Dawn Richard & Spencer Zahn are following up their great 2022 debut album with Quiet in a World Full of Noise, that will be out October 4 via Merge. They’ve also announced a fall tour.
The album had its start in 2023 as Zahn began writing music on an unusually tuned piano. “I wrote all these stream-of-consciousness pieces,” he says. “They were eerie, spacious.” Originally he didn’t intend to do anything with them but later, upon relistening, decided to send them to Dawn, who was immediately inspired. “I did not write this down—I purged it out, and then I didn’t change anything after it,” she says. “Our family has a distorted view of therapy; I’ve had to do a lot of healing on my own. So this was a moment of severe openness, sharing that moment with the world.”
Dawn adds, “Right now, everyone’s a little bit overwhelmed. I hope that this will be the record that people put on when they need the opportunity for reflection, when they need the stillness in their lives, now more than ever.”
You can listen to the spare, beautiful “Breath Out” now.
Richard & Zahn’s fall tour includes two shows at Brooklyn’s National Sawdust on October 29 and 30. Tickets for all North American shows go on sale Friday, July 12 at 10 AM and all dates are listed below.
Quiet in a World Full of Noise
1. Stains
2. Quiet in a World Full of Noise
3. Traditions
4. Diets
5. Stay
6. Life in Numbers
7. Moments for Stillness
8. The Dancer
9. Breath Out
10. To Remove
11. Ocean Past
12. Try
Dawn Richard & Spencer Zahn Tour Dates
Thu. July 11 – London, UK @ Colours *
Fri. July 12 – Birmingham, UK @ Mostly Jazz, Funk & Soul Festival *
Mon. July 15 – London, UK @ Somerset House *
Sat. July 27 – Carrboro, NC @ Merge 35 Festival
Tue. Oct. 22 – Minneapolis, MN @ Dakota
Wed. Oct. 23 – Milwaukee, WI @ Turner Hall Ballroom
Thu. Oct. 24 – Chicago, IL @ Old Town School of Folk Music
Sat. Oct. 26 – Pittsburgh, PA @ The Andy Warhol Museum
Sun. Oct. 27 – Toronto, ON @ Lula Lounge
Tue. Oct. 29 – Brooklyn, NY @ National Sawdust
Wed. Oct. 30 – Brooklyn, NY @ National Sawdust
Sat. Nov. 2 – Philadelphia, PA @ First Unitarian Church
Sun. Nov. 3 – Boston, MA @ Institute of Contemporary Art
Sat. Nov. 16 – London, UK @ London Jazz Festival
* Dawn Richard Solo