Nick Lowe Announces ‘Indoor Safari,’ First New Studio Album in 11 Years

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Nick Lowe and Los Straitjackets (Photo: Bobby Fisher; used with permission)

Nick Lowe has announced his first full-length album in eleven years, Indoor Safari, representing a return to early rock ‘n’ roll, with 12 songs, including originals, a couple of deep-cut covers, and refitted versions of tracks previously released in nascent form as singles. The album represents a culmination of his decade-long working relationship with the mysterious masked men and Yep Roc Records labelmates, Los Straitjackets (Eddie Angel/guitar; Pete Curry/bass; Chris Sprague/drums; Greg Townson/guitar). It arrives on September 13, 2024 and is available for pre-order in the U.S. here and in the U.K. here.

In the album’s liner notes, Emmy-winning writer Eli Attie (The West Wing, Billions, The Diplomat) calls Indoor Safari “nothing less than a free-roaming journey through the wilds of recorded sound.”

Listen to the album’s lead track, “Went To A Party,” a certified fete-plate of sock hop soul and Lowe’s first official co-write with the Straitjackets

The June 11 announcement comes amidst a busy summer calendar for Lowe with dates ranging from a run of Canadian shows with longtime compatriot Ron Sexsmith happening now, to a top-billed appearance at Wilco’s Solid Sound Festival later this month, a set at Levon Helm Studios in Woodstock, NY, and more surprises in store.

Since releasing his last album, 2013’s Quality Street: A Seasonal Selection For All the Family, Lowe has toured three continents with Los Straitjackets, recording a series of rapid fire singles and EPs along the way. In time-honored fashion, he kept fine-tuning those songs and coming up with new ones. With help from Alex Hall “they all sound of a piece” now says Lowe, adding that with the old Straitjacket magic “hey, presto, you’ve got the sauce on it all.”

“We wanted to do some original songs, and no one’s going to come see an act where four of the five people onstage are wearing wrestling masks and expect to hear deep, meaningful verses of existential angst,” Lowe tells Rolling Stone. “People who come to see our shows want to hear these punchy, short tunes.”

Lowe has made his mark as a pioneer of pub rock, power pop, and punk rock and as a producer of Elvis Costello, Graham Parker, the Damned and the Pretenders. He has been a pop star with his bands Brinsley Schwarz and Rockpile, a stepson-in-law to Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash, and is the writer behind hits including “Cruel To Be Kind” and “(What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding.”

[Lowe’s recording catalog is available in the U.S. here and in the U.K. here.]

Nick Lowe Indoor Safari Tracklist
Went To A Party (Lowe, Angel, Curry, Sprague, Townson)
Love Starvation (Lowe)
Crying Inside (Lowe)
A Quiet Place (Bell, Meade)
Blue On Blue (Lowe)
Jet Pac Boomerang (Lowe)
Tokyo Bay (Lowe)
Trombone (Lowe)
Different Kind of Blue (Lowe)
Raincoat In The River (Schroeder, Kaye)
Lay It On Me Baby (Lowe)
Don’t Be Nice To Me (Lowe)

Nick Lowe 2024 Tour (solo) with Ron Sexsmith (Tickets for many of the shows are available here)
June 12 – Bella Concert Hall – Calgary, AB, Canada
June 13 – Festival Place – Sherwood Park, AB, Canada
June 15 – Burton Cummings Theatre – Winnipeg, MB, Canada
June 17 – The Bronson Centre – Ottawa, ON, Canada

Nick Lowe and Los Straitjackets Dates
June 20 – Narrows Center for the Arts – Fall River, MA
June 21 – Stone Mountain Arts Center – Brownfield, ME
June 22 – Infinity Hall – Hartford, CT
June 23 – Levon Helm Studios – Woodstock, NY
June 25 – Tarrytown Theatre – Tarrytown, NY
June 26 – Landmark on Main Street – Port Washington, NY
June 28 – The Palace Theatre – Manchester, NH
June 29 – Wilco’s Solid Sound Festival – North Adams, MA
June 30 – Concerts Under the Stars – King of Prussia, PA