Sparks have announced their 26th (!) studio album, The Girl Is Crying in Her Latte, to be released on May 26th via Island Records, the label that helped break the experimental art rock duo nearly five decades ago.
The band, comprised of brothers Ron and Russell Mael, revealed the new partnership via Twitter with a newspaper graphic of the duo and a statement that heralded their return to the label for a “new, bold, genre defying, modern masterpiece.” See Sparks’ full post below.
The Girl Is Crying in Her Latte marks nearly 50 years since the brothers signed to Island Records and released their breakthrough 1974 LP, Kimono My House. They released three more albums under the label before departing in 1976. In a joint statement, the band reflected on that era as “the one that forever cemented our relationship with the UK and also exposed Sparks to a bigger audience around the world.”
“And here we find ourselves in 2023, almost 50 years later, re-signing with Island Records, again with an album that we all feel is as bold and uncompromising as anything we did back then,” they added. “We’re happy that after so much time, we’ve reconnected with Island, sharing the same spirit of adventure that we all had way back when, but with our new album.”
Looking ahead, the band are set to headline two nights at London’s Royal Albert Hall in May and will also appear at Primavera Sound. Check for any deals on Sparks’ 2023 itinerary here and revisit our recap of their 2022 North American tour opener.
The group’s last studio album was 2020’s A Steady Drip, Drip, Drip. In 2021, Sparks debuted their musical romance film, Annette, for which the brothers contributed the story, lyrics, and full soundtrack. The year also saw the release of Edgar Wright’s music documentary, The Sparks Brothers. Check out our interview with Wright about “your favorite band’s favorite band” here.
BREAKING NEWS! Sparks signs with Island Records! New album coming May 2023!#TheGirlIsCryingInHerLatte ☕️ pic.twitter.com/76YsObTVwy
— SPARKS (@sparksofficial) January 24, 2023