Dat New New: Postitive Songs for Negative People by Frank Turner
July 10, 2015
Courtesy of Frank Turner
WATCH OUT FOR Positive Songs for Negative People by Frank Turner
COMING OUT August 7, 2015
English singer-songwriter Frank Turner, whose music I think can be best described as “campfire punk,” went through a very piecemeal process on social media to announce his sixth studio album. In case you missed out on the excitement that Turner created in his fans with this process, here’s a quick timeline of the events that spell out a nearly perfect hype cycle.
MARCH 20, 2015
In a Facebook post, Turner announces that work on the sixth album is nearly done and that more information will come later. He also releases a lyric video for the track “Get Better,” the lead single from this still-as-yet untitled (or at least unannounced) record. Turner also begins to sell limited edition t-shirts that say “Not Dead Yet;” the same t-shirt that he was shown wearing at the end of the video.
Fans speculate as to the title of the record, thinking it may be or somewhat related to the phrase “Not Dead Yet” as it seemed to play a significant role in the marketing of the album to this point.
APRIL 29, 2015
Turner posts a picture of a CD-R that contains the final mastered copy of the record. Written on it in black permanent marker is “Frank Turner ÛÒ P.S.F.N.P.” Speculation continues as to what those letters could stand for.
MAY 11, 2015
The name of the album is finally revealed: Positive Songs for Negative People (as if you couldn’t already tell from the name of the hype article). Turner also revealed partial artwork for the record and wrote a sentence about the themes of the album:
‘Positive Songs For Negative People’ is a record about defiance, about picking yourself up when you’re down, and the title reflects that.
MAY 13, 2015
Turner posts a video of him playing a, as yet unreleased, track from the new album, “The Opening Act of Spring,” on an acoustic guitar on a roof in St. Augustine, Florida.
MAY 28, 2015
Turner creates and shares a “Positive Songs” Spotify playlist of “Positive Songs for Negative People” by other artists to continue to give us an idea of this concept that will pervade the new record.
On this playlist are personal favorites of mine Frightened Rabbit and Larry & His Flask.
JUNE 15, 2015
Frank was generally very quiet about the new album until this day, when my Facebook newsfeed exploded with news (and if anybody follows me on twitter, you saw my live reactions to this news). The album finally had a release date—August 7—and full artwork. Another single was also released, “The Next Storm,” this time accompanied by a music video featuring MMA fighter CM Punk.
Later in the morning, the dates for his fall tour were announced as well. (He’ll be playing DC’s famous 9:30 Club along with his touring band The Sleeping Souls on October 4, by the way.)
So, if you’re someone like me who can get sick of a lot of the negativity in modern music, Frank Turner’s music is a metaphorical breath of fresh air. It is nigh-on impossible to not have a cathartic experience listening to one of his records, especially for the first time. Turner’s music breeds the attitude of punk with the jadedness of an idealistic-leftist-turned-Libertarian who serves to remind us that life may be shitty, but you can’t “lay low and wait…on the next storm” (with some acoustic guitar and mandolin thrown in for good measure).
