Nicole Atkins is the first artist to be signed to Chris Isaak’s new Sun Records imprint Wicked Game Records and will release a record on the label, Drama, on Friday September 18. It is the New Jersey-bred, Nashville-based musician’s seventh studio album and first all-new full-length release in over six years. The LP’s first single, “When the Night Falls,” is now available.

“I got together with my old friend Emery Dobyns to write a song together,” Atkins said in a statement. “We had these chords, and the feeling from the music reminded me of something I would’ve written for my first album, Neptune City, and I thought about where I was back then. The toxic love affair. And tying it into who and where I am now, and being able to write a song about terrible love from a place of power. Some would call it growth. I’m just still in love with the ‘sound’ of heartache. It gets me like no other.”

Drama was recorded live over four days in Nashville, with Wilco’s Pat Sansone serving as the set’s producer. According to the album’s release statement, “Drama sees Atkins exploring the isolation, separation and loneliness of a long-distance marriage through her signature fusion of musical genres and intimate lyrical songcraft. The album came together at the behest of her close friend and touring partner Chris Isaak, who signed her to Sun Records as part of his strategic alliance with the historic label as both artist and curator of new projects with his new imprint, Wicked Game Records. Drama spans style and era with smart design and an irrepressible buoyancy, from the girl group rush of ‘Trippin’ On Teardrop’ and Memphis soul-styled ‘For No One”’ to the James Bond-meets-Stevie Nicks noir of “Danny” and the wonderfully moody duet with Isaak, ‘Cue The Symphony.'”

“I’ve been in love with Nicole’s songs for many years and have always followed her career,”  Isaak offered alongside the album’s release. “She and I are so simpatico when it comes to the music that inspires us, and she has a unique way of distilling that into her songwriting. She’s a true craftsman and an incredible singer. When it came time to start the label, she was my first thought. I’m so honored that she’s the label’s first signing, and I love Drama!”

In addition to members of Atkins’ touring band, guitarist John Paul Keith and drummer Danny Banks, the set features contributions from Sansone, Dr. Dog’s Eric Slick, The Texas Gentlemen’s Dan Creamer and Scottish troubadour Davey Horne,

“I’m not trying to rehash or celebrate some bygone era,” Atkind added in her statement. “I’m just taking what I like melodically from the past, and channeling it into my songs. I like to make them deeply personal. The question I come back to is: How do I make this sound exactly like me?”

Atkins has a few upcoming shows on the books before Drama drops, including at Bethlehem, PA’s annual Musikfest on Sunday, August 2. She will kick off a big fall run on October 9 at Columbus, OH’s Rumba Cafe and remain on the road into December, with the outing coming to a close at the Skinny Dennis in Nashville, TN on December 3.

Here’s a look at Drama’s tracks 
Trippin’ on Teardrops
Singing in the Mirror
Like a Stranger
When the Night Falls
Cue the Symphony
Like It’s The First Time
Curtain Call
For No One
Real Life
Crying Out Loud
Danny
Softly, As You Were

Here’s a look at Atkins’ upcoming dates 

AUGUST

2 – Bethlehem, PA – Levitt Pavilion SteelStacks

OCTOBER

9 – Columbus, OH – Rumba Cafe
10 – Louisville, KY – Whirling Tiger
11 – Indianapolis, IN – HIFI
NOVEMBER

13 – Columbia, MO – Rose Music Hall
14 – Kansas City, MO – Record Bar
15 – Omaha, NE – Reverb Lounge
17 – St. Paul, MN – Turf Club
18 – Milwaukee, WI – Vivarium
20 – Grand Rapids, MI – Pyramid Scheme
21 – Ann Arbor, MI – Blind Pig
22 – Cleveland, OH – Beachland
24 – Albany NY – Lark Hall
25 – Hamden, CT – Space Ballroom
27 – Asbury Park, NJ – Wonder Bar
28 – Annapolis, MD – Rams Head
29 – Richmond, VA – Richmond Music Hall

DECEMBER
1 – Charlotte, NC – Snug Harbor
2 – Asheville, NC – Revival
3 – Nashville, TN – Skinny Dennis