Danger Mouse & Sparklehorse – Dark Night of the Soul
Words by Tom Leins
Several years ago über-producer Danger Mouse (Gnarls Barkley, Gorillaz) mentioned to journalists that he heading into the studio with Mark Linkous, the musical brain behind twisted alt.country heroes Sparklehorse. Understandably, workaholic Danger Mouse was reluctant to apply a time-frame to this sprawling collaboration, preferring to let things evolve organically. Recently, with very little fanfare, Mouse admitted that the album was indeed finished…
Intriguingly, with the album now completed, EMI have stepped in and blocked its release - in any way, shape or form! Desperate to find a way to side-step EMI’s stalling tactics, Danger Mouse and Sparklehorse teamed up with oddball filmmaker David Lynch to release the project in the form of a deluxe hardback book (featuring exclusive photographs taken by Lynch) and a blank CD! The CD apparently features the text: “For Legal Reasons, enclosed CD-R contains no music. Use it as you will.”, and Danger Mouse has gone on record urging fans to download the album, and spread word of its lonely existence.
US industry insiders have suggested that the whole fiasco is down to EMI, who still hold a massive grudge against Danger Mouse for raiding their Beatles back catalogue for his cult bootleg The Grey Album (which famously blended The Beatles’ White Album with Jay-Z’s Black Album). The fact that EMI’s money-men could have authorised such a complex project knowing full well that they had no intention of releasing it beggars belief, and makes them look seriously foolish. Nevertheless, as an audacious release strategy, Danger Mouse’s twisted concept arguably ranks alongside Radiohead’s ‘In Rainbows’ ‘pay-what-you-like’ scheme. Interestingly, EMI’s accountants were the ones who missed out on the spoils on that occasion, too!
But what about the album itself? If the prospect of Danger Mouse and Sparklehorse teaming up for an excursion into the fuzz-pop badlands wasn’t mouth-watering enough, the duo have roped in an astonishing succession of guest vocalists to add light and shade to their bittersweet space-country laments. Deceptively gloomy album opener ‘Revenge’ (featuring Wayne Coyne of the Flaming Lips) gets the album off to an impressive start, and opens the floodgates for a gloriously skewed cavalcade of psychedelic loveliness. Jason Lytle (Grandaddy), James Mercer (The Shins) and Gruff Rhys (Super Furry Animals) are just a few of the unique talents queuing up to wax lyrical over Danger Mouse’s drowsy psych-pop swirls. The woozily euphoric backing and lyrical nursery rhyme menace gel perfectly throughout, effortlessly reaffirming Danger Mouse’s impeccable pop skill.
In case the mood gets too woozy for comfort, Black Francis and Iggy Pop are even on hand to inject some of their trademark insanity into proceedings. Although their contributions sit uncomfortably alongside the other tracks, their respective inclusion speaks volumes about the producers’ warped ambition. Another unexpected guest is a revitalised Julian Casablancas who lends his unmistakable NY drawl to the enjoyably quirky ‘Little Girls’. Against all odds, Danger Mouse, Sparklehorse and friends have conjured up an utterly beguiling sonic daydream of an album.
Unfortunately, as things stand, despite its visionary qualities, Dark Night of the Soul is destined to go down in pop history as a great ‘lost album’. Forty years after starting work on ‘Smile’ Brian Wilson finally got his psychosis sufficiently in check to complete and release his long-gestating masterwork. Will EMI ever swallow their pride and release Dark Night of the Soul? Probably not – especially if they’ve held a grudge against Danger Mouse for the best part of a decade already! Either way, I urge you to trawl cyber-space for a copy of Dark Night of the Soul.
‘Smile’ for the download generation? You heard it hear first!
Posted Wed, July 08, 2009