David Byrne Announces Openers for World Tour – Benjamin Clementine Opening at PNC Pavilion On 8/12

David Byrne
David Byrne

Photo Credit: Jody Rogac

David Byrne
8/12/18
PNC Pavilion at Riverbend, 6295 Kellogg Ave, Cincinnati, OH
show 8pm, Buy Tickets

David Byrne has officially announced openers for his upcoming world tour in support of his new solo album American Utopia, out March 9 on Todomundo/Nonesuch Records. Each internationally celebrated act was handpicked by Byrne, who has long championed younger, innovative artists from varied backgrounds through touring, collaborations, David Byrne Radio and more. Support includes Lisandro Aristimuño in Argentina; Juana Molina in Uruguay; Karina Zeviani in Brazil; Mexican Institute of Sound in Mexico; Perfume Genius, Benjamin Clementine, and Ibeyi in the United States; and Laura Mvula in Europe.  On the tour, which is selling quickly, Byrne will perform new songs from American Utopia, as well as classics from his solo career and his days with Talking Heads. A twelve-piece band will also join Byrne on stage for an Annie-B Parson choreographed concert that he has called  “the most ambitious show I’ve done since the shows that were filmed for Stop Making Sense.” Annie-B Parson also choreographed the  St. Vincent and David Byrne collaboration tour around Love This Giant.

David had this to say about some of the opening acts via Twitter:

Juana Molina
“Juana Molina will be bringing her ‘powerful hallucinogenic vibes’ to the #AmericanUtopia show in Montevideo next month! @spin  @teatrodeverona”

Mexican Institute of Sound

“I included Mexican Institute of Sound in my November 2014 DB Radio playlist and I’m so excited to have them open the #AmericanUtopia shows in Mexico! @tmetropolitanmx  @AuditorioPM”

Benjamin Clementine
“I was introduced to Benjamin Clementine’s music through a friend. I was floored! I asked him to perform in the 2015 #MeltdownFest I curated in London and am honored to have him join me at various stops along the #AmericanUtopia US Tour!”

Laura Mvula
“In tough times one might expect artists to play it safe… But everyone here is taking chances; it’s heartening.” From a June 2016 playlist that included Laura Mvula and it couldn’t be more relevant now. Looking forward to Laura joining some #AmericanUtopia dates across Europe this summer!”

Lisandro Aristimuño
“Lisandro Aristimuño has been on a number of my Latin Rock playlists over the years and it’s a privilege to have him and his band join me at my show in Buenos Aires.

Ibeyi
In the Yoruba language, Ibeyi is an Orisha who is embodied as a pair of twins. A Candomble priest read my shells in Salvador and determined that my primary Orisha is Obatala. What happens when Ibeyi meets Obatala? We’ll see when they join #AmericanUtopia dates on the West Coast!

Karina Zeviani
I met Karina years ago in NY and knew her from her work with NouvelleVague. I was drawn to her lovely bossa/sambas and hooked when she took her sound in a more experimental/electronic direction. Karina will join the #AmericanUtopia tour in Brazil!

Perfume Genius
“Perfume Genius’s gorgeous songs are filled with unexpected sounds and deeply personal—and his costumes would have made Bowie jealous. I am looking forward to sharing the stage with Mike during some #AmericaUtopia dates this Spring!

More about American Utopia
While David Byrne has collaborated on joint releases with Eno, Norman Cook (aka Fatboy Slim), and most recently St. Vincent over the past decade, American Utopia is Byrne’s first solo album since, 2004’s Grown Backwards, also on Nonesuch. American Utopiamorphed during the writing and recording process, beginning with longtime collaborator Eno, and eventually growing to include collaboration with producer Rodaidh McDonald (The xx, King Krule, Sampha, Savages) alongside a diverse cast of creative contributors including Daniel Lopatin (aka Oneohtrix Point Never), Jam City, Thomas Bartlett (St. Vincent producer, aka Doveman), Jack Peñate, and others. The album was recorded in New York City at David’s home studio, Reservoir Studios, Oscilloscope, XL Studios, and Crowdspacer Studio and in London at Livingston Studio 1.

The album packaging features the work of “outsider artist” Purvis Young, whose work was often a blend of painting/drawing and collaged elements comprised of everyday found objects. A painting depicting a head with a face of indeterminate race or possibly gender—dreaming, meditating, contemplating—is on the album’s cover.

