Lambchop have announced their new album, Punching The Clown, due 21st August 2026 via City Slang. It will be their first full-length in nearly four years, following The Bible. The lead single, Weakened, is out today.
Recorded in three days at April Base, the album reunites bandleader Kurt Wagner with producer Ryan Olson, alongside Andrew Broder on guitar, Justin Vernon on banjo, and a six-part choir helmed by Blake Morgan. Mark Nevers handled recording and mixing. Twelve further singers were later added in London, with Randal in Minneapolis.
Wagner’s introduction to the record reads:
⏁
in early 2024 i heard a song on the radio on my way to get some gas.
just a minimal single chord strummed banjo and a small group of voices.
it seemed perfect in the moment as the moment became perfect in itself.
i never found out who it was, sounded kinda like early country gospel?
in a time of searching i discovered a type of gospel singing known as lined out singing
which is said to have begun in the late 1800s in scotland.
it migrated to appalachia and became an obscure root of american gospel, country….
a spontaneous call and response type of acapella singing led by a clerk with a chorus of singers
revealing the raw beauty and power of the human voice with its unique varieties
its unadorned simplicity gave weight to the words as they were sung.
i wanted to make a record that emulated this kind of music.
⏄
is this that? Perhaps
ryan and i decided to make another record together after the bible.
my idea was to go back to writing songs in the manner in which i began
then present them as described in ⏁ solely banjo voice and choir
ryan mentioned that justin had been playing the banjo
i’d done some prior work with blake for a live london performance with a choir
and there it was
recorded in 3 days, a year thereafter at april base
andrew justin ryan nevers blake with his selected six part choir
trusting in our mutual love and respect for each others proclivities
later adding 12 more singers in london and randal in minneapolis
we figured it out.
⏃
the songs took some doing
i needed to become a better writer
so i asked andrew to write some hits
he’d rarely written songs in this way of simple song demos of guitar and voice
i took to the study of the works of the many great songwriters, their work, lives, process.
in doing so allowing their madness pain and truth to become mine
i failed so often until i didn’t
it got better
in the end there were 30 songs that transcended into consideration
ryan and i picked 12 and decided the track listing
which we adhered to throughout the entire process
⏇
i’m conflicted not offering a more detailed accountings for these songs but this feels like enough
let’s just say i tried for simple, restrained vocabulary to get closer to a modest amount of truth
through a guise of hyper-naturalism grief love and humor
The band will perform two nights at London’s Union Chapel featuring a 12-person choir:
27 Nov – London, UK @ Union Chapel – TICKETS (featuring choir)
28 Nov – London, UK @ Union Chapel – TICKETS (featuring choir)
More dates below.
The announcement follows their contribution of Afterburner to last year’s Passages benefit compilation, in support of Texas-based organisations working with immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers.
Pre-order Punching The Clown here.
The Limited Rough Trade Exclusive is available here.
US tour dates:
28 Jun – Minneapolis, MN @ Crooners Supper Club
30 Aug – Minneapolis, MN @ Crooners Supper Club
27 Sep – Minneapolis, MN @ Crooners Supper Club
29 Sep – Chicago, IL @ Old Town School of Music / Maurer Hall
01 Oct – New York City, NY @ Public Records
02 Oct – New York City, NY @ Public Records
UK + EU tour dates:
18 Nov – Viseu, PT @ Teatro Viriato
19 Nov – Lisbon, PT @ Culturgest
21 Nov – Braga, PT @ Theatro Circo
22 Nov – Espinho, PT @ Auditório de Espinho
24 Nov – Manchester, UK @ New Century Hall
25 Nov – Sheffield, UK @ Octagon
26 Nov – Gateshead, UK @ Sage 2
27 Nov – London, UK @ Union Chapel – (featuring choir)
28 Nov – London, UK @ Union Chapel – (featuring choir)
1 Dec – Dudelange, LU @ Opderschmelz
2 Dec – Antwerp, BE @ Arenberg
3 Dec – Roeselare, BE @ De Spil
7 Feb – Oslo, NO @ Konserthus
9 Feb – Trondheim, NO @ Byscenen
11 Feb – Copenhagen, DK @ DR Koncerthuset
12 Feb – Hamburg, DE @ Christianskirche
13 Feb – Berlin, DE @ Passionkirche
14 Feb – Erlangen, DE @ Markgrafentheater
16 Feb – Vienna, AT @ Theater Akzent
17 Feb – Budapest, HU @ House Of Music
19 Feb – Glasgow, UK @ St Lukes
20 Feb – Galway, IE @ St Nicholas’ Church
21 Feb – Dublin, IE @ The Helix
Tickets are available here:
https://www.lambchop.net/