous Harding’s fifth studio album Train on the Island is out now.
Recorded at Rockfield Studios in Wales with longtime collaborator John Parish (PJ Harvey, Dry Cleaning), the 10-track release continue a working relationship that has shaped Harding’s recent albums Party (2017), Designer (2019), and Warm Chris (2022).
Across Train on the Island, Harding is joined by various musicians including pedal steel player Joe Harvey-Whyte, harpist Mali Llywelyn, synth artist Thomas Poli, and drummer Sebastian Rochford (Polar Bear).
The album follows a run of singles including “One Stop”, “Venus in the Zinnia”, and most recently “Coats”, which arrived this week ahead of the full album.
Harding’s record is available digitally as well as on CD and multiple vinyl editions, including limited-run pressings through Flying Nun and Holiday Records. Listen to it in full below.
To support the release, Harding will return home to Aotearoa New Zealand this November for a four-date national tour. She will play shows in Kirikiriroa Hamilton, Ōtautahi Christchurch, Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, and Pōneke Wellington during that month.
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Before returning home, Harding will tour across the UK, US, Europe, the US between May and October, with fellow Aotearoa artist Vera Ellen joining her for select dates.
Speaking previously about her approach to long-term creative work, Harding has often leaned into character-driven songwriting. On Warm Chris, she continued a streak of critically acclaimed releases with Rolling Stone AU/NZ noting her ability to “imbue even the most innocuous of lines with profundity.”
Harding also featured in two Rolling Stone AU/NZ lists last year, with “The Barrel” placing in our Best Australian and New Zealand Songs of the 21st Century So Far countdown, while Warm Chris was included in our Best New Zealand Albums of the 2020s So Far countdown.
Aldous Harding’s Train on the Island is out now via Flying Nun Records and 4AD.
