Billie Eilish dropped her sophomore album, Happier Than Ever, less than six months ago, but, according to her brother and producer Finneas O’Connell, she’s already started writing the tracks for her third.
In an interview with Rolling Stone, Finneas – whose debut album, Optimist, came out in October – said the pair were “really excited to start working on” Eilish’s third record. He added that they already have “interesting skeletons” for songs written, but currently aren’t “sure what animals they are”.
“We’ve got the net in the ocean, and we’re picking up detritus,” he continued. “And then you sift through all that, and you pick out the treasure, and then you have an album. I’m really excited. I think we’ve got a lot to say.”
Fans shouldn’t get too excited, though, as it’s likely the album won’t drop until after Eilish’s 2022 world tour (including a headline slot at Glastonbury) is over. The tour starts in the US on February 3 and – after spanning Canada, the UK, Europe, and New Zealand – will wrap up in Australia on September 30.
“The tour is this album,” Finneas told Rolling Stone. “We’ve played some festivals, but we haven’t done Billie headliner solo shows, and we’re really excited to play Happier Than Ever on the road. So even if it’s in the can by February, we’ll (delay it) for a bit. Because I like letting projects breathe. You don’t want to step on the toes of an album like that. You make your stuff mean less when you do that.”
Earlier this week, Eilish dropped the latest single and video from Happier Than Ever, for the album’s closing track, “Male Fantasy”. Like her previous videos, including “Therefore I Am”, “Lost Cause”, “Your Power”, “Happier Than Ever”, and “NDA”, her newest offering was also self-directed.
Last week, the fifth iteration of Eilish’s yearly Vanity Fair interview dropped, in which the singer answers questions about how her life has changed in the year gone by, how many more millions of Instagram followers she’s gained, and how many not-so-secret tattoos she’s acquired.
Look back at Eilish’s 2020 Dazed cover story interview here.
