After a decade and a half on Because Music, Metronomy have signed with Ninja Tune. “It feels like a full circle moment,” says Metronomy founder Joseph Mount who the press release makes a note of calling him “lead songwriter and only permanent member.” “As a teenager I was obsessed with the romance of labels like Ninja Tune, Warp and Wall of Sound. The artists they represented really made me who I am as a musician today. With Ninja Tune, they are a label who have gone from strength to strength at a time when it’s pretty hard to do that, and it’s something I think can also be said of Metronomy.”

Metronomy announced last year that they would be taking a break from playing live “for a number of years” but were not splitting up and that Mount still planned to release new music.

The first fruits of Metronomy and Ninja Tune have now hit with “Nice Town” featuring Pan Amsterdam that shows off both his rap and trumpet skills. This is definitely a little different for Metronomy but it’s very good, as is the video which cleverly uses a lot of vintage footage of NYC from the ’70s and ’80s.

“My collaborations always start out the same way,” says Mount. “I send out a folder of ideas, beats mainly, and see what comes back. Some artists will play around with a number of the tracks, and some will focus just on one thing that works for them. With Pan Amsterdam, it was the latter, one of those tracks that when he sent it back it was like ‘Oh wow’, it just all fell into place.” Mount adds, “It’s sort of an old school rap track but in the case of Pan he doesn’t just rap, he’s also an incredible jazz trumpet player, who also works with Iggy Pop.”

Pan Amsterdam says, “‘Nice Town’ deals with my own battles. With the internal versus the external or, intangible versus the tangible. I’m always trying to remember that tangibles may applaud my pursuit in attempting to fulfill my purpose but that my purpose is not tangible. Nor is it for my ego to be gratified. A ‘Town’ can be a ‘Nice’ thing to blame during these reckonings with the inner dimensions of one’s self. And it’s ‘Nice’ to have a new ‘Town’ interrupting this reckoning, and escape to.“

Watch the “Nice Town” video below.

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