arto-lindsay-encyclopedia

Arto Lindsay released a new comp, interviewed on Bandcamp, playing Le Poisson Rouge

Arto

Disc 1 is centered around Arto’s solo work from 1996 to 2004. With Brazilian rhythms, light electronica elements, guitar that sneaks around and through the melodies, and a vocal delivery that somehow reminds me of poetry readings (in a good way), Lindsay’s albums from this period are intriguing, if tough to categorize. When it was announced that Lindsay would be releasing a record on Ani DiFranco’s Righteous Babe Records, it seemed like a curious pairing. But then “Prize” came out and it all made sense. The title track, represented here, spills out with slinky rhythms, bits of drum & bass, and the occasional blast of guitar shrapnel. These outbursts don’t happened all that often, but when they leap out of a background of some happy, salsa-inflected music, it’s kind of shocking.

The second disc is made up of solo performances with Lindsay creating variations of guitar blasphemy, all the while delivering vocal passages that feel like part exorcism, part performance art. Arto appears to be using a guitar and an amplifier, though there are several occasions where you’d swear he was dragging around a couple of sheets of corrugated sheet metal. On the adults-only “Erotic City,” the randy thoughts fly fast and loose, as does the scrap metal guitar. It’s really great stuff, unless you’re against the idea of noise as music. [Something Else]

Former member of seminal no wave band DNA and experimental music great Arto Lindsay released a new two-disc compilation, The Encyclopedia of Arto, this week via Northern Spy, which the above review is of. You can order the album from Northern Spy and get a taste of it by streaming “The Prize” below. In celebration of the release, Arto was also interviewed on Bandcamp this week during a show which also included Baths, plus new music by Shabazz Palaces and more. You can listen to the full show here.

Arto also has a hometown show coming up on July 22 at Le Poisson Rouge. Tickets for that show are on sale now. No word on other live dates at the moment.

Song stream below…

Arto Lindsay – “The Prize”

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