Chris Stewart, better known as Black Marble, has shared news on the release of his new album Life in Small Spaces. Out August 21st via Sacred Bones, Stewart has also unveiled the lead-off single titled ‘Jim Carol New Year’.

With the title paying respects to the late New York poet and musician Jim Caroll, the track itself is a somewhat upbeat alt-pop meets left-field electronica piece that while feel good in production, is accompanied by analytical social commentary, creating a balance between the messaging and ear candy. Check it out.

Touching on the upcoming album, Black Marble mentioned:

“I always knew a lot of people in music struggled to make ends meet, but it surprised me to learn that the people you thought would be doing well often weren’t. For me, seeing the business from the inside like that changed how I looked at things. When I looked up to see a new artist on a billboard, I started to wonder, will I one day have to pretend to be something I’m not, in order to succeed? The life of an artist goes on after your moment ends, you know? So who do you want to be in the end and how do you want to be seen by the people that know you? I made Life In Small Spaces while thinking about that, and for me, it serves as my own ideal for living an artistic life. I’m doing it as a vocation, not some last ditch effort to escape to some other world. I made this record not only as a way of saying that, but as a way of saying it’s ok to feel that way. It’s ok for people to sacrifice some degree of creature comfort in order to live a life you believe in. And it doesn’t have to be an endless search for something just out of reach, it can be a permanent way of being and something that sustains you.”