It has been reported that alt-rock heroes Ash are set to make a comeback in a big way, the Northern Irish rockers are rumoured to release a double album. The albums will mark their first release since Islands, the group’s seventh studio album which was released in 2018 via Infectious and BMG.
A source from The Sun newspaper’s Bizarre column has given the following information, “Things are very much a work in progress but over the past few weeks they have been secretly writing and recording in Scotland. As things evolved it became clear a double album-style release could be the way forward. Each will have a different sound, with one being more synthy than the other.” The source went on to state the double album would “most likely” be assigned a release date in the “second half” of next year.
The band was formed in 1992 and originally comprised of the trio vocalist and guitarist Tim Wheeler, bassist Mark Hamilton and Rick McMurray on drums. All three founding members are the group’s current lineup, at various intervals, the band have performed and recorded as a quartet with vocalist and musician Charlotte Hatherley.
Ash’s debut album 1977 was released in 1996 via Home Grown and Infectious Records, a UK-based independent label known for its work within British rock music. The label’s roster includes a long list of esteemed artists including The Subways, a Uk indie band often regarded as Ash’s successor. The album sired five singles including one of Ash’s most popular tracks “Girl From Mars”, the song was released on 31st July 1995 and became the band’s first UK top 40 single. Written by Wheeler as a teenager, “Girl From Mars” has become a vital part of rock music’s cannon and has been featured in countless TV shows and films.
After the release of Wheeler’s debut album solo album Lost Domain, the singer decided to re-instated his creative relationship with albums. Wheeler then decided that it was time to start recording albums again and subsequently the realisation made him release further music. Speaking in 2018, the singer explained further, “I guess when I did my solo record that was when I started to think about albums again. When we decided to go off and to the singles thing with the ‘A to Z’ series it seemed like albums were dying off and people were downloading single tracks. I do think with streaming becoming popular there is an option to listen to complete records and with vinyl making such a strong comeback we saw albums making a comeback.”
Wheeler continued, “Also, I think our fans were well up for us making another one. We did explore the single thing to a significant extent by doing twenty-six singles in a year – that gave us a creative break that we wanted. Around the time after ‘Twilight of the Innocents, I think if we had done another album it wouldn’t have felt very empowering for us at the time but by going off and doing something so different, it cleared our heads in a way to come back to albums.“
