David Byrne revealed big plans for 2018 during a recent presentation of his curated series, Reasons To Be Cheerful, today. His forthcoming studio album, American Utopia, comes out in March, on the ninth. Reasons To Be Cheerful is an ongoing series of presentations that present writing, photography, music and lectures of Byrne’s choosing. He shared this news during one of his lectures at New York’s New School in front of a live audience.

He told the audience and a host of Facebook followers via livestream that the album will be accompanied by a world tour. Byrne says its “the most ambitious show I’ve done since the shows that were filmed for Stop Making Sense.” Byrne and Brian Eno worked the album’s title track, “Everybody’s Coming To My House,” that features contributions from TTY, Happa Isaiah Barr (Onyx Collective) and Sampha. Byrne released the first track along with a visual piece that can be found online.

Byrne collects news and ideas from all around the world that inspire hope and optimism and filters them to the world through Reasons To Be Cheerful. He lectures on breakthroughs in technology, music and various topics that range from urban planning to interesting philosophical ideology. Byrne hopes for his new album to act as his show has, to add something positive to an otherwise dark time.

These songs don’t describe an imaginary or possibly impossible place but rather attempt to depict the world we live in now. Many of us, I suspect, are not satisfied with that world—the world we have made for ourselves. We look around and we ask ourselves—well, does it have to be like this? Is there another way? These songs are about that looking and that asking.

American Utopia tracklist

1. I Dance Like This
2. Gasoline And Dirty Sheets
3. Every Day Is A Miracle
4. Dog’s Mind
5. This Is That
6. It’s Not Dark Up Here
7. Bullet
8. Doing The Right Thing
9. Everybody’s Coming To My House
10. Here

Current American Utopia 2018 Tour Dates:

3/3/2018 -Red Bank, NJ – Count Basie Theatre SOLD OUT
3/4/2018 – Wilkes-Barre, PA – F.M. Kirby Center for the Performing Arts SOLD OUT
3/6/2018 – Buffalo, NY – Center For The Arts SOLD OUT
3/7/2018 – Hershey, PA – Hershey Theatre SOLD OUT
3/9/2018 – Waterbury, CT – Palace Theater SOLD OUT
3/10/2018 – Kingston, NY – Ulster Performing Arts Center SOLD OUT
3/16/2018 – Santiago, CHI – Lollapalooza (Chile)
3/18/2018 – Buenos Aires, ARG – Lollapalooza (Argentina)
3/24/2018 – Sao Paulo, BRA – Lollapalooza (Brazil)
4/7/2018 – Guadalajara, MEX – Sonico Festival
4/14/2018 – Indio, CA – Coachella
4/21/2018 – Indio, CA – Coachella
5/4 – 5/6/2018 – Atlanta, GA – Shaky Knees
6/22-23/2018 – Prague, Czech Republic – Metronome Festival
6/25/2018 – Zagreb, Croatia – INmusic Festival
6/30 – 7/1/2018 – Ewijk, Netherlands – Down The Rabbit Hole
6/30 – 7/7/2018 – Roskilde, Denmark – Roskilde Festival
7/5/2018 – Gdynia, Poland – Open’er Festival
7/11/2018 – Oeiras, Portugal – Cool Jazz Festival
7/13/2018 – Bilbao, Spain – Bilbao BBK Live Festival
7/13-14/2018 – Barcelona, Spain – Cruilla Barcelona
7/19/2018 – Ravenna, Italy – Ravenna Festival
7/20/2018 – Perugia, Italy – Umbria Jazz Festival
7/21/2018 – Trieste, Italy – Piazza UNita
7/27/2018 – Camden ,NJ – XPoNential Music Festival