One year ago to the week, award-winning singer and songwriter KT Tunstall was preparing to perform a four-night residency at the Egyptian Theatre.
Then she got COVID-19.
“I’ve only had it once, and it just got me right beforehand,” she said. “Since the Egyptian is a super popular place, we rescheduled right at that point, and it was a year until I could play again.”
The time has come. Tunstall will finally perform her four-night run Jan. 12-15, and she believes the extra year proved beneficial because she released a new album, “Nut.”
The album is the third release in what she calls her “Soul, Body and Mind” trilogy that started in 2016 with “Kin” and continued into 2018 with “Wax.”
“It was a very liberating experience releasing this record,” Tunstall said of “Nut.” “It was done during the pandemic lockdown. I recorded it remotely, and I think that process led to me letting go and allowing other people to collaborate with me.”
The collaboration Tunstall refers to is working with producer Martin Terefe.
“It was a long time coming to ask Martin to produce, because we’ve known each other for 22 years now,” she said. “We’ve written somewhere around 30 songs together, and this was the right record for him to do.”
Because of the friendship, Tunstall felt comfortable letting go and giving the reins to Terefe.
“It just came to the process of whether I liked the sound of it,” she said. “It was really great to step back and allow the process to happen.”
“Nut” caps off a seven-year project that Tunstall has invested her soul, body and mind.
“I was looking ahead the whole time, and just following my nose and heart in terms of what I wanted to do,” she said. “There wasn’t a lot of analysis of how (the albums) should be constructed. It was very much like this is the subject of this record. And what it does is that it makes me want to write and stay in the moment.”
Staying in the moment was how Tunstall selected the producers of the other two albums.
“I really enjoy the relationship of working with producers, because it’s so great to have that wisdom, experience and creative guidance that a producer brings,” she said. “I’ve often sought out producers that I want to work with, and I allow them to have a huge effect on how the record turns out.”
Tunstall worked with Tony Hoffer on “Kin.”
“I sought him out because I am a huge Beck fan,” she said.
Hoffer was in Beck’s band and produced the albums, “Midnight Vultures” in 1999 and “Guero” in 2005, which Tunstall loves.
“Wax” was mainly produced by Nick McCarthy, the former guitarist and keyboardist for the Scottish rock band, Franz Ferdinand.
“That was one of my most favorite experiences, ever,” Tunstall said. “It was fun working with an artist who really got what it is like to make music. He’s like almost unhinged, which is wonderful.”
“Wax” also received some additional production from Tunstall’s friends Tim Bran and Roy Kerr, who comprise the production duo, MyRiot.
Recording a trilogy of albums was Tunstall’s response to the idea that people don’t listen to albums anymore because of their limited attention span.
“In reality, everyone is watching eight episodes of a single series in a row, and the most popular piece of popular culture are three-hour podcasts,” she said. “That actually tells me that people want to hear something real and something meaningful. It tells me that they are not going to invest into something unless it has soul, keeping you engaged and earning your attention.”
Tunstall feels the best way to accomplish that idea is to write songs that please herself.
“I think if I’m doing something that interests me, then I trust that it will be interesting to others,” she said. “You’re not going to please everybody all the time, but I think after having done this for a long time, it’s only worth it to me if there’s real excitement in it.”
The release of “Nut” means Tunstall has more songs in her quiver to shoot toward her audiences, and she’s grateful to have four nights to come up with different setlists.
“It was nice being in one place while being able to explore different ideas,” she said. “I have to remember that there will be a different audience every night at the Egyptian, but it’s also a nice opportunity to get familiar with the venue and settle in a zone where you can push your boundaries a little more.”
Tunstall is keen on themes, as shown by her recording her trilogy of albums.
“Since, I play solo a lot of the time now, I try to do the shows that also keeps my own interest up,” she said.
One idea is to play a chronological show.
“I’ve done them before,” she said. “I go through a few songs per album and save a couple that everyone knows for the end.”
Another idea is to build a set around her music videos.
“There are so many funny stories about the making of those videos,” she said with a laugh. “That type of show is a total hoot.”
The other theme Tunstall is tossing around is building a set that features deeper acoustic numbers.
“There are a lot of lower-tempo, picked songs that don’t really get played that often,” she said.
While Tunstall contemplates her setlists, she also takes into consideration that all of the Egyptian Theatre performances will feature an intermission.
“That makes it feel very theatrical,” she said. “It’s almost like playing vinyl. You have an A side and a B side of your show. I like to acknowledge that as part of the evening.”