Sound of Vinyl

Jamie Lenman is releasing a new album. But as with all things Jamie, not just any other album … this time he's tackling a covers record! 'Shuffle' will be released via Big Scary Monsters on 5th July. The ex- Reuben man explains: "’Ive always wanted to make a covers record, and some of these versions have been in the works for many years, so this was a real career goal for me. I was originally going to do it straight after Muscle Memory, but ultimately I felt that I needed to press on with another album of originals to fully establish my sound as a solo artist. I think Devolver achieved this, making now exactly the right time to get a bit creative. I feel like the phrase ‘covers album’ has become a bit of a dirty word, which is odd to me - they’re a vital part of our musical landscape. Some of my favourite records are cover albums – Annie Lennox’s Medusa, Johnny Cash’s Americans…even those early records by the Beatles and The Specials were mostly covers, and still utterly their sound. I want to redefine the concept of a covers album – not just lazy sound-alikes of 80s classics, not just ironic metal versions of pop tunes – there’s no passion or invention in that, it’s just a smug joke. I may have covered a handful of childhood chart hits on this album, but I’ve also covered songs by relatively unknown artists, and I’ve covered songs by artists from my local music scene who I grew up with and admire. It’s not limited to songs - I’ve covered tv themes, movie scores, and the music from my favourite video game. It’s not even limited to music – I’ve covered a chapter from my favourite book and a scene from my favourite short film, in my debut acting performance with my favourite actor (Paul McCann)! As far as I know this hasn’t happened before – not all on one record anyway, so I hope it’s pretty unique"