Photo by Mick Peek
Long recognized as a profoundly influential force in music, Manchester’s The Chameleons have left their mark on bands like The Verve, Oasis, White Lies, The Slow Readers Club, Interpol, The Killers, and Editors, among many others. Known for their deep and powerful live shows and a transformative musical catalog, their impact stretches well beyond their four studio albums.
The Chameleons’ distinctive sound quickly captured the public’s attention with its unique blend of melancholy yet robust and dynamic tunes, entrancing ethereal guitar riffs, and poignant, enduring lyrical themes. The Chameleons are celebrated as one of the pivotal guitar-driven groups of the ’80s and ’90s, making significant contributions to the post-punk, shoegaze, and indie genres. Despite their broad influence, they remain one of Manchester, England’s most undervalued musical exports.
While their last studio album came out over two decades ago, in a surprise move, the band still has a few tricks up its sleeve, including a tour and a brand new single, Where Are You?, which will be released as part of a three-song EP on May 24, 2024, via Metropolis Records in conjunction with Strange Times Entertainment.
“It’s exciting to finally be putting out fresh Chameleons material for the first time in over twenty years, although initially I found it quite daunting,” admits vocalist/bassist Mark Burgess. “The question about new music is one I had been asked the most from people coming to the shows, a great many of whom weren’t even born when those records were originally made but nevertheless were excited and inspired by the music enough to catch multiple shows on multiple tours.”
Coupled with the shimmery and mesmerizing Endlessly Falling and the acoustic and contemplative ballad Forever, the Where Are You? EP is a slight taste of an upcoming album titled Arctic Moon planned for later 2024.
“At this moment, we’re halfway through, but already everyone in the band is excited by what they’re hearing,” Burgess says. “We’ve managed to transcend the confines of our own legacy and finally forge something fresh. It’s undoubtedly The Chameleons to everyone that has heard the direction the band is now heading in.”
Currently preparing for a round of North American dates beginning on May 30th in San Diego and working their way East to Washington, DC on August 17th, the band will be celebrating their 1986 breakthrough album Strange Times, which spawned the singles Tears and the alt-rock club staple Swamp Thing.
“I initially wasn’t a huge fan of album performance tours,” Burgess admits. “I believed instead that they ought to have been confined to one-off, special events.” Marking the difference between the highly personal experience of enjoying an album alone with a “good pair of headphones” versus the collective social coming together at a concert, he muses that, in general, the track listing of an album doesn’t take into account a live show’s needs for crest and drama. “Performing Strange Times changed my mind,” he says. “For one thing, the album marked a significant evolution by the band both in its sound and the maturity of the writing. Secondly, it’s a challenging album to perform live and thus, it’s much more fun to play. When all is said and done, we look forward to recreating this particular album for our North American fans!”
The Chameleons are Reg Smithies (guitar), Mark Burgess (bass, vocals, lyrics), Stephen Rice (guitar), Danny Ashberry (keyboards), and Todd Demma (drums). Where Are You? was produced by Christophe Bride and The Chameleons and mastered by Guy Massey. It will be released on May 24, 2024, via Metropolis Records in conjunction with Strange Times Entertainment.
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