Keane returns with a mini-album full of K’naan

Keane will release a new collection of material this spring. Night Train will be an eight track “album” of songs the band wrote while on tour for their previous release, Perfect Symmetry. The collection includes live fave “My Shadow” as well as two collabos with K’naan – “Stop for a Minute” and “Looking Back” – making this release a 25% K’naan guest drop. While it’s to be accompanied by a North American tour, the length is a little curious. Granted, previous Keane LPs have maxxed out at 11 tracks, but when has 8 been enough for an entire album? We should consider the success of their US labelmate Lady Gaga, whose eight-song-long release The Fame Monster (mostly sold packaged with her full-length debut) has not only been a big seller, but a way to keep the artist in the spot without having to wait for even more material. In this sense, Gaga and Keane are exploring the newly revived territory between EP and LP lengths – possibly the future of recorded music and a bit of salvation for the record industry. Night Train drops May 11. Tour dates tba!