Devendra Banhart is returning with his first new album since 2016. Titled Ma, the record will arrive on September 13 via Nonesuch. For now, the songwriter has shared the new album cut "Kantori Ongaku," as well as announced a North American tour — complete with Canadian dates.
The LP marks Banhart's first full-length since 2016's Ape in Pink Marble. According to a press release, "Ma, bursting with tender, autobiographical vignettes, displays a shift from the sonic experimentation of his previous albums to an intricate, captivating story-telling and emotional intimacy."
For a taste of this, you can watch a video for the newly shared album track "Kantori Ongaku," which roughly translates from Japanese to "country music" and is a nod to Haruomi Hosono.
The video is directed by Giraffe Studios and "features a full circle journey of vignettes that play on the dream-like quality of intimate activities." It also includes an interlude asking for donations to the I Love Venezuela Foundation.
Growing up in Venezuela, Banhart said in a statement, "My brother is in Venezuela, my cousins, my aunts and uncles. They are just holding their breath, in gridlock standstill. There's this helplessness. This place that has been a mother to you, that you're a mother to as well, and it's suffering so much. There is nothing you can do but send out love and remain in that sorrowful state."
Ma was recorded with longtime Banhart associate Noah Georgeson, and the cover art you see above is a oil painting done by Banhart himself. As you'll see in the tracklist below, the album also features a guest appearance by folk hero Vashti Bunyan.
As for Banhart's tour, the North American trek will kick off in mid-October. In addition to hitting various U.S. cities, the tour will make Canadian stops in Toronto (December 1) and Montreal (December 3).
See the full schedule below.
Ma:
1. Is This Nice?
2. Kantori Ongaku
3. Ami
4. Memorial
5. Carolina
6. Now All Gone
7. Love Song
8. Abre las Manos
9. Taking a Page
10. October 12
11. My Boyfriend's in the Band
12. The Lost Coast
13. Will I See You Tonight? [ft. Vashti Bunyan]
Tour dates:
09/27 Dana Point, CA - OHANA Festival
10/15 Ventura, CA - The Majestic Ventura Theater
10/16 San Francisco, CA - The Fillmore
10/18 Portland, OR - Crystal Ballroom
10/19 Seattle, WA - Moore Theatre
10/20 Eugene, OR - WOW Hall ^
10/22 Berkeley, CA - The UC Theatre
10/24 Los Angeles, CA - The Theatre at Ace Hotel
10/25 Santa Ana, CA - The Yost Theater
10/26 San Diego, CA - The Observatory North Park
10/27 Phoenix, AZ - Crescent Ballroom
10/30 Boulder, CO - Boulder Theater *
11/01 Omaha, NE - The Slowdown *
11/02 Minneapolis, MN - Varsity Theater *
11/03 Chicago, IL - Thalia Hall *
11/05 Memphis, TN - The Hi Tone *
11/07 Austin, TX - Stubbs (Levitation)
11/23 Leon, Guanajuato Mx - Tecate Bajio Festival
11/30 Detroit, MI - Museum of Contemporary Art *
12/01 Toronto, ON - Danforth Music Hall *
12/03 Montreal, QC - The Olympia *
12/04 Boston, MA - The Wilbur *
12/05 Brooklyn, NY - Brooklyn Steel *
12/07 Washington, D.C. - 930 Club *
12/08 Philadelphia, PA - Union Transfer *
* with Black Belt Eagle Scout
^ with Daniel Higgs
The LP marks Banhart's first full-length since 2016's Ape in Pink Marble. According to a press release, "Ma, bursting with tender, autobiographical vignettes, displays a shift from the sonic experimentation of his previous albums to an intricate, captivating story-telling and emotional intimacy."
For a taste of this, you can watch a video for the newly shared album track "Kantori Ongaku," which roughly translates from Japanese to "country music" and is a nod to Haruomi Hosono.
The video is directed by Giraffe Studios and "features a full circle journey of vignettes that play on the dream-like quality of intimate activities." It also includes an interlude asking for donations to the I Love Venezuela Foundation.
Growing up in Venezuela, Banhart said in a statement, "My brother is in Venezuela, my cousins, my aunts and uncles. They are just holding their breath, in gridlock standstill. There's this helplessness. This place that has been a mother to you, that you're a mother to as well, and it's suffering so much. There is nothing you can do but send out love and remain in that sorrowful state."
Ma was recorded with longtime Banhart associate Noah Georgeson, and the cover art you see above is a oil painting done by Banhart himself. As you'll see in the tracklist below, the album also features a guest appearance by folk hero Vashti Bunyan.
As for Banhart's tour, the North American trek will kick off in mid-October. In addition to hitting various U.S. cities, the tour will make Canadian stops in Toronto (December 1) and Montreal (December 3).
See the full schedule below.
Ma:
1. Is This Nice?
2. Kantori Ongaku
3. Ami
4. Memorial
5. Carolina
6. Now All Gone
7. Love Song
8. Abre las Manos
9. Taking a Page
10. October 12
11. My Boyfriend's in the Band
12. The Lost Coast
13. Will I See You Tonight? [ft. Vashti Bunyan]
Tour dates:
09/27 Dana Point, CA - OHANA Festival
10/15 Ventura, CA - The Majestic Ventura Theater
10/16 San Francisco, CA - The Fillmore
10/18 Portland, OR - Crystal Ballroom
10/19 Seattle, WA - Moore Theatre
10/20 Eugene, OR - WOW Hall ^
10/22 Berkeley, CA - The UC Theatre
10/24 Los Angeles, CA - The Theatre at Ace Hotel
10/25 Santa Ana, CA - The Yost Theater
10/26 San Diego, CA - The Observatory North Park
10/27 Phoenix, AZ - Crescent Ballroom
10/30 Boulder, CO - Boulder Theater *
11/01 Omaha, NE - The Slowdown *
11/02 Minneapolis, MN - Varsity Theater *
11/03 Chicago, IL - Thalia Hall *
11/05 Memphis, TN - The Hi Tone *
11/07 Austin, TX - Stubbs (Levitation)
11/23 Leon, Guanajuato Mx - Tecate Bajio Festival
11/30 Detroit, MI - Museum of Contemporary Art *
12/01 Toronto, ON - Danforth Music Hall *
12/03 Montreal, QC - The Olympia *
12/04 Boston, MA - The Wilbur *
12/05 Brooklyn, NY - Brooklyn Steel *
12/07 Washington, D.C. - 930 Club *
12/08 Philadelphia, PA - Union Transfer *
* with Black Belt Eagle Scout
^ with Daniel Higgs
