Okkervil River have released a new song, “In a Light,” marking their first piece of new music since 2018.
“In a Light” is an expansive country-rock tune filled with organ, piano, pedal steel, rich harmonies, and intertwining guitar lines that occasionally take the song into spacier realms and lead an exuberant closing jam. Frontman Will Sheff explained in a statement that he wrote “In a Light” with guitarist Will Graefe, and that Okkervil River recorded it around the time they were making their 2018 album, In the Rainbow Rain, but that the song didn’t quite fit on that project.
Okkervil River had another song lying around as well, “It Hasn’t Happened Yet,” which will be released on Friday, May 14th. Sheff described the two songs as “two sides of the same coin, supporting each other by saying two different but complementary things. And even though I started them a couple of years in the past they both seem to want to talk about the present and future.”
Along with releasing “In a Light,” Sheff announced that he’ll be embarking on a solo Okkervil River tour this fall, co-headlining the shows with Damien Jurado. An East Coast run will kick off September 21st in Evanston, Illinois, and wrap October 7th in Holyoke, Massachusetts; a West Coast run will follow starting December 1st in Santa Ana, California, and ending on December 11th in Bellingham, Washington. Tickets for all shows (save an October 2nd gig in Vienna, Virginia) are on pre-sale starting today, May 11th, while they’ll go on sale to the general public May 14th on Okkervil River’s website.
Okkervil River Tour Dates
September 21 – Evanston, IL – SPACE
September 22 – Evanston, IL – SPACE
September 23 – Grand Rapids, MI – Wealthy Theatre
September 24 – Ann Arbor, MI – The Ark
September 25 – Louisville, KY – Headliners Music Hall
September 26 – Nelsonville, OH – Stuart’s Opera House
September 28 – Nashville, TN – Third Man Records
September 29 – Atlanta, GA – City Winery
September 30 – Charlotte, NC – Neighborhood Theatre
October 1 – Carrboro, NC – Cat’s Cradle
October 2 – Vienna, VA – Barns at Wolf Trap *
October 3 – Woodstock, NY Levon Helm Studios ^
October 5 – Boston, MA – City Winery
October 6 – Brooklyn, NY – To Be Announced
October 7 – Holyoke, MA – Gateway City Arts
December 1 – Santa Ana, CA – Ebell of Santa Ana
December 2 – Ojai, CA – Ojai Women’s Club
December 3 – Oakland, CA – Starline Social Club
December 4 – Big Sur, CA – Henry Miller Memorial Library (early show)
December 4 – Big Sur, CA – Henry Miller Memorial Library (late show)
December 5 – Sonoma, CA – Sebastiani Theater
December 8 – Portland, OR – Mississippi Studios
December 9 – Portland, OR – Mississippi Studios
December 10 – Tacoma, WA – Fawcett Hall
December 11 – Bellingham, WA – Wild Buffalo
NEW RELEASES
An expanded edition of The Beatles’ ‘Rubber Soul’ is set to arrive with a previously unheard John Lennon demo included in the collection.
Read More: Paul McCartney: “Writing a song is still a magic feeling for me, and hopefully always will be”
The refreshed editions of the celebrated 1965 record will be released on October 2 through UMG and Apple Corps Ltd. Producer Giles Martin and engineer Sam Okell handled the new mixes.
More than 60 years after its original release, the influential album will be available in updated stereo and Dolby Atmos mixes for the first time. The box set will also contain the initial mono mix and the original Capitol US Album edition.
In addition to the familiar tracklist, which includes popular songs such as ‘Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)’, ‘Nowhere Man’, ‘Michelle’, and ‘In My Life’, the collection features the double A side single ‘Day Tripper / We Can Work It Out’. Fans will also receive several previously unavailable studio recordings and home demos.
Different versions of the release include the 14 song Special Edition Standard, the 30 track Special Edition Deluxe, and a Blu ray Edition containing 16 tracks and four videos.
The largest package is the Special Edition Super Deluxe, which will be offered as either a five LP box set or a four CD box set containing 68 tracks. Its contents include the new stereo version of ‘Rubber Soul’, two Sessions and Demos discs, the album’s original mono master, the original Capitol US edition, and the seven inch A side single.
Among the demos is ‘Little Girl’, a track written and recorded by Lennon that has never been officially released since it was originally created.
The Super Deluxe packages also feature an 88 page hardcover book with a newly written introduction from Paul McCartney and a foreword assembled using Lennon’s own words.
‘Rubber Soul’ was completed across four weeks in October and November 1965. The sessions took place shortly after the Fab Four played their record setting show for over 55,000 people at Shea Stadium in New York.
Every new edition includes the updated stereo mix of the album, created directly from the original four track master tapes. The team used separation technology developed at Peter Jackson’s WingNut Films Productions Ltd.
Visit here to place a preorder and see the complete tracklist for the “Special Edition Super Deluxe” package below.
The ‘Rubber Soul Special Edition Super Deluxe Box Set’ tracklist is:
LP1: New stereo mix
Side A
Side B
LP2: Sessions, Demos and The Single, Disc 1
Side A
Side B
LP3: Sessions, Demos and The Single, Disc 2
Side A
Side B
LP4: Mono
Side A
Side B
LP5: US Album
Side A
Side B
Seven inch single
Side A
Side AA
Elsewhere in Beatles news, the group will be explored through a collection of four films directed by Sam Mendes. All four movies are currently scheduled to reach cinemas at the same time in April 2028.
Paul Mescal will portray Paul McCartney, while Harris Dickinson will play John Lennon, Joseph Quinn will appear as George Harrison, and Barry Keoghan will take on the role of Ringo Starr. Each movie will present the band’s journey through the eyes of a different member.
It has also been announced that 3 Savile Row, the famous London location closely connected to the group, will welcome visitors for the first time next year as part of the first official Beatles fan experience.
Earlier this year, Paul McCartney released his latest album, ‘The Boys of Dungeon Lane’. It marks his first solo project since 2020’s ‘McCartney III’ and includes his first duet with former Beatles bandmate Ringo Starr.
Before the record arrived, McCartney spoke with NME about both the past and future of his remarkable career. He discussed his “excitement” about appearing on the upcoming The Rolling Stones album and addressed whether retirement is part of his plans.
