Jens Lekman is back. After a moderately-sized absence (his last record of new material, Life Will See You Now, came out back in 2017), the Swedish indie popper has returned with Songs for Other People's Weddings, out September 12 via Secretly Canadian. And in a surprising turn, it's actually a "companion album" to a new novel by Lekman and author David Levithan (Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist) of the same name.

With this new comes first single, with a video edited by Rena Johnson and featuring drawings from Alexander Palmestål. Watch and listen below:

According to a press release, this project was at least partially inspired by Lekman's own side career as a wedding singer, "which came about by chance after fans took his 2004 song 'If You Ever Need a Stranger (To Sing at Your Wedding)' literally and invited him to perform at their nuptials."

The synopsis of the novel – which is out just over a month earlier on August 5 – is as follows:

"Songs For Other People's Weddings is a work of fiction about J, an unlucky-in-love musician who moonlights as a wedding singer. J gathers with couples before their big day to learn more about the intimate, strange things that brought them together, in order to write an original song to perform for them at their wedding. But despite J's penchant for finding the perfect words for others, he can't seem to do the same for his own love with his girlfriend, V."

It sort of sounds like the subject of a Lekman song, so perhaps this news actually makes perfect sense. Lekman had some initial reservations on writing such a conceptual and narrative record, which is exactly what spurred him onward:

"The idea to make a narrative concept album (a rock opera?) felt forbidden. Which, for me, is usually a sign that I'm on the right path. While investigating the genre of narrative concept albums, I realized that one of my all-time favorite albums, Frank Sinatra's 'Watertown' was in fact just that – a record that told a chronological story over the length of an LP. Having never been a fan of musicals or rock operas, this album served as inspiration. I wrote the album while the book was still being written and, at some points, I started imagining what happened between the book's chapters. The book and the album eventually became intertwined but also found their own paths. The book provided the structure of the story, but the album sometimes snuck behind the scenes. Stories from the songs made their way into the book and vice versa."

The process included some chapters inspiring Lekman's songs, and then other times Lekman's songs inspiring chapters. Levithan says of the teamwork: "The character of J cannot keep his own emotions out of his songs, and Jens underscores this in ways that will constantly surprise the listener."

Across the 80-minute album, Lekman essentially becomes to voice of Levithan's character of J. At several points, he is joined by Matilda Sargren, who plays the voice of V.

Lekman will also be headed out on tour across North America in the fall. Find those dates down below.

Songs for Other People's Weddings (the album) is out September 12. Pre-order here. Full tracklist:

1. The First Lovesong
2. A Tuxedo Sewn For Two
3. Candy From a Stranger
4. Two Little Pigs
5. Speak To Me In Music
6. With You I Can Hear My Own Voice
7. I Want To Want You Again
8. GOT-JFK
9. Wedding In Brooklyn
10. For Skye
11. Increasingly Obsolete
12. On a Pier, On the Hudson
13. Wedding In Leipzig
14. LEJ-GOT
15. You Have One New Message
16. Just For One Moment
17. The Last Lovesong

Tour Dates:

11/08 Minneapolis, MN @ Amsterdam Bar & Hall
11/09 Chicago, IL @ Lincoln Hall
11/10 Toronto, ON @ The Great Hall
11/12 Boston, MA @ The Sinclair
11/13 Northampton, MA @ Iron Horse
11/14 Philadelphia, PA @ Underground Arts
11/16 Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
11/17 Washington, DC @ Union Stage
11/19 Durham, NC @ Motorco Music Hall
11/21 Atlanta, GA @ The EARL
11/22 Nashville, TN @ Exit/In
11/24 Dallas, TX @ Deep Ellum
11/25 Austin, TX @ Mohawk
11/28 Phoenix, AZ @ Crescent Ballroom
11/29 Los Angeles, CA @ Lodge Room
11/30 San Francisco, CA @ The Independent
12/02 Portland, OR @ Aladdin Theater
12/03 Seattle, WA @ Neumos

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