''Spark'' is the third studio album by American rock duo
Whitney Whitney may refer to:
Film and television
* ''Whitney'' (2015 film), a Whitney Houston biopic starring Yaya DaCosta
* ''Whitney'' (2018 film), a documentary about Whitney Houston
* ''Whitney'' (TV series), an American sitcom that premiered i ...
. It was released on September 16, 2022, on
Secretly Canadian
Secretly Canadian is an American independent record label based in Bloomington, Indiana, with offices in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Austin, London, Paris, Amsterdam, and Berlin. Secretly Canadian is a label included in Secretly Group, which ...
.
Background
In the fall of 2019, band members Julian Ehrlich and Max Kakacek left
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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for
Portland, Oregon
Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populou ...
, after they both had recently gone through breakups. Due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...
, they stayed in a rented house in Portland longer than expected, where they began working on what would become ''Spark''.
They wrote the album in Portland over the course of 14 months.
It was recorded at
Sonic Ranch
Sonic Ranch, in the border town of Tornillo, Texas, is the world's largest residential recording studio complex. There are five studios designed by Vincent Van Haaff on a pecan orchard, which borders the Rio Grande and Mexico. Located east of ...
in
Tornillo, Texas
Tornillo ( ) is a census-designated place (CDP) and border town in El Paso County, Texas, United States. The population was 1,568 at the 2010 census. It is part of the El Paso Metropolitan Statistical Area. The Tornillo and Guadalupe, Chihuahua, ...
.
The album is noted for its classic pop sound, rather than the duo's previous folk-soul sound.
Kakacek described it as "trying to make music that sounds like the early 2000s," with influences including
Usher
Usher may refer to:
Several jobs which originally involved directing people and ensuring people are in the correct place:
* Usher (occupation)
** Church usher
** Wedding usher, one of the male attendants to the groom in a wedding ceremony
** Fie ...
,
Ne-Yo
Shaffer Chimere Smith (born October 18, 1979), known professionally as Ne-Yo, is an American singer, songwriter, actor, dancer, and record producer. He gained fame for his songwriting abilities when he penned Mario's 2004 hit " Let Me Love You ...
, and
Gwen Stefani
Gwen Renée Stefani (; born October 3, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, fashion designer and actress. She is a co-founder, lead vocalist, and the primary songwriter of the band No Doubt, whose singles include "Just a Girl", " Spiderwebs ...
.
The album was produced by Brad Cook and
John Congleton
John Congleton is an American Grammy Award-winning record producer, engineer, mixer, writer and musician.
In addition to his production work, Congleton has fronted the alternative rock band the Paper Chase, and writes music for a newer project en ...
.
The album was announced on June 16, 2022, along with the release of the single "Real Love".
On September 29, 2022, the band began a North American and European tour in support of the album.
Track listing
Charts
References
{{Reflist
2022 albums
Secretly Canadian albums
Albums recorded at Sonic Ranch
Whitney (band) albums