Black Swan

Since bouncing to prominence seven years ago with the spirited, electro-tinged, indie-pop of their Mercury-nominated debut, Vehicles and Animals, Athlete have established themselves among the UK's finest songsmiths. "We've definitely experienced the joys of life," says lead vocalist/guitarist Joel Pott, "whether it's all those things Athlete have achieved, or the birth of our kids. But, like anyone, we've had really difficult times too." In the last few years, the band have lost close relatives, seen friends' marriages fall apart and suffered miscarriages. "The week [Athlete's 2005 hit single] 'Wires' came out, myself and Joel both found out our partners had miscarried on the same day," remembers keyboard player Tim Wanstall. "That was definitely a black swan event for us. Until something like that happens, you don't really realize how fragile life is. And it definitely influences the way you look at the world afterwards." Black Swan, then, is a musical summary of everything Athlete have been through; the good, the bad and the ugly. But although its songs burn with literate emotion, this certainly isn't a downbeat record. In fact, the album begins with the hurtling FM rush of glorious first track, "Superhuman Touch," which catapults the album into life with the opening line, "I'm on fire and nothing's gonna hold me back". "After everything we've been through in the last couple of years, it feels like we're starting again with this record," says Joel. "We made it without a label, without any pressure and without really having anything to lose. That's exactly how it felt when we first got together. In a lot of ways, Black Swan, is like our second debut album. That's a pretty exciting feeling."