One song, “Ten Years From Now,” came from a very personal conversation
between Gossard and Jennings. “I was going through a really hard
divorce,” Jennings says. “My original take was more of a very negative,
catharsis screaming song. Stone was like, ‘You know what? What if you
open that up a bit? What if you look at this from 10 years out?’ I just
started singing from there and it just flowed.”
Josh Freese plays drums on the three tracks on the album, but Matt
Chamberlain handled the rest and played a key role in the development of
the songs. “Matt opened up his songwriting vault and sent about five or
six arranged beats, but with some harmonic information,” Gossard says.
“Two of those wound up being the last two songs we did on the record,
which was ‘I Am Your Country’ and ‘Orphaned Ghost.’ Matt is just an
incredibly creative person.”
Songs like “Time Machine” and equally massive barnburner “Evil Winds” —
featuring slide guitar licks from Pearl Jam’s Mike McCready — pushed
Jennings out of his comfort zone.
While Jennings handled the vocals, Gossard did the heavy lifting on the
music, sifting through demos up to 15 years old and recording at
Gossard’s Studio Litho in Fremont with cameos from ace Seattle sideman
Jeff Fielder, Pearl Jam bassist Jeff Ament and others.
As for Loosegroove, Gossard and label partner Regan Hagar (who plays
with Gossard in Seattle alt-rock outfit Brad) plan to release a single
from local soul singer Tiffany Wilson and a solo album from Painted
Shield’s Davis. Also in the works is an unreleased Brad album Gossard
said was “pretty much done” when soulful frontman Shawn Smith died last year.
I don't want to derail this post but this definitely needs to be highlighted!
Back to Painted Shield... really digging the first track. Seeing Mike and Jeff's names up here too makes it even more interesting.
“Do not postpone happiness”
(Jeff Tweedy, Sydney 2007)
PAINTED SHIELD, the new band consisting of Stone Gossard, Mason Jennings, Matt Chamberlain and Brittany Davis, has released its debut song, "I Am Your Country". The group's self-titled debut album arrives on November 27 via Gossard's revived Loosegroove Records.
"The song tries to encapsulate what a country might say to its people," Gossard tells Rolling Stone,
which announced the project this morning. "It's the least worked-over
song on the record and that makes it really visceral and immediate."
PAINTED SHIELD is a bold and cohesive portrait of its creators. The origins of the group go back seven years ago, when Gossard began working with Chamberlain on a series of instrumental demos. Chamberlain, a powerhouse drummer (whose credits include Bob Dylan, Peter Gabriel, Fiona Apple and Elton John), had played with PEARL JAM for a brief time in the early '90s.
"I love making music, and I especially love collaborating with other musicians," says Gossard. "That's the fun part, when you experience synchronicity between the music and the people you're involved with."
For Jennings, the opportunity to step completely outside his wheelhouse was an artistic challenge he relished.
"I've been a huge fan of both Stone and Matt for
years," he says. "I listen to a lot of electronic and heavy rock music,
but most of what I do is my voice and an acoustic guitar. I was excited
by the idea of bringing that intimate side of what I do to this mega
sound they were creating."
Gossard sings the praises of his PAINTED SHIELD
bandmates but he also stresses the importance of other friends and
artists who contributed to the album, chief among them
keyboardist/singer Brittany Davis and mixer John Congleton.
"Brittany Davis is a Seattle singer-songwriter and force to be reckoned with," says Gossard. "Her voice and incredible keyboard playing is foundational to PAINTED SHIELD's sound. And John is a brilliant mixer and musician. His interpretation of the songs and the way he built dynamics really floored everybody."
Driven by pulse-racing electronic and live drums, bursting with
gritty and sometimes psychotic guitars that weave in and out of
luxurious keyboard soundscapes, and brimming with glorious melodies that
fill the senses and hang on tight, everything about PAINTED SHIELD's self-titled album — a genre-bending mix of roots rock, electronica and contemporary folk-pop — feels effortlessly assured.
The release of "Painted Shield" on Loosegroove Records also marks the reboot of the influential indie label that Gossard founded back in 1994 with Regan Hagar (who also played drums in Gossard's longtime band BRAD as well as the seminal glam-punk band MALFUNKSHUN). Throughout the '90s, Loosegroove issued records from acts such as CRITTERS BUGGIN, MALFUNKSHUN, WEAPON OF CHOICE and DEVILHEAD, and significantly Gossard and Hagar signed QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE and released the band's debut album in 1998.
"It felt right that now was the time to start Loosegroove back up," says Hagar. "And once I heard the PAINTED SHIELD
record, I knew that it had to be the first album we put out. It's a
brilliant album — the performances, the sound, everything about it — and
it speaks to our history of releasing music that's empowering while it
also fits into our future-forward agenda."
