For the past twenty years, Land Of Talk has stood as one of the underground’s most undervalued discoveries. After reviving the project in 2017 following a hiatus, Lizzie Powell has been issuing new albums at roughly three-year intervals, suggesting another release was likely on the horizon. In line with that pattern, Powell today revealed a fresh Land Of Talk LP.
The successor to 2023’s Performances is titled LASTS. Powell laid it down in a cabin in Harrington, Quebec, alongside longtime collaborators Michael Feuerstack (bass, pedal steel, additional vocals, engineering & mixing) and Michael Belyea (drums, percussion), with the record due in November on Saddle Creek.
The leading single “4:44” is available now. The track feels breezy and open yet carries a trace of melancholy, seasoned with a pleasing spectrum of guitar tones and textures, and it features some sharply articulated percussive chords that slice through the fog. I’m drawn to this lyric and the way Powell’s conversational delivery elevates the melody: “I get it/ It’s the way that I said it/ What can I say, I get carried away/ This feeling will stay if I let it.”
Some words from Powell:
“4:44,” originally titled “Harmonic Nation,” was one of the first songs we recorded at the cabin. It felt so good to finally be playing live in a cozy space with good pals in the dead of an especially lonely winter. Melodically, I don’t remember where the track came from, it just appeared fully formed despite my best efforts to doubt it, shape it, or abandon it altogether. If I got carried away and wanted the song to go on forever I don’t blame myself.
There’s also a “4:44” video directed by Ana-Maria Espino Trudel. More from Powell:
Lyrically, “4:44” formed much later and mostly was improvised in the studio. I had recently read online some demonstrably false things about my personal (and professional) life written by someone who I thought knew me. Whether they changed the facts out of sheer ignorance or in an effort to protect my privacy is unknown. The experience reminded me how I’ve come to accept the false narratives and (essentially) myths surrounding Land of Talk for years. For a while, I was questioning if I even knew my own story; my own lived experience. As for the title, there’s a story, but that will stay private :).
I wonder if it has anything to do with the Jay-Z album? Watch the “4:44” video below.
TRACKLIST:
01 “Broken Tongue”
02 “Saffron”
03 “4:44”
04 “Dogs”
05 “Cats”
06 “Projections”
07 “Cedars”
08 “Lasts”
LASTS is out 11/13 via Saddle Creek. Pre-order it here.
