Floating Points announces new club-centric album, 'Cascade'
Sam Shepherd, best known as renowned producer Floating Points, has revealed plans for his new album Cascade, set to release on September 13th through Ninja Tune.
Shepherd, a Mercury Prize nominee, shared the news today (July 9th), along with the release of the lead single “Key103”, available now on streaming platforms. The single features a visualizer crafted by Tokyo-based artist Akiko Nakayama, a frequent collaborator of Shepherd's.
The forthcoming album marks a return to Shepherd's dance music roots, following his ventures into experimental and classical music. These recent projects include his first ballet score “Mere Mortals”, an album with the late saxophonist Pharoah Sanders and the London Symphony Orchestra, and the score for an upcoming anime TV series on Adult Swim.
Reflecting on his last electronic project, the 2019 studio album Crush, Shepherd notes, “I never got to explore its ravey, experimental side live,” due to the cancellation of his world tour amid the COVID pandemic. However, the release of Cascade will be supported by a European live tour this autumn, in addition to summer shows at festivals such as All Points East, We Out Here, and Lost Village.
Shepherd drew inspiration for Cascade from Manchester's local landmarks and institutions. For example, the track “Key103” is named after the underground radio station he avidly listened to while growing up in the area. “There’s something about Manchester that keeps coming back to me, and I think it’s partly to do with its record shops,” Shepherd explains.
Recalling his school days in Manchester, Shepherd says, “As a kid, my school was around the corner from the Northern Quarter so at lunchtimes, I’d run out of the school gates and skip lunch altogether to go and listen to records. I’m sure I was a total pain in the arse constantly pulling records off the shelves. But it was amazing. I’d be listening to Autechre at Pelican Neck, Dilla at Fat City, David Morales mixes at the Factory Records shop… It gave me a parallel education in music to what I was being taught at school.”
Cascade, comprising nine tracks, will be available on September 13th via Ninja Tune. Watch the official visualizer for the lead single “Key103” below, and pre-order your copy of the record here.