David Byrne’s recent works include Joan of Arc: Into the Fire, a theatrical exploration of the historical heroine which premiered at The Public Theater in New York (2017); The Institute Presents: NEUROSOCIETY, a series of interactive environments created in conjunction with PACE Arts + Technology that question human perception and bias (2016); Contemporary Color, an event inspired by the American folk tradition of color guard and performed at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center and Toronto’s Air Canada Centre (2015); Here Lies Love, a twenty-two-song theatrical production about the life of Imelda Marcos, authored in collaboration with Fatboy Slim that premiered at The Public Theater in New York (2013), traveled to London’s National Theater for a sold-out run (2014–15), and was remounted at the Seattle Repertory Theater (2017); Love This Giant, a studio album and worldwide tour created with St. Vincent (2012); and How Music Works, a book about the history, experience, and social aspects of music (2012). In 2015 Byrne curated Southbank Centre’s annual Meltdown festival in London. Aco-founder of the group Talking Heads (1976–88), he has released nine studio albums and worked on multiple other projects, including collaborations with Brian Eno, Twyla Tharp, Robert Wilson, and Jonathan Demme, among others. He also founded the highly respected record label Luaka Bop. Recognition of Byrne’s various works include Obies, Drama Desk, Lortel, and Evening Standard awards for Here Lies Love, an Oscar, Grammy, and Golden Globe for the soundtrack to Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor, and induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with Talking Heads. Byrne has published and exhibited visual art since his college days, including photography, filmmaking and writing. He lives in New York City.

American Utopia
1. I Dance Like This
2. Gasoline And Dirty Sheets
3. Every Day Is A Miracle
4. Dog’s Mind
5. This Is That
6. It’s Not Dark Up Here
7. Bullet
8. Doing The Right Thing
9. Everybody’s Coming To My House
10. Here

