Foundling

After a year spent chiefly on the road and less than 12 months since his last major release, David Gray brings us his ninth album, Foundling, an extract from a period of intense creativity and labour.
Born as a side project during the sessions for its predecessor Draw The Line, Foundling quickly burst into bloom and commanded the full attention of its creator - an experiment left in the lab overnight that you wake to find taking over your world. “It’s the record I’ve been wanting to make for a long time, and it’s as strong a statement as White Ladder in its way - a jumping off point for what might happen next.”
Invoking the spirit of its multi-million selling ancestor is no idle comparison since this too was composed aside from commercial expectations and schedules, entirely on its creator’s terms. “I felt like this was my private record, I didn’t get too picky, I threw out a lot of the everyday concerns of record making, and it’s actually a wonderfully liberating feeling. I’ve done so much recording lately, I think you eventually get braver, and go further, sometimes by doing less. We just made it the way we wanted to.”
David’s collaborators here include White Ladder producer and long term colleague Lestyn Polson, Caroline Dale and her octet, the Kick Horns as well as the regular members of the band rearranged into different roles. The result offers contradictions - minimalist and dramatic, understated and mature - and has yielded early comparisons to Tom Waits, Randy Newman and The Band. Like the orphan from whom its name is taken, Foundling has a special place in the hearts of its assorted parents, “We just love it,” says David. They trust that it will find affection out in the wider world, now that it stands alone.

CD 1:

CD 2: Bonus Disc