‘Year Of The Snake’ out Nov 13

Year Of The Snake takes its title from Nick’s birth year, 2001 – the Year of the Metal Snake – and the Chinese Zodiac belief that a zodiac year can bring profound change. Following the release and touring cycle for House With The Blue Door, Nick found himself in a period of personal upheaval, loss, relationship breakdowns and a deepening isolation from his peers.

Rather than simply wallow in that darkness, Year Of The Snake became an attempt to move through it – music-making as an act of survival. Its loose thematic thread draws from the myth of Orpheus, whose journey into the underworld became a parallel for Ward in his personal life – learning to let go of what no longer served him and find a way forward.

“I didn’t want to make a depressing album wallowing about what it’s like to be alive right now,” says Nick. “I wanted to make a record that felt like a warm hand on the shoulder or a pep talk, without being naive to the darker shades of life. These are difficult years that we’re experiencing and I wanted to make something that feels like a salve to that.