Palaces

Palaces is Australian producer Flume’s long-awaited third album, and his first full-length release since 2019’s Hi This Is Flume mixtape.

The LP began to take shape when Flume returned to his native Australia after struggling to write music in Los Angeles at the beginning of the pandemic. Settling in a coastal town in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales, Flume quickly found the inspiration he needed through reconnecting with the nature around him—the rolling hills, walking around barefoot, the green colour the sky turns before a big storm, growing and eating his own vegetables, the smell of rain. He and his neighbour and long-time collaborator, the visual artist Jonathan Zawada, became fascinated by the local wildlife, in particular the birds, collecting field recordings that ultimately worked their way in to the album. As Flume continued to forge a strong connection to his surroundings, the album he wanted to make started to form, eventually adopting a title to properly highlight the luxury and magic of the natural world.

The album features a host of vocalists and collaborators, its cast list spanning new and household names from around the world—breakout U.S. star Caroline Polachek, British polymath-icon Damon Albarn, Spain’s Virgen Maria, France’s Oklou, and fellow Australian KUČKA, who returns following her standout turn on Skin.

The releases of NFTs showcasing ‘album-related visuals’ and preview video on New Year’s Day, 2022 confirmed a new album release for 2022.

On 28th January, the first single “Say Nothing” was announced ahead of its global premiere on February 2nd.

Four more singles were released. “Sirens” with Caroline Polachek was released on 1st April, followed by “Escape” featuring his long-time collaborator, KUCKA and Quiet Bison. Then “Palaces” featuring Damon Albarn dropped on 24th April and “Hollow” featuring Emma Louise on 18th May.