Ed Sheeran to release another album this year
MANILA, Philippines — British singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran will be releasing a new album titled "Autumn Variations" this September, just four months after releasing "-" or "Subtract."
"Autumn Variations" will be Sheeran's first album under his very own Gingerbread Man Records label, which he launched back in 2015. His previous works were released under Asylum and Atlantic Records.
Sheeran again teamed up with music producer Aaron Dressner of The National for his latest album. The two previously collaborated on "-" earlier in the year.
The singer-songwriter said in a public statement posted on his social media accounts that "Autumn Variations" was the album he and Dressner had intended to create while the singer was working on "-." He said it was inspired by British composer Edward Elgar as introduced by his father John and older brother Matthew.
"Elgar has this thing called the 'Engima Variations' where he did 14 songs about 14 friends, so I wanted to make 14 songs about 14 friends and base it on autumn," explained Sheeran.
The singer shared that during the last autumn season, he and his friends were going through several life changes, and writing songs helped him when the dust had settled.
"After the heat of the summer, everything either calmed, settled, fell apart, came to a head or imploded... When I learned about my friend’s different situations, I wrote songs, some from their perspectives, some from mine, to capture how they and I viewed the world at that time," Sheeran added.
These views include the highs of falling in love and new friendships and the lows of heartbreak, depression, loneliness and confusion, which Sheeran found interesting subjects to write about, especially with autumn being a season of change coming out of summer.
"[Dressner and I] wrote and recorded non-stop and this album was born out of that partnership. I feel he has captured the feeling of autumn so wonderfully in his sonics and I hope everyone loves it as much as I do," the singer ended.
Sheeran also released the album cover, which consists of illustrations often associated with autumn like "changing trees," "falling leaves," "days getting shorter," "nights getting longer," "pumpkins & squash," "old coats," "harvest season," "football" and "dreams of spring."
The cover also features illustrations of themes that Sheeran touched upon as the inspiration for the album, such as "bad/good news," "overthinking," "heartbreak," "dark thoughts," "drinks with friends," "moments of hope/sadness," "serenity" and "friendship."
"Autumn Variations" comes out on September 23, the autumnal equinox for countries in the Northern Hemisphere, and a week after Sheeran concludes the North American leg of his "Mathematics" world tour that celebrates his "+," "x," "÷," "=" and "-" albums.
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