Olly Alexander unveils details of forthcoming album, Polari

Exploring themes of desire, intimacy, voyeurism and fate, "Cupid’s Bow" marks the return from Olly Alexander. The track was created alongside Polari collaborator Danny L Harle, with Alexander as drawn to electronic pop’s earliest queer trailblazers as contemporary complexities; of love, and where to find it (whether a shot from Eros, or your local cruising spot).

Olly Alexander’s first album under his own name takes as its primary inspiration the (almost) lost art of Polari. Originating around Europe and the Romani community as early as the 1600s, this coded slang became in effect a secret language for homosexuals and the stigmatised during the twentieth century. It’s a concept Olly first came across when coming out, and resonated more deeply with when playing Richie in It’s A Sin, where he grappled with questions about identity, self-expression and community.

Olly Alexander has also announced the Up Close and Polari tour, taking place next year with shows in Cologne, Paris, Berlin, Dublin, Birmingham, London and more.

Tracklist:

1. Polari
2. Cupid’s Bow
3. I Know
4. Shadow Of Love
5. Make Me A Man
6. Dizzy
7. Archangel
8. Miss You So Much
9. When We Kiss
10. Whisper
11. Beautiful
12. Heal You
13. Language