2
Apr/14

VIDEO OF THE DAY: “MARS” BY JON LANGFORD

2
Apr/14

“The subtext of the album is maybe the things our civilization thinks of as fixed and immovable might actually be redundant/obsolete/discredited and it’s up to us to question and find new rocks to be washed up on,” musician and painter Jon Langford says about his latest release, Here Be Monsters (In De Goot, April 1). Through four decades, the Welsh-born, Chicago-based Langford has been questioning and finding new rocks in such bands as the Three Johns, the Waco Brothers, the Pine Valley Cosmonauts, Wee Hairy Beasties, and, primarily, the Mekons, one of the greatest bands in the history of the planet. On April 4, Langford will be playing the Bell House in support of Here Be Monsters, joined by his touring band, Skull Orchard, which first recorded with him back in 1998. (The current lineup features Jim Elkington on guitar and keyboards, Alan Doughty on bass, and Joe Camarillo on drums.) “When they didn’t know quite what was there, they put ‘Here Be Monsters,’” Langford says of the album’s title, referring to cartographers of long ago. “When I think of where my career has gone over the last thirty-five years, it’s usually in that area — off the map.” Langford continues going off the map on the new disc, a collection that shows off his unique melding of alt-country folk and punk rock, taking on governmental profiteering in the sea shanty “What Did You Do in the War?,” political secrets in “Weightless,” stealth warfare in “Drone Operator,” religion in “Don’t Believe,” and a future that ranges from bleak in “Summer Stars” to somewhat more hopeful in “Sugar on Your Tongue.” And oh, that melody on “Mars.” (You can download “Mars” and a trio of album demos here.) There’s also a visual component to the record, as Langford has created an individual piece of art for each song. And as great a songwriter as he is, he’s a sensational live performer as well, in all his incarnations, where just about anything can happen. (In addition, Langford will be releasing the seven-inch single “Days & Nights” b/w “Here’s What We Have” as a Record Store Day exclusive on April 19.)