Lee Ranaldo Callas

Lee Ranaldo teams with The Callas for collab LP (watch the title track's video)

Greek art rock band The Callas don’t just make music, but also films, art shows, and more, and after collaborating with Sonic Youth’s Lee Ranaldo on the soundtrack of their film The Great Eastern, they’ve now also made a collaborative album with him. It’s called Trouble and Desire, and it’s due out on October 26 via Inner Ear and Dirty Water Records (pre-order). Lee Ranaldo said:

It’s been a pleasure for me to know and collaborate with The Callas on their new album Trouble and Desire – we met a few years ago and I’ve been drawn into their artistic world in Athens. I’m a fan of their visual art tapestries and their art studio/venue and I’ve been having a great time making music with these like-minded travelers. Our collaboration took off quickly and was such a natural fit – we speak the same language and the performances we’ve done together have been a total blast! I love the community of artists that they have gathered around them, and I hope we will do more collaborations in the future.

We’re premiering the title track along with its video, which is mostly made up of performance footage of Lee and the band. This song is a perfect example of how Lee Ranaldo and The Callas “speak the same language” (as Lee put it). It’s got elements of ’60s psych, droning but driving jams, and a speak-sung vocal delivery — all elements that you can also hear in Sonic Youth and Lee’s solo material. Check it out below.

You can also catch Lee Ranaldo at the “Flip These Houses” protest benefit at Queens’ Knockdown Center on Friday (9/28).

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