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(9th July) MF Tomlinson has shared a new cover of Big Thief's 2017 song "Mary" and announced a special edition vinyl of his universally acclaimed 2023 album 'We Are Still Wild Horses' - limited to 100 copies - each with hand numbered unique lino cut prints by Alex Mackenzie. The release of "Mary" follows Tomlinson's recent run of support tours in the UK and Europe with American heavyweights Geese and TORRES respectively, and signals the impending follow up to 'We Are Still Wild Horses'.
Speaking to the beauty of what it means to be alive, this enrapturing, pristinely orchestrated new version of "Mary" was born from Tomlinson's (in his own words)... "burning need to create an arrangement that was as big as it made me feel the first time I heard it. I felt it was echoing in a vast and unreal space, the belly of the whale, like being thrown around, carried away - set free, like smashing yourself apart with a sledgehammer.”
MF Tomlinson’s conscientious reimagining of the Big Thief staple was painstakingly crafted one instrument at a time; Adrianne Lenker’s powerful imagery – delivered through Tomlinson's singular baritone – weaving through brushed drums, deft piano strokes, building to a cathartic middle section complete with a stunning violin/flute intertwining solo.
Speaking on the inspiration behind recording the cover and its meaning to him, Tomlinson shared:
"Since the first moment I heard 'Mary' I have wanted to make this piece. Over the past year the MFs and I have been recording a new body of work and recording Mary has been a key part of the discovery of what that album is - from its themes of memory and emotional impetus to the production style and sonic landscape we’ve been engaging with.
I first heard Big Thief's Mary whilst on tour with Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever. Late night driving, hyperfocused on the road appearing and disappearing in the narrow headlights, I was swallowed up by the quiet and immense power of the piece - an enormous turning wheel of emotion that summons your earliest and most fundamental places. It just felt fucking huge and at the same time incredibly close and tender. That feeling never left me, and so here we are with this recording."
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London-based, Brisbane/Meanjin-born singer-songwriter MF Tomlinson made his debut with the release of his 'Last Days Of Rome' EP in 2020 and has since released two critically acclaimed full length albums, 2021's 'Strange Time' and its follow up and sister album 'We Are Still Wild Horses' in 2023 via PRAH Recordings.
Merging together ambient, experimental jazz, acid-folk and indie folk to otherworldly new territory, 'We Are Still Wild Horses' received universal widespread acclaim upon its release from The Times, Mojo, Uncut, The Line Of Best Fit, Record Collector, Music OMH, The Arts Desk, Beats Per Minute, Gigwise, amongst many others.
Elsewhere, Tomlinson's work has been celebrated by BBC 6 Music's Mark Radcliffe (“I absolutely love this album") and has seen him traverse the globe, performing at festivals from Finland to Australia, and at the widely adored End of the Road Festival, not to mention support UK/EU tours with American heavyweights Geese and TORRES, alongside coveted support dates with Dry Cleaning, Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever, James Yorkston and Nina Persson - to name but a few.
MF Tomlinson's cover of "Mary" by Big Thief is out now via PRAH Recordings. MF Tomlinson plays Rough Trade East for PRAH Recordings' 10th Anniversary on 17th July. Tickets for Rough Trade East and copies of the special edition vinyl of 'We Are Still Wild Horses' are available to purchase here.
MORE ABOUT MF TOMLINSON + WE ARE STILL WILD HORSES
MF Tomlinson's second album We Are Still Wild Horses was released on 17th February 2023 via PRAH Recordings. Consisting of 4 pieces of music, 40 minutes in length: side A contains 3 songs that build to its title track and central expansive closing piece on side B.
Stylistically, the album takes elements from 60's folk, prog and psychedelia - uniting the freedom and sonic exploration of Tortoise and Yo La Tengo & the high concept edge of David Byrne, as well as drawing on a swathe of psych influences - from MF T's contemporary heroes Cate Le Bon and Weyes Blood, to acid folk legends Trees & the Canterbury folk scene (Robert Wyatt, Kevin Ayers) and the equivalent movement in Japan (Haruomi Hosono).
Where MF Tomlinson's breakthrough 2021 debut full length 'Strange Time' documented a world in turmoil, 'We Are Still Wild Horses' finds him embarking on a journey into the self in search of hope and catharsis. Written in the time when the days were the shortest, it speaks in the language and logic of dreams, standing partially as a document of the year after ‘the year everything changed’, necessitated as a way out of the "the deep sadness in the winter of 2021".
PRAISE FOR MF TOMLINSON + WE ARE STILL WILD HORSES
"Offering variations on chamber rock with a solemn grandeur that simmers with tension"
Mojo (4/5)
"A literate, sensitive crooner of lugubrious yet meticulously arranged songs"
Uncut (8/10)
"An album you feel more in your gut than anywhere else...an opus on emotion"
Gigwise (9/10)
“We Are Still Wild Horses reveals Tomlinson as a rare thing today, a talented, depressive singer-songwriter with a sense of humour”
The Times (4/5)
"Amid wave upon wave of beautiful, orchestral arrangements, Tomlinson and his cast of players have created something very special indeed"
Record Collector
“Tomlinson is many things; a wordsmith, a commanding vocal presence, and a conductor of light and dark. But at his core, he is a deeply talented songwriter that can conjure emotion via the slightest movement"
The Line Of Best Fit (8/10)
"A work of delicate assurance that finds MF Tomlinson reaching towards unknowable truths"
Clash Magazine
"Gliding psych-rock... overflows with ideas – both musical and lyrical"
Beats Per Minute
“I absolutely love this album. It’s kind of got that old country, folky feel to it, but also with the woodwind which gives it a sort of baroque-pop flavour. I heartily recommend the record to you…”
Mark Radcliffe - BBC 6 Music
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