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Five years after bidding a too-early farewell to one of pop's most stalwart songwriters, a new album from his second-best remembered (but first major) band is coming, built off contributions he left behind.

Traces of You, due September 5, is the first new album in a dozen years from alternative pop band Ivy. The news might come as a shock, as one of the group's charter members, bassist/songwriter Adam Schlesinger, died in 2020 - an early victim of the COVID-19 pandemic. Happily, as a gift from somewhere beyond, he's present on all 10 tracks, sourced from reel-to-reel tapes discovered while prepping reissues of the group's back catalogue. Originally recorded through most of the group's tenure between 1995 and 2012, Schlesinger's bandmates (multi-instrumentalist Andy Chase and singer Dominique Durand) completed the tracks with the help of longtime collaborator, guitarist Bruce Driscoll; the tracks also feature contributions by Beck/R.E.M. touring drummer Joey Waronker as well as guitarist Jody Porter and drummer Brian Young, Schlesinger's bandmates in Fountains of Wayne.

"The world thought Ivy was gone after 2012, and for a time we did too," Chase said in a statement issued alongside lead single "Say You Will." "And after Adam's death in 2020 it seemed certain. So Dominique and I are thrilled to give everyone a brand new Ivy album, with our beloved Adam playing on every song!"

Formally launched in 1994 by Schlesinger, Chase and Durand, Ivy's atmospheric indie-rock sound was one of many conduits for Schlesinger's seemingly endless songcraft. (Debut Realistic (1995) and major-label sophomore release Apartment Life (1997) came out on either side of Fountains of Wayne's beloved power-pop debut.) Even as he reached new heights elsewhere, from the Oscar-nominated theme song to Tom Hanks' pop music-based period comedy That Thing You Do! to the improbably successful FoW hit "Stacy's Mom," Ivy was rarely far from Schlesinger's heart. The group were well-liked by film and television music departments, who'd license their tunes for various projects. With news of Fountains of Wayne going back on the road for the first time since their dissolution in 2013 (featuring founding member Chris Collingwood, drummer Young, former touring keyboardist Steven M. Gold, The Click Five guitarist Joe Guese and Max Collins of alt-rock group Eve 6 filling in for Schlesinger on bass and vocals - all with his family's blessing), 2025 is shaping up to be a year of remembering all his enduring contributions to smart pop music.

Traces of You can be pre-ordered at Bandcamp below, with Amazon links presumably to follow in the coming days.

Traces of You (Bar/None, 2025)

1. The Midnight Hour
2. Fragile People
3. Mystery Girl
4. Traces of You
5. The Great Unknown
6. Say You Will
7. Heartbreak
8. Lose It All
9. Wasting Time
10. Hate That It's True