In the five years since Will Butler released his debut album, Policy, hes toured the world both solo and as a member of Arcade Fire, released the Friday Night live album, recorded and released Arcade Fires international #1 album Everything Now, earned his masters degree in public policy from Harvard, hosted a series of touring town halls on local issues (police contracts, prison reform, municipal paid sick leave, voting rights), and spent time raising his three children.

He also found the time and inspiration to write and record a new album, Generations.

My first record, Policy, was a book of short stories, Butler says. Generations is more of a noveldespairing, funny, a little bit epic A big chunk of this record is asking: Whats my place in American history? Whats my place in Americas present? Both in generalas a participant, as we all are, in the shit thats going downbut, also extremely particularly: me as Will Butler, rich person, white person, Mormon, Yankee, parent, musician of some sort, I guess. What do I do? What can I do? The record asks that question over and over, even if its not much for answers.

While the songs on Generations contain their fair share of dread and regret, there is ultimately a lightness that shines through Butlers music. That brightness is at its most intense when he and his solo bandMiles Francis, Sara Dobbs, and Julie and Jenny Shoreperform on stage. Their electricity is palpable throughout Generations, with the bulk of the new songs having been worked out live. Wild synth productiongnarly bass synths with live drumsand anthemic backing vocals as on first single Surrender are punctuated by intimate, direct moments: Butlers voice cracking on Fine as he conjures his ancestors, and Promised, a meditation on friendship, how lives are built together, and how and why they drift apart.

Generations was recorded and produced by Butler in the basement of his home in Brooklyn. Tracking finished in March 2020, as New York closed down for the pandemic. Half the record was mixed in Montreal by longtime Arcade Fire engineer Mark Lawson, the other half by Brooklyn-based producer Shiftee (who is, incidentally, bandmate Julie Shores husband and Wills brother-in-law).

Generations opens a dialogue with the world. It posits answersand deals with those answers being refuted. Ultimately, it navigates the conversation as a way to find the truth or at least a way forward.

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