Radius, Allen Stone’s third album and first for Capitol Records – will be released on May 26. Made in close collaboration with Swedish soul singer/songwriter Magnus Tingsek and with producers like Benny Cassette (Kanye West) and Malay (Frank Ocean), the album reaffirms Allen’s commitment to making uncompromisingly soulful music that transcends all pop conventions. See below for track listing. Radius is the follow-up to Allen’s self-released and self-titled sophomore album, which entered the Top 10 of Billboard’s Heatseekers chart. “Upside,” the first single from Radius, was released today and can now be streamed below.
Allen will celebrate the release of Radius with five shows in his hometown of Seattle, WA. The run – which is the first in GreenLight Media and Marketing’s “Evolution of an Artist” series – traces Allen’s rise as a live performer in Seattle’s music scene. It kicks off with an April 13 show at the Triple Door, one of the first venues Allen played, and wraps up with a headline show at the majestic Paramount Theatre (2,807 cap.) on April 18. All concerts will feature up-and-coming Seattle bands as openers. He’ll kick off a series of East Coast dates on May 22. The headline outing includes shows at Brooklyn Bowl in Brooklyn, NY on May 26 and The Box in New York City on May 27. Details on Allen’s June tour plans will be announced soon. See below for itinerary or visit www.allenstone.com.
When it came time to pick a title for the first release since his breakthrough success, Allen choose Radius to reflect of the album’s scope and intimacy. “The radius is that line extending from the center of the circle to its exterior,” he says, “and in a lot of ways this album is about getting out things deep inside—whether it’s love or insecurity or joy or frustration about things going on today.”
Honing in on issues both timeless and of-the-moment, he touches on topics ranging from rampant materialism (on the tenderly string-accented, harmony-soaked “American Privilege”) to technology’s toxic takeover of art (on the gutsy and groove-heavy “Fake Future”). Allen looks at heartbreak and regret on the aching “I Know That I Wasn’t Right,” slips into hopeless romanticism on the dreamy R&B pastiche “Barbwire” and unleashes some starry-eyed affection on the dancefloor-ready “Symmetrical.” Tracks like the infectious album-opener “Perfect World” and the fiery, horn-laced “Freedom” are epically joyful anthems that demonstrate the full range and power of Allen’s vocals.
The album first began to take shape in the fall of 2013, when Allen headed to Sweden for a writing session with Tingsek, who had opened for Allen on his 85-date, 2012 headline tour. Subsequent sessions took place in Allen’s studio in the woods of northeast Washington and in Los Angeles. With Allen handling vocals and some guitar work and Tingsek hopping from bass to drums to piano to clavichord, Radius relies entirely on live instrumentation.
Track Listing – Radius
1. Perfect World
2. Fake Future
3. American Privilege
4. Circle
5. Upside
6. Freezer Burn
7. Love
8. Where You’re At
9. Symmetrical
10. The Wire
11. Guardian Angel
12. Freedom
13. Barbwire
14. I Know That I Wasn’t Right
Allen Stone – Upcoming Tour Dates
4/13 – Seattle, WA @ Triple Door w/Maiah Manser SOLD OUT
4/14 – Seattle, WA @ Nectar Lounge w/Manatee Commune SOLD OUT
4/16 – Seattle, WA @ The Crocodile w/SISTERS SOLD OUT
4/17 – Seattle, WA @ Neumos w/Kris Orlowski SOLD OUT
4/18 – Seattle, WA @ The Paramount w/Sam Lachow
5/22 – Somerville, MA @ Arts at the Armory
5/23 – South Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground
5/24 – Pawing, NY @ Daryl’s House Club
5/26 – Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Bowl
5/27 – New York, NY @ The Box
5/31 – Columbia, MD @ Sweetlife Festival
9/18 – San Diego, CA @ KAABOO
