The Shires Announce 10 Year Plan Due in March

The Shires have announced that they will release their new album – 10 Year Plan – on 11th March 2022, featuring the brand new single ‘I See Stars‘ out everywhere now. The news comes ahead of the duo’s UK tour that includes a date at the London Palladium on 24th May 2022.

The Shires are the UK’s biggest country music export, with three consecutive UK Top 3albums, four #1 UK Country albums, 100 million+ streams, two Gold-certified records, and countless sold-out headline shows, including filling the prestigious Royal Albert Hall. Now The Shires announce the release of their soul-stirring new album ‘10 Year Plan’ out on 11^th March 2022 and launch it with their new single ‘I See Stars’.

Premiered on Zoe Ball’s Breakfast Show on Radio 2 this morning, ‘I See Stars’ is symbolic of The Shires’ pop-orientated, crowd-pleasing, full-passion, global-facing take on the country tradition. The duo’s Ben Earle wrote the song with Jeff Cohen(Jake Bugg, Mandy Moore, Sugarland), who previously collaborated on their fan favourites ‘Daddy’s Little Girl’ and ‘A Thousand Hallelujahs’.

Ben says, “We love the Coldplay/‘Greatest Showman’ vibes on this! it’s not trying to be clever, it’s just really uplifting and big and positive. It’s another one that has arena vibes – I can picture us being up there on a massive stage with everyone singing along.”

‘I See Stars’ is a bold introduction to ‘10 Year Plan’, a collection of songs which takes all of The Shires’ biggest influences and condenses them into one cohesive, confident record. Its title harks back to their modest goals when they first started back in 2012.

As Crissie Rhodes reflects, “We wanted to get our music to Bob Harris, and we wanted a thousand Facebook followers. At the time that seemed crazy, but Ben was committed to it.” He was proven right, as Chrissie continues: “The number of people enjoying country music has exploded in the UK, but it still feels like an undercurrent. Even recently, we’ve had people come to our shows and say they were surprised, because they didn’t think country was for them!”

‘10 Year Plan’ is now available to pre-order here. Formats include CD, LP, SD & HD digital.

Currently completing an intimate acoustic tour, The Shires will commence a major UK headline tour in April that culminates with a landmark London show at The Palladium on May 24th. Please see their website for a full list of dates and ticket details.

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‘10 Year Plan’ tracklist:

‘Cut Me Loose’

‘Sparks Fly’

‘Side By Side’

‘Plot Twist’

‘Ten Year Plan’

‘I See Stars’

‘Bar Without You’

‘Baby We’re Rich’

‘Skydive’

‘Wild Heart’

‘Forever Tonight’

‘Peggy I’m Sorry’

‘When It Hurts’

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2022 TOUR DATES:

January 
27^th       Sunderland, UK, The Fire Station
28^th       Stroud, UK, The Sub Rooms
February 
1^st         Glasgow, UK, Saint Luke’s
April
21^st       Weymouth, UK , Weymouth Pavilion – SOLD OUT
22^nd      Aberystwyth, UK, Aberystwyth Arts Centre Great Hall
23^rd       Cardiff, UK, St David’s Hall
25^th      Brighton, UK, Brighton Hall
27^th       Basingstoke, UK, The Anvil
28^th      Torquay, UK, Princess Theatre
30^th       Stoke On Trent, UK, Victoria Hall Stoke
May
1^st        Bristol, UK o2 Academy Bristol
2^nd        Liverpool, UK, Liverpool Philharmonic Hall
4^th        Carlisle, UK, Sands Centre
5^th        Gateshead, UK, Sage Gateshead
6^th        York, UK, York Barbican – SOLD OUT
8^th        Edinburgh, UK, The Liquid Room – SOLD OUT
9^th        Aberdeen, UK, Beach Ballroom
11^th       Lincoln, UK, Engine Shed
12^th      Folkestone, UK, Leas Cliff Hall
13^th       Bedford, UK, Bedford Corn Exchange
15^th      Cambridge, UK, Corn Exchange
16^th      Manchester, UK, The Bridgewater Hall
17^th       Birmingham, UK, Symphony Hall
19^th      Oxford, UK, New Theatre Oxford
20^th      Guildford, UK, Guildford G Live – SOLD OUT
21^st       Ipswich, UK, Regent Theatre
23^rd      Nottingham, UK, Nottingham Royal Centre
24^th       London, UK, The London Palladium