Spencer Brown is a leader in the new generation of progressive house and techno.
Whether it be his releases on world-class imprints such as Anjunadeep, Bedrock, Last Night on Earth, Factory93, and his own burgeoning diviine imprint, through to his legendary DJ sets, Spencer Brown is an artist who’s going the extra mile to deliver an uncompromised sound and experience to his fans.
The next step on Spencer’s meteoric journey is ‘Equanimity,’ Spencer Brown’s third artist album, set for release this fall via diviine. Following his previous albums, 2018’s ‘Illusion of Perfection’ and 2020’s ‘Stream of Consciousness,’ ‘Equanimity’ is mixed into one continuous piece and features collaborations with the musical elite including Ezequiel Arias, ilan Bluestone, Late Night Shri, Luttrell, POS (aka Above & Beyond’s Paavo Siljamäki), QRION, Wilt Claybourne and five-time Grammy Award-winning South African male choral group Ladysmith Black Mambazo.
‘Equanimity’ was built on the back of a difficult period of time for Spencer, which included the global pandemic (which canceled the majority of his 2nd album tour and income), his first breakup, the death of his grandmother, publicly coming out as gay, and grappling with his out-of-control OCD (which is a mental disease fueled by uncertainty.)
“When I wasn’t thinking about these things, life looked even worse through my phone,” he says “Every day, I saw a rapid-fire stream of contradictions: sugar-coated highlight reels balanced by extremism and negativity from the news, designed to game our emotions for attention. After enough nights driven by pain and uncertainty, I realized that all I can control is how I let external stimuli affect my being. At first, I tried to eliminate the things causing my day to worsen; then, I realized I had to be OK with them. I had to accept difficulties and let them pass through me. During this period, a friend introduced me to the concept of equanimity, describing it as “calmness and composure, especially in a difficult situation.” This was the exact skill I had unknowingly been trying to find. But like a muscle, it takes time to engrain deep strength in the core. In reality, peace exists around us if we can stay unaffected by the noise. Written between 2019 and 2023, ‘Equanimity’ describes how I learned to be OK when external stimuli are out of my control. All we can do is work on how we react to the world around us.”
He continues, “‘Equanimity’ represents the biggest period of internal growth for my psyche and maturity. Like my last albums, I mixed this album into one continuous piece. The holistic form challenged me to add an extra layer of depth and creativity to my process, ensuring that everything flows into a cohesive body. In a world driven by short-form viral content, I’ve focused my last 4 years slightly shying away from the spotlight, making sure this body of work represents my authenticity. This album takes a slow-shutter snapshot of ongoing time: from pre-pandemic, to pandemic, to post-pandemic, and the lessons I’ve learned along the way.”
‘Equanimity’ is led by the first single, “Awu Wemadoda,” featuring Wilt Claybourne & Ladysmith Black Mambazo. Completed after five years of development, the song represents the universality of music, which transcends our beliefs, thoughts, and identities. Ladysmith Black Mambazo and Spencer come from vastly different backgrounds. Still, the collaboration has brought joy to people around the world, from São Paulo to Sydney and from San Francisco to Mumbai. “Awu Wemadoda” is a record that transcends culture and highlights the artists’ collective goal – peace.
Spencer Brown will support the release of ‘Equanimity’ with his most ambitious tour. Kicking off in August, Spencer will hit the road for a jaunt through Asia before returning to the States for an extensive run of North American dates through early 2024. It’s important to note that a Spencer Brown DJ set is an entirely spontaneous and authentic music experience – no two sets will ever be the same. This is the result of Spencer living and breathing music to the point where he knows every facet of every track in his arsenal inside and out and knows how to program his sets in accordance with his audience. The tension, the ebb, and the flow to the point of dance floor explosion is a true art pained by Spencer.
Select dates on the tour will feature a unique “Divine Inspirations” live show that will present the ultimate Spencer Brown experience.
“It’s always been a dream to build a live production show from the ground up. I’ve worked with an army of brilliant artists to design the stage, the lights, the visuals, and the atmosphere to create a flow aligned with my music,” Brown says. “The show will truly be “live,” in that I do not have a setlist (as usual), and the visual artists won’t either. We’ll feed off each other to create audiovisual moments unique to each night. After debuting the prototype of this show in San Francisco last year, we can’t wait to tour the revamped version in Austin, Los Angeles, and Denver to celebrate my new album, ‘Equanimity.’”
We’ll close with one final thought from Spencer about the project…
“In extremely difficult periods, we may not find the silver linings until time has passed. Only then can we zoom out and reflect on what the universe was trying to convey. For me, this album represents the beautiful state of tranquility I discovered after weathering the storm when the music was written. Tying it together as one piece closed this chapter of finding strength from inside, my path to Equanimity.”
‘Equanimity’ is available this fall, with the first single, Spencer Brown & Wilt Claybourne & Ladysmith Black Mambazo “Awu Wemadoda,” available August 2 on diviine.
Spencer Brown
‘Equanimity’ Tracklist
Spencer Brown – “Curve”
Spencer Brown – “Good Times”
Spencer Brown – “Papi’s Cenote”
Spencer Brown & Ezequiel Arias – “SF to Córdoba”
Spencer Brown & ilan Bluestone – “Amber Leaf”
Spencer Brown & Late Night Shri – “Little Wane”
Spencer Brown & Luttrell – “Masonic & Webster”
Spencer Brown & POS – “Afterparty Healing”
Spencer Brown & QRION – “20ms”
Spencer Brown & Wilt Claybourne – “mira”
Spencer Brown & Wilt Claybourne & Ladysmith Black Mambazo – “Awu Wemadoda”
Spencer Brown Tour Dates (tix for all shows here)
8/5 – Studio 338, London UK [w/ John Digweed]
8/12 – Nuzone, Taipei TW
8/13 – Zion, Ho Chi Minh City VN
8/18 – Ce La Vi, Singapore SG
8/19 – Kolour Hua Hin, Phuket TH
8/27-9/4 – Burning Man, Black Rock City NV
9/14 – The Patron Saint, Indianapolis IN
9/15 – Magic Stick, Detroit MI
9/16 – Imagine Festival, Atlanta GA
9/22 – 1015 Folsom, San Francisco CA
9/23 – The Concourse Project, Austin, TX [DIVIINE INSPIRATIONS]
9/29 – TBA
9/30 – TBA
10/6 – TBA
10/7 – Soundcheck, Washington DC
10/14 – Discopussy, Las Vegas NV
10/20 – SPIN, San Diego CA
10/21 – The Vermont, Los Angeles, CA [DIVIINE INSPIRATIONS]
10/27 – TBA
11/3 – Coda, Toronto ON
11/4 – Union Rooftop, Minneapolis MN
11/10-11/12 – E Komo Mai Festival, Honolulu, HI
11/15 – The Grand, Boston MA [w/ Testpilot]
11/17 – Big Night Live, Boston MA [w/ deadmau5]
11/18 – Summit, Denver, CO [DIVIINE INSPIRATIONS]
11/24 – Cypress, Reno NV
11/25 – It’ll Do, Dallas TX
12/1 – TBA
12/2 – TBA
12/3 – TBA
12/14 – Sky, Salt Lake City UT
12/15 – Q Nightclub, Seattle WA
12/16 – Celebrities, Vancouver BC
12/22 – TBA
12/23 – TBA
12/30 – TBA
1/5 – TBA
1/6 – TBA
1/12 – TBA
1/13 – TBA
1/19 – Sunbar, Phoenix AZ
1/20 – 45 East, Portland OR
1/25 – TBA
1/26 – TBA
1/27 – TBA
****More dates TBA****
