JAMES : NEW JAMES ALBUM'S COVER ART SPARKS CONTROVERSY - PASTE MAGAZINE 4.08

Recently reunited British rock band James’s 10th studio album, Hey Ma, hit stores in the U.K. on April 8, courtesy of Mercury Records. While the band’s sound hasn’t changed much from early albums like 1993's Laid, the band takes a decidedly political tone this time around; Hey Ma's anti-war title track laments “the boys in body bags,” and “Upside” tells the tale of immigrant workers trying to provide for their families back home.

The Hey Ma cover art—a baby reaching for a handgun next to a pile of building blocks that spell out the album's title—is perhaps its most political statement, and has already stirred up a storm of controversy across the Atlantic. The U.K.’s Advertising Standards Authority banned the artwork from appearing in any billboard campaigns promoting Hey Ma.

Despite the advertising ban, the band elected not to change the album cover. Guitarist Larry Gott said the art was inspired by the story of an American infant who was accidentally issued a firearms license, and is meant to convey a powerful message. “The scale of the reaction has been a surprise, but we kind of expected there'd be some ripples", guitarist Larry Gott told Dotmusic. "Firearms are dangerous, they're not to be taken likely, and we as a society are becoming overfamiliarised with the image of guns and gun culture."

James will kick off a full-fledged European tour tonight in Bradford. No U.S. dates have been announced at this time, and Hey Ma has yet to be picked up by a Stateside distributor.

Where the neighbors will complain about the noises above:

April

8 - Bradford @ Bradford St. George's Hall

10 - Derby @ Derby Assembly Rooms

11 - Lincoln @ Lincoln Engine Shed

12 - Liverpool @ Liverpool University

14 - Newcastle @ Newcastle Carling Academy

15 - Sheffield @ Sheffield Carling Academy

17 - London @ Shepherd's Bush Empire

18 - Norwich @ Norwich UEA

19 - Oxford @ Oxford New Theatre

21 - Bristol @ Bristol Colston Hall

22 - Blackpool @ Blackpool Empress Ballroom

24 - Edinburgh @ Edinburgh Corn Exchange

25 - Aberdeen @ Aberdeen AECC

May

2 - Murcia @ SOS Festival Murcia

10 - Colmbra, Portugal @ Praca da Cancao

11 - Braga, Portugal @ Braga Municipal Park

June

15 - Isle of Wight @ Isle of Wight Festival

28 - Athens, Greece @ Ejekt Festival

December

11 - Leeds @ Leeds Carling Academy

12 - Glasgow @ Glasgow SECC

13 - Birmingham @ Birmingham NIA

15 - London @ Brixton Academy

16 - London @ Brixton Academy

19 - Manchester @ G-Mex/Manchester Central

Hey Ma tracklist:

1. Bubbles

2. Hey Ma

3. Waterfall

4. Oh My Heart

5. Boom Boom

6. Semaphore

7. Upside

8. Whiteboy

9. 72

10. Of Monsters And Heroes And Men

11. I Wanna Go Home