Today, 3X GRAMMY Award winner and global phenomenonSarah McLachlan announced Better Broken, her first album of new material in over a decade, due out September 19 via Concord Records. Her tenth studio album and debut release for Concord Records, Better Broken takes its title from its opening track, out today – a soul-searching reflection on the fortitude that comes from weathering life’s constant storms – and furthers her legacy with a selection of songs that speak an uncompromising but radically illuminating truth about the state of the human condition. Pre-order the album and stream “Better Broken” HERE. Watch the “Better Broken” music video directed by Lauren Wade and produced by Zebulon Griffin.
“A lot of the lyrics on this record came from thinking about the world right now and asking, ‘How do we move through this landscape? How do we keep our heads above water when it feels like so much is falling apart?’” says McLachlan. “I don’t know if I have any answers, but channeling all that angst and uncertainty into the music has been so cathartic. I hope that this record provides people with some relief and release—but in the end I just want them to take whatever they need from it, and make the songs part of their own story.”
Mainly recorded at the legendary Sound City Studios in Los Angeles, Better Broken instills a potent new energy into her lush and moody form of pop-rock, with contributions from esteemed musicians like Wendy Melvoin (a former guitarist for Prince and the Revolution), drummer Matt Chamberlain (Bob Dylan, David Bowie), multi-instrumentalist Benny Bock (Lucy Dacus, beabadoobee), and pedal-steel guitarist Greg Leisz (Kacey Musgraves, Florence + the Machine). In a monumental leap for McLachlan, Better Broken finds her widening her creative circle and working with producers Tony Berg (Phoebe Bridgers, boygenius) and Will Maclellan (Lucy Dacus, Phoebe Bridgers).
The tracklisting’s myriad high points include “Gravity,” The first song she recorded for the album that delves deeper into her emotional life and explores the complexities of her relationship with her older daughter, “One In a Long Line,” an irrepressible anthem railing against the rapid erosion of women’s rights in recent years, “Long Road Home,” a rapturous love song, the pedal-steel-laced reverie “Reminds Me,” a lovestruck duet with MUNA’s Katie Gavin, and the title track, out now. All throughout Better Broken, McLachlan and her fellow musicians bring an ineffable beauty to her expression of longing and grief and fierce determination.
Over the course of her three-decades-long career, McLachlan has won 3 GRAMMY Awards,
12 JUNO Awards, and sold over 40 million albums worldwide. McLachlan also founded the groundbreaking all-female music festival Lilith Fair, featuring an A-list lineup for female alternative musicians of the moment, including Sheryl Crow, Jewel, The Indigo Girls, Lisa Loeb, Fiona Apple, Erykah Badu, Tracy Chapman, Natalie Merchant and more. McLachlan is also a philanthropist and the founder of Sarah McLachlan School of Music (SoM), a not-for-profit that provides music instruction and mentorship at no cost to children and youth facing barriers to access. SoM was founded in Vancouver in 2002 and it currently serves over 1,200 students a year with locations in Vancouver, New Westminster and Edmonton. McLachlan personally covers the administrative costs so that every dollar raised goes directly to support the students.
Better Broken Tracklisting
01. Better Broken
02. Gravity
03. The Last to Go
04. Only Way Out Is Through
05. Reminds Me (feat. Katie Gavin)
06. One In a Long Line
07. Only Human
08. Long Road Home
09. Rise
10. Wilderness
11. If This Is the End…
Sarah McLachlan’s Fumbling Towards Ecstasy 30th Anniversary Canadian Tour kicks off this fall, celebrating 30 years of her landmark multi-platinum album. The 17-date cross-country run beginsOctober 15 in Victoria and wraps November 9 in Peterborough. Following sold-out shows last summer, McLachlan returns to Toronto and Montreal by popular demand. Acoustic harmony trio Tiny Habits will support all dates. Tickets are available here: https://tour.sarahmclachlan.com/
$1 per ticket will be donated to the not-for-profit Sarah McLachlan School of Music, which provides high-quality music education and mentorship free to children and youth facing barriers to access. For more information or to donate, please visit www.sarahschoolofmusic.com.
FUMBLING TOWARDS ECSTASY 30TH ANNIVERSARY TOUR 2025 DATES:
October 15 – Victoria, BC – Save On Foods Memorial Centre
October 17 – Kelowna, BC – Prospera Place
October 18 – Calgary, AB – Scotiabank Saddledome
October 19 – Edmonton, AB – Rogers Place
October 21 – Saskatoon, SK – SaskTel Centre
October 22 – Winnipeg, MB – Canada Life Centre
October 25 – Windsor, ON – The Colosseum at Caesars Windsor
October 26 – London, ON – Canada Life Place
October 28 – Ottawa, ON – Canadian Tire Centre
October 29 – Montreal, QC – Place des Arts – Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier
October 30 – Montreal, QC – Place des Arts – Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier
November 1 – Quebec City, QC – Videotron Centre
November 3 – Moncton, NB – Avenir Centre
November 4 – Halifax, NS – Scotiabank Centre
November 7 – Rama, ON – Casino Rama Resort
November 8 – Toronto, ON – Massey Hall
November 9 – Peterborough, ON – Peterborough Memorial Centre
