Sun Ra Arkestra will release their new album in October.

Living Sky marks the American jazz group’s first new recording since their 2021 Grammy-nominated album, Swirling—which was their first studio album in over 20 years. Recorded in June 2021 at Rittenhouse SoundWorks in Philadelphia, it features a total of 19 musicians, including a strings section. It was mixed and mastered by three-time Grammy winner Dave Darlington.

The album was commissioned by producer Ahmet Ulug, who has a long history with the Arkestra, dating back to the 1980s when he regularly listened to the group in Philadelphia and New York, and promoted their Istanbul show in 1990. After retiring from the music industry a few years ago, the current state of the world moved Ulug to step back into the fold, launching Omni Sound.

Omni Sound quickly reached out to Marshall Allen, Sun Ra Arkestra’s musical director, to commission an instrumental album from the group, requesting sounds that were “spiritual and hypnotic” and to that effect “downtempo, melodic, and grooving.” The music is geared towards healing in the post-covid era.

Living Sky includes the the first instrumental recording of the Arkestra’s “Somebody Else’s Idea,” today’s lead single, originally recorded in 1955 and again in 1970 for proper release on 1971’s My Brother The Wind, Vol II.

Tracklisting

01. Chopin (Frédéric Chopin)
02. Somebody Else’s Idea (Sun Ra)
03. Day of the Living Sky (Marshall Allen)
04. Marshall’s Groove (Marshall Allen)
05. Night of the Living Sky (Sun Ra)
06. Firefly (Marshall Allen)
07. Wish Upon A Star (Leigh Harline)

Living Sky LP is scheduled for October 7 release. Meanwhile, you can stream “Somebody Else’s Idea” in full below and pre-order here.