Nilüfer Yanya fucking rules. If you know, you know; if you don't, hopefully you will soon. The singer-songwriter has announced her third studio album, previewed today by smouldering pseudo-title track, "Method Actor."
My Method Actor is due September 13 via Ninja Tune, marking Yanya's debut LP for the label. It's the follow-up to 2022's excellent PAINLESS, which was one of Exclaim!'s Best Albums that year and brought with it "midnight sun" as one of its Best Songs.
Featuring the recent single "Like I Say (I runaway)," My Method Actor was written and recorded with the artist's creative partner, Wilma Archer, in intimate sessions between London, Wales and Eastbourne. "This is the most intense album, in that respect," Yanya explained in a statement. "Because it's only been us two. We didn't let anyone else into the bubble."
The video for "Method Actor" was shot in an old hotel room in Benidorm, Spain, in a single take. Of the song, Yanya, said, "I was researching method acting — and from what I read, it's based on finding this one memory in your life, a life-altering, life-changing memory. The reason why some people find method acting traumatic and maybe not safe mentally, is because you're always going back to that moment. It can be good or bad but you're always feeding off the energy, something that's defined you — and that's what helps you become the character."
She added, "It's a bit like being a musician. When you're performing, you're still trying to invoke the energy and emotion of when you first wrote it, in that moment. It definitely feels like you're having to recreate or step into that headspace."
Check out the track below, where you'll also find the full album tracklist. Yanya is touring North America this fall, with Canadian concerts coming up in Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver.
My Method Actor:
1. Keep On Dancing
2. Like I Say (I runaway)
3. Method Actor
4. Binding
5. Mutations
6. Ready for Sun (touch)
7. Call It Love
8. Faith's Late
9. Made Out of Memory
10. Just a Western
11. Wingspan