WATCH COLD SPECKS PERFORM FOOL’S PARADISE VIA CBC’S FIRST PLAY LIVE
NORTH AMERICAN TOUR DATES BEGIN NOVEMBER 2
FOOL’S PARADISE OUT TODAY VIA ARTS & CRAFTS
“Ladan Hussein at her rawest, most individual form yet —
and the result is stunning” - CBC Music
“Beautifully soulful … the themes of war, dislocation, and the redemptive power of music have rarely been so prescient” - Clash
“the sound of an already-awe-inspiring singer fully coming out of her shell” - NOW Magazine
“extracts great depths of emotion time and again” - Under The Radar
“Striking a balance between sinister and comforting…
Hussein's voice is as strong as ever” - Exclaim!
PHOTO CREDIT: Neva Wireko // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES
Out today via Arts & Crafts, Fool’s Paradise is Ladan Hussein’s most personal work yet, intimately exploring her identity as a Somali-Canadian woman. Known on stage as Cold Specks, CBC Music claims that “Fool's Paradise is a family-influenced affair, but above all it's Ladan Hussein at her rawest, most individual form yet — and the result is stunning.” NOW Magazine says Fool’s Paradise is “the sound of an already-awe-inspiring singer fully coming out of her shell.” Viewers can watch Hussein perform Fool’s Paradise via CBC’s First Play Live.
WATCH COLD SPECKS PERFORM FOOL’S PARADISE VIA CBC’S FIRST PLAY LIVE
Fool’s Paradise encapsulates the naturalness of existing during difficult times. Hussein recently learned about her family’s former life in Somalia. During the writing process, she dug deep into grainy VHS recordings found online of Somali musicians, songs and videos that had survived war. “My parents never talked much about life in Mogadishu growing up,” Hussein explains, “the war split up my family, scattered them around the world, left many missing, and those that made it were forever changed.” Sailing her way to shore after grueling trial, error, and musical acclaim - Fool’s Paradise is the sound of finding home, identity, and self-love.
This fall, Cold Specks will set off an extensive World Tour with recently announced North American dates beginning on November 2 including throughout Canada. Full dates can be found below.
In 2015, Hussein followed her critically acclaimed debut LP, I Predict A Graceful Expulsion, with the release of Neuroplasticity, both of which were nominated for the Polaris Music Prize with the former also earning a JUNO Award nomination for Breakthrough Artist Of The Year. Between albums, when Cold Specks wasn’t writing or touring, Hussein was pinballing between asks from an enviable roll call of collaborators. She was asked to work on Moby’s album Innocents and was invited to play with Joni Mitchell at the singer’s 70th birthday alongside the likes of Herbie Hancock. She contributed to Ambrose Akinmusire's 2014 record for Blue Note and Swans’ 2014 album To Be Kind. These last two partnerships left a significant impression on Neuroplasticity resulting in the indomitable Swans founder Michael Gira and Akinmusire to both appear on the album. Most recently, she has worked with Massive Attack on the track “Dead Editors” featuring Roots Manuva from their 2016 Ritual Spirit EP.
MORE PRAISE FOR FOOL’S PARADISE
“I’ll be there for you/Don’t know why”: this is the refrain of “Wild Card,” the new Cold Specks single, and it sounds like an exhale of self-doubt — sometimes a giver just gives, whether or not the recipient is deserving.” - The New York Times
“[Fool’s Paradise] is a slow burn of a track, Hussein’s voice flitting over a syncopated rhythm that ebbs and flows with the song.” - W Magazine
“sad and mournful, but in the most beautiful, soulful ways. In this moment, I cannot think of another song to which I would rather shed a single therapeutic tear.” - Indie Shuffle
“Despite the heavy topic, there’s a hope and
lightness to [Wild Card]… ” - Consequence of Sound
FOOL’S PARADISE TRACKLISTING
1 Fool's Paradise
2 Wild Card
3 Solid
4 Ancient Habits
5 Rupture
6 Void
7 New Moon
8 Two Worlds
9 Witness
10 Exile
FOOL’S PARADISE WORLD TOUR 2017
European Dates
9/30: Newcastle, UK @ The Cluny (TICKETS)
10/1: Leeds, UK @ Lending Room (TICKETS)
10/02: Glasgow, UK @ King Tut's (TICKETS)
10/03: Manchester, UK @ Night & Day (TICKETS)
10/04: Bristol, UK @ Cube (TICKETS)
10/05: London, UK @ Omeara (TICKETS)
10/06: Paris, FR @ Supersonic (FRE)
10/07: Brussels, BL @ Witloof Bar (TICKETS)
10/09: Amsterdam, NL @ Bitterzoet (TICKETS)
10/10: Cologne, DE @ Yuca (TICKETS)
10/11: Hamburg, DE @ Nochtspeicher (TICKETS)
10/12: Aarhus, DK (TICKETS)
10/13: Copenhagen, DK @ Vega (TICKETS)
10/14: Berlin, DE @ Musik & Frieden (TICKETS)
10/15: Frankfurt, DE @ Brotfabrik (TICKETS)
10/16: Munich, DE @ Milla (TICKETS)
10/18: Vienna, AT @ Arena (TICKETS)
10/19: Zurich, CH @ Theatre Gessneralle @ Stall 6 (TICKETS)
10/20: Geneva, CH @ La Graviere (TICKETS)
10/21: Rome, IT @ Quirinetta (TICKETS)
North American Dates
11/2: Somerville, MA @ ONCE Somerville
11/3: Washington, DC @ Black Cat
11/4: Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brenda's
11/5: Richmond, VA @ Hardywood Park Craft Brewery
11/7: Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade Purgatory
11/8: Nashville, TN @ The High Watt
11/9: St. Louis, MO @ Old Rock House
11/10: Omaha, NE @ Reverb Lounge
11/11: Denver, CO @ Lost Lake Lounge
11/13: San Diego, CA @ Soda Bar
11/15: Los Angeles, CA @ The Echo
11/16: San Francisco, CA @ Rickshaw Stop
11/17: Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge
11/18: Seattle, WA @ Barboza
11/20: Vancouver, BC @ Fox Cabaret
11/22: Calgary, CA @ Commonwealth Bar & Stage
11/23: Edmonton, CA @ The Needle Vinyl Tavern
11/24: Regina, CA @ The Exchange
11/25: Winnipeg, CA @ The Good Will Social Club
11/27: Minneapolis, MN @ Cedar Cultural Center
11/28: Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle
11/29: Detroit, MI @ Marble Bar
11/30: Toronto, CA @ Virgin Mobile Mod Club
12/1: Montreal, CA @ Phi Center
12/6: Portsmouth, NH @ 3S Art Space
12/7: Brooklyn, NY @ Baby's All Right