John Cale Announces New Album, Shares Video for New Song 'How We See the Light'

John Cale Announces New album, Shares Video for New Song 'How We See the Light'

POPtical Illusion Out June 14 via Double Six/Domino

March 26, 2024

By Mark Redfern

Photo by Madeline McManus

John Cale Announces New album, POPtical Illusionand shared his first single, “How We See the Light,” via a music video. POPtical Illusion will be released June 14 via Double Six/Domino. Pepi Ginsberg directed the “How We See the Light” video. Check it out below, followed by the tracklist and album art.

POPtical Illusion is fast tracking MERCY, which was his first new album in a decade and was released in January 2023 via Double Six/Domino. This album featured a number of notable collaborators including Weyes Blood, Animal Collective, Sylvan Esso, Laurel Halo, Tei Shi, Fat White Family and Actress. MERCY was one of our top 100 albums of 2023. A press release notes that POPtical Illusion “it is not at all MERCY IIor some garbage collection'.

Cale produced the new album with longtime artistic collaborator Nita Scott at his studio in Los Angeles. Cale was a founding member of the legendary 60s band The Velvet Underground, but often tried to push his music into the future, rather than reveling in past glories.

Read our 2023 interview with John Cale MERCY.

Read our review of MERCY.

POPtical Illusion Track List:

1. God Made Me Do It (Don't Ask Me Again)
2. Davis and Wales
3. Calling You Out
4. Edge of Reason
5. I am angry
6. How we see light
7. Company Commander
8. Regulation of fires
9. Shark-Shark
10. Funkball the Brewster
11. All to the good
12. Laughing In My Sleep
13. There will be no river

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