The Lumineers Reflect on 20 Years of 'Timeless' Music and Brotherhood with New Album: 'It Gave Us Wings' (Exclusive)

Mar. 15, 2025

The Lumineers.Photo:Noah Griffel

Noah Griffel

In front of an intimate audience in an easy-to-miss building in Greenpoint, Brooklyn,Wesley SchultzandJeremiah Fraitessit down at the piano and hook up the guitar, ready to perform a few of their original songs. It almost feels like 2005, when they’d practice songs in Fraites’ parents' attic in Ramsey, New Jersey for hours on end and perform at bars in New York City.

But much has changed since the two musicians, now known asThe Lumineers, began their journey 20 years ago. Four studio albums, an extensive catalog of songs and countless sold-out venues later, the duo is celebrating this milestone with the release of a new album,Automatic, released Feb. 14, and a world tour.

“We’re asking ourselves new questions and raising the bar: How vulnerable can you be? How many inconvenient truths can you share about yourself? How much can you put into the music?” Schultz, 42, tells PEOPLE aboutAutomatic.

The Lumineers U.S. Tour Dates.The Lumineers

The Lumineers

The album, which both bandmates say was “off the cuff” and required “reacting to each other in real-time,” also captures a sense of innocence that would make their younger selves proud. “There’s a lot of humor on this record, mostly at my expense, but also a sense of childhood where it was very open and going with the flow,” Schultz explains. “I don’t think that was how we were in the beginning.”

Fraites adds, “We felt like kids in the studio, a lot of the drumming and piano, I felt like I was 10 years old with the knowledge of a 39-year-old. We were able to preserve why we still go in the studio together because it’s really fun and because we will die for this music. This album is our favorite we’ve ever made.”

Long before they met musically, Schultz and Fraites grew up alongside one another — Fraites’ older brother was a close friend of Schultz’s. They reconnected when Schultz returned to his hometown after finishing school and bonded over their shared love of music and personal struggles. “He wanted to work on music as much as I did, and I think for him it was this beautiful solace after losing his brother to a heroin addiction a few years earlier, and me being in a holding pattern and sticking around because my dad was sick with cancer,” Schultz reflects.

The Lumineers.Noah Griffel

Schultz adds, “It peaked like Everest and then dropped into a valley. If you thought that was going to be the way things were forever, you’d be pretty depressed. You’ve got to push through and hope people eventually come around. Timing is so much of everything in life, and I’m just grateful that it gave us a chance and then I’m grateful that we got to turn the page and we’re here now.”

“I’m still really proud of and connected to all of the music, and I think we stumbled upon a way to craft and write these songs that still feel true and sincere to who we are as people and musicians,” Fraites tells PEOPLE. “They’re kind of timeless.”

Their bond is also timeless — and it’s only grown stronger. “You almost cease to be individual people. You do this band, and it blows up, and you travel the world together. Maybe having a blowout fight and then being on stage together in front of 10,000 people,” Fraites says. “We’ve been through so much. The relationship honestly has never been more special to me than it is today. The fact that we can say we’ve been doing this 20 years and that there’s still love.”

Fortunately, their love for songwriting remains just as strong. “It’s a musical marriage where you can feel that the fire is still between us for making music,” Schultz says. “Mostly the gratitude lies in still loving writing so much because. My dream is to keep feeling this way when I’m making records.”

No matter how long they go or how high they peak, The Lumineers will always feel like two twenty-somethings hoping people will like their music. “Maybe part of the magic is that we’re not writing to get bigger, but there’s nothing about this that makes sense. This whole thing has been a surprise,” Schultz says. Fraites adds, “This thing we created has gotten bigger than I ever thought imaginable, and I don’t know, I’m really proud of it and just really hope to still be able to do it for a long time.”

source: people.com