ADA LEA’S NEW LP, when i paint my masterpiece, OUT AUGUST 8, 2025 VIA NEXT DOOR RECORDS (CANADA), SADDLE CREEK (WORLDWIDE)
WATCH / SHARE “something in the wind” HERE
BUY / STREAM “something in the wind” HERE
NORTH AMERICAN TOUR DATES BEGIN SEPTEMBER 10 - TICKETS HERE
PRE-SAVE when i paint my masterpiece HERE
Photo Credit: Tess Roby // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES
Ada Lea—the moniker of Montreal-based musician Alexandra Levy— releases “something in the wind”, the second single from her new album, when i paint my masterpiece, out August 8 via Next Door Records and announces a North American Tour. Following the sprawling, Chantal Ackerman-inspired lead single, “baby blue frigidaire mini fridge”, “something in the wind” is a meditation on love born out of a dream. Reflecting on the creation of the track she says: "I had a dream about this song and remember nothing. There is a constant in everyone’s life, which is the dream. When we recorded the song, Luke Temple, who produced it, suggested we slow it down so Tasy Hudson could improvise a busy drum solo. Then, Jonas Bonnetta, engineer, sped the song up to its regular speed. Like a slowed down wink to Leonard Cohen himself."
After watching “the miracle over the mojave”, performed by Nathan Fielder on his show The Rehearsal, Ada Lea realised anything was possible. In just six months, under the guidance and direction of Brittney Canda, Ada Lea learned how to figure skate and trained rigorously for this video that would serve as a miracle of sorts. The performance to “something in the wind” marks her return to the joys of music. Skating seemed like the perfect metaphor for the challenges of navigating the music industry—it’s icy cold, there are judges everywhere—and when you fall, you can only rise.
WATCH / SHARE “something in the wind” HERE
BUY / STREAM “something in the wind” HERE
MORE ABOUT when i paint my masterpiece
when i paint my masterpiece is an epic, 16-track opus. It’s a kaleidoscopic exploration of the transformations art can bring: the vision of an uncompromising artist dancing bravely and freely between registers and across mediums. The album marks a reset—a quiet revolution. After years of relentless international touring, Levy felt an urgent need for community and renewal. Gruelling road schedules with very little support left her wondering: who am I really doing all this for? The system was uncaring and broken, and so she envisioned a new healthy and healing mode of musical genesis. Levy went back to school to study painting and poetry, got a job, and began teaching.
Ada Lea’s albums have been swelling in scope alongside the evolution of her artistic life. Her recent turn toward pedagogy—teaching a songwriting course at Concordia University and co-facilitating a community-based group called “The Songwriting Method”—weaves another vivid thread into her multifaceted practice. The shapely, intuitive songs that comprise Ada Lea's third album are surprising, imagistic, tactile. They stand before us and we feel their brushstrokes.
WATCH / SHARE “baby blue frigidaire mini fridge” HERE
BUY / STREAM “baby blue frigidaire mini fridge” HERE
By the end of these sixteen songs, it’s clear, when i paint my masterpiece isn’t chasing perfection, it’s comfortable in the magic of being. These songs are alive with poetic specificity and a wide-open heart—deeply felt, often strange, and always reaching. There’s an optimistic and plainspoken wisdom in the lyrics, building on Ada Lea’s singular songwriting style of surprising harmonic and melodic turns—now with a newly rich, organic sound that rewards slow listening. The masterpiece, not a product, is the process.
Levy will embark on an extensive North American Tour in September following a string of dates in the UK. A full list of dates is below and tickets will be available here.
PRE-SAVE when i paint my masterpiece HERE
ADA LEA TOUR DATES
Fri, Aug 16 - Leeds, UK @ Brudenell Social Club w/ @
Sat, Aug 17 - Bristol, UK @ Rough Trade Bristol w/ Allegra Krieger
Sun, Aug 18 - Edinburgh, UK @ Sneaky Pete's w/ Allegra Krieger
Mon, Aug 19 - Glasgow, UK @ Nice n' Sleazy w/ Allegra Krieger
Tue, Aug 20 - Chester, UK @ St. Mary's Creative Space w/ Allegra Krieger
Wed, Aug 21 - London, UK @ Lexington, Line of Best Fit w/ Allegra Krieger
Wed, Sept 10 - Burlington, VT @ Radio Bean
Thu, Sept 11 - Providence, RI @ AS220
Fri, Sept 12 - Catskill, NY - Avalon
Sat, Sept 13 - Turner Falls, MA @ Brick House
Mon, Sept 15 - New York, NY @ NightClub 101
Tue, Sept 16 - Washington, DC @ Quarry House
Wed, Sept 17 - Durham, NC @ Pinhook
Thu, Sept 18 - Nashville, TN @ East Room
Fri, Sept 19 - Chicago, IL @ Judson & Moore
Sat, Sept 20 - Windsor, ON @ Phog Lounge
Sun, Sept 21 - Toronto, ON @ The Garrison
Tue, Oct 14 - Montreal, QC @ Toscadura
Wed, Oct 15 - Hamilton, ON @ Roony's
Fri, Oct 17 - Kalamazoo, MI @ TV Station
Sat, Oct 18 - Milwaukee, WI @ Sky High
Sun, Oct 19 - Minneapolis, MN @ Cloudland
Mon, Oct 20 - Fargo, ND @ The Aquarium
Wed, Oct 22 - Butte, Montana @ Carpenters Union Hall
Fri, Oct 24 - Seattle, WA @ Ballard Homestead
Sat, Oct 25 - Vancouver, BC @ Kingsway
Mon, Oct 27 - Portland, OR @ Turn Turn Turn
Wed, Oct 29 - SF/Oakland @ TBD
Thu, Oct 30 - Los Angeles, CA @ Scribble
Sat, Nov 1 - Salt Lake City @ The Pearl on Main
Sun, Nov 2 - Denver @ Hi Dive
Tue, Nov 4 - Lincoln, NE @ Reactor Coffee
Thu, Nov 5 - Davenport, IA @ Raccoon Motel
when i paint my masterpiece
1. death phase of 2024 (rainlight)
2. moon blossom
3. baby blue frigidaire mini fridge
4. something in the wind
5. midnight magic
6. it isn't enough
7. snow globe
8. everything under the sun
9. just like in the museum
10. bob dylan's 115th haircut
11. diner
12. there is only one thing on my mind
13. dogs playing in the backyard
14. down under the van horne overpass
15. i want it all
16. somebody is walking in the water
PRAISE FOR ADA LEA AND one hand on the steering wheel the other sewing a garden
“With immaculate tendrils of guitars and burbling percussion, one hand on the steering wheel the other sewing a garden is a folk album that’s always pulsating, specific, and never boring.” — Stereogum, “Best Albums of 2021”
“‘Damn’...unfolds like a quiet epiphany.” — The New York Times
“Profound and dynamic, one hand on the steering wheel is a document of embracing your emotional truth.” — Bandcamp
“[‘Damn’ is] propulsive, unsettling and exquisite – and an impressive way to kick off an album.” — NPR Music
“[one hand on the steering wheel the other sewing a garden] us[es] delicate, carefully crafted guitar pop and folk to connect her memories to a wider collective consciousness.” — Paste
“[one hand on the steering wheel the other sewing a garden] glows with a particular late-summer energy, its precise, golden hour arrangements hinting at the wide-open chill of fall.” — Exclaim!
“[one hand on the steering wheel the other sewing a garden is] one of the most off center, but utterly compelling listens of the year.” — Under The Radar
“The magic of one hand on the steering wheel is how Levy somehow manages to speak volumes without giving too much away.” — All Music
