There’ll be a new cd out on April 1st (released by Indegoot) and these are the first news I can give:
Here be monsters
Acclaimed musician and visual artist Jon Langford will be releasing his newest album with Skull Orchard, titled Here Be Monsters, on April 1st. Best known for his work in the The Mekons and the Waco Brothers, Langford has been a leading pioneer in the assimilation of folk/country music into punk rock since the genre’s first evolution over 30 years ago. This album will feature a unique piece of artwork specific to each track on the album.
Langford, describing the new record, says “the subtext of the album is maybe the things our civilization thinks of as fixed and immovable might actually be redundant/obsolete/discredited and it’s up to us to question and find new rocks to be washed up on…” For this new album, Langford called in Mekons/Waco Brothers veteran Mike Hagler (My Morning Jacket, Wilco, Neko Case, Billy Bragg) to record at Chicago’s Kingsize Sound Labs. “Skull Orchard used to be a fairly solitary activity” says Langford, “but this is much more of a band project than any of the solo things I’ve done before.”
“This album really brings the art and the songs together – a chicken/egg which came first situation. The songs are very visual and in some cases came directly from the paintings.”
Songs:
Summer stars
Weightless
Gone without trace
Mars
Sugar on your tongue
Drone operator
Rumors
What did you do in the war
Lil ray of light
Don’t believe
Roger Knox and Kelly Hogan: “Blue gums calling me back”
Stephen Foster was the guy who wrote ‘Oh Susannah’, ‘Hard times come again no more’ and numerous other songs we often considert as public domain. He was the first man to earn his living solely through his music. He died as a forgotten alcoholic at the age of 37.