While his 1996 self-titled debut was characterized by breezy acoustic songs adorned with catchy vocal melodies, Duncan Sheik's new record, "Humming," finds the singer-songwriter adopting a more mature direction and sound with his new album.

Aside from embracing a louder, more amplified sound on the record, "Humming" also features Sheik name-dropping such rock icons as Bob Dylan and John Lennon in "That Says It All" a song he describes as a contemporary protest song.

[article id="1450234"]"The thing about Dylan and Lennon,"[/article] Sheik told MTV News, [article id="1450234"]"is that they are the two examples of artists in the pop music world who really made very intensely powerful social commentary ... And that song is interesting because -- and I don't know if people are actually getting it -- it is in some way an homage to them, but it's also kind of a protest song."[/article]

[article id="1450234"]"'Cause what I'm saying,"[/article]

he continued, [article id="1450234"]"is that although they made great music, maybe even the best music ever, that doesn't mean that there's not great things still left to be done, and great ideas yet to come. When I say 'That Says It All,' it's facetious. The concept [for the song] is that there's this whole incredible world, full of mysteries and wonder, and you have to continually seek that stuff and not just focus on the past." [28.8 RealAudio][/article]

As we previously reported (see [article id="1432045"]"Natalie Merchant, The Roots, Duncan Sheik To Celebrate New 'Red Hot' Album With Promo Show"[/article]), on Tuesday evening Duncan Sheik will be among those performing at a special concert in New York City commemorating the release of the new benefit album from the Red Hot Organization, "Red Hot + Rhapsody.