“And in the rhythm of your voice
I find space to rejoice
My complicated illusions
Leave me with no choice”

‘Complicated Illusions’ The new Manics single with a unique visual from Kieran Evans: https://t.co/x9Mk9C1Knl

Streaming now: https://t.co/wlUexYn8IJ pic.twitter.com/HRaHnkZluI

— Manic Street Preachers (@Manics) October 8, 2021

This new album has proved to be a roaring success for the group, marking their first Number One album in twenty-three years, with their 1998 record This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours being their first release to hone this title. According to Sony Music, the band said of their achievement: “It’s amazing to be back at No.1 after 23 years- it was a titanic chart battle, and we are absolutely over the moon.” A recent review of the album by NME’s Patrick Clarke called it an “album of dramatic piano flourishes and rushes of guitar; of old-school duets and soaring power pop choruses” a description that is most certainly exemplified by the single “Complicated Illusions”.

Manic Street Preachers have likened “Complicated Illusions” to “More Than This era” Roxy Music, David Bowie and Echo and the Bunnymen, describing the song as “the battle between chaos and calm with a gliding majestic lyrical flow”. The comparisons definitely ring true, with the song featuring a soaring, Bowie-esque chorus and a gentle verse vocal line that evokes memories of Bryan Ferry’s performances in Roxy Music’s 1982 album Avalon.

The visualiser was created by filmmaker Kieran Evans, a Welsh filmmaker known for his directorial work on various music documentaries such as Vashti Bunyan: From Here To Before, David Gilmour: Wider Horizons and the drama film Kelly + Victor. Evans said of his approach to creating the video for “Complicated Illusions”: “I’ve always felt the track feels like an epic soundtrack to an as yet made film so I’ve gone for a visual/lyric type affair using a similar aesthetic / approach to a lot of Netflix type title sequences using minimal / small type over multi-layered imagery.” The video can be viewed on the band’s YouTube channel.

The Ultra Vivid Lament is available via all streaming services, and there are numerous physical versions (including 12” vinyl, CD and picture disc) available on the band’s website.

Presently, Manic Street Preachers are in the middle of a UK tour, of which there are five remaining dates. These are listed down below, and tickets can be purchased at this link.

11/10/2022- Corn Exchange, Cambridge
13/10/22- Bath Forum, Bath
14/10/22- Brighton Dome, Brighton
01/12- Venue Cymru Arena, Llandudno
03/22- SSE Arena Wembley, London

Official Charts took to their Instagram to announce the news and congratulate the band on their second win.

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A post shared by Official Charts (@officialcharts)

This week the official album charts saw a head-to-head race for the number album spot between Manic Street Preachers and 90’s pop group Steps. This is not the first competition between the two groups, in 1998 Manic Street Preacher’s album This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours beat out Steps’ debut album Step One to the number one spot. The winner’s fifth studio album won by 95,000 sales, 23 years later the margin is much lower at 2,000 chart sales in between the 2021 releases. With a total of 27,000 chart sales, The Ultra Vivid Lament sends Steps’ seventh studio album What The Future Holds Pt. 2 to the number two position.

The four-time Brit award winners have spoken to OfficialCharts.com on their second number one album. “It’s amazing to be back at Number 1 after 23 years – it was a titanic chart battle and we are absolutely over the moon. Thanks to all our fans, supporters and Sony for keeping the faith.”

Physical sales of Manic Street Preachers’ new release made up 91% of its chart sales. With 6,300 copies sold on wax, the album has also charted at number one within the Official Vinyl Albums Chart. The group’s number one album was released on 10th September 2021 via major label Columbia Records on various formats including deluxe editions on digital and CD.  The group enlisted long-time collaborator David James Eringa as the producer, Eringa has worked with the group since their 1993 second studio album Gold Against the Soul. The band recorded the album at their own recording studio Door To The River as well as legendary welsh studio Rockfield studios.

