THE THE has released “Linoleum Smooth To The Stockinged Foot” (and accompanying music video), the 2nd single from Ensoulment (Cinéola / earMUSIC), their long-awaited new studio album out September 6, 2024. The song is co-produced by Matt Johnson and Warne Livesey. 

The lyrics for “Linoleum Smooth To The Stockinged  Foot” – which touch upon the nascent bio-security state – were written from Matt Johnson’s hospital bed, under the influence of morphine while recovering from a life-saving operation. As fate would have it,  Johnson’s weeks in hospital had nothing to do with Covid, but occurred at precisely the time Covid reached crisis proportions, making for an even more surreal ordeal.  The discordant interplay between horns and fiddle is redolent of Johnson’s hallucinogenic, surreal experience, which he tried to emulate by asking the musicians to improvise over the track, without hearing the other’s contribution, as he manipulated the sounds in real-time. 

“Linoleum Smooth To The Stockinged Foot” is unique in that it does not feature any of the core band members apart from Johnson on vocals, guitar, and bass, plus guest musicians Sonya Cullingford on fiddle, Terry Edwards on horns, Gillian Glover providing backing vocals, and hand claps from percussionist Danny Cummings. The single cover features a previously unpublished work of Johnson’s late brother Andrew (AKA artist Andy Dog) who, over the years, was very much responsible for the distinctive aesthetic style of THE THE’s releases. The video for ‘Linoleum Smooth To The Stockinged Foot’ was made in conjunction with long-time collaborators: directed by Tim Pope with editing and VFX by Vicki Bennett (People Like Us) and Peter Knight. Anya Krasnikova was the Director of Photography.

In support of Ensoulment THE THE will embark on a worldwide tour with dates kicking off August 28 with many European and UK dates already sold out. The North American run starts in Atlanta, GA on October 11 and concludes on November 8 at The Shrine in Los Angeles, CA. The band will play at the Beacon Theater in New York City on October 17. The “Ensouled Tour” will mark the band’s first since their hugely successful “The Comeback Special” world tour in 2018. All dates are listed below and tickets for North American shows are here.  

Ensoulment itself contains echoes of THE THE’s multifaceted musical past, however it is richly representative of the mercurial band’s here and now. Johnson is characteristically unafraid to tackle the emotional complexity inherent in the human condition – intimacy in an age of alienation; democracy in a post-truth age; empire and vassalage; and the inexorable rise of AI – yet the album is equally shot through with hope. 

“It’s vital to be hopeful,” Johnson states. “And I hope people get out of the album what we put into it. It was created under very happy circumstances, with a great vibe amongst the band and all the people that worked on it. There was a lot of thought, a lot of work, a lot of love, a lot of laughter! 

THE THE tour dates

8/21 – Cambridge Junction – Cambridge, England SOLD OUT

8/22 – The Waterfront Norwich – Norwich, England SOLD OUT

8/23 – Picturedrome – Holmfirth, England SOLD OUT

8/25 – National Museum Of Ireland – Dublin, Ireland

9/10 – Sentrum Scene – Oslo, Norway

9/11 – Sentrum Scene – Oslo, Norway SOLD OUT

9/13 – Filadelfia – Stockholm, Sweden

9/14 – Store Vega – Copenhagen, Denmark SOLD OUT

9/15 – Store Vega – Copenhagen, Denmark SOLD OUT

9/17 – Huxleys – Berlin, Germany

9/18 – Carlswerk Victoria – Köln, Germany

9/19 – Ancienne Belgique – Brussels, Belgium SOLD OUT

9/21 – De Roma – Antwerp, Belgium SOLD OUT

9/22 – Paradiso – Amsterdam, Netherlands SOLD OUT

9/23 – Paradiso – Amsterdam, Netherlands SOLD OUT

9/25 – Usher Hall – Edinburgh, Scotland SOLD OUT

9/27 – The Civic At The Halls – Wolverhampton, England

9/28 – Alexandra Palace – London, England SOLD OUT

9/30 – O2 Apollo – Manchester, England SOLD OUT

10/1 – O2 Academy Brixton – London, England

10/11 – Tabernacle – Atlanta, GA

10/12 – Durham Performing Arts – Durham, NC

10/14 – The Anthem – Washington, DC

10/15 – The Fillmore – Philadelphia, PA

10/17 – Beacon Theatre – New York, NY

10/19 – Orpheum Theatre – Boston, MA

10/20 – MTELUS – Montreal, QC

10/22 – Massey Hall – Toronto, ON

10/23 – Masonic Cathedral Theatre – Detroit, MI

10/25 – The Salt Shed – Chicago, IL SOLD OUT 

10/26 – Palace Theatre – St. Paul, MN

10/29 – Mission Ballroom – Denver, CO

10/30 – Eccles Theater – Salt Lake City, UT

11/2 – Paramount Theatre – Seattle, WA

11/3 – Roseland Theater – Portland, OR

11/4 – Orpheum – Vancouver, BC

11/7 – Fox Theater – Oakland, CA

11/8 – Shrine Auditorium – Los Angeles, CA

11/14 – Kiri Te Kanawa Theatre – Auckland, New Zealand SOLD OUT

11/16 – Palais Theatre, Melbourne, Australia SOLD OUT

11/17 – Palais Theatre, Melbourne, Australia

11/18 – Hindley Street Music Hall, Adelaide, Australia

11/21 – Sydney Opera House, Sydney, Australia

11/22 – Sydney Opera House, Sydney, Australia

11/23 – Fortitude Music Hall, Brisbane, Australia SOLD OUT

11/24 – Fortitude Music Hall, Brisbane, Australia

11/27 – Fremantle Arts Centre, Perth, Australia