Four Tet & William Tyler announce collab album, share Lyle Lovett “If I Had a Boat” cover

“the main influence was found when we discovered a shared deep connection to ‘80s American country and folk music,” Four Tet says. Their album will be out September 19.

May 21, 2025 - 16:35

Four Tet & William Tyler announce collab album, share Lyle Lovett “If I Had a Boat” cover

Four Tet (Kieran Hebden) and William Tyler teamed up back in 2023 for a 12″ on Sylvan Esso’s Psychic Hotline label. They’ve now made an album together, 41 Longfield Street Late ‘80s, which will be out September 19 via Temporary Residence Ltd.

The pair first met at Bonnaroo in 2013 but the seeds of the record came out of the pandemic. “We discussed references for an album and Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Fennesz, and AM oldies radio stations came up,” Hebden says. “But the main influence was found when we discovered a shared deep connection to ‘80s American country and folk music – artists like Lyle Lovett, Nanci Griffith, and Joe Ely. My father was a huge fan of this sound and through my teenage years I heard this music most days and was taken to see loads of performances. The guitar player David Grissom made a huge impact on me as a kid learning to play. It’s not an influence that I usually mention but it’s in there more than I realize and must have helped me develop my sound and ideas.”

William Tyler adds, “I think we both in our own specific ways want to recontextualize a lot of music that we grew up with, regardless of the genre, and I think that’s what this album reflects. It’s a lot of nostalgia but it’s also very forward focused. I don’t even know what genre I’m supposed to be in at this point, but I trust Kieran and I love what we’ve done together. He’s become a dear friend and I can’t wait to see what’s ahead for us.”

“Our idea for the album was to make music that focused on that influence and brought it to the front of our awareness,” Hebden says. “We’d record the guitars in the studio, exploring styles and sounds from that music, and then I’d take it all home to my computer and bring it into my other world…I spent almost two years doing the computer bit of the album and sometimes sent stuff back over to William who added more overdubs and ideas in response. On some tracks, all that’s left of the guitars are digital fragments of sound making rhythmic textures. Taking it slowly allowed us to create a new sound out of this shared teenage experience and gift from our fathers.”

The first single from the album is a spectral, 11-minute cover of Lyle Lovett’s 1988 single “If I Had a Boat.” Hebden says it’s “the most literal pull from this ‘80s country sound. We also recorded long improvisations around chords, patterns and tones from songs we remember from growing up.” It’s gorgeous stuff and you can listen to that below.

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41 Longfield Street Late ‘80s
If I Had a Boat
Spider Ballad
I Want an Antenna
When It Rains
Timber
Loretta Guides My Hands Through the Radio
Secret City