Ida Mae Announces New Album 'Thunder Above You'

The Nashville / London duo Ida Mae released the official video for their new single “My Whispers Are Wildfire.”

Buzzing with libertine energy and the frenetic groove of a streetcorner percussion ensemble, the track paves the way for Ida Mae’s most maverick record to date, Thunder Above You, to be released on August 25 and currently available for pre-order here.

This is the first single from Ida Mae since March when they released “When Eden Was My Girl,” featuring the indelible lead guitar work of Marcus King who trades solo runs with Ida Mae guitarist / singer Chris Turpin alongside singer / keyboardist Stephanie Jean.

“‘My Whispers are Wildfire’ is written from the perspective of an avaricious lover, in a haze of derealisation. It’s a response to the modern cacophony of fake news, click bait and the circus confusion of social media and material gain,” writes Turpin.

“We felt we were living in the shadow of the American Dream, traveling 46 states, hotel to motel, meeting a wild array of characters; from boat captains, marines to gamblers. We've found ourselves sharing coffee with prom queens living on the fringes, divorcees in San Francisco cellar bars and sharing stories about dead Kings with bartenders… I wanted to capture moments of these conversations, slam the flirtatious absurdity of the way we live into a musical cocktail somewhere between Ry Cooder and The Kills.”

Recorded in just seven days, Thunder Above You marks the most significant creative period in Ida Mae’s astounding career to date. It followed months of touring the states with legendary artists including Willie Nelson, Alison Krauss, Marcus King and Greta Van Fleet, driving from clubs to arena shows and, all the while, being inspired by the dramatic landscapes that surrounded them.

“We cut the record in under a week, pretty much all live including the vocals,” he remembers. “We wanted it to be an immersive experience – for listeners to feel like they were joining us at this house, recording in the glow of lamps at night. And there was no pre-production, there were no rehearsals. What you hear on the record is what went down in the room.” He and Ward were delighted, too, by the opportunity to get back to playing with their longtime collaborators Ethan Johns, who contributed drums on the album, and bassist Nick Pini (Laura Marling, Nick Mulvey).

“There are so many artists now who’ll work from home to a click track, samples, beats, autotune…” Turpin says, “which is an incredible thing in that it democratizes recording. But you also lose the communication of musicians working together in a space, who are really competent enough to play to one another.”

Ida Mae’s 2021 album Click Click Domino earned wide acclaim from outlets including Under the Radar, American Songwriter, Wonderland, Clash Magazine, Live for Live Music as well as Rolling Stone who writes of the title track, “With guitar assistance from shred wizard Marcus King, the tune is a heaving mass of scuzzy blues-rock riffs and thunderous drums that indicts social media for its isolating, alienating effects… Somewhere, Jack White is busy looking for new amp settings.”

Photo Credit: Dean Chalkley

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