Neil Young celebrated the Dec. 1 release of his latest studio album, The Visitor, with the opening of the Neil Young Archives, described in a press release as “a comprehensive chronological collection of Young’s entire recorded music, films, videos and books, audio streaming in Master Quality via Young’s ‘Xstream by NYA.’”
Regarding The Visitor, according to a press release, “When Neil Young entered Shangri La Studio with the band Promise of the Real a few months ago, there were a lot of images and feelings careening around his soul. The country was heading in a direction Young had never seen, even though up until then he thought he’d seen it all. But something different was happening, and it had gotten inside his music. ‘I’m a Canadian by the way and I love the USA,’ he sings on the first song ‘Already Great.’ The ethos of The Visitor can be summed up in the refrain of ‘Already Great’ where Young insists, “Already great, you’re already great. You’re the promise land, the helping hand. No wall. No hate. No fascist USA. WHOSE STREET? OUR STREET.’”
On Feb. 1, Young released a video for “Almost Always” from the new album
From those words, continues the release, Young “was ready to take a musical journey on his new album The Visitor like he had never taken before. It was one where he’d even surprise himself, always the mark of a creative leap. By the end of the recording sessions, he knew he’d made his most diverse album going all the way back to Harvest in 1972, when America was also in the throes of becoming unhinged. Neil Young didn’t blink then, and he is not blinking now.”
Promise of the Real features Lukas and Micah Nelson along with Corey McCormick, Anthony Logerfo and Tato Melgar. In 2015, Neil Young + Promise of the Real released The Monsanto Years. They followed it up with 2016’s live album, Earth.
Young has only one concert date on his 2018 calendar, but it’s a doozy. He’ll be performing on April 21 with his 3x bandmate Stephen Stills at the latter’s annual Light Up the Blues concert to benefit Autism Speaks.
Watch “Already Great,” released Dec. 1
The Visitor Track Listing
Already Great
Fly By Night Deal
Almost Always
Stand Tall
Change Of Heart
Carnival
Diggin’ A Hole
Children Of Destiny
When Bad Got Good
Forever
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