Blondie has just released a deluxe reissue of its 1999 comeback album, No Exit, featuring multiple bonus tracks. In a new NME interview, founding members Debbie Harry and Chris Stein chatted about the reissue, but they also discussed Blondie’s upcoming studio album and the possibility of the band touring again in the future.
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As previously reported, the new album is titled High Noon and is due out sometime in 2026.
Stein noted that the album originally was supposed to be released in late 2025, but now “it’ll maybe be in the first or second quarter of next year.”
Regarding the album’s sound, Harry said, “I think that it’s a traditional Blondie composite of sounds and styles of music. That’s a format we’ve stuck with from the get-go. Over the years we’ve gotten better and better at it, and we’ve also taken a few outside tracks from outside artists.”
She mentioned that High Noon includes songs written ex-Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr and Sex Pistols bassist Glen Matlock. Matlock has been part of Blondie’s touring lineup in recent years. Harry also shared, “ Chris did a lot of writing for this one, and I did a lot of lyrics.”
Stein added, “The lyrics are terrific. It’s very … sophisticated, mature, and also accessible.”
Blondie’s longtime drummer, Clem Burke, also played on the album. Sadly, Burke passed away in April 2025 after a brief battle with cancer at age 70.
“Clem was OK when we did this new record,” Stein pointed out. “His situation was very sudden and very fast. It shocked everybody.”
On Blondie’s Potential Future Plans
Harry and Stein told NME that Burke’s death might signal the end of Blondie as a touring and recording act.
Regarding whether Blondie will tour again, Debbie said, “Well it was Chris, Clem and myself who were the only original members doing live shows. We just lost Clem, and Chris isn’t playing anymore [due to health issues]… but maybe that could change.”
The 80-year-old Rock & Roll Hall of Famer continued, “Essentially, I don’t know. I’ve never liked it when there was just one original member performing and everybody else there is a stand-in. [That said,] the guys I’ve been working with until this last tour are terrific. I’ve been working with them for at least five years in most cases, and it’s been a privilege to work with Glen Matlock, but I just feel like they deserve more of the identity somehow.
She then offered, “Maybe if I were to rename whatever version it is using Blondie as an umbrella term… like ‘Blondie Presents,’ I’d be tempted. But, I just don’t feel comfortable marching out on stage without my original guys and calling it Blondie. It doesn’t make sense to me.”
As for whether Blondie will make another album, Stein said, “It’s hard to say. I don’t know. I’ve been dealing with health bullshit, so I don’t know if I’ll get back to making music… hopefully at some point I’ll get back at it.”
Harry added, “When it comes to another Blondie album [after High Noon], I think it’s probably the same thing that I said about doing shows, maybe it would be ‘Blondie Presents’ or something like that. I haven’t really ironed it out yet.”
More About the No Exit Reissue
The deluxe reissue of No Exit was released on October 31. The collection is available as a two-CD set and a two-LP vinyl package.
The two-CD version includes the bonus track “Hot Shot,” plus seven remixes. The two-LP set will mark No Exit’s first-ever release on vinyl. It also will feature “Hot Shot,” as well as three remixes.
Released in February 1999, No Exit was Blondie’s first new studio album since 1982’s The Hunter. It included the chart-topping U.K. hit “Maria.” No Exit peaked at No. 18 on the Billboard 200 and No. 3 on the U.K. albums chart.
To promote the reissue, Blondie debuted a video presentation titled The “No Exit” Interrogation Tapes on the band’s YouTube channel. The short film features grainy black-and-white footage of Harry, Stein, and video director Rob Roth, answering questions about the album, its expanded version, the “Maria” music video, and more.
(Photo by Dave J Hogan/Getty Images)
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