''Savage (Songs from a Broken World)''

Savage (Songs from a Broken World)
Studio album by Gary Numan
Released	September 15, 2017
Genre	Industrial rock, gothic rock, dark wave
Label	BMG
Producer	Ade Fenton
Gary Numan chronology
Splinter (Songs from a Broken Mind) (2013) Savage (Songs from a Broken World) (2017)

Savage (Songs from a Broken World) is the upcoming twenty-first studio album by English musician Gary Numan. The album was first announced to be a part of a fan-backed Pledge Music Campaign on November 12, 2015.^[1] As of May 2017, the campaign has reached 245% of its intended 100% goal. Gary initially intended Savage to have a 2016 release, but was delayed to the second half of 2017. As of May 20, 2017, mastering of the album has been completed as announced on Numan's official Twitter account. The lead single, "My Name Is Ruin", was released on July 5, 2017, followed by second single "What God Intended" on August 4, 2017.

Album concept

Savage (Songs from a Broken World) is a concept album centered around the blending of Western and Eastern cultures in a post-apocalyptic world that has become desertified as a result of global warming. "The songs are about the things that people do in such a harsh and terrifying environment," Numan stated in an interview. "It's about a desperate need to survive and they do awful things in order to do so, and some are haunted by what they've done. That desire to be forgiven, along with some discovered remnants of an old religious book, ultimately encourages religion to resurface, and it really goes downhill from there."^[2]

Release formats

Per Gary Numan's website.^[3]

• Standard CD.
• Deluxe hardback book CD. Features the bonus track 'If I Said'.
• Double LP. Features two bonus tracks 'If I Said' and 'Cold'.
• Exclusive Vinyl Picture Disc (Includes Signed 12x12 Artwork Print). Limited to only 500 copies and features two bonus tracks 'If I Said' and 'Cold'.
• Cassette. Features the bonus track 'If I Said'.

Recording, working titles, and song notes

Since its inception, Savage has gone through many different lyrical and musical changes, many of which fans witnessed via the Pledge Campaign. In order of appearance, working demo song titles included:

• "Dome"
• "Kontakt 7" ("Bed Of Thorns" early title)
• "March"
• "I Heard A Voice"
• "Save Me"
• "I Belong Here"
• "Where Will You Be (When The World Comes Apart)"
• "If You Had Seen"

It is worth noting that "when the world comes apart" is a line from the 1994 Sacrifice song "Magic", and "Mercy" (appearing on the album proper) was an early demo title during the 2006 Jagged sessions, which would eventually become "We Are The Lost" from Dead Son Rising.

A 'pre-Ade Fenton' mp3 of "Bed Of Thorns" was made available to download on September 3, 2016. This demo version also appears on the soundtrack to the 2017 film Ghost In The Shell. To quote Gary: "I have a new song 'Bed Of Thorns' on the recently released Ghost In The Shell album. To be exact it's my early demo version of the song. The version that will come out on my Savage album in a few months is considerably different." "Bed Of Thorns" debuted live on October 2, 2016.

On May 13, 2016, Gary added a video and the following text to Facebook regarding the ballad "If I Said", wherein his daughters, Persia and Echo, sing the song in unison:

"Please forgive the proud Dad in me but this is a clip of Persia and Echo singing the 'If I Said' piano demo. I'd just finished the lyric and they had just that minute come home from school. They didn't really know the tune at all so it's a little wayward in places. They are both dyslexic, so them reading it at all was enough to make me watery eyed, but having your own children sing one of your new songs is about as special as it gets."

Track listing

All tracks written by Gary Numan.

Promo poster for 2017 UK "Savage" Tour

Personnel

• Gary Numan – vocals, keyboards
• Ade Fenton – keyboards, mixing, production, programming
• Steve Harris – guitars
• Tim Slade – bass
• Nathan Boddy – mixing
• Paul Carr – mixing assistant
• Matt Colton – mastering

References