Mike Patton Archives - Page 2 of 4

“Stone Letter” to the skull: Tomahawk’s back

Interview: English production duo Soulsavers captures an intimate, evolving Dave Gahan

Soulsavers: The Light the Dead See (Mute, 5/22/12)

“Take Me Back Home”

For more than two decades, Depeche Mode front-man Dave Gahan was content being the impassioned voice behind the songs of bandmate Martin Gore, whose edgy, genre-stretching synth pop dominated the ’80s club scene and landed unapologetically on ’90s alternative-rock radio. But since 2003, the singer’s distinctive baritone also has served a more personal purpose, fueling the release of his first two solo albums and, in May, his first collaboration with English production duo Soulsavers.

For Gahan, the evolution may have been inevitable.

Need a weird X-mas gift? Pre-order limited editions of Alan Moore’s Unearthing

Regarded as one of the greatest graphic-novel writers ever, Alan Moore (V for Vendetta, Watchmen) has delved into the world of biography with Unearthing, an expansive narrative art-book. With photography by Mitch Jenkins, Unearthing “maps the lifetime of author, orientalist, and occultist Steve Moore, while simultaneously investigating the extraordinary history of South London with which that life has been intertwined.”

Review: Guano Padano’s 2

Guano Padano: 2 (Ipecac, 8/7/12)

“Gran Bazaar”

Guano Padano: “Gran Bazaar”

With the intercontinental mix of Italian trio Guano Padano, one could take the easy way out, calling it the bastard child of Ennio Morricone, Dick Dale, and Calexico. The truth is something more muddied, something broader yet less mashed up.

Led by guitarist Alessandro Stefana, 2 steeps in the traditions of Italian-western cinema — specifically, the Italian sonic interpretation of Americana — and applies surf rock and 1950s and ’60s rock ’n’ roll to the music of America’s south and southwest. Bits of gypsy, jazz, and oriental styles also dot the landscape, as each song is a journey to a new land.

Review: Mike Patton & The Ictus Ensemble’s Laborintus II

Mike Patton & The Ictus Ensemble: Laborintus II (7/3/12, Ipecac)

Recorded live with The Ictus Ensemble in 2010 at the Holland Festival, Laborintus II is the latest recording credit from the eternally unpredictable Mike Patton. The three-part offering, written to celebrate Dante’s 700th birthday, is a new take on the work of experimental Italian composer Luciano Berio (as inspired by poet Edoardo Sanguineti).

Video: Tomahawk’s teaser for Oddfellows

This fall, the mighty super-group Tomahawk resurfaces with its first new music since Anonymous re-imagined Native American music in 2007.

Oddfellows reunites the three main players — guitarist Duane Denison, vocalist Mike Patton, and drummer John Stanier — but adds the potent abilities of jazz standout and Mr. Bungle and Fantômas bassist Trevor Dunn. There’s more news coming soon from Ipecac, but in the meantime, even fan-boys gotta shout: Tomahawk’s back!

Mike Patton’s Laborintus II due out July 3 via Ipecac

ALARM’s guide to Record Store Day 2012

Tomorrow is the third Saturday in April, which means that independent record stores across the world will face an influx of limited-edition vinyl, avid fans, and rabid audiophiles. With myriad releases hitting shelves, we’ve provided you with some of our most anticipated picks to make Saturday’s shopping (relatively) quick and painless.

Mike Patton reunites (on record) with Trey Spruance of Secret Chiefs 3

50 Unheralded Albums from 2011

In just one more trip around the sun, another swarm of immensely talented but under-recognized musicians has harnessed its collective talents and discharged its creations into the void. This list is but one fraction of those dedicated individuals who caught our ears with some serious jams.

Q&A: Dub Trio

Dub Trio: IV (ROIR, 10/25/11)

Dub Trio: “Control Issues Controlling Your Mind”

[audio:https://alarm-magazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Dub_Trio_Control_Issues_Controlling_Your_Mind.mp3|titles=Dub Trio: “Control Issues Controlling Your Mind”]

Since the release of their last studio album, Another Sound is Dying, the boys of Brooklyn-based dub-metal band Dub Trio have been busy touring extensively as well as working as the backing band for acts such as Matisyahu. But in that time, they’ve managed to get back in the studio to continue crafting their own distinct songs.

IV, the band’s latest release, is possibly their heaviest and most experimental album yet. It waxes and wanes between raw, thrashing metal and chilled-out ambience, highlighting the band’s versatility. And though the sound is far from reggae, it never fully departs from the dub genre. Listeners of IV should expect to hear “dub,” rather, as a concept: compositions are mangled and manipulated to explore different ideas and emotions.

Bassist Stu Brooks and drummer Joe Tomino took time out of their touring schedule to speak with ALARM about their latest album and about the evolution of their sound.

You’ve mentioned that much of the songwriting for this album was done on the road. What was that process like?

Joe Tomino: The first batch of songs for IV were written in Chavagne, France at the start of one of our previous European tours. We had a few days off before we started the tour, so we set up our equipment in a house and played all day. The next batch of songs was written several months later in Brooklyn. We rented a rehearsal space in for a few weeks and worked on more material. Finally, the last couple of songs were written in the studio. [We] actually wrote, recorded, and mixed in the same day. It was an interesting approach of having this discipline of going in to the studio with an idea and needing to come out with two completely finished songs within one day.

Though Another Sound is Dying took a noticeably heavier direction, IV is even more packed with riffs. Has the band’s hefty tour itinerary led to songs that have more live energy?

JT: As with all our tours, the songs we play from night to night are always evolving. There is enough inherent improvisation in our music that we can subtly change things from night to night or tour to tour. We always try to give the audience as much of a visceral experience as possible from stage. Since there are no lyrics or front-man talking between songs, we rely on energy to propel the performance. A Dub Trio show is like an emotional rollercoaster of sound.

There are fewer full-on dub moments on IV, but you added a few tracks that are completely different, including a “Dub Trio take” on dubstep, a minimalist percussion piece, and a nine-minute tune that starts with toy piano and goes ambient at the end. What else do you want to try that you haven’t yet?

JT: Not sure. We’ve covered a lot of ground, musically, between our four studio albums. These days we’re really enjoying playing a good, old-fashioned blues jam at sound check every chance we get. The other day we played a twelve-bar blues [piece] with some sub-bass keyboards, distorted and effected guitars, and some dubstep-sounding drum samples. We try not to set any limits on where the music will take us when we are composing new songs.