The Cat Empire Seriously Can't Wait For You To Hear Their New Album

Veteran Aussie outfit The Cat Empire are so excited about the forthcoming release of their new studio full-length, Rising With The Sun, that they're bringing forward its planned release date by a full week, the stalwart ensemble has announced.

Taking the opportunity to also unveil the album's artwork (pictured left) — inspired by a traditional Mexican design known as an Ojos de Dios, or Eye Of God, as created by ARIA-winning Sydney artist Aaron Hayward — the band explained that, with all the pieces in place, they're keen to get the album out into the world sooner rather than later, settling on a new release date of Friday 4 March, to coincide with an impending run of live shows.

"The music is finished, the artwork is done, we're all excited about getting the album out as quickly as we can, so people have time to listen to it ahead of our world tour this year," frontman Felix Riebl said in a statement. "So, we are moving the release date forward a week to March 4."

Fans have already been given a generous taste of the new work by way of recent singles Wolves and Que Sera Ahora, with early response indicating high expectations for Rising With The Sun — and Riebl indicates that the band is more than ready to meet them with the follow-up to 2013's well-received Steal The Light.

"We kept everything fresh," he said of the recording process, for which they conscripted renowned producer and composer Jan Skubiszewski.

"We were confident because we had a sound from our previous record that we were really happy with, so that was our starting point … it was just a matter of going back to that physical space and coming up with new songs."

Pre-orders for Rising With The Sun are available now via The Cat Empire's website. They set off for a stretch of local shows in support of the album from Thursday 3 March, when they play at Fremantle Arts Centre, heading to 3 Oceans Winery, Margaret River, on 4 March and Castelli Estate on Saturday 5 March. They'll follow those shows with a pair of high-profile event slots: first, at WOMADelaide on Friday 11 March; then, to Byron Bay's Bluesfest for a showing on Sunday 27 March.

Tickets for all shows are available through Oztix (WA shows), WOMADelaide and Bluesfest.

For more information, see theGuide or check The Music App.