FTHC
FTHC (initialism for Frank Turner Hardcore) is the ninth studio album by English singer-songwriter Frank Turner, released on 11 February 2022. Background and production. After tour plans for the rest of 2020 were cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the ensuing lockdown measures, Turner engaged in a weekly series of acoustic livestreams from his home which he called "Independent Venue Love", the goal of which was to raise money for grassroots venues that were struggling due to the lack of patronage caused by the pandemic and lockdown. During these streams, he began performing new material alongside  his previously released back catalogue. Among these was "The Gathering", a track about longing for the return of live music that would later go on to be released as the album's lead single in May 2021. Turner continued to debut new material during the livestreams and as UK restrictions began to relax in the summer of 2020, he entered the Abbey Recording Studio in Oxford and began recording "FTHC" with Rich Costey, who handled production and mixing duties remotely. Drummer Nigel Powell's departure from Turner's backing band The Sleeping Souls in October 2020 lead to him utilising  guest musicians on the drums, with Muse drummer Dominic Howard featuring on "The Gathering", alongside a guitar solo from Jason Isbell. The vast majority of the drumming on the rest of the album was handled by Ilan Rubin of Nine Inch Nails and Angels & Airwaves, while Death Cab for Cutie drummer Jason McGerr and Kevin Fennell of Guided by Voices feature on "A Wave Across a Bay" and "Little Life" respectively. Upon announcing the album, Turner said that after "Be More Kind"'s foray into "electronic music" and the "history folk" stylings of "No Man's Land", he wanted to  restate his purpose as an artist and "blow the cobwebs away". He described the album as a more "direct and raw" and "sonically aggressive" exploration of his personal issues that was "built [to be played] live." Following its release as a single in November 2021, Turner revealed the origins of the song "Miranda", which tells the story of how his father had transitioned and was now living as a transgender woman. The track's lyrics discuss his and Miranda's previously tumultuous relationship and how they began to reconcile following her transition, with Turner stating in an interview with "The  Guardian" that "Miranda is a really nice person – my dad wasn't." Release and promotion. "The Gathering" was released as the record's lead single on 6 May 2021 and coincided with the announcement of a run of summer shows between June and September 2021 known as "The Gathering: Summer 2021". The record's second single "Haven't Been Doing So Well" was released on 16 September 2021, alongside the announcement of the album and its track listing. In addition to this, a tour of the UK in support of the record named "The Never Ending Tour of Everywhere" was  announced, beginning in January 2022. However, rising COVID-19 cases in the UK following the emergence of the Omicron variant lead to the tour being cancelled in December 2021 over health concerns for the crew and audience. On 22 February 2022, it was announced that Turner and The Sleeping Souls would be embarking on a tour of the United States in support of the album entitled "50 States in 50 Days". The album's opening track, "Non Serviam", was released as the record's third single on 29 October 2021, with "Miranda" following as the album's fourth single on 26  November 2021. A fifth single, "A Wave Across a Bay", a tribute to his friend Scott Hutchison from the band Frightened Rabbit, was released on 12 January 2022. A final single, "The Resurrectionists", was released a week before the album on 4 February 2022. "FTHC" was released on 11 February 2022. Personnel. Credits adapted from liner notes Frank Turner & the Sleeping Souls Additional musicians Production Additional personnel