SWANS News

[Mad Madison]

A place to post news & updates concerning SWANS.

[Mad Madison]

http://bit.ly/1y7juWV

Filth (Re-mastered 2014)



RE-MASTERED, AND NOW ON VINYL AGAIN FOR THE FIRST TIME IN DECADES

“This is all slabs of sound, rhythm and screaming/testifying. What more do you need? In a way, it was a reaction against Punk (and just about any other music you can think of), and the conservative notion that 3 chords were somehow necessary. I used to deny it vehemently at the time, but No Wave (I “hated” that scene too, for some reason I can’t remember now) played a big role as the germ from which this music grew, along with The Stooges and Throbbing Gristle, of course. I wanted Swans to be “heavier” though – I wanted the music to obliterate - why, I don’t remember! I think it just felt good. Live, we used two basses (playing utterly unmusical chords that were stabbed and left to sustain or sometimes hit in staccato or opposing rhythms), drums, a “percussionist” that slammed down on a metal table with a metal strap, crude cassette loops of various sounds/noises (usually some kind of undefined ROAR), and Norman Westberg’s glorious sustained and screaming guitar chords. It was pretty elating to play live – for us. If 100 people showed up (which would have been a huge audience at the time – 20 was more the average), 80 were guaranteed to leave by the second song. Somehow that tension – contempt or indifference from the audience – was nourishing, so we kept going.
Here’s some music I was listening to at the time: Throbbing Gristle, Psychic TV, The Stooges, Brian Eno, Teenage Jesus And The Jerks, DNA, The Contortions, Glenn Branca, Black Flag, early Pink Floyd, This Heat, Kraftwerk, The Germs, Cabaret Voltaire, Can, Public Image LTD., SPK… ”

- Michael Gira / Swans/Young God Records

[Mad Madison]

Swans' "Oxygen" - digital EP - will be released November 24th. This EP features an edit of Oxygen by Mute Records founder Daniel Miller (listen below!) It also includes an early version recorded at M.Gira's home, an acoustic version recorded at Studiomute & a live version recorded at Primavera Sound Festival! It will be available it direct from Young God Records as well as Mute and where ever else fine digital music products are sold.

https://soundcloud.com/muterecords/s...o-edit/s-rnaFv