A year after Sparta’s comeback album, lead singer and guitarist Jim Ward is set to release a new solo record entitled Daggers this summer with Dine Alone Records.

The album is set for release on June 11, though the announcement of the album was accompanied by a sneak peek called “Paper Fish” to peak listener interest and display just how unique this record is meant to be. Ward explained that he wrote this song in one sitting, and that it was the last but most important piece in the project, according to Flood Magazine.

Contrasting the music Ward created with bands Sparta, Sleepercar and even At The Drive In that he left in 2016, this single hints that the album will have reasonable pop and indie-rock influences on the post-hardcore and alt-country genres he has centered on throughout his career. The song possesses a mid-tempo rhythm section of bass and percussion, featuring musicians Ben Kenney of Incubus and Tucker Rule of Thursday. Ward credits “Paper Fish” with being the song that acted as his “breakthrough” into the message and the meaning he wanted for the album, the lyrics reflecting his personal journey of self-growth and humanity. Daggers promises to be Ward’s most personal and hopeful record yet.

The lyric video aids this conclusion, the words floating over a dirt road in the desert scene with a distant silhouette walking closer at a relaxed pace. The video concludes once the silhouette, who we now realize is Ward himself, has arrived at the camera.

Daggers comes highly anticipated following Sparta’s consistent activity over the last year, including live-stream benefit concerts as well as an album release. Ward will continue to have an eventful year, with Sparta holding a place on the lineup for The Fest later this year.

Daggers tracklist:
1. “Day By Day”
2. “Blink Twice”
3. “Electric Life”
4. “Paper Fish”
5. “I Got A Secret”
6. “Keep On Failure”
7. “Polygraph (Attack)”
8. “Foreign Currency”
9. “Safe Pair Of Hands”
10. “King Yourself”

Photo credit: Marv Watson