Ensoulment The The

• 1Cognitive Dissident03:06
• 2Some Days I Drink My Coffee by the Grave of William Blake04:03
• 3Zen & the Art of Dating04:30
• 4Kissing the Ring of Potus03:33
• 5Life After Life03:12
• 6I Want to Wake up with You04:00
• 7Down by the Frozen River03:33
• 8Risin' Above the Need03:46
• 9Linoleum Smooth to the Stockinged Foot03:53
• 10Where Do We Go When We Die?04:02
• 11I Hope You Remember (The Things I Can't Forget)03:38
• 12A Rainy Day in May03:59
• Total Runtime45:15

Info for Ensoulment

The The’s first studio album of new songs in a quarter century! Taking in 12 tracks, it was written and demoed at the London studio of the project’s sole constant member, Matt Johnson, and was fully fleshed out in further sessions alongside long-standing band members James Eller (bass), DC Collard (keyboards), Earl Harvin (drums) and Barrie Cadogan (lead guitar). The record explores themes of love and sex, war and politics, life and death, and the meaning of what it is to be a human in the 21st century.

In a statement, Johnson said: “It’s vital to be hopeful. And I hope people get out of the album what we put into it. It was created under very happy circumstances, with a great vibe amongst the band and all the people that worked on it. There was a lot of thought, a lot of work, a lot of love, a lot of laughter!”

Encompassing characteristic topics ranging from love & sex, war & politics, life & death – to the meaning of what it is to be human in the 21st century – ‘Ensoulment’ was written, demoed and mixed at Studio Cinéola in London, the base of THE THE’s main creative force, Matt Johnson.

The songs were further refined in rehearsals ahead of a six-day session at Real World Studios near Bath, where Matt was joined by long-standing THE THE members James Eller (bass), DC Collard (keyboards), Earl Harvin (drums), and Barrie Cadogan (lead guitar). The album also marks the return of co-producer and engineer Warne Livesey, who previously worked on landmark THE THE albums Infected (1986) and Mind Bomb (1989). Additional performances include Gillian Glover (backing vocals), Terry Edwards (horns), Sonya Cullingford (fiddle) and Danny Cummings (percussion).

Having last released a studio album in 2000 (NakedSelf), Johnson’s lengthy absence was partly explained in his 2017 multimedia project, The Inertia Variations, which took inspiration from British poet John Tottenham’s 2005 book of the same name – particularly the idea of “brooding, abstraction and evasion” getting in the way of the creative process – resulting in a feature-length documentary and the Radio Cinéola Trilogy triple album box set.

At the end of The Inertia Variations documentary, Johnson was filmed performing a new song live in his studio; ‘We Can’t Stop What’s Coming’ is an elegy to his elder brother Andrew (AKA artist Andy Dog), who passed away in 2016. “It was not an easy song to write,” he says. “That was the first time I’d sung in many years. I enjoyed it but found it very emotional.”

The experience prompted Johnson to revive THE THE as a live band, leading to The Comeback Special sold out world tour of 2018. Unfortunately, COVID delayed the release of the accompanying live film and album until 2021 – as well as hampered the intended start on the writing and recording of Ensoulment. Instead THE THE released a series of 7” inch singles: ‘We Can’t Stop What’s Coming’ was followed by ‘I WANT 2 B U’ (2020) and ‘$1 ONE VOTE!’ (2023).

Ensoulment contains echoes of THE THE’s multi-faceted musical past, however it is richly representative of the mercurial band’s here and now. Johnson is characteristically unafraid to tackle the emotional complexity inherent in the human condition – intimacy in an age of alienation; democracy in a post-truth age; empire and vassalage; and the inexorable rise of AI – yet the album is equally shot through with hope.

“It’s vital to be hopeful,” Johnson states. “And I hope people get out of the album what we put into it. It was created under very happy circumstances, with a great vibe amongst the band and all the people that worked on it. There was a lot of thought, a lot of work, a lot of love, a lot of laughter!”

Matt Johnson, vocals
Barrie Cadogan, guitar & backing vocals
DC Collard, keyboards
James Eller, bass
Earl Harvin, drums
Gillian Glover, backing vocals
Additional musicians:
Gillian Glover, backing vocals
Terry Edwards, horns
Sonya Cullingford, fiddle
Danny Cummings, percussion

The The
Founded in 1979, the band has been a guarantor for unique, prescient, fevered songs that resonate with basic truths about the human condition and seem to exist beyond the perishable dictates of fashion and style. Getting worldwide attention with the most critically acclaimed album of the year, 1983 ʼs synth noir classic "Soul Mining", The The finally made their global breakthrough in 1986 with their album "Infected" which featured two of the band’s groundbreaking political singles "Sweet Bird Of Truth" and "Heartland".

Matt Johnson continues to deliver music that speaks to a patiently waiting audience, music of today and the future, and after focusing on solo projects for over 20 years now finally makes the big step back into the limelight with The The.

This album contains no booklet.