Patrick Watson and Martha Wainwright share new collab song "House On Fire"

Today, singer-songwriter, film composer and pianist Patrick Watson has released “House on Fire”, a new collaboration with beloved singer-songwriter Martha Wainwright. The gorgeous track is another preview of Watson’s forthcoming LP Uh Oh, out September 26 (Secret City Records).

Written by Watson during a period where he lost his ability to sing – and by Wainwright, “House On Fire” features his voice effortlessly intertwined with Wainwright’s in a moving duet : “I’ll be wrong / you’ll be right / I don’t mind / I just want to make it right”. Backed by a rousing string arrangement, the duo’s soaring interlocked harmonies highlight the emotional tension of the track, with Wainwright’s powerful multi-octave voice perfectly contrasting Watson’s sensitive tenor.

Yesterday, the singer-songwriter also released “Ça va” – a duet featuring Victoires de la Musique-winning French sensation Solann, a french-language song following the billion-streamed “Je te laisserai des mots”. This release arrives just ahead of his biggest show in France yet set for November 7th at the legendary Zénith in Paris. Listen to “Ça va” HERE.

The 11 new original songs on Uh Oh find Watson meditating on the idea of life being a series of “uh ohs”: a little phrase uttered in response to everything from childhood accidents to our most overwhelming anxieties. For Watson, it came to mind when faced with the biggest “uh oh” that a singer could endure when he lost his voice. Unsure if or when he would be able to sing again, his new album took a new shape, a collection of collaborations with friends and strangers; artists that he wanted to hear sing. Uh Oh represents a vision that Watson has chased for his entire life, the culmination of 20 years of musical exploration and lived experience that enabled him to translate the films in his mind to the sounds and words swirling in your ears.

Most of the songs on Uh Oh see Watson and his band, long-time bandmates, collaborator and multi-instrumentalist Mishka Stein, and Olivier Fairfield and co-vocalist Ariel Engle—a.k.a. La Force) joined by a guest singer, ranging from the iconic voices he’s idolized for years (Martha Wainwright) to ones he discovered through Instagram scrolling (Solann); a local Quebec favorite (Klô Pelgag) to international phenoms (MARO, Hohnen Ford, November Ultra); from JUNO Award-winning pop star (Charlotte Cardin), to Félix award winner (Anachnid), to a friend he met when she worked the counter at this local coffee shop (Charlotte Oleena). “Every singer has these different magical powers on this record, and each song kind of represents that,” Watson says.

Pre-save Uh Oh HERE

Pre-order the Uh Oh vinyl HERE

Watson has previously shared four songs from Uh Oh: “The Wandering” with Portuguese artist MARO, “Silencio” with French artist November Ultra, “Gordon in the Willows” with fellow Montrealer Charlotte Cardin, and “Peter and the Wolf” which accompanied the album announcement on June 4. “Silencio” was the first preview of this new project, with Watson first revealing the loss of his voice, and among other impressions, finding the power of silence. It was recorded at Studio Rubin Alterio, an old artist’s loft in Paris. “Gordon in the Willows” was written and recorded by Watson and Cardin in a small lakeside village in Quebec, and around the song’s release last winter, they performed it during a surprise appearance on the top of Montreal’s Mont Royal. Inspired by the ghosts of New Orleans, “Peter and the Wolf” was accompanied by a pulse-pounding new video directed by Patrick Watson and SAM WOY and shot in the Quebec countryside.

About Patrick Watson

Patrick Watson composes, performs, and records his albums with his long-time bandmates, collaborator and multi-instrumentalist Mishka Stein, and Olivier Fairfield. The Canadian artist reached gold and platinum status in multiple countries, and his shows sell out around the world. Over the course of his career, Patrick has retained the uncanny ability to coexist in mainstream pop-culture spaces and on the avant-garde fringes. Patrick’s songs have been featured in primetime crowd-pleasers like Grey’s Anatomy and This Is Us, as well as in multiple arthouse films from Denis Villeneuve (Polytechnique), Wim Wenders(Perfect Days), Philippe Falardeau (C’est pas moi, je le jure!) and more. He’s an artist who’s as comfortable performing impromptu pop-up shows on the train tracks in a Quebec mining town as he is leading the BBC Orchestra at London’s prestigious Barbican. He’s an in-demand composer with over 15 film scores under his belt. He was awarded the prestigious inaugural Impact Award at the 2024 Canadian Sync Awards. Watson’s viral single "Je te laisserai des mots" became the first French-language song to accumulate 1 billion streams on Spotify, in addition to generating enough plays to qualify for platinum status in over 25 countries worldwide. For example, the track was recently certified 2x platinum in the USA and 1x platinum in the UK.

About Martha Wainwright

Martha Wainwright is an internationally renowned singer songwriter, with over two decades of industry experience. Critically acclaimed for the rawness and emotional honesty of both her vocals and lyrics, her albums include: Martha Wainwright (2005); I Know You're Married But I've Got Feelings Too (2008); Come Home to Mama (2012); the JUNO nominated Songs in the Dark (2015), a collaboration with her half sister Lucy Wainwright Roche; Goodnight City (2016); and her latest album Love Will Be Reborn (2021). She is also an actress and was featured in Martin Scorsese's Aviator and the HBO special, Olive Kitteridge.

Born into music royalty, the daughter of folk legends Kate McGarrigle and Loudon Wainwright III and sister to the highly acclaimed, genre defying singer Rufus Wainwright, Martha grew up in a world filled with incomparable musical legends Anna McGarrigle, Leonard Cohen, Suzzy Roche, Richard and Linda Thompson, Emmylou Harris and struggled to find her voice in a milieu in which every drama was refracted through song. Then, in 2005, she released her critically acclaimed debut album, Martha Wainwright, which containing the blistering hit, “Bloody Mother F*cking Asshole,”which the Sunday Times called one of the best songs of the year. That release, and the albums that followed showcased Martha’s searing songwriting style and established her as a powerful voice to be reckoned with.

Tour Dates

• August 28-31 – Wentworth-North, QC – Live at Lost River
• October 5 - Las Vegas, NV – RiSE Festival
• October 28 - Toulouse, France - Bikini
• October 29 - Bordeaux, France - Rocher de Palmer
• October 31 - Nantes, France – Stereolux SOLD OUT
• November 1 - Rouen, France - Le 106
• November 2 - Lausanne, Switzerland -Théâtre De Beaulieu
• November 4 - Paris, France - Zenith La Villette
• November 5 - Lyon, France - Transbordeur
• November 7 - London, United Kingdom - Troxy
• November 10 - Nijmegen, Netherlands - Concertgebouw de Vereeniging SOLD OUT
• November 11 - Brussels, Belgium – BOZAR SOLD OUT
• November 12 - Amsterdam, Netherlands - Carre Theatre SOLD OUT