Medium Build, the singer-songwriter born Nick Carpenter, announces his forthcoming album Country, due April 5 via slowplay/Island Records/Universal Music Canada, and shares the lead single which is out now. “Cutting Thru The Country” sets the tone for the album — in the song, Nick grapples with emotions big and small while driving across the country, something he did a few times during the making of this album.
Talking about the making of the song, Medium Build says, “This was the only song I wrote while Jake and I were in the studio. In august, while I was driving from Alaska to Nashville, I started a little poem. I wanted it to feel like an Earl Sweatshirt song. Just bars no chorus no melody. We found an old keyboard and plugged it in. Found some wild tones and I did like 6 takes of the vocal. Probably the easiest tune we made on the album.”
Country comes as Medium Build grapples with the meaning of home— he splits time between Anchorage, Alaska, where he’s become something of a hometown hero these last few years, and Nashville, where he’s close to his southern roots, and everywhere he travels in between. Country is about the journey (both physically & mentally) Nick’s been on to this point; it’s about high-highs and low-lows, and you can feel Nick wrestle with the good and the bad on each of the album’s 12 songs.
In his own words, Medium Build says of Country:
“I started Medium Build in 2015 with a tape deck and some borrowed adderall. Over the near decade since, Medium Build, being a storage facility for my fears, hopes, and romantic ongoings, has weathered some serious waves. So have I.
I wanted this album to have my goddamn DNA on it. You can hear my necklace crackle in the guitar takes of “Crying Over u”. You can hear Colyer’s dog ripping a squeak toy in “Hey Sandra”. I hear Cece smiling when she sang “Relief,” back in the studio with her besties after a weird long summer of recording with strangers. I wanted Country to have a human touch. I want Country to be something you love with and dance with and cry with and sleep with and lean into. You know what I’m fucking talking about?”
The announcement of Country arrives as Medium Build supports singer-songwriter Holly Humberstone across sold out dates in the EU/UK in February and March. In April, he will support country star Tyler Childers at sold-out arena shows in California. He was recently announced to perform at Bonnaroo 2024 and will embark on headlining dates in the spring — his headlining dates were just announced and he’s already sold out shows in both DC & NYC with new nights added. Please see all Medium Build tour dates here. Medium Build was recently honored on NIVA’s 2024 Live List and landed a coveted spot on Zane Lowe’s Artist To Watch in 2024 list. He’s also become a favorite among the creative community with co-signs from John Mayer, Zach Bryan, Noah Kahan, and Lewis Capaldi (who he’s been tour support for).
The Medium Build style is open-ended, playing with acoustic and electronic textures in equal measure. He can inspire you to get down like a dancefloor messiah, with an effortless funkiness underlined by his sensitive falsetto, but the hushed whisper he sometimes sings in makes you feel like you’re the only one in the room. His voice aches with a trembling vulnerability, and there’s intentionality and emotional resonance in every word he sings. His work eagerly draws outside the clear lines of genre binaries, informed by his own personal exploration of queerness and sexual identity, drawing from classic country, ‘80s new wave, and emo in equal measure.
Tour Dates
Holly Humberstone UK/EU Tour Dates
Fri 23 Feb – Simmcity, Vienna Sat 24 Feb – Strom, Munich
Sun 25 Feb – Mascotte, Zurich
Tue 27 Feb – Rockhal Luxembourg
Wed 28 Feb – Gebäude 9, Cologne
Thu 29 Feb – Trix Hall, Antwerp
Fri 8 March – Queen’s Hall, Edinburgh
Sat 9 March – Albert Hall, Manchester
Sun 10 March – The Engine Shed, Lincoln
Tue 12 March – O2 Academy, Leicester
Wed 13 March – Eventim Apollo, London
Fri 15 March – Beacon, Bristol
Sat 16 March – Academy, Dublin
North America Headline Tour Dates
Tue, May 14 – St. Louis, MO @ Off Broadway
Wed, May 15 – Kansas City, MO @ recordBar
Fri, May 17 – Denver, CO @ Bluebird Theater
Sat, May 18 – Denver, CO @ Bluebird Theater
Mon, May 20 – Phoenix, AZ @ The Rebel Lounge
Tue, May 21 – San Diego, CA @ Music Box
Fri, May 24 – West Hollywood, CA @ Troubadour
Sat, May 25 – San Francisco, CA @ The Independent
Tue, May 28 – Vancouver, BC @ Biltmore Cabaret
Thurs, May 30 – Seattle, WA @ Neumos
Fri, May 31 – Seattle, WA @ Neumos
Sat, June 1 – Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom
Mon, June 3 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Soundwell
Wed, June 5 – Des Moines, IA @ Wooly’s
Thu, June 6 – Minneapolis, MN @ Fine Line
Fri, June 7 – Chicago, IL @ Lincoln Hall
Thu, June 13 – Manchester, TN @ Bonnaroo
Mon, June 17 – Atlanta, GA @ Terminal West
Wed, June 19 – Washington DC @The Atlantis
Thu, June 20 – Philadelphia, PA @ World Cafe Live
Fri, June 21 – New York, NY @ The Bowery Ballroom
Sat, June 22 – New York, NY @ The Bowery Ballroom
Tue, June 25 – Boston, MA @ Paradise Rock Club
Wed, June 26 – Montreal, QC @ Bar Le Ritz PDB
Fri, June 28 – Toronto, ON @ Lee’s Palace
Sat, June 29 – Detroit, MI @ St. Andrew’s Hall
Sun, June 30 – Indianapolis, IN @ HI-FI Indy
Mon, July 1 – Columbus, OH @ Skully’s Music-Diner
