Nikki Lane shares "First High" from her Josh Homme-produced Denim & Diamonds album

Nikki Lane takes a sharp turn away from country with the help of Josh Homme and members of Queens of the Stone Age.

Here's the scoop...

Nashville rebel Nikki Lane returns with her anticipated fourth album Denim & Diamonds on September 23rd via New West Records. The 10-song project was produced and mixed by Joshua Homme at his Pink Duck Studios in Burbank, CA and is Lane’s first album in five years. 

The recordings boast a diverse range of players thoughtfully tailored by Homme (Queens of the Stone Age, Eagles of Death Metal, Kyuss, Paul McCartney, Run The Jewels, Arctic Monkeys, Royal Blood) to nudge Lane further into the rock and roll space. The All-Star band includes Homme, as well as his Queens of the Stone Age collaborators Alain Johannes on guitar, Dean Fertita on organ and Michael Shuman on bass. Additionally, the album features drummers Matt Helders of Arctic Monkeys, Carla Azar of the acclaimed post-punk band Autolux (and frequent Jack White collaborator), and Lane’s pedal steel player Matthew Pynn whom she shares with Dwight Yoakam. 

Nikki Lane just shared the video for the album’s lead off track, “First High” directed by Jocelyn Cooper and shot in North Fork, CA. Says Lane of the track, “This song is about chasing that feeling of the first roller coaster, the first drag of a cigarette, that first kiss. Those moments are harder to come by the older we get, yet only get better each time. The video captures that feeling of being young in a small town on a summer day, and the lack of inhibition that came with it”

 

Lane is the first to recognize how long of a gap five years is in the music world, but she credits the time away as allowing her to write the most reflective work of her catalog. “There is a song that didn’t make the album with the lyrics ‘sometimes you gotta run away to live a life that you can write a song about.’ Prior to this album, I was so focused on writing about life on the road, that I just didn’t have the headspace to write about the road that got me here,” Lane says. The result is Denim & Diamonds, a wild and heavy journey into the mind of one of today’s most gifted songwriters. Watch Nikki perform "Denim & Diamonds" at the World Café in Philadelphia back in May.

 

Despite not releasing a new project under her own name, Lane has spent her time off collaborating with numerous artists including Lana Del Rey, Brent Cobb and Spiritualized. She has also been busy nurturing her diverse interests including running her vintage store of ten years, High Class Hillbilly, and curating the annual Stage Stop Marketplace at Stagecoach.

Denim & Diamonds follows Lane’s critically acclaimed 2017 studio album Highway Queen. Appearing on many year-end, best-of lists, Vice said “Highway Queen is a forceful, rollicking collection of fiery country tunes that places her toe-to-toe with any outlaw in Nashville” while Rolling Stone said “It’s gritty Southern rock with an extra spike of danger… Somehow her breed of country is as futuristic as it is Seventies outlaw, probably because she’s more intent on invention than emulation.”

 

In addition to the lead track and album announcement, Lane has also announced her initial tour dates supporting Denim & Diamonds, launching tomorrow. Before supporting a wide array of artists such as the Dave Matthews Band, Spiritualized, and Midland, Lane will appear at The Spotify House during the CMA Fest in Nashville, TN on Thursday, June 9th. See a current list of Nikki Lane's upcoming tour dates below.

 

Nikki Lane’s Denim & Diamonds will be available across digital platforms, compact disc, and numerous vinyl variations. A limited to 1,000 blue & gray marble vinyl edition featuring deluxe die-cut packaging autographed by Lane is available for pre-order right here. Check out the video for "First High" following the Denim & Diamonds track listing below. 

 

Nikki Lane – Denim & Diamonds 

1.First High

2. Denim & Diamonds

3. Faded

4. Born Tough

5. Try Harder

6. Good Enough

7. Live/Love

8. Black Widow

9. Pass It Down

10. Chimayo

 

 

Nikki Lane on tour

June 9 - Nashville, TN - Spotify House at CMA Fest

July 2 - East Troy, MI - Alpine Valley Music Theatre w/ The Dave Matthews Band

July 4 - Dallas, TX - AT&T Discovery District

July 9 - Pasadena, CA - Palomino Festival

July 16 - Segovia, Spain - Huercasa Festival

July 23 - Bloomington, IL - Black Dirt Music Festival

September 2 - Weston, CO - Caveman Festival

September 11 - Pelham, TN - The Caverns w/ Spiritualized

September 30 - La Cygne, KS - Firewater Fest

October 8 - Charleston, SC - Riverfront Park

October 15 - Los Angeles, CA - The Greek w/ Midland

October 28 - Albuquerque, NM - Revel Entertainment Center w/ Midland

October 29 - Mesa, AZ - Mesa Amphitheater w/ Midland