English guitarist Richard Thompson is preparing to release his new album ‘Dream Attic’ on August 31st.
A deeply influential songwriter, Richard Thompson is best savoured in the live arena. The folk influenced performer’s crystal clear guitar tone and deeply affecting songcraft have brought him plaudits by the bucketload.
Due to curate this summer’s instalment of Meltdown, Richard Thompson could be set to introduce new material. Confirming details of his new album ‘Dream Attic’ the guitarist recently revealed that it was recorded live in concert.
Taking recording equipment out on the road with him, Richard Thompson soon realised that there were unexpected problems. I was thinking that, gosh, recording is an expensive process in the studio, and with shrinking budgets it’s hard to get the record companies to give you enough to feel comfortable,” Thompson told Billboard.
“So I thought maybe it’s cheaper to record on the road, and friends are always saying, ‘Gosh, we prefer the live records to the studio albums.’ So I thought, ‘Well, let’s test those theories…”
Richard Thompson then took off on tour with his four piece group, playing a series of shows around the West Coast of the United States. “Of course,” he added “after a short time it became obvious it’s just as expensive to do it on the road as it is in the studio – kind of exactly the same price.”
“So that was a brilliant plan foiled there” the guitarist explained. “But I still really like the quality of live recording.”
Richard Thompson is due to release ‘Dream Attic’ on August 31st.
