PJ Harvey had already begun working on a new album, the follow-up to 2023’s Inside the Old Year Dying, when English physicist, professor, and musician Brian Cox invited her to write a song for his Emergence Tour, an exploration of the universe and the laws of nature. The new track, “Voyager,” takes its name from NASA’s Voyager probes, which were launched in 1977 and contain Carl Sagan’s “Voyager Golden Record.”
“I have long been fascinated by the spacecraft and its journey, and asked myself what it might say to us if it could?” Harvey says in a statement. The track, which expands the singer-songwriter’s sonic palette by combining oscillating synths (including a Juno synth bass played by Cox) and a sweeping orchestral arrangement, sees Harvey contemplating humanity’s fragile place in the universe: “Dust in a sunbeam, blue dot/So far, so cold.”
Watch the spacey music video for “Voyager,” directed by Cox and Nic Stacey, below:
Since 2001, we've brought you uncompromising, candid takes on the world of film, music, television, video games, theater, and more. Independently owned and operated publications like Slant have been hit hard in recent years, but we’re committed to keeping our content free and accessible—meaning no paywalls or fees.
If you like what we do, please consider subscribing to our Patreon or making a donation.
