Pitchfork

This summer, Jason Swinscoe will return with the first Cinematic Orchestra album since 2002's Every Day. The new record, titled Ma Fleur, was conceived as the soundtrack to an imagined film. Swinscoe made use of a scriptwriter and photographer Maya Hayuk for inspiration, bringing unfinished pieces to them and writing more music based on their responses in the forms of short story scripts and photographs.

It's out on Ninja Tune on May 7 in the UK and June 5 on Domino in North America.

Swinscoe collaborated with longtime bassist Phil France on Ma Fleur's arrangements. He also assembled a trio of vocalists, each of which he used to voice specific characters or thematic elements of the Ma Fleur story. Legendary soul singer and previous Cinematic Orchestra collaborator Fontella Bass plays the part of the elderly protagonist, and Lou Rhodes plays a character in mid-life. The youngest member of the trio is Montreal's Patrick Watson, who sings on the beautiful album closer "To Build a Home".

Ninja Tune is offering the radio edit of "To Build a Home" as an MP3 download if you sign up for the Cinematic Orchestra mailing list here. It's worth it, but if you'd rather not provide an email address, you can stream the song from the group's MySpace.

The Cinematic Orchestra will tour Europe and the UK in April and May, with plans to play select North American venues in July. So far, only an NYC date has been announced. A full tour is in the works for the fall.

Tracklist:

01 That Home [ft. Patrick Watson]
02 Familiar Ground [ft. Fontella Bass]
03 Ma Fleur
04 Music Box [ft. Patrick Watson/Lou Rhodes]
05 Time and Space [ft. Lou Rhodes]
06 Prelude
07 As the Stars Fall
08 Into You
09 Breathe [ft. Fontella Bass]
10 To Build a Home [ft. Patrick Watson]

Dates:

04-19 Bourges, France - Printemps de Bourges Festival
04-21 Paris, France - Trabendo
04-22 Amsterdam, Netherlands - Melkweg
04-23 Brussels, Belgium - Ancienne Belgique
04-24 Kendal, England - Brewery Arts Centre
04-25 Aberdeen, Scotland - Lemon Tree (Triptych Festival)
04-26 Edinburgh, Scotland - Liquid Room (Triptych Festival)
04-27 Glasgow, Scotland - Renfrew Ferry (Triptych Festival)
04-28 Bracknell, England - South Hill Park Arts Centre
04-29 Brighton, England - Komedia
05-01 Cardiff, Wales - The Point
05-02 Leeds, England - Leeds Metropolitan University Students' Union
05-03 Manchester, England - Academy 2
05-04 Gateshead, England - The Sage Gateshead
05-05 Cheltenham, England - Town Hall (Cheltenham Jazz Festival)
05-06 London, England - Barbican Arts Centre
07-07 New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom