This month Keane celebrate the 20th anniversary of their acclaimed second album, “Under The Iron Sea”. The remastered edition, containing previously unreleased rarities and demos, is out tomorrow, July 24 HERE.
This publication comes after the extraordinary success of the celebrations, in 2024, for the twenty years of “Hopes and Fears”the band's historic debut album.
“Under The Iron Sea” was a worldwide success, reaching #1 in the UK charts and #4 in the US Billboard 200.
With this album, the band experiments with a more electronic sound than their debut album, giving life to some of their most popular songs, including “Nothing in My Way”, “Crystal Ball”, “A Bad Dream” and “Is It Any Wonder?”. The writer Irvine Welsh (Trainspotting) made his directorial debut with a short film made to accompany “Atlantic,” a fan favorite.
“It was interesting to look back on that period: a complicated phase in our lives, both musically and personally, but it's an album that has stood the test of time” singer Tom Chaplin said about the record. “In these songs we created a kind of fairytale world, a feeling of confusion and numbness, represented by a dark place under a sea of impenetrable iron. We wrote 'Under the Iron Sea' because we needed a record that would make us feel alive again.”
This 20th anniversary collection will be released in two physical formats showcasing the original works of Brighton-based designer and illustrator Sanna Annukka, who created the album's original illustrations.
The edition Deluxe 3CD features the original album remastered, plus two rarities discs containing b-sides, demos, acoustic and live tracks, covers and rare BBC performances.
The limited edition Zoetrope 1LP includes the remastered album and artwork that animates Sanna Annukka Smith's original illustrations thanks to visual effects created by graphic designer Drew Tetz.
The band also announced the second book in collaboration with Faber Music and Island Records for Under the Iron Sea: Lyrics and Historywhich will be released on September 24. Coinciding with the album's 20th anniversary celebrations, the book features complete album lyrics, original reproductions of notebooks, artwork and photographs alongside previously unpublished stories and testimonies from the band.
Keane formed in 1995 in Battle, East Sussex. The band consists of childhood friends Tom Chaplin, Richard Hughes and Tim Rice-Oxley, who were later joined by bassist Jesse Quin. The band has released five studio albums, including four that reached the top of the UK Albums Chart and have sold over 10 million records worldwide.
Keane are currently in the US working on a new album.
Daniel D`Amico for SANREMO.FM
