CMAT comes out swinging on new single Take A Sexy Picture Of Me – a right-hook laden belter that’s “one of the best songs she’s ever written”.
It’s the second single to be taken from her new album EURO-COUNTRY – the star’s “most important record” to date, set for release on August 29. Recent single Running/Planning received widespread critical acclaim and was playlisted at BBC Radio 1, BBC 6Music and BBC Radio 2. CMAT will guest on Later…with Jools Holland on May 18th.
Very few tickets now remain for October’s tour, with many shows, including O2 Academy Brixton and Dublin’s 3 Arena, now sold out. Prominent festival slots at Primavera, Wide Awake and Glastonbury also beckon – with a short Glasto warm-up tour just announced.
On Take A Sexy Picture Of Me – premiered last night as a Hottest Record by Jack Saunders on BBC Radio 1 – CMAT says:
“With the internet, every woman is now in the public eye. And no matter who you are, or what you look like, somebody will take umbrage with the fact that you even exist, and there’s no escaping it. ‘Take a Sexy Picture of Me’ was born out of that, because I held back for so long; not out of frustration or sadness for myself, because I AM in the public eye, but I realised it’s actually like this for every woman. It’s all women, all the time. That song is me calling out anyone who criticised my weight or how I looked… and it’s one of the best songs I’ve ever made.“
Despite this being her third album, this fully-formed acronymic star feels like she’s been part of the culture forever. EURO-COUNTRY follows 2023’s brilliant Crazymad, For Me – an album that propelled her to wider attention and garnered numerous accolades: including a BRITs Best International Artist nod; and ‘Best Album’ nominations from the Ivors; Mercury Prize and the Choice Music Prize in her native Ireland (an award she won for her debut, If My Wife New I’d Be Dead).
Press, radio and television have all been integral in her rise, with numerous covers, five-star reviews, playlists, Maida Vale sessions and TV appearances, including Jools Holland (both Later… and a memorable turn on his Hootenanny) and The Graham Norton Show. A relentless touring schedule with The Very Sexy CMAT Band has cemented her reputation as one of the best live acts around.
The new album – coming via AWAL Recordings – was recorded in New York and co-produced by long-time collaborator Oli Deakin and CMAT. EURO-COUNTRY tackles a number of big themes including personal reflections on economics, identity and grief. It marks another step in the unstoppable rise of CMAT and cements her position as a generational songwriter.
What has endeared fans to her heart-sore tunes and humour is Ciara Mary-Alice Thompson’s ability to combine contradictory themes and moods: wide-eye drama with self-deprecation; the fusion of country and pop, with even more influences stretching across decades and genres. EURO-COUNTRY is no different: an aural tight-rope walk that balances big themes, specifically: the impact of economics on a small country, the attention that comes with increased fame (not all of it good) and being a woman.
Speaking about the LP, CMAT said: “EURO-COUNTRY is, I think, the best thing I have ever made. I felt halfway through recording it was the most important record I’ve made for myself… mainly because it was making me go crazy“
“I’m always going to make the work I want to make, because there is a little gremlin in my head that tells me if it’s shit. More than success, there’s a bigger gremlin that wants me to make music that’s really good. She’s brutal and has ruined my life at times, but she is the keeper of my life and she’s always right.”
Tour Dates
May 23rd – Wide Awake Festival, London, UK
May 24th – Lovely Days, Dublin
May 25th – Neighbourhood Festival, Warrington
Jun 5th – Primavera, Barcelona
Jun 6th – London Stadium, London, UK *
Jun 12th – St James Park, Newcastle, UK *
Jun 14th – St James Park, Newcastle, UK *
Jun 15th – St James Park, Newcastle, UK *
Jun 21st – 02 Academy, Liverpool
Jun 22nd – Esquires, Bedford
Jun 24th – Princess Pavilion, Falmouth
Jun 25th – Cheese and Grain
Jun 27th – Glastonbury
Jul 12th – NOS, Lisbon
Jul 26th – Truck Festival, Oxfordshire
Jul 27th – Tramlines Festival, Sheffield
Aug 1st – Belladrum Tartan Heart, Belladrum
Aug 2nd – All Together Now, Waterford
Aug 7th – Syd For Solen, Copenhagen, DEN
Aug 8th – Way Out West, Gothenburg, SWE
Aug 14th – Cabaret Vert, Charleville Mezieres, FR
Aug 15th – Lowlands, Biddinghuizen, NL
Aug 16th – Green Man Festival, Crickhowell
Aug 28th – Boucher Playing Fields, Belfast *
Sep 08th – The Fonda Theatre, Los Angeles
Sep 10th – Gothic Theatre, Englewood
Sep 12th – Fine Line, Minneapolis
Sep 13th – Park West, Chicago
Sep 15th – The Concert Hall, Toronto
Sep 17th – Paradise Rock Club, Boston
Sep 18th – Webster Hall, New York
Sep 20th – Shaky Knees, Atlanta
Sep 21st – Basement East, Nashville
Oct 2nd – O2 Academy Brixton, London – sold out
Oct 4th – Academy, Manchester – sold out
Oct 5th – O2 Academy, Leeds
Oct 6th – NX, Newcastle
Oct 8th – Barrowland Ballroom, Glasgow
Oct 9th – Barrowland Ballroom, Glasgow – sold out
Oct 10th – Barrowland Ballroom, Glasgow – sold out
Oct 12th – Rock City, Nottingham
Oct 13th – Corn Exchange, Cambridge
Oct 15th – Dome Concert Hall, Brighton
Oct 16th – O2 Institute, Birmingham
Oct 17th – UEA, Norwich
Oct 19th – Octagon, Sheffield
Oct 20th – O2 Academy, Bristol – sold out
Dec 5th – 3Arena, Dublin – sold out
* Supporting Sam Fender
