Just when we thought the Twilight saga was over, along came Rob Pattinson to show us that no one really is safe. The actor and model just released a surprise new album—and unveiled a handful of gorgeous new pics along with it.
The album, titled âEarth,â features 10 new songs the 27-year-old singer-songwriter wrote and recorded with his band, The Memory Thieves. Like previous albums, the new set is filled with catchy tunes that are reminiscent of classic rock and pop sounds.
The songs on âEarthâ tackle environmental issues and are accompanied by some beautiful landscapes that serve as the album’s cover art. You can listen to the full album below.
The Album: ‘Earth’
The album’s first single, “Never Thought,” is a breezy song that deals with the effects of climate change and the fragility of the Earth. Inspired by Greta Thunberg’s speech at the United Nations, the lyrics convey Pattinson’s frustration about the climate emergency: “They tell us we’re doing well, but all we’re doing is slowly going to hell.”
The second track, “King of the Jungle,” is an acoustic song that focuses on the dangers of deforestation. The lyrics tell the story of a hunter who becomes convinced that the jungle is hiding a king, which he proceeds to hunt down. He ends up eating his own foot, which he claims was the best part of the animal he’s killed all day. In the end, he realizes that he’s the one who’s supposed to be the king and the jungle is just providing him with an excuse to be tyrannical.
The Band: The Memory Thieves
Pattinson has been building a reputation as one of the most dependable and talented musicians in the industry. His previous band, Kids Apple, made a name for themselves playing the UK’s biggest festivals, including Glastonbury and Victoria Park. The Memory Thieves are a bit of a departure from that, however, as this is their first album that isn’t completely instrumental.
The five-piece consists of a cello, a violin, an acoustic guitar, bass, and drums. The lyrics for all the songs are provided by Pattinson himself, and while he usually works with long-time collaborator, Kristian Lundström, he utilized the help of some stellar guest musicians on this album.
The Photos: More Than Meets The Eye
While the album art for the album is stunning, it’s the photos that accompany the tracks that truly make the artwork worth viewing. The photos were taken by acclaimed photographer Kevin Parker, whose previous work includes the Vogue covers.
We were fortunate enough to see Parker’s work at an exhibition in London recently, and were blown away by the detailed, high-quality images that he produced. The exhibition also featured the work of Japanese photographer Hiroshi Sugimoto, whose scenic photos are often featured on luxury goods and gift items.
Parker and Sugimoto’s work can be seen on display alongside Pattinson’s album art on the singer’s Instagram page, where he shared a series of stunning photos along with the album’s release. He debuted a handful of the photos above, which he captioned, “My favorite part of the whole album process.”
The Locations: Not Your Ordinary Concert Venues
While some might assume that the album was recorded in a studio, this couldn’t be further from the truth. All of the album’s tracks were actually recorded in a couple of different venues around Europe.
“I wanted to record in a big room with a lot of natural light, so we used a couple of different stages for ‘Earth,’” Pattinson told The Guardian. “We did some tracking a while back at Kings College in London, and then mixed some at a studio in Berlin.”
The Producer: Hans Zimmer
The Memory Thieves might not be a household name yet, but you’ve probably heard of Zimmer. The German composer has produced some of the most iconic soundtracks of all time, including the “Harry Potter” and “Inception” soundtracks.
He recently finished work on Christopher Nolan’s epic “Dunkirk,” which was recently released in theaters. While we know Zimmer’s music from the huge franchises mentioned above, he also produced an album by the legendary BTS, consisting of seven tracks written and performed by the band.
The Fashion: On-Camera Adoption
We’ve seen some truly iconic images of Hollywood celebrities over the years, but rarely do we get to see the behind-the-scenes process that goes into creating these jaw-dropping moments. In recent years, we’ve seen this change.
From Rihanna’s racy Calvin Klein underwear ads to Kim Kardashian’s iconic selfie, today’s celebrities are opening up about their work-life balance — and how they stay fresh in their roles — in a way that we haven’t really seen before. This trend was boosted by bloggers like Bella and Gigi, who were early adopters of on-screen dressing (& androgyny), inspiring others to follow their lead.
Today, on-camera fashion is so mainstream that even the most established stars are feeling the need to experiment with new ways of engaging with fans. Take Taylor Swift. The singer recently posted a black and white photo of herself on Instagram, sans her usual glam squad. She captioned the photo, “Sometimes you need a break from the team.”
Swift has always stayed true to her independent nature. She famously declined a $40 million contract from Apple to become the face of their iTunes brand, instead choosing to work with music label Big Machine, whose CEO, Scott Berkow, produced her album, “1989.”
Takeaway: Don’t Sleep—The Apocalypse Is Now
If you’re a regular Fyre Festival attendee, you’ll know that this year’s iteration was cut short by bad weather and a number of setbacks (including one death). But even before the unfortunate circumstances of this year’s festival, its organizers had been struggling to keep the event going.
After a lawsuit was filed by actress Ariana Grande, who was set to perform at this year’s edition, the whole thing was halted. The lawsuit was settled out of court a few days before the festival was due to start.
Despite these issues, the Fyre Festival team still had the audacity to plan another festival next year. But this time, they’ll need to be a bit smarter about things. While some of the issues that plagued this year’s festival were due to unfortunate circumstances (like bad weather and a lawsuit), there are still things that the organizers could’ve done to prevent this year’s problems.
In the end, the Fyre Festival organizers didn’t do us—or the environment—any favors. The ‘90s are coming back with a vengeance, and it’s time to embrace it. “Earth” is a solid debut album from Rob Pattinson, a future classic. While some might assume that the ‘90s are over, they’re actually just biding their time until they can blast through your windows and eat your dogs. It’s only a matter of time until the apocalypse begins.