Yoko Ono has coolly defied being pigeonholed by her critics for over 50 years, wearing many hats (figuratively and literally) along the way: a pioneer of performance art, a staunch peace activist, a dance hitmaker, just to name a few. At 85 years old, the conceptual artist, singer and songwriter shows no signs of slowing down as she is set to release a new record, Warzone.
Ono is revisiting 13 songs from her catalogue spanning 1970-2009, the messages woven into her lyrics still pertinent – perhaps more so than ever today. ‘Things are very difficult for everybody. It’s a war zone that we are living in,’ wrote Ono in a statement. ‘I like to create things in a new way. Every day things change.’
Each of the tracks on Warzone have been brought to life by artist Jonny Sanders in a series of short conceptual videos using Ono’s drawings from the Franklin Summer series, as well as a font created from her handwriting. The illustrations echo the pared-back arrangements of the artist’s new LP, which places emphasis on Ono’s voice and her messages of peace, empowerment and caution.
She concludes the ominous questions of Now Or Never (1971) with one of her most memorable lines: ‘[A] dream you dream alone is only a dream, but a dream we dream together is reality.’ The final entry of Warzone is an alternate reimagining of John Lennon’s Imagine, for which Ono received a songwriting credit in 2017 – 46 years after its debut.
Warzone will be available in full from 19 October on Chimera Music, the label helmed by Sean Ono Lennon. Leading up to the launch date, Ono will release a new song each Tuesday on her website Imagine Peace and on streaming services. Watch the lyric video for I’m Alive – the album’s 11th track – exclusively below.
INFORMATION
Warzone is available from 19 October. For more information, visit the Imagine Peace website and the Chimera Music website
-
How Billecart-Salmon became the hospitality industry’s champagne of choiceNeil Ridley ventures into a subterranean temple to patience and precision beneath the village of Aÿ-Champagne, France, and discovers a winery not of spectacle, but of soul
-
In Baku Sakashita’s new lighting collection, hand-dyed silk threads are delicately illuminatedIn ‘Haku’, ultra-fine LEDs are woven within plant-dyed threads, showcasing intricacy, artistry and traditional Japanese craftsmanship
-
Discover the chic simplicity of CC-Steding jewelleryNic Farnan and Ben Chaplin create delicate silver jewellery in their east London studio
-
Out of office: the Wallpaper* editors’ picks of the weekThis week, our editors have been privy to the latest restaurants, art, music, wellness treatments and car shows. Highlights include a germinating artwork and a cruise along the Pacific Coast Highway…
-
Pantone’s new public art installation is a tribute to Coldplay’s ‘Yellow’, 25 years after its releaseThe colour company has created a – you guessed it – yellow colour swatch on some steps in Wembley Park, London, where the band will play ten shows this month
-
Out of office: the Wallpaper* editors’ picks of the weekThe Wallpaper* team immersed themselves in culture this week, attending theatre, music and art performances and exhibitions at some of London’s most esteemed establishments. Along the way, we may have discovered the city's best salad…
-
The Chemical Brothers’ Tom Rowlands on creating an electronic score for historical drama, MussoliniTom Rowlands has composed ‘The Way Violence Should Be’ for Sky’s eight-part, Italian-language Mussolini: Son of the Century
-
Tate Modern to host Aphex Twin listening experienceA free listening event for Aphex Twin's reissued album 'Selected Ambient Works II (Expanded Edition)' on the 25th of October
-
Björk announces Cornucopia: The BookThe photographic documentation of Björk’s otherworldly tour
-
'Anything I put out into the world, I want to be a prayer': musician Laura Marling on eschewing traditional merch for tarot-inspired printsAs Laura Marling prepares to release her eighth album, 'Patterns in Repeat', Craig McLean learns about another artistic pursuit that occupies her time
-
'She made me feel like I could, and should, be myself': SOPHIE's friends and collaborators on her enduring legacyIt's been nearly four years since boundary-breaking electronic music producer and artist, SOPHIE, tragically passed away. As fans are gifted a last, posthumous album completed by her loved ones, music critic El Hunt reflects on her remarkable legacy