"Painted Shield" track listing:
01. Orphan Ghost 02. Time Machine 03. Knife Fight 04. Ten Years From Now 05. On The Level 06. I Am Your Country 07. Evil Winds 08. Painted Shield 09. Raven
Diggin' that first single. Has a "Tomorrow Never Knows" kind of vibe. Track list looks interesting and the review posted above from Blabbermouth has me intrigued. Looking forward to this release.
Driven by pulse-racing electronic and live drums, bursting with gritty and sometimes psychotic guitars that weave in and out of luxurious keyboard soundscapes, and brimming with glorious melodies that fill the senses and hang on tight, everything about PAINTED SHIELD's self-titled album — a genre-bending mix of roots rock, electronica and contemporary folk-pop — feels effortlessly assured.
Comments
Back to Painted Shield... really digging the first track. Seeing Mike and Jeff's names up here too makes it even more interesting.
(Jeff Tweedy, Sydney 2007)
“Put yer good money on the sunrise”
(Tim Rogers)
PAINTED SHIELD, the new band consisting of Stone Gossard, Mason Jennings, Matt Chamberlain and Brittany Davis, has released its debut song, "I Am Your Country". The group's self-titled debut album arrives on November 27 via Gossard's revived Loosegroove Records.
"The song tries to encapsulate what a country might say to its people," Gossard tells Rolling Stone, which announced the project this morning. "It's the least worked-over song on the record and that makes it really visceral and immediate."
PAINTED SHIELD is a bold and cohesive portrait of its creators. The origins of the group go back seven years ago, when Gossard began working with Chamberlain on a series of instrumental demos. Chamberlain, a powerhouse drummer (whose credits include Bob Dylan, Peter Gabriel, Fiona Apple and Elton John), had played with PEARL JAM for a brief time in the early '90s.
"I love making music, and I especially love collaborating with other musicians," says Gossard. "That's the fun part, when you experience synchronicity between the music and the people you're involved with."
For Jennings, the opportunity to step completely outside his wheelhouse was an artistic challenge he relished.
"I've been a huge fan of both Stone and Matt for years," he says. "I listen to a lot of electronic and heavy rock music, but most of what I do is my voice and an acoustic guitar. I was excited by the idea of bringing that intimate side of what I do to this mega sound they were creating."
Gossard sings the praises of his PAINTED SHIELD bandmates but he also stresses the importance of other friends and artists who contributed to the album, chief among them keyboardist/singer Brittany Davis and mixer John Congleton.
"Brittany Davis is a Seattle singer-songwriter and force to be reckoned with," says Gossard. "Her voice and incredible keyboard playing is foundational to PAINTED SHIELD's sound. And John is a brilliant mixer and musician. His interpretation of the songs and the way he built dynamics really floored everybody."
Driven by pulse-racing electronic and live drums, bursting with gritty and sometimes psychotic guitars that weave in and out of luxurious keyboard soundscapes, and brimming with glorious melodies that fill the senses and hang on tight, everything about PAINTED SHIELD's self-titled album — a genre-bending mix of roots rock, electronica and contemporary folk-pop — feels effortlessly assured.
The release of "Painted Shield" on Loosegroove Records also marks the reboot of the influential indie label that Gossard founded back in 1994 with Regan Hagar (who also played drums in Gossard's longtime band BRAD as well as the seminal glam-punk band MALFUNKSHUN). Throughout the '90s, Loosegroove issued records from acts such as CRITTERS BUGGIN, MALFUNKSHUN, WEAPON OF CHOICE and DEVILHEAD, and significantly Gossard and Hagar signed QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE and released the band's debut album in 1998.
"It felt right that now was the time to start Loosegroove back up," says Hagar. "And once I heard the PAINTED SHIELD record, I knew that it had to be the first album we put out. It's a brilliant album — the performances, the sound, everything about it — and it speaks to our history of releasing music that's empowering while it also fits into our future-forward agenda."
"Painted Shield" track listing:
01. Orphan Ghost02. Time Machine
03. Knife Fight
04. Ten Years From Now
05. On The Level
06. I Am Your Country
07. Evil Winds
08. Painted Shield
09. Raven
Driven by pulse-racing electronic and live drums, bursting with gritty and sometimes psychotic guitars that weave in and out of luxurious keyboard soundscapes, and brimming with glorious melodies that fill the senses and hang on tight, everything about PAINTED SHIELD's self-titled album — a genre-bending mix of roots rock, electronica and contemporary folk-pop — feels effortlessly assured.
Wonder if 10club will take the vinyl pre orders or they will be sold @ paintedshield.com .