Amy Macdonald announces fifth album The Human Demands

Amy Macdonald has announced she’ll release her fifth album on October 30.

The release, titled The Human Demands, is her first under a new record deal with Infectious / BMG and follows lead single The Hudson.

Produced by Jim Abbiss, who has worked with Arctic Monkeys and Kasabian, the new album’s themes include getting older, dealing with depression, and falling in love with someone you want to spend the rest of your life with.

“A lot of the themes on this album are about getting older, which seems ridiculous given I’m only in my early 30s,” Amy explained.

“But I signed my first record contract at 18, which feels like a lifetime ago, and on a personal level I’m at the stage in life where parents are getting on, friends have faced depression to the point of not wanting to be here anymore, and everyone has had ups and downs whatever their background. It’s OK to feel a bit crap, and it’s OK to talk about it as well.”

The first single, The Hudson, was inspired by the stories Amy’s dad used to tell her about going to New York with her mum in the 70s.

It also echoes the themes of her 2007 debut single Mr Rock & Roll, evaluating whether or not you’ve made the right choices in life.

“New York was dangerous back then, definitely not a tourist spot, which made me think about their relationship,” she said. “Growing up, Mum and Dad were at each other’s throats, but then so were the parents of everyone I knew.

“You go through your life with someone you shout and swear at the whole time, but if you ever parted you’d reminisce about them constantly.”

Recording for the new album started early this year with Abbiss, an influential force and someone that Amy had an immediate connection with.

Lockdown put the project on pause for three months just as the duo were gaining momentum, but the setback was one with an unexpected longer-term benefit.

It meant that the team could channel their excitement at working again into the ten-track album.

Amy also feels that it’s the most personal album of her career, and takes her back to where she began.

She said: “Usually I would be flying around Europe, doing radio sessions and interviews. Now I can’t do that, which makes me feel like we’re back at the beginning because I didn’t do those things then either.

“I’m back to making music I like and just putting it out in a pure way. It has given me a new love for what I do, all over again.”

The Human Demands is now available to pre-order here, with The Hudson provided as an instant download.

It will be released on CD, vinyl and digital formats, as well as a Deluxe CD which adds six exclusive acoustic bonus tracks.

A special box set packages the Deluxe CD with a lyric book, a poster, a lanyard and a plectrum.