Ed Sheeran | Credit: Annie Leibovitz / Supplied

Ed Sheeran Announces New Album ‘–’, Final Album of His Mathematics Era

March 2, 2023

Hot on the heels of breaking the record for most tickets sold for a single gig in Australia, Ed Sheeran has announced the imminent arrival of the final chapter in his Mathematics album series. Dubbed – (Subtract), the fifth record in the British troubadour’s decade-spanning LP collection is slated to arrive on Friday, 5th May.

Sheeran wrote and co-produced the 14-track LP alongside Aaron Dessner of The National. The pair apparently linked up following an introduction from their mutual mate, Taylor Swift.

Ed Sheeran – Subtract (Album Trailer)

The new record will see Sheeran reconnect with his singer-songwriter roots, setting aside his previous ventures into hip hop and dance-pop to focus on more folk-leaning tunes and bolder, full band and orchestral arrangements.

It’s being billed as Sheeran’s most vulnerable and honest record to date, written against a backdrop of personal grief and hope.

“I had been working on Subtract for a decade, trying to sculpt the perfect acoustic album, writing and recording hundreds of songs with a clear vision of what I thought it should be,” Sheeran said in a statement. “Then at the start of 2022, a series of events changed my life, my mental health, and ultimately the way I viewed music and art.”

He continued: “Within the space of a month, my pregnant wife got told she had a tumour, with no route to treatment until after the birth. My best friend Jamal, a brother to me, died suddenly and I found myself standing in court defending my integrity and career as a songwriter. I was spiralling through fear, depression and anxiety.

“I felt like I was drowning, head below the surface, looking up but not being able to break through for air.”

Sheeran went on to say that he threw all sense of commercial appeal out the window on this record, choosing instead to write honestly, and for himself. “As an artist I didn’t feel like I could credibly put a body of work into the world that didn’t accurately represent where I am and how I need to express myself at this point in my life,” he said.

“This album is purely that. It’s opening the trapdoor into my soul. For the first time I’m not trying to craft an album people will like, I’m merely putting something out that’s honest and true to where I am in my adult life. This is last February’s diary entry and my way of making sense of it. This is Subtract.”

You can pre-order the LP here and scope the official artwork and track listing below. The announcement comes as Sheeran’s record-breaking Australian tour continues tonight in Melbourne, before heading to Adelaide and finishing up in Perth.