Rex Orange County is stepping out of isolation and into considerably more crowded territory on Dream Fatigue, his new album arriving November 6 via AWAL.
The British artist has assembled an impressive cast for the record, with Mustafa and Dylan Wiggins co-executive producing and contributions coming from Turnstile’s Brendan Yates, Dev Hynes, Daniel Caesar, dexter in the newsagent and Jockstrap’s Taylor Skye. For an artist who built much of his early identity around making music alone, Dream Fatigue represents a deliberate change in method.
That collaborative streak has already started spilling onto stages. Brendan Yates joined Rex to debut album track Elvis at London’s Village Underground, while All Points East brought appearances with Ravyn Lenae and Tyler, The Creator. Days later, Rex joined Daniel Caesar at the O2 Arena for Indecision, the first track released from Dream Fatigue.
Now comes Grandma Song, a more direct introduction to the album and a reminder of the straightforward songwriting that helped Rex break through nearly a decade ago. Its accompanying video finds him in Montana beneath a fireworks display, while the song joins Indecision in beginning to sketch out where Dream Fatigue is heading.
Rex has also been reconnecting with his catalogue through a run of intimate performances in fans’ homes across the UK, Ireland and Asia, handing over setlist decisions and allowing audiences to choose from a decade of songs. Backseat Mafia caught him in at the Enmore Theatre in Sydney in 2023.
Australia has been pulled into the new album campaign too. Sydney was one of 12 cities involved in a recent global treasure hunt, with fans searching photobooths for mystery envelopes containing pieces of the Dream Fatigue artwork and individual letters. Once assembled across the different cities, those letters revealed the album title and unlocked snippets of new music.
It was an interesting way to reveal an album whose central idea appears to be connection. Rex Orange County spent years keeping other voices outside the room. On Dream Fatigue, he is finding out what happens when he lets them in.
