Tim Arnold Talks ‘Super Connected’ Album, May 2024 UK Tour And More

Musician, singer-songwriter, performer and film director Tim Arnold is taking his ‘Super Connected’ live show on the road in the UK in May 2024. He kindly chatted to us about the album, live dates and more:     

Your new album ‘Super Connected’ is out now. How did you want to approach the making of the album?

In creating Super Connected, I was compelled to delve into the complexities of the relationships we have with ourselves and each other, under the influence of technology. It was a journey of self-discovery and social commentary, drawing from my own experiences with broader societal issues and many true stories I had collected over the years.

Where did you record the album and who produced it?

– The album was mostly written and recorded in my home studio in North London where I live. Jonathan Noyce (Jethro Tull, Archive) co-produced the bulk of the album with me and engineer Danny Monk in London, and Ben Pelchat completed several of the tracks in Canada. They both added their magic to the final mix, so I guess it was made with an Atlantic bridge.

Who did you collaborate with on the album?

As with almost all my previous albums, the strings on Super Connected were performed by Jonathan Hill, with Nick Holland on cello. Hugo Degenhardt played drums on Everything Entertains, Josh Mackintosh on The Complete Solution and Alexy Guerer on the rest of the drum tracks. The surprise collaborations came from the first lockdown when I had an impromptu singing workshop on Zoom with 30 friends to record backing vocals on Start A Conversation. That was incredibly special to capture during such a time of great isolation for all of us. Stephen Fry bringing his dulcet tones to the spoken word passages is also a gift I’ll always cherish.

You are given the opportunity to write the score for a film adaptation of a novel that you enjoy. Which novel is it and why?

 I would say The English Patient, but Gabriel Yared already did it! And it’s one of my favourite soundtracks of all time. But if I could choose, I’d probably choose Glamorama by Brett Easton Ellis or Black Mirror if Charlie Brooker were to do a feature length movie.

Do you have any favoured stage instruments, effects, pedals, microphones etc?

My Takamine Tan 76 acoustic has been with me for 18 years now and playing anything else on stage just never feels the same. That’s my 6-string home on stage. My 1998 Thinline Fender Telecaster is also like a family member. I had to sell it in 2008, but found it again in 2023 and bought it again. I couldn’t believe it found me. Precious serendipity.

Where is your hometown and could you please describe it in five words?

London: Falling in love. Childhood. Mum.

Do you have any interesting, funny or memorable stories from the album recording sessions?

Lindsay Kemp – the dancer I worked with who had mentored Kate Bush and David Bowie was a legend of theatre and a huge influence on British pop culture. We collaborated on some of my music before he died, and we became close. As a mime artist and visual storyteller, he was often referred to as ‘The Silent Poet’. He taught me about the power of silence in art.

But I didn’t realise any of that when I was writing the screenplay for Super Connected. It just didn’t register that I was going to end up directing a cast of actors who would enact a story on screen without ever speaking. It’s a very different art to writing dialogue in a script. Showing everything, rather than saying anything, like they used to in the 1920s original silent films. Super Connected would not have happened without Lindsay Kemp, and in part, that’s why the picture of me on the album cover is a tribute to his spirit.

Do you have any plans for live shows in Europe/UK in 2024?

With thanks to Arts Council England, I’m thrilled to tell you that we’ll be doing six dates of the album show and film in the UK this May. This has been a dream of mine for some time, and not one that has been easy to develop creatively. Putting an album on tour, performing it live, screening a silent movie and tying it all into the same 90 minutes as a piece of rock theatre doesn’t happen every day. This May, it becomes a reality and it’s all down to the marvellous creative company I find myself in with Kate Alderton (theatrical director and lead actress in the film), Nim Arnold (the show’s producer) and Sarah Kershaw (pianist and performance artist). I’m very excited to perform live again in what will be my first tour in 20 years!

 I do not want to spoil the live show, but what can the audiences expect and does the show have any particular themes?

What’s different about Super Connected as a live rock show, is that it’s not about the artist. It’s about the audience. Because the audience are watching a film and listening to a story that’s being sung about their own lives. And I’m in the audience too. I’m on stage, but I’m looking at the same thing the audience are looking at: a story on the screen that’s about all of us. Anyone who comes to see Super Connected recognises that after the first three songs. After the Roundhouse show in London, someone said “Oh, this is about all of us isn’t it?”

The grip, speed and impact that technology is having on our hearts and minds isn’t talked about so much in the music industry, because it’s a part of the way that industry operates now. But these songs, along with the film, spark inspiring conversations at the end of the shows, which is why I wanted to tour it. It’s a rocking night out, but it also has the potential to let us be open with each other about how we are navigating the difficult changes we and young people are facing in the digital age. Which is why we invite the audience onto the stage at the end of the shows to share their own Super Connected journey (if they want to).

Super Connected is a community collaborative project and the audience is as much a part of it as any of the creatives involved. I think that’s what art is in the 21st century; a container for everyone to be part of the process. Those of us with experience are just the guides.

We’re all in it together. I think our audience can expect a gig, an album, a feature film and two musicians carrying them through a story and a ritual that we all play a part in.

Which of your new tracks hear you at your a) happiest, b) angriest and c) most reflective?

a) Everything Entertains

b) The Complete Solution

c) The Touch Of A Screen

Was it a difficult album to write?

When I begin work on album projects, they are ideas that I fall in love with and want to make into reality. That part is difficult, but the writing is not. Those ideas that I yearn to manifest become grand passions or deep romances that I get lost in. But like passionate and stormy real-life relationships, those ideas (and albums) do mostly come to an end. However, I sort of feel like I’ve got married to Super Connected. We don’t ever really want to part. It’s transformed my life in so many ways that any of the difficulties along the way have all been absolutely worth it.

How do you look after your voice?

I look after my voice by not smoking any more, and apart from that, the usual stuff – no dairy before shows, no ice in my water and more sleep than I used to allow myself.

The album is also accompanied by a film. When did you have the idea to bring in the visual element?

I have always written songs with a visual story. They happen at the same time. I only decided to try and make the film of Super Connected after I had completed seven of the songs though. The album contains many songs that are statements (Send More Light, Everything Entertains, You Like My Pictures) and were all written in distinct characters. There’s always been a bit of a dressing up box in my head when I write songs. The cinematic nature that emerged as I was writing Super Connected was a constant temptation to make a feature length film.

What makes Tim Arnold happy and what makes you unhappy?

Being loved, understood and people I’ve never met listening to my new album, Super Connected makes me happy. Any system that claims superior efficacy without a human heart at the centre of it makes me unhappy.

Feature Image Photo Credit: Supplied By PR

Tim Arnold’s latest album ‘Super Connected’ is out now on TA Music. In addition, Tim Arnold will embark on a six-date UK Tour in May 2024 which will visit the following venues:

9th May Isle of Wight Quay Arts

17th May Liverpool The Florrie

21st May Brighton Ironworks Studios (Brighton Fringe Festival)

29th May Bath Chapel Arts (Bath Fringe Festival)

30th May Reading South Street Arts Centre

4th June London The Cockpit Theatre

For tickets and more information visit: https://superconnected.technology/superconnectedlive/