The rumors are true: Ed Sheeran will share his fall-themed seventh studio album next month (September). Autumn Variations, set for release on September 29, is themed around the formative, life-changing events and experiences the season can bring.
“Last autumn, I found that my friends and I were going through so many life changes,” a statement from Sheeran reads. “After the heat of the summer, everything either calmed, settled, fell apart, came to a head, or imploded.
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“When I went through a difficult time at the start of last year, writing songs helped me understand my feelings and come to terms with what was going on, and when I learned about my friend’s different situations, I wrote songs, some from their perspectives, some from mine, to capture how they and I viewed the world at that time,” he continues. “There were highs of falling in love and new friendships among lows of heartbreak, depression, loneliness and confusion.”
[RELATED: 4 Songs You Didn’t Know Ed Sheeran Wrote for Other Artists]
Today’s (August 24) album announcement comes a week after Sheeran teased the project with a nostalgic, 90s-themed infomercial. The National guitarist Aaron Dessner, who previously served as producer on Sheeran’s albums Equals and Subtract, played a pivotal role in creating Autumn Variations.
“My dad and brother told me about a composer called Elgar, who composed Enigma Variations, where each of the 14 compositions were about a different one of his friends,” explains Sheeran. “This is what inspired me to make this album. When I recorded Subtract with Aaron Dessner, we clicked immediately. We wrote and recorded non-stop and this album was born out of that partnership. I feel he has captured the feeling of autumn so wonderfully in his sonics and I hope everyone loves it as much as I do.”
Sheeran is currently out on an extensive North American headlining tour, which continues through the end of September. You can find a complete list of upcoming concert takes and ticketing information at Ed Sheeran’s official website.
Autumn Variations Track List:
1. “Magical”
2. “England”
3. “Amazing”
4. “Plastic Bag”
5. “Blue”
6. “American Town”
7. “That’s on Me”
8. “Page”
9. “Midnight”
10. “Spring”
11. “Punchline”
12. “When Will I Be Alright”
13. “The Day I Was Born”
14. “Head > Heels”
(Photo by Annie Leibovitz, Courtesy of Elektra Records)
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