South London band Gently Tender reveal plans for second album, This Was Once Fields

The album marks the band's first new music since their 2023 single "Country Folk", following their 2022 album, Take Hold Of Your Promise!. The songs are inspired by walks frontman Sam Fryer would take through the green belt of North London, with "Don't Sleep" offering a taster of what it feels like to drive through the city at night.

"When I scream 'I love this place' it's almost through gritted teeth," Fryer says of the "Uber Pop" song. "Over the years I have struggled with London — but when I reflect upon it — I have to pay my respects to how it's shaped my life artistically." The accompanying video, also directed by Fryer, shows the love-hate relationship that he maintains with city life.

"The view of London from afar at nighttime was what really ignited a spark in me," he continues. "I would reflect on my life and myself as I exist inside the city I've lived in for my entire life, that I've loved and fallen out of love with over again. The city does weigh on me heavily but it's not easy to leave a place you've loved forever."

The songs on This Was Once Fields represent different chapters, memories and reflections on life in the city. "These walks have provided me with a universe of material that I can dive back into when I need to escape, and that's where this music was born."

Following the album's release, the band will tour the UK and Ireland in November, starting at Nottingham's Bodega on 2 November and closing off at Bristol's The Louisianna on 14 November.

This Was Once Fields artwork

This Was Once Fields tracklist

"A Mound A Field"
"Everything Will Be Fine By Now"
"Don't Sleep"
"Go Get It!"
"City Of The Beast"
"10000 Steps From The Door"
"Staring At Fields"
"Wild In The Uplands"
"Ferme Park Ditty"
"This Was Once Fields"