Richard Dawson Shares New Song 'Gondola' - Album 'End of the Middle' out 14 February

Next month, Richard Dawson releases his new album End of the Middle – due Feb 14th - and today, he unveils the third song from the record with “Gondola”. Sung from the point of view of a grandma reflecting on her life – past, present and future - whilst watching a variety of daytime TV shows, glass in hand, the words "soft-boiled egg" never sounded so beautiful.

Continuing to step into other people's shoes, Dawson extracts a great deal of poignancy and emotional punch from the confined setting of a tv-blasted living room. Like the rest of the album, it's richly detailed, evocative, tactile and almost has the transportive ability to put you in the places and scenarios it describes.

The video for “Gondola” is directed by CLUMP Collective and stars Jenny Coverack - it's the first video of Richard’s to hand the “vocals” over to the song's protagonist.

Watch the video for "Gondola" here

CLUMP Collective said of the process: “We had a wonderful time filming in the frosty streets and cozy pubs of Bristol with the talented Jenny Coverack. Rather than visually illustrating the song, we let Rich’s imagery-rich lyrics take centre stage, focusing on the power of narration. Collaborating with Rich and Jenny was a true pleasure.”

End of the Middle is partly inspired by his love of the films of Japanese director Yasujirō Ozu, the album focuses around a family unit. “It zooms in quite close-up to try and explore a typical middle class English family home,” Dawson says. “We're listening to the stories of people from three or four generations of perhaps the same family. But really, it’s about how we break certain cycles. I think the family is a useful metaphor to examine how things are passed on generationally.”

Watch the videos for the previously released “Boxing Day sales” and “Polytunnel”.

End of the Middle is available to pre-order on Dom-Mart reverse-playing vinyl, indies-exclusive vinyl (with signed print), Dinked-exclusive yellow vinyl (with 7” of 2 bonus tracks), standard vinyl, CD and digitally. Pre-order: DomMart Digital

Upcoming live dates:

• Friday 14th February – Rough Trade East, London
• Saturday 15th February – Resident, Brighton
• Monday 17th February – Rough Trade Bristol
• Tuesday 18th February – Bear Tree, Sheffield
• Wednesday 19th February – Beatdown outstore @ Lubber Fiend, Newcastle
• Wednesday 23rd April - Stoller Hall, Manchester – Sold out
• Thursday 24th April – Stoller Hall, Manchester
• Friday 25th April - Brewery Arts, Kendal
• Sunday 27th April - City Varieties, Leeds
• Tuesday 29th April - Clapham Grand, London
• Thursday 1st May - The Gate, Cardiff
• Friday 2nd May - Metronome, Nottingham
• Saturday 17th May - The Glasshouse, Sage 2, Gateshead
• Tuesday 20th May - Pleasance Theatre, Edinburgh
• Wednesday 21st May - St Luke's, Glasgow
• Thursday 22nd May - Liverpool Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool
• Friday 23rd May - St George's, Brighton
• Saturday 24th May - Quarterhouse, Folkestone

Tickets