Chameleons return with album 'Arctic Moon' in September

Chameleons will release the album Arctic Moon on Sept. 12 through Metropolis Records. The new full-length follows the EPs “Where Are You?” and “Tomorrow Remember Yesterday” over the last year.

“There’s an obvious maturity to the songwriting on this record," says vocalist/bassist Vox (otherwise known as Mark Burgess). "Those that are familiar with our past work will hear that this is a positive step forward in that respect.”

Of the Fall North American tour to promote the album, Vox says, “For the first time, we’ve been able to use real orchestral strings on a couple the songs, which were arranged and performed by Pete Whitfield at Real Strings in Manchester. They’ve given these songs a truly epic quality, and we can’t wait to perform them live. Danny [Ashberry], our keyboard player, is going to need all his skill to help bring this epic quality to the stage and we have every confidence that he can.”

Long cited as a hugely influential act having inspired the likes of Verve, Oasis, White Lies, Interpol, The Killers and Editors, among countless others, the British post punk group previously released widely acclaimed Script of the Bridge (1983), What Does Anything Mean? Basically!' (1984), Strange Times (1986), and Why Call It Anything? (2001).

With Arctic Moon adding to their storied catalog, the band propels forward musically while retaining the essence that made them iconic. “While we’re proud of the band’s legacy, we really wanted to forge something fresh while retaining that profound and imaginative quality we’re known for,” says Vox, reflecting on his band’s history. “We along with a few long-time listeners that are close to us that have heard the new album all agree that we’ve managed to do that and deliver a very strong record.”

Chameleons are Reg Smithies (guitar), Vox (bass, vocals, lyrics), Stephen Rice (guitar), Danny Ashberry (keyboards), and Todd Demma (drums)

Tour dates:

June 28 Northfield, OH MGM Northfield#
June 29 Grand Rapids, MI Frederik Meijer Gardens#
July 1 Columbus, OH Temple Live#
July 2 Pittsburgh, PA Mr. Smalls Theatre
July 3 Windsor, ON The Colosseum#
July 4 Rama, ON Casino Rama Resort#
July 5 Buffalo, NY Outer Harbor Live#
July 8 Louisville, KY Mercury Ballroom#
July 9 Nashville, TN Brooklyn Bowl#
July 10 Atlanta, GA The Masquerade
July 11 New Orleans, LA House of Blues#
July 12 Houston, TX House of Blues#
July 14 Dallas, TX House of Blues#
July 15 Austin, TX ACL Live at Moody#
Sept 26 Seattle, WA The Crocodile
Sept 27 Vancouver, BC The Pearl
Sept 28 Portland, OR Revolution Hall
Sept 30 Roseville, CA Goldfield Trading Post
Oct 1 San Francisco, CA The Fillmore
Oct 2 Los Angeles, CA The Belasco
Oct 3 Santa Ana, CA Observatory
Oct 4 Pioneertown, CA Pappy & Harriet's
Oct 5 San Diego, CA Belly Up
Oct 7 Phoenix, AZ Walter Studios
Oct 9 Denver, CO Marquis

# dates with Psychedelic Furs

Photo by Mick Peek, courtesy Reybee PR