Today, one of the UK’s most beloved British bands, Madness, announces the news of their 13th full-length album, Theatre Of The Absurd Presents C’Est La Vie. Seven years after the release of their last record, the long-awaited album will be released on the 17th of November via BMG.
After premiering on Zoe Ball’s Radio 2 Breakfast Show this morning, the lead single ‘C’Est La Vie’ is now available and gives a taste of what’s to come from the album. With an eerie space-ska feel, the song reflects on the perils of everyday life. According to composer/keyboard-wrangler Mike ‘Barso’ Barson, the title track is “about these crazy times we’re living in, and how I just want to stay on my boat and not be a part of all this madness. But of course, I’m a member of a group called Madness. Perhaps we should have called ourselves ‘Sanity’…” Listen below:
After a disparate couple of years which saw the band at their most polarised and fragmented, Madness reunited in an industrial unit in Cricklewood at the beginning of the year, where Suggs, Mark, Chrissy Boy, Mike, Lee and Woody realised that what united them was always bigger than what divided them. Emerging, re-energised and reinvigorated with a fresh bounce in their nutty step, the result was their most harmonious recording experience to date. For the first time ever, a brand new album came to the world that they were all completely agreed on. Theatre Of The Absurd Presents C’Est La Vie is the band’s inaugural foray into self-producing, working alongside engineer and mixer Matt Galsbey (Ed Sheeran, Maisie Peters, Rag’N’Bone Man).
The governing principle behind Theatre Of The Absurd Presents C’Est La Vie is: “let Madness be Madness”. The result is an album of typically timeless brilliance that also reflects the wonky years of its creation, these 14 songs representing the cream of the bumper crop of tunes the group cooked up, whittled down this punchy, focused set. There are moments of ineffably catchy pop excellence (drummer Daniel ‘Woody’ Woodgate’s beguiling, bittersweet carousel ‘Round We Go’, Chrissy-Boy’s anarchic anthem to perhaps-justified paranoia, ‘Run For Your Life’), while the album is bookended by two of Suggs’ finest compositions.
Emmy and BAFTA Awards-winning Martin Freeman supply a very special prologue running through the album. A longtime fan, the relationship formed with the band when Madness’ manager found Martin in a meet and greet queue and introduced him to the members.
The album is available on double vinyl and CD with a limited crystal clear vinyl sold through HMV and indie stores – Preorder here. The official album store features exclusive formats – a very limited edition zoetrope double picture disc plus cassette and merchandise bundles.
Talking about the album, Madness said, “Well, well, well, here we are.. Our thirteenth album (lucky for some) Theatre Of the Absurd Presents C’Est La Vie is ready for your ears. For us, recording it was the perfect antidote to the chaos of the past few years – we were all there, properly in the zone. It was just us, in an industrial unit in Cricklewood, playing together. We loved it!”
Madness famously emerged from the backstreets of Camden Town in the late 70s and recently released a three-part original docu-series with TV channel AMC about the beginnings of the band in the area. Before We Was We: Madness by Madness, chronicles the rise of one of the most loved bands in British culture.
Throughout their career, Madness have had 10 UK top ten albums and 15 top ten singles and have won a multitude of awards, including a prestigious Ivor Novello. They’ve performed on the top of Buckingham Palace as part of the Queen’s Jubilee celebrations and set the record for the biggest-ever audience for the BBC’s Live New Year’s Eve Broadcast – the most watched TV music event of 2018. One of the most enduring and evergreen live shows this country has to offer, their everybody’s-welcome celebrations of life’s ups, downs and everything in the middle(s), continue to attract new generations of fans from across every walk of life.
TRACK LISTINGS
Theatre Of The Absurd
If I Go Mad
Baby Burglar
C’est La Vie
What On Earth Is It (You Take Me For?)
Hour Of Need
Round We Go
Lockdown And Frack Off
Beginners 101
Is There Anybody Out There?
The Law According to Dr. Kippah
Run For Your Life
Set Me Free (Let Me Be)
In My Street
Tour dates and locations below –
November
Thu 30 Aberdeen P&J Live
December
Fri 1 Glasgow OVO Hydro
Sat 2 Newcastle Utilita Arena
Mon 4 Cardiff International Arena
Tue 5 Nottingham Motorpoint Arena
Thu 7 Liverpool M&S Bank Arena
Fri 8 Leeds First Direct Arena
Sat 9 Manchester AO Arena
Mon 11 Brighton Centre
Tue 12 Bournemouth International Centre
Thu 14 Sheffield Utilita Arena
Fri 15 London The O2
Sat 16 Birmingham Utilita Arena
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