Thursday, January 05, 2012

David Lynch: Crazy Clown Time

"The creepiness in a David Lynch film comes as much from the soundtrack as from the Surrealistic images: the subtle melancholy of Laura Palmer’s theme in 'Twin Peaks,' Isabella Rossellini's come-hither rendition of the title song in 'Blue Velvet.' Mr. Lynch, the filmmaker, devotee of transcendental meditation and coffee distributor, has long dabbled in music himself; he has written songs for his films and others (often in collaboration with the composer Angelo Badalamenti), and he sang with Danger Mouse and Sparklehorse for their 2010 album, 'Dark Night of the Soul.' Last week he released his solo debut, 'Crazy Clown Time' (Sunday Best Recordings/PIAS America), a brooding electronic blues album with his highly processed vocals, created in his home studio with the engineer Dean Hurley. 'Mostly it starts with a jam,' Mr. Lynch said. 'Dean now lately on drums and me on guitar, and out of the jamming comes some kind of form, like, lots and lots of garbage — you can picture a landfill — but some chunks of gold.' He released the album at the behest of the label — 'When you find somebody enthusiastic about your stuff, it really helps, and it inspires you to finish up things and polish things and get them out,' Mr. Lynch said — and over his own fear of being a singer. (He has no plans to play live.) That’s where the processing, which can make his voice sound high pitched, comes in. 'It’s like some other character comes in and is singing,' Mr. Lynch, 65, said" ("Playlist," New York Times, 11/13/11).
View catalog record here!