More about: David ByrneTalking-Heads

David Byrne, the legendary frontman of 70s rockers Talking Heads, is hitting the road as a solo act next year, for the first time in nearly a decade.

Reportedly still holed up in the studio putting the final magic touches on a new solo record – alongside collaborators including old friend and foil Brian Eno – he’s teased his live setup will be even more ambitious than 1984’s legendary Stop Making Sense, which unfolded over 88 minutes from solo guitar and beatbox to a giant psychedelic circus.

Byrne told Brooklyn Vegan that this time his inspiration is mobile technology, and the freedom it can potentially lend to an often crowded live stage setup:

"I had an idea that everyone in the band might be mobile… so there would be no risers, drum platform or any of that stuff. I’d experienced a taste of this on the tour I did with St. Vincent, where all the brass players were mobile.

"With everyone mobile, I realized the stage could be completely clear. If we could have the monitors in our ears, the amps off-stage and the lights up high, then we had the possibility of a completely empty space."

Byrne toured with St Vincent in 2013 to support their duo album Love This Giant

"The problem was that there are always a lot of people and gear around the periphery of a music show’, Byrne continued. ‘Amps, monitor mixers, stage hands looking bored, road cases, etc., which would be completely distracting—how to hide that stuff? A curtain or drape obviously, but as I might be doing outdoor venues then there arose the issue of wind and drapes or curtains. A relatively light wind can play havoc with cloth, and if you try and anchor it, you end up having made yourself a very large sail—big enough to pull down the entire rig."

David Byrne’s tour will commence on the East Coast of the US in March before heading to a couple of dates in South America, then two summer festivals in Denmark and Croatia.

March

03 - COUNT BASIE THEATRE RED BANK, NJ
04 - F.M. KIRBY CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ART WILKES-BARRE, PA
06 - CENTER FOR THE ARTS BUFFALO, NY
07 - HERSHEY THEATRE HERSHEY, PA
09 - PALACE THEATER WATERBURY, CT
10 - ULSTER PERFORMING ARTS CENTER KINGSTON, NY
16 - LOLLAPALOOZA CHILE SANTIAGO, CHILE
18 - LOLLAPALOOZA ARGENTINA BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA

June

06 - ROSKILDE FESTIVAL ROSKILDE, DENMARK
25 - INMUSIC FESTIVAL ZAGREB, CROATIA
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Words: Andy Hill
Photo: Shutterstock

More about: David ByrneTalking-Heads