Neil Young Unearths 1963 Treasures for Upcoming Album

Neil Young and the Chrome Hearts have officially wrapped production on their latest studio project, the follow-up to 2025’s Talkin’ to the Trees. The upcoming record promises a unique blend of the contemporary and the historical, featuring five brand-new compositions alongside three vintage tracks that Young penned over six decades ago.

The sessions took place at Rick Rubin’s renowned Shangri-La studio in Malibu, California. According to Young, the recording process was remarkably efficient. The band tracked four songs on the first day and completed the fifth on the second. Faced with a shortage of material, Young turned to his personal archives, where he discovered a collection of unreleased songs dating back to 1963—the year he was a 17-year-old musician performing with his high school band, the Squires, in Winnipeg.

We finished mixing and assembling one month later on the next full moon… April 1. It was fast! We now have a complete mastered record, ready to go. I cannot wait for you to hear it and I hope it gives you what it gives me.

The inclusion of these 1963 tracks is particularly significant for longtime fans. While the Squires released instrumental tracks like “Aurora” and “The Sultan” in the Sixties, those recordings were limited to rare vinyl pressings. These songs, along with others, were later featured on the 2009 box set The Archives Vol. 1 1963–1972. It remains to be seen whether the newly unearthed songs are instrumental pieces, Squires-era tracks, or previously unknown solo home recordings.

In a notable technical departure, Neil Young has recorded the album using both analog and digital equipment, resulting in two distinct masters. He emphasized the importance of this experiment, noting that while high-resolution digital is a clear second best, analog remains the gold standard for capturing the depth of music. He intends to release both versions, allowing listeners to experience the sonic differences firsthand.

While the album’s title remains unconfirmed—with Young jokingly referring to it as “Second Song” in recent correspondence—the project is fully mastered and ready for release. This new work follows a period of transition for the artist, who canceled a planned European tour with the Chrome Hearts earlier this year. However, Young has assured fans that he intends to return to the road in the near future to perform for audiences everywhere.