Exclusive: Spottiswoode & His Enemies Share New Track, “Hoboken”

New York City mainstays Spottiswoode & His Enemies are releasing their first new album since 2014 and premiering its lead single today, exclusively at Paste. The track, “Hoboken,” is our first preview of the band’s forthcoming LP Lost In The City, set for release on Nov. 27.

The single starts as a lonely tale with the band’s frontman Jonathan Spottiswoode’s Leonard Cohen-esque vocals accompanied only by piano as he describes his situation—that is, being alone in the city without much to do. It transforms about halfway through with the realization that the view across the river isn’t heaven but instead “It’s just Hoboken,” so comes the freeing from self-pity due to being alone (and a more driving rhythm section with the addition of violins, a cello and various horns to the mix). The accompanying video, directed by Spottiswoode with cinematography by Ehud Lazin, tracks Spottiswoode’s progression in black-and-white, from his solitude in the apartment to his freedom gazing across the river.

“This song unfolded on a wistful summer afternoon in my old East Village apartment. I imagined walking to the Hudson through a ghostly downtown and staring forlornly across the river. I didn’t plan on the answer,” says Spottiswoode. “It just came out as a simple statement of the obvious, an honest joke to take away the self-pity. It also felt like a kind of triumph. Enough to turn me into a conquering Bruce Springsteen and my Enemies into the E Street Band. For a minute anyway.”

Check out the track below and find Spottiswoode & His Enemies’ upcoming tour dates further down.

Spottiswoode & His Enemies Tour Dates:

November
08 – Fredriksberg, Denmark @ Metronomen (Spottiswoode [solo] with Flemming Borby)
30 – New York City, N.Y. @ Joe’s Pub

December
01 – Washington, D.C. @ the deej House Concert
14 – Camden, U.K. @ Green Note Basement Bar (Spottiswoode [solo] with Walter Salas-Humara)