Whitney, the Chicago duo comprised of Julien Ehlrich and Max Kakacek, have announced their third album, SPARK. The follow-up to 2019’s Forever Turned Around is out September 16 via Secretly Canadian. Today’s announcement comes with the release of the lead track ‘REAL LOVE’, which comes with an accompanying Aaron Brown-directed video. Check it out below, along with the album cover and tracklist.
Ehlrich and Kakacek wrote most of SPARK while quarantining together in Portland during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic; ‘REAL LOVE’ was the first song they wrote upon returning to Chicago in May 2021, and the first one they finished before heading to Texas to record the LP with producers Brad Cook and John Congleton.
“Max and I wrote ‘REAL LOVE’ in June 2021 right after a cross country move back to Chicago,” Ehlrich explained in a statement. “I was experiencing heightened levels of anxiety and panic, while the entire city was re-emerging from isolation. I’ve been running away from and self medicating my anxiety for as long as I can remember, but for whatever reason, it felt like it was time to dive straight into it. During late night sessions over a two week period, we captured the embrace of anxiety and fear in a way that resonated with us immediately. We spent the next few summer nights driving on Ashland with the windows down and the song turned up. It felt like an emotional and musical burst of light and we’re so grateful to finally be sharing that with people.”
SPARK Cover Artwork:
SPARK Tracklist:
1. NOTHING REMAINS
2. BACK THEN
3. BLUE
4. TWIRL
5. REAL LOVE
6. MEMORY
7. SELF
8. NEVER CROSSED MY MIND
9. TERMINAL
10. HEART WILL BEAT
11. LOST CONTROL
12. COUNTY LINES
