Award-winning, international progressive rock band Big Big Train will issue their 16th studio album, Woodcut, via InsideOutMusic on 6th February 2026.
Woodcut is a landmark release for the international group, whose line-up draws together members from England, Scotland, Italy, the USA, Sweden and Norway, in that it marks their first ever full-length conceptual piece. Woodcut is a continuous narrative exploring creativity, sacrifice and the thin line between inspiration and madness.
The band recently teased the new record with the launch of a short passage of music, that can now be revealed as the album’s introductory piece ‘Inkwell Black’. The first single from the album, ‘The Artist’, is also out now and accompanied by a video created by Crystal Spotlight.
Bassist Gregory Spawton commented: “Woodcut tells the story of a character we call The Artist, who is struggling with his creativity and with life. One day he is able to fashion a woodcut which he considers to be beautiful and different. Maybe it’s a dream or maybe it’s real life, but he finds himself stepping into the woodcut scene and into an alternative world.”
Woodcut sees all seven band members making contributions, with frontman Alberto Bravin taking the lead as producer: “This time it’s kind of a new statement for the band. Woodcut is a big step forward for us,” Bravin commented. With more than 400 individual recorded tracks of music to edit, streamline and piece together, and also with the connectivity of the album’s storyline and its themed instrumental sections to consider, this was a task of gargantuan proportions.
“I felt a huge sense of relief when Alberto took over as producer,” said Spawton, the band’s final original co-founding member. “Although this is only Alberto’s second studio album with BBT, he is very aware of the traditions of the band and has also brought his own sense of energy to the music.”
Woodcut is said to feel like a Big Big Train record quite unlike any that came before—an assured union of music, storytelling and visual invention. The album is graced with a cover design from Dorset based artist Robin Mackenzie – a black and white woodcut print, of course, derived from a woodcut which the band commissioned from him specifically for the album.
Available as a limited CD + Blu-ray edition, including extensive liner notes as well as Dolby Atmos & 5.1 Surround Sound mixes by Shawn Dealey of Sweetwater Studios, the album will also be available as a gatefold 180g 2LP with special embossed cover, standard CD jewel case and digitally in both stereo and Dolby Atmos versions. It can be ordered here.
Featuring 16 tracks across 66-minutes of runtime, the full track-listing is as follows: ‘Inkwell Black’, ‘The Artist’, ‘ The Lie Of The Land’, ‘The Sharpest Blade’, ‘Albion Press’, ‘Arcadia’, ‘ Second Press’, ‘Warp And Weft’, ‘Chimaera’, ‘Dead Point’, ‘Light Without Heat’, ‘Dreams In Black And White’, ‘ Cut and Run’, ‘Hawthorn White’, ‘Counting Stars’ and ‘Last Stand’.
The full band line-up featured on the album is: Alberto Bravin (Lead vocals, guitar, keyboards), Nick D’Virgilio (Drums, percussion, 12-string acoustic guitar, vocals), Oskar Holldorff (Keyboards, vocals), Clare Lindley (Violin, acoustic guitar, vocals), Paul Mitchell (Trumpet, piccolo trumpet, vocals), Rikard Sjöblom (Guitars, keyboards, vocals), and Gregory spawton (Bass, bass pedals, 12-string acoustic guitar, mellotron, vocals).
