Immersion — the duo of Colin Newman (Wire) and Malka Spigel (Minimal Compact) — have dropped a new single and video for “What Is Lost Will Return,” the title track from their upcoming album of the same name. The record, ‘What Is Lost Will Return,’ arrived September 4 via swim~, and UK/EU tour dates are officially on the books.
The Sound of Two Decades of Partnership
Immersion make music that lives in the space between hypnotic and human. As KCRW puts it, “Electro duo Immersion makes music that’s easily embraced and speaks to the moment.” MOJO called them “Agile, reactive, expressive ****,” and Mundane Magazine summed up the project’s magic: “Newman and Spigel’s long-standing partnership bleeds into every note, the music shaped by decades of collaboration, love, and life lived both on and off stage.”
That partnership is the whole point. Newman and Spigel describe “What Is Lost Will Return” as the philosophical core of the album: “Humanity will not survive unless it can recognise that diversity is in our nature and we learn to work together. In spite of this we are hopeful that intelligence exists and take a positive view.“
A Sequel to the F*ck-It Album
‘What Is Lost Will Return’ is the second “pure” Immersion release in as many years, following 2025’s ‘WTF??’ — a title that, as the duo explains, reflects the fact that there’s only so many times you can say “What The F*ck??” before looking beyond to see what endures. Newman and Spigel — who they call their own “life and art partner” — describe the feeling of the new record as “a poignant mixture of joy and melancholy.”
Recorded fast, the album’s short gestation period captures a real creative spark — killer hooks, a fascination with the future, and the duo’s signature minimalism pushed into new territory. Malka’s dreamy chorus work plays against Colin’s sardonic, semi-spoken lyrics, creating twin vocals that pull you straight into their world of observation and detail. It’s a dense, layered listen that rewards close attention.
Grooves, hypnotic repetition, melody that sneaks up on you, and snapshots of a world gone a little mad — ‘What Is Lost Will Return’ is wry, detached, and somehow still hopeful. It’s an album that’s fully of the moment while still drawing on everything Immersion have built, without living in the past.
Who Is Immersion?
Immersion is Malka Spigel and Colin Newman, best known for their work in Minimal Compact and Wire respectively. The project started in the early ’90s and has always leaned into range — equally at home as a self-contained unit or a launchpad for collaboration. 1999’s ‘Low Impact,’ 2018’s ‘Sleepless,’ and 2025’s ‘WTF??’ each hit very different notes.
Recent years have brought collaborations with Tarwater, Laetitia Sadier, Ulrich Schnauss, Scanner, Thor Harris, Cubzoa, and SUSS as part of the ongoing Nanocluster series of events and albums — the SUSS collaboration included a month-long US tour in March/April 2025 alongside the album itself.
Newman and Spigel also host a weekly radio show, Swimming In Sound, and play together in Githead alongside Robin Rimbaud (Scanner) and Max Franken.
Immersion Tour Dates
10.09.26 — Sneaky Pete’s, Edinburgh, UK
11.09.26 — The White Hotel, Manchester, UK
12.09.26 — Lubberfiend, Newcastle, UK
13.09.26 — Voodoo Daddy’s, Norwich, UK
17.09.26 — Ramsgate Music Hall, Ramsgate, UK
18.09.26 — Rich Mix, London, UK
19.09.26 — Alphabet, Brighton, UK
25.09.26 — Markthalle, Hamburg, DE (A Life Without Punk — talk only, no performance)
26.09.26 — Columbia Theater, Berlin, DE (A Life Without Punk — talk only, no performance)
28.09.26 — Felsenkeller, Leipzig, DE (A Life Without Punk — talk only, no performance)
09.10.26 — Pit Dog, Lorient, FR
04.11.26 — Artisan Tap, Stoke, UK
05.11.26 — Adelphi, Hull, UK
06.11.26 — The Firebug, Leicester, UK
14.11.26 — Patronaat, Haarlem, NL
15.11.26 — Doornroosje, Nijmegen, NL
16.11.26 — Paard van Troje, Den Haag, NL
‘What Is Lost Will Return’ track list
01. Nephology
02. Breaking Free, Diversity, Evolution
03. We Don’t Need Your Validation
04. Megafauna
05. What Is Lost Will Return
06. Childsplay
07. Radio Signals
08. Frequencies & Echoes
Listen & Watch
Stream: What Is Lost Will Return digitally
Follow Immersion
Immersion Facebook
Immersion Instagram
Immersion Bandcamp
Immersion website
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