Matt Ward has returned with a shining new single titled Come Home Safe, sharing it today (April 19) as the lead single from his hotly anticipated third album.
In a press release, Ward explained that his new track “is about the dangers of forever searching for happiness, without realising it is right in front of you”.
Touching on its genesis, he added: “The writing process for the song was VERY different to my normal approach. I had a recurring dream about a town in regional South Australia that I’d never visited before. I decided to visit this town, and on the way had a really bad car accident! Following this, I had another dream where the melody and vocal style (also quite different for me) came to me – I woke up in the middle of the night and recorded the melody.”
With the bones of the track in his back pocket, Ward linked up with ARIA- and Golden Guitar-winning producer Matt Fell. “[He] let me look after his house for a couple of weeks in the Tasmanian wilderness. It was here that I wrote the song, on the floor of his studio with just my acoustic guitar (and my dog Shooter).”
Come Home Safe arrives alongside a beautiful video shot by fellow South Australian luminary Jacob Tamas, filmed on Ward’s farm (and the roads surrounding it) on the Fleurieu Peninsula. The latter noted of the process: “The day we shot the video was over 40 degrees, and our camera equipment was starting to malfunction – not to mention us!”
Have a look at the clip below:
Ward’s third album, The Long Way Home, is due out independently on September 6 – head here to pre-order it.
To get himself all geed up for the release, Ward will embark on a sprawling national tour. He’ll kick the stint off with seven shows across SA, starting with back-to-back gigs in Nuriootpa, Macclesfield and Adelaide on Friday May 17, Saturday 18 and Sunday 19 respectively. From there, he’ll start July by heading to Victoria for shows in Melbourne, Geelong and Cornella, then head north for NSW shows in Sydney, Tamworth, Dungog and Maitland.
After a short break, Ward will celebrate the album’s release with a launch show at Stein’s Taphouse in Nuriootpa. For the last leg of the tour, he’ll play another two shows in Adelaide and one more in Macclesfield, as well as one-off dates in Brisbane, Hobart and Gowrie Park.
Tickets for all 21 shows are on sale now – find them here.
MATT WARD
2024 AUSTRALIAN TOUR
Friday 17th May – Stein’s Taphouse – Nuriootpa, SA
Saturday 18th May – Three Brothers Arms – Macclesfield, SA
Sunday 19th May – Wheatsheaf Hotel – Adelaide, SA
Sunday 26th May – Overland Corner Hotel – Overland Corner, SA
Friday 31st May – Soundcity – Port Lincoln, SA
Saturday 1st June – Hotel Augusta – Pt Augusta, SA
Saturday 15th June – Ballara Sounds – Warooka, SA
Friday 5th July – The Lomond Hotel – Melbourne, VIC
Saturday 6th July – Pistol Petes – Geelong, VIC
Sunday 7th July – Shiraz Republic – Cornella, VIC
Thursday 18th July – The Midnight Special – Sydney, NSW
Friday 19th July – The Tamworth Hotel – Tamworth, NSW
Saturday 20th July – Royal Hotel – Dungog, NSW
Sunday 21st July – Junkyard Hote – Maitland, NSW
Friday 6th September – Stein’s Taphouse – Nuriootpa, SA
Saturday 7th September – Three Brothers Arms – Macclesfield, SA
Sunday 8th September – Shotgun Willies – Adelaide, SA
Friday 20th September – Doo Bop Bar – Brisbane, QLD
Sunday 20th October – Wheatsheaf Hotel – Adelaide, SA
Friday 1st November – Altar Bar – Hobart, TAS
Sunday 3rd November – Wilder Tasmania – Gowrie Park, TAS
Tickets: mattwardmusic.com
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