Plus the band’s new project Campfire Chords is out on 20 August, and we can’t wait.
Arkells return with their brand new single Quitting You, out now on Universal Music Canada, the country’s leading music company. Following the release of their track Years In The Making, Quitting You is an intimate song about finding comfort in the people closest to you and was inspired by Arkells’ upcoming Campfire Chords project, out 20 August. Campfire Chords is a stripped-back collection of Arkells’ most beloved songs and marks the band’s first full-length presentation of this side of their music. Amidst the uncertain backdrop of 2020, Arkells took a pause from working on their upcoming studio album and went back to their roots, reinterpreting past material and rediscovering the singer-songwriter spirit that has long informed their trademark sing-a-longs.
On Sunday 2 August, as part of the opening weekend for NHL hockey’s return to play, Arkells performed Quitting You for the first time ever plus sports anthem Years In The Making during the Budweiser #OneTeam Tribute throughout Sportsnet’s prime time coverage of the Maple Leafs vs Blue Jackets game. The Budweiser #OneTeam Tribute is a celebration and a thank you to the U.S frontline heroes whose tireless efforts these past few months led the charge to welcome back hockey. This performance marks the first time Arkells have played together in over four months.
While Arkells were knee-deep working on their next studio album, the quarantine forced them to take four months physically apart – the longest they’d ever spent off the road. This pause did not slow them down; but rather presented a new path.
Amidst the uncertain backdrop of 2020, Arkells took a heel turn and went back to their roots, reimagining versions of their most beloved songs for a new project. From their bedrooms, Arkells began to reinterpret past material for a new project, thematically titled Campfire Chords, and rediscover the singer-songwriter spirit that has long informed their trademark sing-a-longs. These remote sessions inspired their latest single, Quitting You– an intimate song about finding comfort in the people closest to you.
The vulnerable arrangements heard in Campfire Chords marks the band’s first full-length presentation of this side of their music. “Does it pass the campfire test?” is a question the band often asks themselves while working on new music. If a song can be stripped to its core and be sung around a campfire, “then we know we’re on our way.”
While we haven’t had concerts lately, we still have music in the kitchen, parks, backyards, docks, and campfires. With songs about the essentials in life – love, friendship, community, and optimism – Arkells’ Campfire Chords will feel like an old friend, here to keep you company.
Campfire Chords track listing:
1. Knocking At The Door
2. Quitting You
3. Years In The Making
4. Whistleblower
5. Michigan Left
6. I’m Not The Sun
7. Don’t Be A Stranger
8. Come To Light
9. A Little Rain (A Song For Pete)
10. Eyes On The Prize
11. Book Club
12. And Then Some
13. Kiss Cam
14. My Heart’s Always Yours
15. Hand Me Downs
16. 11:11
17. Relentless
18. Leather Jacket
19. Take Me Home (Outro)
High Fives & Stage Dives 