Disclosure Treat Us to a New Surprise Album, 'Alchemy'

Marking a full decade after the release of their groundbreaking debut album, Settle, brothers Guy and Howard Lawrence of the prominent UK duo Disclosure show us that they are still very much in their prime with the sudden unveiling of their fourth studio album, Alchemy — out now on Apollo Records via AWAL Recordings.

The surprise 11-track LP follows the UK duo’s 2020 album, Energy, which resulted in a subsequent 150-date tour. Unlike their other records, which were all written in “the third person,” Alchemy is touted as a much more self-reflective body of work with varying perspectives from the two brothers with Guy, having recently married and put down roots in Los Angeles, and with Howard reeling from heartbreak and exhaustion from life on the road.

“There was this combination of deep heartbreak and sadness, but also deep admiration and appreciation,” Howard says about the album. “Let’s turn this horrible feeling into something beautiful. The whole idea was to channel pain into beauty – which, in hindsight, is always the aim.”

Alchemy mirrors this range of emotions with amiable, reviving, and vibrant tracks mixed in with moments of touching, intimate vocal hits and field recordings, which add a bittersweet dimension to the album.

“This record is a celebration of us feeling liberated right now,” says Guy. “We’re no longer signed to a major record label. We’re not going to tour this record. We can do whatever we like and be super creative.”

Listen to the full Disclosure album below!

Disclosure’s fourth studio album Alchemy is out now on Apollo Records via AWAL Recordings. Buy it on Beatport.