American Utopia 2018 Tour Dates
03/03/18 -Red Bank, NJ – Count Basie Theatre SOLD OUT
04/03/18 – Wilkes-Barre, PA  – F.M. Kirby Center for the Performing Arts SOLD OUT
06/03/18 – Buffalo, NY – Center For The Arts SOLD OUT
07/03/18 – Hershey, PA – Hershey Theatre SOLD OUT
09/03/18 – Waterbury, CT – Palace Theater SOLD OUT
10/03/18 – Kingston, NY – Ulster Performing Arts Center SOLD OUT
16/03/18 – Santiago, CHI – Lollapalooza (Chile)
18/03/18 – Buenos Aires, ARG – Lollapalooza (Argentina)
19/03/18 – Teatro Gran Rex – Buenos Aires (Argentina) #
20/03/18 – Teatro de Verano – Montevideo (Uruguay) %
22/03/18 – Porto Alegre, BRA – Pepsi on Stage $
24/03/18 – Sao Paulo, BRA – Lollapalooza (Brazil)
26/03/18 – Curitiba,, BRA – Teatro Positivo
28/03/18 – Rio De Janeiro, BRA – Km de Vantagens Hall $
29/03/18 – Belo Horizonte, BRA – Km de Vantagens Hall $
03/04/18 – Mexico City MX – Metropolitan Theater @
05/04/18 – Monterrey MX – Auditorio Pabellón M @
07/04/18 – Guadalajara, MEX – Corona Capital Guadalajara
12/04/18 – San Diego, CA – San Diego Civic Theater ^
14/04/18 – Indio, CA – Coachella
15/04/18 – Tucson, AZ – Centennial Hall SOLD OUT ^
17/04/18 – San Diego, CA – San Diego Civic Theater SOLD OUT ^
18/04/18 – Las Vegas, NV – Smith Center for the Arts ^
19/04/18 – Mesa, AZ – Mesa Arts Center-Ikeda Theater SOLD OUT ^
21/04/18 – Indio, CA – Coachella
24/04/18 – Dallas, TX – Winspear Opera House SOLD OUT ^
25/04/18 – Oklahoma City, OK – The Criterion ^
27/04/18 – San Antonio, TX – Tobin Center for the Performing Arts SOLD OUT ^
28/04/18 – Houston, TX – White Oak Music Hall Outside Lawn ^
29/04/18 – New Orleans, LA – Jazz Fest
04/05/18 – Atlanta, GA – Shaky Knees Music Festival
05/05/18 – Memphis, TN – Beale Street Music Festival
06/05/18 – Nashville, TN – Ryman Auditorium SOLD OUT *
08/05/18 – Asheville, NC – Thomas Wolfe Civic Auditorium SOLD OUT *
09/05/18 – Charlotte, NC – Ovens Auditorium SOLD OUT *
10/05/18 – Durham PAC – Durham, NC SOLD OUT *
12/05/18 – Washington, DC – The Anthem SOLD OUT *
13/05/18 – Pittsburgh, PA – Benedum Center for the Arts *
15/05/18 – Milwaukee WI – Riverside Theater SOLD OUT *
16/05/18 – Madison, WI – Orpheum Theater SOLD OUT *
17/05/18 – Minneapolis, MN – Orpheum Theater SOLD OUT *
18/05/18 – Minneapolis, MN – Orpheum Theater *
20/05/18 – Edmonton, ALB – Northern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium *
21/05/18 – Calgary, ALB – Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium *
23/05/18 – Vancouver, BC – Queen Elizabeth Theater SOLD OUT *
24/05/18 – Seattle, WA – Paramount Theater SOLD OUT *
25/05/18 – George, WA – Sasquatch Festival
27/05/18 – Portland, OR – Keller Auditorium SOLD OUT *
28/05/18 – Eugene, OR – Hult Center * SOLD OUT
30/05/18 – Salt Lake City, UT – Capitol Theatre SOLD OUT *
01/06/18 – Chicago, IL – Auditorium Theater  SOLD OUT *
02/06/18 – Chicago, IL – Auditorium Theater SOLD OUT *
03/06/18 – Chicago, IL – Auditorium Theater SOLD OUT *
05/06/18 – Des Moines, IA  – Des Moines Civic Center *
07/06/18 – Kansas City, MO – Kauffman Center for the Arts SOLD OUT *
08/06/18 – St. Louis, MO – Peabody Opera House SOLD OUT *
09/06/18 – Indianapolis, IN – Farmers Bureau Lawn Amphitheater *
14/06/18 – Oxford, England – New Theatre  SOLD OUT  **
15/06/18 – Glasgow, Scotland – Glasgow Royal Concert Hall  SOLD OUT  **
17/06/18 – Birmingham, England – Birmingham Symphony Hall   SOLD OUT  **
18/06/18 – Manchester, England – Manchester Apollo  SOLD OUT **
19/06/18 – London, England – Hammersmith Apollo   SOLD OUT **
20/06/18 – London, England – Hammersmith Apollo   SOLD OUT **
23/06/18 – Prague, Czech Republic Metronome Festival
25/06/18 – Zagreb, Croatia – INmusic Festival
26/06/18 – Wien, Austria – Museumsquartier
27/06/18 – Berlin, Germany – Tempodrom
30/06/18 – Ewijk, Netherlands – Down The Rabbit Hole
03/07/18 – Paris, France – Days Off Festival
05/07/18 – Gdynia, Poland – Open’er Festival
06/07/18  – Roskilde, Denmark – Roskilde Festival
08/07/18 – Werchter, Belgium – Rock Werchter
11/07/18 – Cascais, Portugal – Cool Jazz Festival
13/07/18 – Bilbao, Spain – Bilbao BBK Live Festival
14/07/18 – Barcelona, Spain – Cruilla Barcelona
17/07/18 – Zürich, Switzerland – Theater 11
19/07/18 – Ravenna, Italy – Ravenna Festival
20/07/18 – Perugia, Italy – Umbria Jazz Festival
21/07/18 – Trieste, Italy – Piazza Unità
27/07/18 – Camden, NJ – XPoNential Music Festival
28/07/18 – Washington, DC – Merriweather Post Pavilion *
29/07/18 – New York, NY – Panorama Music and Arts Festival
31/07/18 – Boston, MA – Blue Hills Bank Pavilion SOLD OUT *
01/08/18 – Boston, MA – Blue Hills Bank Pavilion *
03/08/18 – Toronto, ON – Sony Center for the Performing Arts SOLD OUT *
04/08/18 – Toronto, ON – Sony Center for the Performing Arts *
05/08/18 – Canandaigua, NY – Marvin Sands Performing Arts Center *
07/08/18 – Cleveland, OH – Jacobs Pavilion at Nautica*
08/08/18 – Grand Rapids, MI – Devos Performance Hall SOLD OUT *
10/08/18 – Detroit, MI – Fox Theater *
11/08/18 – Huber Heights, OH – Rose Music Center @ The Heights *
12/08/18 – Cincinnati, OH – PNC Pavilion at Riverbend *
16/08/18 – Oakland, CA – Fox Theater SOLD OUT ~
17/08/18 – Oakland, CA – Fox Theater SOLD OUT ~
18/08/18 – San Jose, CA – City National Civic Auditorium ~
21/08/18 – Sacramento, CA – Community Theater SOLD OUT ~
22/08/18 – San Francisco, CA – Bill Graham Civic Center ~
24/08/18 – Santa Barbara, CA – Santa Barbara Bowl SOLD OUT ~
25/08/18 – Los Angeles, CA – Shrine Auditorium ~
27/08/18 – Morrison, CO – Red Rocks Amphitheater  SOLD OUT ~
28/08/18 – Morrison, CO – Red Rocks Amphitheater  SOLD OUT ~
# w/ Lisandro Aristimuño
% w/ Juana Molina
$ w/ Karina Zeviani
@ – w/ Mexico Institute of Sound
^ w/ Perfume Genius
*   w/ Benjamin Clementine
** w/ Laura Mvula
~ w/ Ibeyi