Travis, the Scottish indie rock band, have released a new single called ‘Raze The Bar’. The track is the second to be released from the group’s upcoming album, ‘L.A. Times’, and features vocals from Coldplay’s Chris Martin and Brandon Flowers from The Killers. The track tells the story of New York’s Black & White Bar, which was closed permanently during the pandemic. The venue was a popular haunt for many famous artists over the years, from The Strokes to graffiti artist Richard Hambleton.
As revealed in an interview with NME, Travis’ frontman, Fran Healy, discusses how the collaboration with Martin and Flowers came about. Describing how he “needed some fresh ears” for the new album, Healy called up Martin and the two drove along the Pacific Coast Highway in California, listening to the record. Martin “had lots and lots of comments to make and he picked out that particular song” says Healy. The Coldplay frontman promptly got to work on the song, with Flowers joining in shortly after.
Speaking about the new album, which is due out on 12 July and can now be pre-ordered, Healy says that inspiration was taken from the “total chaos” faced by Los Angeles in recent years, from the devastating wildfires to the pandemic. Travis are also set to support The Killers on their 16-date UK and Ireland arena tour, which begins in May. The Scottish band is thrilled to be supporting their long-time friends once again.
‘L.A. Times’ celebrates Travis’ 25th anniversary as a band and comes exactly a quarter of a century after they released their landmark album, ‘The Man Who’. The 1999 LP spent 11 weeks at the top of the UK Albums Chart and helped the band cement their place in the British music scene. No plans have been announced for the band to perform ‘The Man Who’ again this year. However, Healy says he is considering revisiting their 1997 debut album, ‘Good Feeling’, for its 30th anniversary in 2027
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