The release has so far sired two singles, “Orwellian” was released on 14th May 2021 and “The Secret He Had Missed” was released on 16th July 2021. The band released the following statement concerning the album’s initial single. “The track is about the battle to claim meaning, the erasing of context within debate, the overriding sense of factional conflict driven by digital platforms leading to a perpetual state of culture war, As with many songs on the record, it was written on the piano by James Dean Bradfield. Musically, it echoes ABBA, the majesty of Alan Rankine’s playing in The Associates and Talk Talk’s ‘It’s My Life’ with a Lindsey Buckingham [Fleetwood Mac] guitar solo. It felt like the perfect sonic and lyrical introduction to ‘The Ultra Vivid Lament’.”

Elsewhere within the charts, last week’s number one album Certified Lover Boy by Drake has dropped to number three. Landing at number four this week is a new release, Dark Matters by The Stranglers, the release sees the legendary British band land their first top 10 positions in 31 years. Also debuting in the charts this week is Back In Love City by The Vaccines which positioned at number five, the new release marks the London Indie band’s fifth consecutive top 5 release.

Fans will be able to hear the new album live when the group hit the road for their tour this year, full dates are below.

Manic Street Preachers UK Tour

18/09/2021 – Electric Park Festival – Jersey
19/09 – Motorpoint Arena – Cardiff
20/09 – Motorpoint Arena – Cardiff
26/09 – O2 City Hall – Newcastle
28/09 – Usher Hall – Edinburgh
29/09 – Caird Hall – Dundee
01/10 – Victoria Hall – Stoke- On- Trent
02/10 – O2 Apollo – Manchester
04/10 – Barbican – York
05/10 – Barrowland – Glasgow
07/10 – O2 Academy – Leeds
08/10 – Guidhall – Portsmouth
10/10 – O2 Academy – Bournemouth
11/10 – Corn Exchange – Cambridge
13/10 – Forum – Bath
14/10 – Dome – Brighton
01/12 – Venue Cymru – Llandudno
03/12 – The SSE Arena, Wembley – London
26/05/2022 – Ashton Gate Stadium – Bristol
28/05 – Ricoh Stadium – Coventry
01/06 – Riverside Stadium – Middlesbrough

MAY 14TH #TUVL pic.twitter.com/wL4Neooyre

— Manic Street Preachers (@Manics) May 10, 2021

The thirty three seconds long clip contains partially seen objects, landscapes and mysterious three legged square in dim light that changes colours with every scene. It features lines form Joan Didion quote “I write entirely to find out what I’m thinking, what I’m looking at and what it means. What I want and what I fear”. By the end, we can hear frontman James Dean Bradfield singing: “Is this just our beginning?”.

It looks like the full song will arrive in three days. The band’s fans shared their excitement commenting under the post: “I love it. No other band matches the ‘package’ on new releases” and “Oh my godddd, I can’t wait! And I’m getting Twin Peaks vibes from the visuals at the end too”. 

Back in January, the musicians shared a list of potential song titles for their fourteen studio album. Two months later they posted on Instagram a selfie with song lyrics: “And in the rhythm of your voice, I find space to rejoice/My complicated illusions leave me with no choice”. In the last print of MOJO magazine, the band shared some details of their upcoming new album saying: “It’s quite a subtle record. There are, always, guitars, but it’s very restrained for us, and really tasteful. It’s the usual thing, miserable lyrics and great pop”.

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A post shared by Manic Street Preachers (@manics)

Manic Street Preachers will play live shows starting July 2021. See full list of their tour below. Tickets are available here.

16/07/21 – Motorpoint Arena – Cardiff
17/07 – Motorpoint Arena – Cardiff
30/07 – Y Not Festival – Pikehall
31/07 – Olavsfest – Trondheim – Norway
07/08 – Party At The Palace – Linlithgow
29/08 – Camper Calling – Alcester
10/09 – Piece Hall – Halifax
18/09 – Electric Park Festival – Jersey
26/05/22 – Ashton Gate Stadium – Bristol
28/05 – Ricoh Stadium – Coventry
01/06 – Riverside Stadium – Middlesbrough
09/06 – Colorline Stadium – Alesund – Norway
11/06 – Tele 2 Arena – Stockholm – Sweden