Patrick Wolf announces first album in 13 years – returns with emotional and anthemic single ‘Dies Irae’

After dipping his toes back into new music with his excellent 2023 EP ‘The Night Safari’, Patrick Wolf has announced his first album in 13 years. Entitled ‘Crying The Neck’, it’s due for release on 25th April and is the first of four planned albums. A lot has gone on over the last decade for Patrick, with bankruptcy, addiction, loss, and simply losing the motivation to create. When you are in the throws of crisis and survival, creativity isn’t always a given but it seems that as Patrick Wolf has settled into a new chapter in life, he is abundant with creativity.

Patrick Wolf wrote, produced and arranged the new album, which is key for his mental health. Wolf has said previously that the production of his music was a battle when signed to labels previously and that drew the lifeblood out of him. Back in charge, the new single ‘Dies Irae’ is a tour-de-force of beats, vocal layering, big synths, bigger strings and all kinds of electronic noises. On one hand, it is bustling and full of anthemic vigour. Yet on the other hand the track is full of emotional unpacking. There is a lot crammed into the song which focuses on his mother’s death. Speaking about the single Patrick says:

“Dies Irae” is set in the days before the passing of Wolf’s mother. “I finished the lyrics as an imaginary last conversation with my mother in her art studio and out to the garden as the evening falls. My sister Jo Apps came in the last days of mixing to sing the backing vocals, and in a way, it meant that we could both share a last dance in the kitchen with our ma together.”

I often wonder what my last conversation would have been with my dad before he passed last year. I told him to keep out of mischief and oddly that feels quite fitting. Enjoy the beautiful and powerful single ‘Dies Irae’ which is out now. You can pre-order ‘Crying The Neck’ and dive into all the behind-the-scenes content Patrick Wolf puts out on Patreon through his website.

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