Interview by Paul Salfen
Glasgow’s multiple BRIT and Ivor Novello-winning songwriting giants Travis released their 10th studio album L.A. Times, out now via BMG.
Travis will be kicking off their North American tour in January 2025 (following their UK/European tour with The Killers), and they’ll have a show in Dallas on Jan. 24th. Click here for tour schedule.
As telegraphed by new tracks ‘Bus’ and ‘Gaslight’, which have both spent multiple weeks on widespread radio playlists including two BBC Radio 2 A lists, L.A. Times sees Travis stepping into a bold new era. It marks a significant milestone for the band, released 25 years after their breakthrough #1 album, The Man Who, which is certified 9x Platinum in the UK alone. It comes the day after they completed a massive UK arena support tour with their friends The Killers, which ended with a six-night run at the O2 Arena. The band then look forward to a headline world tour in support of L.A. Times.
Produced by Tony Hoffer (Air, Beck, Phoenix), L.A. Times was written by Fran Healy in his studio on the edge of Skid Row, Los Angeles, the city he has called home for the last decade. Its ten songs see their creator, inevitably, trying to make sense of the road travelled to this point – a sentiment reflected in the stunning album cover photograph. Echoing some of Travis’ most beloved records – The Man Who, The Invisible Band and The Boy With No Name – we’re greeted anew by four distant figures amongst vast surroundings, this time beneath the concrete and glitter of downtown Los Angeles at night. An unbroken line-up since their formation at the Glasgow School of Art in the 1990s, the coordinates of their extraordinary journey together are marked by this latest in a series of arresting images by world-renowned photographer and Travis collaborator for over 20 years, Stefan Ruiz.
