Editors front person Tom Smith has today shared his debut solo track, ‘Lights Of New York City’ via Play It Again Sam.

Talking about the track, Tom said:

‘Lights of New York City’ pines for lost youth, a song looking back at the wide eyed wonder held in a previous chapter of my life.

A taste of what’s to come musically from Tom, the track saw him collaborate with Irish singer-songwriter Iain Archer who helped him shape and realise his ideas on this, his first solo project following his work with Editors over the last 20 years and a couple of albums with Andy Burrows as Smith & Burrows.

The track is accompanied by a video directed and produced by Niall Trask.

Explaining the reasoning behind stepping away temporarily from his Editors role, Tom said:

Artistically I realised I wanted to do something which was a purer representation of the songs I write, in the style I always have, on an acoustic guitar or a piano, presented simply. I’ve got no idea if it’s folky, country’y, crooner’y or what really, I’ve just always had the calling to write and sing sad songs. More often than not those songs grow with the band (Editors) into something else, something bigger, and often something more confrontational, but with this solo project I wanted the recordings to stay simpler and closer to the ideas they were when I conceived them.