The Pretenders Announce Exclusive UK Club Shows For October.
The Pretenders have announced three very special exclusive live shows to celebrate the release of their brand new studio album Relentless, out now via Parlophone and available to stream and order here.
The run of intimate dates begins on 19th October at London’s Electric Ballroom, 23rd October at the O2 Ritz Manchester, before wrapping at Glasgow’s Barrowlands on 25th October.
Speaking about the charm of the rock club setting, Chrissie Hynde said:
“Well, everyone prefers being in them. I certainly would rather go to see a band in the club. So there's that, because I'm still an audience member. And also it's just more fun. It's a small stage. And you can see everyone and they're right in your face and it's a laugh, that's why you're there. If I see some crazy in the audience, I can really feed off of that. You can’t see it when you're too far away.”
Relentless is a clearly defined snapshot of where The Pretenders are at in 2023. The album has seen mighty critical praise with MOJO describing "persistently brilliant songwriting … surely how Chrissie Hynde always wanted The Pretenders to sound", The Observer heard “inspiring longevity”, Record Collector applauded “the best Pretenders album in 20 years” in a five star review, and Uncut Magazine labelled the album “the new prime of Chrissie Hynde”. Elsewhere The Times proclaimed, "this is the Pretenders at their rocking best" and the i Newspaper praised "a statement of intent", whilst The Telegraph confirmed "Relentless might just be one of the most thrilling things you’ll hear all year."
First single ‘Let The Sun Come In’ was made BBC Radio 2’s Record of the Week, and Chrissie Hynde’s collaboration with Jonny Greenwood, who provided the string arrangement and conducted the 12 Ensemble for the album’s beautiful closing track ‘I Think About You Daily’, was described a song that ”hits you straight in the heart" by The Sunday Times. The band’s latest single ‘A Love’ saw CLASH Magazine define Chrissie Hynde as "a peerless vocalist, the epitome of rock star cool".
A new visualiser for the album’s opening track ‘Losing My Sense Of Taste’ is released today and available to watch here. Speaking about the song, Chrissie Hynde said:
“That song was more a take on the whole lockdown experience. It is called ‘Losing My Sense Of Taste’ - which, as a matter of fact, I never lost during the Covid period. But it did kick off the idea for the song… losing my sense of taste, my sense of smell, and sometimes the whole culture just seems tired. Not now of course because there’s a new Pretenders album out.”
The Pretenders launched Relentless with an exclusive club tour of some of the UK and Ireland’s most intimate venues. Fans were treated to unreleased new songs and scatterings of surprise hits, described as "on such brilliant form" by The Independent and "as sharp as ever, with new songs stealing the limelight from classic hits" by The Guardian.
This impulsiveness and attitude at once defines the band’s eternal spirit - emphatically fulfilled at scores of recent live shows. The past year alone has seen the band perform over 60 live gigs across the UK, US and Europe. Their surprise performance at Glastonbury, featuring special guests Johnny Marr and Dave Grohl, was received as a highlight of the entire festival weekend. The Telegraph described "a thrilling, rocking, melodious, attitude-packed surprise set at the Park Stage", MOJO found “a thing of wonder” and the Metro reported, "The Pretenders left fans well and truly in awe".
After joining Guns N’ Roses at London’s BST Hyde Park mid-way through a European arena tour, both set out across the US for huge outdoor shows through August and September, where Chrissie Hynde joined Guns N’ Roses on stage singing and playing harmonica for a surprise performance of ‘Bad Obsession’ at Boston’s Fenway Park.
Last night The Pretenders played a spectacular gig at BBC Radio 2 In The Park in front of 35,000 fans in Victoria Park, Leicester. In October the band will land back in America to play Ohana Festival, California, by invitation of Eddie Vedder and Dave Grohl, before returning to the UK for a series of exclusive club shows listed below.
Produced by David Wrench and recorded at Battery Studios in West London, the 12 new songs on Relentless feature what Chrissie describes as “The Pretenders Collective”. This extended band features James Walbourne (guitars), Kris Sonne (drums), Chris Hill (double bass), Dave Page (bass), Carwyn Ellis (keyboards and guitars) and Jonny Greenwood (Radiohead, The Smile).
‘Relentless’ is the first Pretenders album to be released via Warner Brothers - Parlophone’s parent record label - since 1999. After first signing to small independent label Real Records on the back of the heyday of punk rock, The Pretenders’ first single led them to sign with Sire - whose parent company was also Warner Brothers - via legendary A&R Seymour Stein, a partnership lasting 20 years.
‘Relentless’ is available now on baby pink vinyl, CD and digital download.
Exclusive UK October Club Shows
19th - Electric Ballroom, London
23rd - O2 Ritz, Manchester
25th - Barrowlands, Glasgow
‘Relentless’ Tracklist:
1. Losing My Sense Of Taste
2. A Love
3. Domestic Silence
4. The Copa
5. Promise Of Love
6. Merry Widow
7. Let The Sun Come In
8. Look Away
9. Your House Is On Fire
10. Just Let It Go
11. Vainglorious
12. I Think About You Daily