Mark Lanegan Releases Phantom Radio

MARK LANEGAN BAND’S PHANTOM RADIO OUT TODAY OCTOBER 21, 2014

U.S. TOUR BEGINS NEXT WEEK

Today the MARK LANEGAN BAND release Phantom Radio on Flooded Soil/Vagrant on in the U.S. The album has received nearly unanimous praise from critics with four stars in MOJO who said, “A brave, inspired step into the unknown…a fresh new bite… the kind of electronic blues Depeche Mode were reaching for with Songs of Faith and Devotion.” The Independent gave Phantom Radio five stars and claimed, “Unlike most gothic pop, Lanegan’s art is not a matter of fashion or mascara: it’s a genuine cri du coeur, as rare and beautiful as anything in music.” Q gave the disc four stars while The Guardian said, “…a career highlight… Torn Red Heart might be the most beautiful love song Lanegan has ever recorded.” Uncut stated, “Phantom Radio feels like a real upping of the game.”

Phantom Radio, produced by Alain Johannes, is Lanegan’s ninth release under his own name, his 20th if you include his collaborations, and close to his 50th if you include his guest appearances.

Lanegan’s chief compositional tool on Phantom Radio was his phone – specifically an app called Funk Box. “I didn’t bother to hook up my 909 and 808 this time,” he says, “because the app had ’em. I’d write drum parts with it then add music with the synthesizer or the guitar.” The album grew organically from these synthetic roots, taking in Mark’s ongoing love of Krautrock and also an ’80s new wave show on Sirius satellite radio, his favored aural companion as he drives around Los Angeles. “They have a few good shows but the ‘80s one in particular I like,” he says. “That’s the music that was happening when I started making music. And although the Trees drew on Nuggets psychedelia, 13th Floor Elevators and Love, we were actually listening to Echo And The Bunnymen, Rain Parade, the Gun Club. A lot of British post-punk. We loved that stuff. I just waited until I was in my late forties before I started ripping it off.”

Lanegan’s generous collaborative spirit sees him deliver an excellent co-write with British guitarist Duke Garwood, with whom he made last year’s dustbowl-desolate Black Pudding, and who now offers the music for “I Am The Wolf,” a Lanegan signature tune. Mark’s favorite song on the album, meanwhile, is “Torn Red Heart,” an intensely tender meditation for a broken heart that’s like The Velvet Underground’s “Pale Blue Eyes” orchestrated by Angelo Badalamenti. He also has a special mention for “Floor Of The Ocean,” which balances sheer catchiness with a deceptively bleak lyrical reflection on a life lived on the hard shoulder: “Clear eyes, can’t avoid the searchlight/Hope that they don’t find me/Find me where I’m lying.”

MARK LANEGAN BAND Autumn Tour:
10/29 – Seattle, WA @ Neptune
10/30 – Portland, OR @ Crystal Ballroom
11/01 – San Francisco, CA @ Great American Music Hall
11/02 – Los Angeles, CA @ El Rey Theatre
11/03 – Englewood, CO @ Gothic Theatre
11/04 – Chicago, IL @ Bottom Lounge
11/05 – Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop
11/07 – Philadelphia, PA @ Underground Arts – Wolf Building
11/08 – New York, NY @ The Marlin Room at Webster Hall
11/09 – Washington, DC @ U Street Music Hall