Smart Flesh, The Low Anthem's forthcoming Nonesuch release, due out February 22, is now available for pre-order in the Nonesuch Store. The album is available on CD and vinyl, and in a special deluxe edition that includes the album on CD plus a bonus disc of additional music and comes in a letterpress, numbered edition printed in the band's hometown of Providence, Rhode Island. The first 250 pre-orders of Smart Flesh in the Nonesuch Store also include a letterpress printed poster, signed by the band. All pre-orders include an instant download of the album's opening track, "Ghost Woman Blues."
Smart Flesh, The Low Anthem's forthcoming Nonesuch release, due out February 22, is now available for pre-order in the Nonesuch Store. The album is available on CD and vinyl, and in a special deluxe edition that includes the album on CD plus a bonus disc of additional music and comes in a letterpress, numbered edition printed in the band's hometown of Providence, Rhode Island. The first 250 pre-orders of Smart Flesh in the Nonesuch Store also include a letterpress printed poster, signed by the band. All pre-orders include an instant download of the album's opening track, "Ghost Woman Blues," as well as high-quality, 320 kbps MP3s of the album available on release day. In addition, prices on all three versions are now reduced for a limited time as part of the Nonesuch Store's 3rd anniversary sale on all CDs, LPs, and DVDs, through the holidays.
The new album is The Low Anthem's self-produced follow-up to their critically lauded 2009 release, Oh My God, Charlie Darwin, on Nonesuch. The majority of Smart Flesh's 11 tracks were recorded in a cavernous, vacant pasta sauce factory in Central Falls, Rhode Island. Additional tracking was done in a Providence garage (dubbed the “gator pit"). Mike Mogis (Bright Eyes, Monsters of Folk) mixed the record in Omaha with additional mixing by engineer Jesse Lauter (Elvis Perkins) in New York. The Low Anthem is four multi-instrumentalists—Ben Knox Miller, Jeff Prystowsky, Jocie Adams, and newest member Mat Davidson.
Paranormal hitchhikers, taught highwires, aircraft, swelling tumors, whirring machinery, deserted highways, mannequins, cremation, and formaldehyde make up the language of Smart Flesh—its themes include love, longing, and the vain contortions of our lives before death.
The band surveyed dozens of spaces for their portable recording studio. “We knew right away when we stepped into the factory. The space was really the main instrument for the whole record. The resonance was chilling," says Miller. "We were able to experiment with new recording techniques to capture the sound at different distances. Mics 100, even 200 feet away caught the sound barreling across the room.”
The Low Anthem is fascinated with tone and timbre. The eclectic array of instruments used on Smart Flesh include jaw harp, musical saw, stylophone, three antique pump organs (restored by the band), and oversized drum kits. An elaborate scheme was employed to re-amp noise through various chambers of the factory.
To reserve your copy of Smart Flesh now, click here.
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