Stone Roses re-emerge after two decades with song
The Stone Roses, who won overwhelming acclaim for their 1989 debut album before becoming legendary for their struggles following it up, re-emerged Thursday with their first song in 22 years.
The English band, a key force in the Manchester scene that brought a touch of dance music to guitar rock, came out with a single entitled "All For One."
The song stays true to The Stone Roses' style, with the track driven by a bluesy electric guitar with breathy, studio-polished vocals by singer Ian Brown and the occasional electronic effect.
"All For One" came as a surprise after years of rumors of new Stone Roses music.
The band announced the release only hours earlier through its record label and social media as well as an advertisement on one of the giant overhead screens in New York's Times Square.
The single was produced by Paul Epworth, a Londoner with a background in indie rock who more recently has worked with superstar Adele.
The Stone Roses released a self-titled debut album in 1989 that initially went little noticed but within months the band became the darlings of music critics who hailed the incorporation of dance and psychedelic elements into the guitar rock.
The album has made lists of the greatest albums of all time, especially in Britain, but the band failed to generate the same response with its follow-up album, "The Second Coming," in 1994.
The band broke up afterward. When announcing a reunion tour in 2012, The Stone Roses said that they planned a third album but details since then have been scarce with the band members famously reticent in press interactions.
It was unclear whether "All For One" will be followed up by a full album.
The Stone Roses plan a series of summer shows around Britain and Ireland as well as in Madison Square Garden in New York.
The Stone Roses were part of the so-called "Madchester" scene that emerged in the late 1980s in Manchester along with Happy Mondays and Inspiral Carpets.
The scene gravitated around The Hacienda, a club supported by New Order, one of the most successful bands to emerge from Manchester along with The Smiths and, later, Oasis.