Photo Credit Andy Swap
“L.A. Times is our most personal album since The Man Who. There was a lot of big stuff to write about back then, the tectonic plates had shifted in my life. I was 22 when I was writing those songs. They were my therapy. Over 20 years later and the plates have shifted again. There’s a lot to talk about.” – Fran Healy
7th June 2024 – Glasgow’s multiple BRIT and Ivor Novello-winning songwriting giants Travis reveal new single ‘Bus,’ the third offering from their upcoming 10th studio album L.A Times, out on 12th July via BMG. Alongside the new music, the band have also announced the Raze The Bar Tour; their first UK headline tour since 2022, playing 12 dates across England and Scotland this December. The single follows new song ‘Raze The Bar,’ which saw Travis joined by friends Chris Martin and Brandon Flowers, who provided additional vocals.
New single ‘Bus’ debuted on Radio 2 last night (6th June), and takes frontman Fran Healy back to his formative years in Glasgow. Its gently winding acoustic guitar, evocative strings and delicate vocals have become synonymous with Travis in the years of unimaginable success since. Now, instead of waiting for buses, frontman Fran Healy waits for songs to find him. Speaking about ‘Bus’, Fran says:
“I was on holiday, staring out the window, watching all the boats bobbing on the sea. I was trying to write a song and nothing was coming. It reminded me of all the years I spent waiting on buses. You never think it’s going to come, but if you wait long enough it usually turns up. Looking out at the sea at all the little sailing boats, I imagined all the bands and artists sitting in them waiting on that freak gust of wind to blow them to fame and fortune. We caught a huge one in ’99 so I can testify to the random nature of it. In the middle of all these thoughts came a cool little melody and the song was written a few minutes later.”
The track comes accompanied by a video, shot in Scotland, directed by Fran and featuring a fleeting guest appearance from friend of the band Adam Buxton. It sees the band waiting seemingly forever at a highlands bus stop whilst Fran dreams of escape. Speaking on his involvement, Adam Buxton says: “I’m honoured to have at least part of my face featured in the new video from a band I love. The dream is to one day land the full body cameo, but you’ve got to start somewhere.”
Travis will kick off their Raze The Bar Tour at Leeds O2 Academy on 5th December, with performances in Manchester, Liverpool, Wolverhampton, Nottingham, London and more to follow, before returning to Glasgow’s OVO Hydro on 21st December for a massive homecoming moment for one of the city’s best loved local bands. They’ll be supported by Hamish Hawk across all the UK dates. Fans who pre order L.A Times from the official artist store here will receive access to an exclusive fan presale for the tour. The artist presale will run from 9am on 12th June until the general sale, which starts at 9am BST on Friday 14th June – general sale tickets available here.
The headline tour will follow a huge summer live season for Travis, after they perform with The Killers across their 16 date UK arena tour through June and July, and return to Europe for their first headline tour across the continent since 2016 in August through to September. It’s also announced today that they will head to North America in January 2025 for 22 dates across the US and Canada.
As telegraphed by ‘Gaslight’, a song that’s seen 5 weeks on the BBC Radio 2 playlist, L.A. Times sees Travis stepping into a bold new era; an incredible achievement 25 years since the band released their breakthrough #1 album The Man Who, a 9x Platinum certified record in the UK alone.
Produced by Tony Hoffer (Air, Beck, Phoenix), L.A. Times was written by Fran Healy in his studio on the edge of Skid Row, Los Angeles, the city he has called home for the last decade. Its ten songs see their creator, inevitably, trying to make sense of the road travelled to this point – a sentiment reflected in the stunning album cover photograph. Echoing some of Travis’ most beloved records – The Man Who, The Invisible Band and The Boy With No Name – we’re greeted anew by four distant figures amongst vast surroundings, this time beneath the concrete and glitter of downtown Los Angeles at night. An unbroken line-up since their formation at the Glasgow School of Art in the 1990s, the coordinates of their extraordinary journey together are marked by this latest in a series of arresting images by world-renowned photographer and Travis collaborator for over 20 years, Stefan Ruiz.
L.A. Times is available digitally, on CD and vinyl. The album is also available as a limited deluxe 2CD package which includes a stripped-back version of the L.A. Times album, recorded between Dougie Payne’s Living Room, Glasgow, and Fran Healy’s Living Room, L.A.
HMV and indie stores have a limited edition green marble vinyl and the band’s official store has exclusive limited yellow vinyl and merch bundles. Pre-Order here.
Raze The Bar Tour UK Headline Dates
5 December O2 Academy, Leeds
6 December Albert Hall, Manchester
8 December Olympia, Liverpool
9 December The Halls, Wolverhampton
10 December Rock City, Nottingham
11 December Dreamland, Margate
13 December O2 Shepherds Bush Empire, London
15 December Beacon, Bristol
17 December Winter Gardens, Eastbourne
18 December Octagon, Sheffield
19 December City Hall, Newcastle
21 December OVO Hydro, Glasgow
US Headline Tour Dates 2025
21 January The Ritz, Raleigh, NC
22 January Buckhead Theatre, Atlanta, GA
24 January Factory at Deep Ellum, Dallas, TX
25 January Moody Theatre, Austin, TX
27 January Van Buren, Phoenix, AZ
28 January Wiltern, Los Angeles, CA
29 January Fox Oakland, San Francisco, CA
31 January Crystal Ballroom, Portland, OR
1 February Commodore, Vancouver, BC
2 February Showbox, Seattle, WA
4 February The Depot, Salt Lake City, UT
5 February Summit Denver, CO
7 February Varsity Theatre, Minneapolis, MN
8 February Vic Theatre, Chicago, IL
10 February Royal Oak Music Theatre, Royal Oak, MI
11 February Agora, Cleveland, OH
12 February Concert Hall, Toronto, ON
14 February Webster Hall, New York, NY
15 February Royale, Boston, MA
16 February District Music Hall, Norwalk, CT
18 February Keswick Theatre, Philadelphia, PA
19 February 9:30 Club, Washington, DC
Arena Tour Dates w/ The Killers
12 June 3Arena, Dublin
14 June 3Arena, Dublin
15 June 3Arena, Dublin
18 June Co-op Live Arena, Manchester
19 June Co-op Live Arena, Manchester
21 June Co-op Live Arena, Manchester
22 June Co-op Live Arena, Manchester
25 June OVO Hydro, Glasgow
26 June OVO Hydro, Glasgow
27 June OVO Hydro, Glasgow
4 July O2 Arena, London
5 July O2 Arena, London
7 July O2 Arena, London
8 July O2 Arena, London
10 July O2 Arena, London
11 July O2 Arena, London
L.A. Times Album Artwork
L.A. Times Track Listing
1 – Bus
2 – Raze the Bar
3 – Live It All Again
4 – Gaslight
5 – Alive
6 – Home
7 – I Hope That You Spontaneously Combust
8 – Naked In New York City
9 – The River
10 – L.A. Times
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