New Pat Metheny album 'Dream Box' to be released in June

Jazz guitar giant, composer and improviser Pat Metheny has today (11 April) announced his newest album, Dream Box, to be released on the BMG Modern Recordings label on 16 June. The album is available for pre-order on CD, vinyl or digital formats. Comprising nine “found tracks” for “quiet electric guitar,” Metheny describes it as "a unique recording for me; it is essentially a compilation of solo tracks recorded across a few years that I only discovered while listening on tour.” Two singles will be released in advance of the full album: “From the Mountains” out now, and “Ole & Gard” on 12 May. The full album will be available here. 

Metheny has recorded some 50 albums has won 20 Grammys in 12 different categories. It was while on one of his many tours that the guitarist began rummaging through recordings to compile Dream Box. 

He explains: “I was surprised to find this programme emerging as a coherent whole. I found that I had unintentionally gotten to a destination I had not planned for. … These nine tracks were my favourites and added up to something unique for me. I never played anything more than once. These are really moments in time, and in fact, I have almost no memory of having recorded most of them. They just kind of showed up. Every track but one reflects a method of recording that began for me on the piece ‘Unity Village’ way back on Bright Size Life; an initial harmonic part with a second track of melodic and improvisational material.”

Meanwhile, Metheny has a host of tour dates lined up in the US and Europe with his Side-Eye Trio.  Launched in 2016 as a platform for up-and-coming players, this iteration features pianist Chris Fishman and drummer Joe Dyson. The Side-Eye tour begins in June and moves to Europe in July. Beginning in September, Metheny will tour in support of Dream Box.