Two – two! – new records from Psychic Temple are set to drop in the next few weeks, and I’m happy to once again be included in Mr. Schlarb’s plan for global music domination. Psychic Temple Plays Music for Airports comes first, later this month on Joyful Noise Recordings…
Psychic Temple, led by band/cult leader Chris Schlarb and featuring Mike Watt (Minutemen), Sheridan Riley (Avi Buffalo), Paul Masvidal (Cynic, Death), jazz trumpeter Kris Tiner and more, has reimagined Brian Eno’s 1979 ambient landmark Music For Airports. The group’s own version of “Music for Airports 1/1” was recorded in one afternoon, live in the studio without headphones, overdubs, edits or effects.
The album’s flip side features the fiery original “Music for Bus Stops,” conceived as a working class commentary on Eno’s preferred method of transportation.
From Greg Burk’s liner notes: “Psychic Temple approaches Airports from a fresh angle, rescuing it from its ‘dark, boring fate’ of becoming a museum piece to be analyzed by select musicians inside expensive concert halls. Where Eno’s distant, static masterpiece doesn’t seem to fit the real-life chaos of what goes on in an airport, Psychic Temple’s version adds a human touch and a dose of reality, showing that we’re all in it together, we can make room for one another, and we’re calm.”
This was such a fun and beautiful session with a stellar lineup of mostly LA-based musicians, some of my favorite people around. Here’s a trailer for a quick taste:
Psychic Temple III is out in May on Asthmatic Kitty Records, and it will be epic – check out that “Deluxe Altar Edition” LP gatefold above…
Psychic Temple ‘III’ completes the transition from avant-jazz solo project to a working band constructed around timeless songs that draw upon the rich history of classic American soul, blues, and folk. Equally immersed in the sound of California’s canyons and the swamps of the deep South, Psychic Temple’s cult leader/guitarist Chris Schlarb steps out of the shadows and up to the microphone for the first time with astonishing results.
Maintaining Psychic Temple’s affinity for nuance and delicate minimalism, ‘III’ exhibits a new directness centered around Schlarb’s agile guiding voice. While the album places his unfolding vocal melodies and narratives in the foreground, ‘III’ subverts easy categorization by sustaining the collaborative, exploratory spirit of ‘Psychic Temple’ and ‘II’.
Culled from sessions recorded at home in Los Angeles and the legendary FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama – ‘III’ includes contributions and performances from Spooner Oldham (Neil Young, Bob Dylan), David Hood (J.J. Cale, Aretha Franklin), Mike Watt (Minutemen, The Stooges), Avi Buffalo, Nedelle Torrisi (Sufjan Stevens), Elliot Bergman (Wild Belle, NOMO), Dave Easley (Brian Blade Fellowship) and many more. Coming together quickly and intuitively, the album was mixed over three days with Ronan Chris Murphy (King Crimson).
It also comes with a recipe for pancakes:
