It appears London’s undisputed Prince of Bangers, Fred Again…, hasn’t even begun his ascent to the upper echelon of contemporary music. The widely acclaimed producer, fresh off a beautifully received NPR Tiny Desk Concert, has announced that he will be releasing a new collaborative album this week with none other than legendary musician Brian Eno.
If you’ve already seen his epic Tiny Desk Concert, then you’d know Fred Again… (born Frederick John Philip Gibson) is a master of abstracting stadium-sized electronica productions into wonderfully dense, immersive ambient masterpieces. Gibson hooking up with Eno, the King of ambient music, should easily make their joint album – Secret Life – one of 2023’s biggest and best releases.
The announcement was revealed this morning with Four Tet letting the world know that his label, Text Records, will release the surprise album on Friday, May 5. The producer, who recently performed alongside Gibson and Skrillex at Madison Square Garden, has already claimed it as “the most beautiful album of 2023.”
That’s no surprise, really. Eno, a Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, is considered one of contemporary music’s most influential artists. He has worked with just about every big name in the industry and has a stack of acclaimed works to his name, dating back to 1973’s Here Come The Warm Jets.
The 74-year-old musician served as Gibson’s mentor early in his career and is unparalleled when it comes to creating grand, entrancing and emotive soundscapes – exactly the kind of path Fred Again… has been on since he entered public consciousness in 2020 with his debut studio album Actual Life.
In fact, the two have already crossed paths a few times on record, with Fred Again… earning writing credits on Eno and Karl Hyde’s albums Someday World and High Life.
Secret Life seems to be an extension of the radio station of the same name which Four Tet created with Gibson and Skrillex recently, presenting a curious staple of static-filled white noise that is broadcast live daily at 10 PM (BST). It’s the kind of cryptic promotion one should expect from top-tier musicians nowadays.
“When I first worked with Fred I could see he was brilliant,” said Eno when interviewed by Apple Music last year.
“It took me quite a while to think ‘Oh my gosh, this is really a new idea about how you can make music. So I learnt a lot from him.”
That “new way” Eno is referring to is conceived by Fred Again… as a sort of “collaborative diary” with what is essential field recordings with a deeply human element, taken from the likes of voice notes and crowd noise. We’ll likely hear more of that in a few days when Secret Life drops.
This will be the first project from Fred Again… since last year’s brilliant Actual Life 3 (January 1 – September 9 2022). The producer, who toured Australia earlier this year, also just headlined the second weekend of Coachella alongside Four Tet and Skrillex, the trio serving as a last-minute replacement for Frank Ocean after the latter was forced to cancel his highly anticipated set due to an “ankle injury.”
Secret Life drops on Friday, May 5 via Four Tet’s Text Records.
