At last year’s Music Week Awards, appearing on stage alongside Alex Turner, Strat winner Ian McAndrew broke the news that he was working on a new War Child album.
Now, Arctic Monkeys have released the first track from it.
Opening Night is the first new music from the band since their last album The Car, and features among a list of artists including Olivia Rodrigo, Fontaines DC, Depeche Mode, Pulp, Damon Albarn, Sampha, Wet Leg, Ezra Collective and more.
We are proud to support the invaluable work War Child does, and hope the record will make a positive difference to the lives of children affected by war
Arctic Monkeys
Inspired by the original 1995 release of Help – which raised £1.2 million – and produced by James Ford, the 23-track album, titled Help(2), will be released on March 6 by War Child Records. It was recorded largely during a week-long session at Abbey Road Studios last November and is now available for pre-order.
Arctic Monkeys said: “When James Ford called and asked if we’d contribute to the Help(2) album we set to work on a song idea and assembled in Abbey Road to record it. We are proud to support the invaluable work War Child does, and hope the record will make a positive difference to the lives of children affected by war.”
James Ford said: “I felt incredibly honored when War Child asked me to work on Help(2). The original meant a lot to me and to have the opportunity, given the current news cycle, to help galvanize our music community into doing something as unarguably positive as helping children in war zones seemed like a no brainer. The experience of making the album itself has been very powerful, and dare I say life affirming for me personally, against the backdrop of a very difficult year. I’m extremely proud of the results and of the efforts made by all involved. I can’t wait for people to hear this very special record.”
We are immensely grateful to all the artists and teams who have donated their voices, talent and time to support our mission to ensure that no child is caught up in conflict zones
Rich Clarke, War Child UK
Rich Clarke, head of music at War Child UK, said that “Help(2) is more than an album, it’s a powerful example of what can happen when the music industry comes together around a shared purpose”.
“It has united a diverse group of artists and creatives in support of War Child’s vital work with children affected by the devastating impacts of war,” he added. “We are immensely grateful to all the artists and teams who have donated their voices, talent and time to support our mission to ensure that no child is caught up in conflict zones. We hope this record not only raises vital funds, but also awareness of the urgent need to turn compassion into action and do more to protect children living through war.”
Academy Award-winning filmmaker Jonathan Glazer served as creative director on the project, assembling a team including Mica Levi to oversee filming and art direction. Working with a concept of ‘By Children, For Children’, they invited a group of children to film the sessions at Abbey Road. Glazer’s team additionally gathered footage filmed by children on the ground in Ukraine, Gaza, Yemen and Sudan. Glazer called it “an incredible collective effort” and said “it has been such a privilege to be part of bringing a team together for this”.
The original Help album was spearheaded by Brian Eno and featured contributions from Oasis, Blur, Radiohead, Massive Attack, Portishead, Sinéad O’Connor, Paul McCartney, Paul Weller and more. It sold over 70,000 copies on the day of release and reached No.1 in the UK compilation charts. Further accolades included a specially created BRIT Award, a Q Award and a nomination for the 1996 Mercury Prize (which was won by Pulp, who donated the prize fund to War Child).
The tracklist for Help(2) is as follows:
Arctic Monkeys - Opening Night
Damon Albarn, Grian Chatten & Kae Tempest - Flags
Black Country, New Road - Strangers
The Last Dinner Party - Let’s do it again!
Beth Gibbons - Sunday Morning
Arooj Aftab & Beck - Lilac Wine
King Krule - The 343 Loop
Depeche Mode - Universal Soldier
Ezra Collective & Greentea Peng - Helicopters
Arlo Parks - Nothing I Could Hide
English Teacher & Graham Coxon - Parasite
Beabadoobee - Say Yes
Big Thief - Relive, Redie
Fontaines D.C. - Black Boys on Mopeds
Cameron Winter - Warning
Young Fathers - Don’t Fight the Young
Pulp - Begging for Change
Sampha - Naboo
Wet Leg - Obvious
Foals - When the War is Finally Done
Bat For Lashes - Carried my girl
Anna Calvi, Ellie Rowsell, Nilüfer Yanya & Dove Ellis - Sunday Light
Olivia Rodrigo - The Book of Love
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