PolydorIf you’re a fan of The Who, here’s some great news to wake up to. We’ve not only got a new studio album on the way — the band’s first in 13 years — but also a tour to back it up.
The album first. Titled, simply, WHO, it’s due out November 22 and boasts 11 tracks. One of them, “Ball and Chain,” dropped Friday morning — an unabashed, hard-rocking political statement, with Roger Daltrey singing over Pete Townshend‘s driving guitar, “Down in Guantanamo/We still got the ball and chain/There’s a long road to travel/For justice to make its claim.”
WHO is available to order now from all the usual outlets, as well as the band’s official store. Order from the latter and you’ll have your choice of a vinyl bundle featuring extra tracks; a cassette tape; and a “completist’s set” featuring the vinyl offering, the cassette, and a CD.
“I think we’ve made our best album since Quadrophenia in 1973,” says Daltrey in a statement. “Pete hasn’t lost it, he’s still a fabulous songwriter, and he’s still got that cutting edge.”
“This album is almost all new songs written last year, with just two exceptions,” says Townshend. “There is no theme, no concept, no story, just a set of songs that I (and my brother Simon) wrote to give Roger Daltrey some inspiration, challenges and scope for his newly revived singing voice.”
As for the tour, it’ll kick off March 16 of next year in Manchester, England, and run for a total of ten dates through an April 8 show at London’s Wembley Arena. Unfortunately, no dates outside of the U.K. and Ireland so far. Tickets go on sale Friday, September 20 — check out The Who’s official website for details.
Here’s the WHO track list:
“All This Music Must Fade”
“Ball and Chain”
“I Don’t Wanna Get Wise”
“Detour”
“Beads on One String”
“Hero Ground Zero”
“Street Song”
“I’ll Be Back”
“Break the Newse”
“Rockin’ in Rage”
“She Rocked My World”
And here are the tour dates:
3/16 — Manchester Arena, England
3/18 — Dublin 3 Arena, Ireland
3/21 — Newcastle Utilita Arena, England
3/23 — Glasgow SSE Hydro Arena, Scotland
3/25 — Leeds First Direct Arena, England
3/30 — Cardiff Motorpoint Arena, Wales
4/1 — Birmingham Resorts World Arena, England
4/3 — Nottingham Motorpoint Arena, England
4/6 — Liverpool M&S Bank Arena, England
4/8 — London SSE Wembley Arena, England
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