David Byrne has a new album and he's taking it on the road

Who Is The Sky? includes contributions from St. Vincent, Hayley Williams, and more.

David Byrne has a new album and he's taking it on the road
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“Everybody laughs and everybody cries,” David Byrne sings in his new single, but the only tears Talking Heads fans will be crying this month are happy ones. Last week, the band premiered a new music video for “Psycho Killer,” starring Saoirse Ronan. While they’re likely never, ever getting back together, Byrne just announced the next best thing. The legendary frontman is back with his first solo album in seven years, titled Who Is The Sky?

He’s bringing some friends with him: St. Vincent and Paramore’s Hayley Williams both collaborated on the album, as well as The Smile’s Tom Skinner, and more. All 12 songs were arranged by members of the New York chamber ensemble, Ghost Train Orchestra. 

This collaborative spirit is represented in the album’s first single, “Everybody Laughs.” “Someone I know said, ‘David, you use the word ‘everybody’ a lot.’ I suppose I do that to give an anthropological view of life in New York as we know it,” Byrne shared of the track in a press release, per Pitchfork. “Everybody lives, dies, laughs, cries, sleeps and stares at the ceiling. Everybody’s wearing everybody else’s shoes, which not everybody does, but I have done. I tried to sing about these things that could be seen as negative in a way balanced by an uplifting feeling from the groove and the melody, especially at the end, when St. Vincent and I are doing a lot of hollering and singing together. Music can do that—hold opposites simultaneously.”

Everybody’s also getting involved in Byrne’s extensive tour, which will take him to multiple continents this year and next. He’ll be joined by a 13-person backing band, including members of the American Utopia band (his last album-turned-Broadway show), all of whom—in typical Byrne fashion—will be “mobile throughout the set.”

Who Is The Sky? is out September 5. Check out the album artwork, tracklist, and Byrne’s tour dates below:

Who Is The Sky? Tracklist:

  1. “Everybody Laughs”
  2. “When We Are Singing”
  3. “My Apartment Is My Friend”
  4. “A Door Called No”
  5. “What Is the Reason for It?”
  6. “I Met the Buddha at a Downtown Party”
  7. “Don’t Be Like That”
  8. “The Avant Garde”
  9. “Moisturizing Thing”
  10. “I’m an Outsider”
  11. “She Explains Things to Me”
  12. “The Truth”

David Byrne tour dates

09-14 Providence, RI – Veterans Memorial Auditorium

09-16 Pittsburgh, PA – Benedum Center PAC

09-17 Columbus, OH – Mershon Auditorium

09-19 Akron, OH – Akron Civic Theatre

09-21 Schenectady, NY – Proctors

09-23 Syracuse, NY – Landmark Theatre

09-25 Buffalo, NY – Shea’s Buffalo Theatre

09-27 Washington, DC – The Anthem

09-28 Washington, DC – The Anthem

09-30 New York, NY – Radio City Music Hall

10-01 New York, NY – Radio City Music Hall

10-03 Boston, MA – Boch Center Wang Theatre

10-04 Boston, MA – Boch Center Wang Theatre

10-07 Wallingford, CT – Toyota Oakdale Theatre

10-08 Portland, ME – Merrill Auditorium at City Hall

10-10 New York, NY – Radio City Music Hall

10-14 Richmond, VA – Altria Theater

10-16 Philadelphia, PA – The Met Philadelphia presented by Highmark

10-17 Philadelphia, PA – The Met Philadelphia presented by Highmark

10-21 Toronto, ON, Canada – Massey Hall

10-22 Toronto, ON, Canada – Massey Hall

10-25 Detroit, MI – Fox Theatre

10-28 Chicago, IL – The Auditorium

10-29 Chicago, IL – The Auditorium

10-31 Chicago, IL – The Auditorium

11-03 Minneapolis, MN – Orpheum Theatre

11-04 Minneapolis, MN – Orpheum Theatre

11-06 Denver, CO – Bellco Theatre

11-07 Denver, CO – Bellco Theatre

11-11 Seattle, WA – Paramount Theatre

11-12 Seattle, WA – Paramount Theatre

11-16 San Francisco, CA – The Theater at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium

11-17 San Francisco, CA – The Theater at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium

11-20 Los Angeles, CA – Dolby Theatre

11-21 Los Angeles, CA – Dolby Theatre

11-25 Austin, TX – Bass Concert Hall

11-26 Austin, TX – Bass Concert Hall

11-28 Dallas, TX – Music Hall at Fair Park

11-29 Dallas, TX – Music Hall at Fair Park

12-02 Atlanta, GA – Fox Theatre

12-03 Atlanta, GA – Fox Theatre

12-05 Miami, FL – Fillmore Miami Beach At Jackie Gleason Theatre

12-06 Miami, FL – Fillmore Miami Beach At Jackie Gleason Theatre

2026:

01-14 Auckland, New Zealand – Spark Arena

01-17 Brisbane, Australia – Brisbane Entertainment Center

01-21 Sydney, Australia – ICC Sydney Theatre

01-22 Melbourne, Australia – Sidney Myer Music Bowl

01-24 Adelaide, Australia – Adelaide Entertainment Centre Arena

01-27 Perth, Australia – RAC Arena

02-12 Berlin, Germany – Tempodrom

02-15 Amsterdam, Netherlands – AFAS Live

02-16 Amsterdam, Netherlands – AFAS Live

02-18 Brussels, Belgium – Forest National

02-21 Milan, Italy – Teatro degli Arcimboldi

02-22 Milan, Italy – Teatro degli Arcimboldi

02-24 Frankfurt, Germany – Jahrhunderthalle

02-27 Zurich, Switzerland – The Hall

03-02 Cardiff, Wales – Utilita Arena

03-03 London, England – Eventim Apollo

03-04 London, England – Eventim Apollo

03-06 Glasgow, Scotland – SEC Armadillo

03-07 Glasgow, Scotland – SEC Armadillo

03-09 Manchester, England – o2 Apollo

03-10 Manchester, England – o2 Apollo

03-13 Dublin, Ireland – 3Arena

03-15 London, England – Eventim Apollo

03-18 Paris, France – La Seine Musicale

03-19 Paris, France – La Seine Musicale

 
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