Lafawndah will release her new album, The Fifth Season, on French label Latency.

Inspired by an encounter with author N. K. Jemisin’s Broken Earth trilogy, The Fifth Season pays homage to the elemental, emotionally charged myths of Jemisin’s books. In contrast to the precision-tuned industrial productions of Ancestor Boy, Lafawndah’s debut album, The Fifth Season breathes a different kind of volatility and invites a new degree of spontaneity and freedom into her process. It features Theon Cross (tuba), Nathaniel Cross (trombone), Valentina Magaletti, (percussions), and Nick Weiss (keyboards).

In addition to the Lafawndah originals, The Fifth Season features interpretations of hybrid-folk godfather Beverly Glenn-Copeland’s “Don’t Despair” and acid-impressionist prodigy Lili Boulanger’s “Old Buddhist Prayer.”

“These are torch songs for when it rains ash, creation ballads for when the earth turns inside out,” the label explains.

In 2019, Lafawndah, real name Yasmin Dubois, released Ancestor Boy and Ancestor Boy II, on which she reworked all seven original tracks, both on her own Concordia label. She released Tan, her debut EP on Warp, in 2016.

Tracklisting

01. Old Prayer
02. Don’t Despair
03. You, at the End
04. The Stillness
05. L’Imposteur
06. Le Malentendu (feat. Lala &ce)

The Fifth Season LP is out on September 8 on vinyl and digitally via Latency. Meanwhile, you can stream “You, at the End” in full via the player below.