Freak-jazz duo Talibam! and multi-instrumentalist Sam Kulik (Nervous Cabaret) have joined forces to create a “new underwater thriller fairytale” album Discover AtlantASS through UK publishers Belly Kids. The album consists of 19 tracks and an accompanying 25-page comic (drawn by London artist James Clapham) that illustrates this epic psychedelic opera, due out February 25 (advance order here).
According to the press release, Discover AtlantASS tells the elaborate story of a young teenager named Franklin, who gets abducted to the undersea world of Atlantis by a laid-back “jazz fish” revolutionary named Stinge. Together, they attempt to combat a disastrous oil spill that has nearly eradicated the underwater community of poets, musicians, artists, and fornicators. The story is said to be based on strange experiences the trio shared on a 2008 tour of Finland and recent geopolitical events, such as the 2010 BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and the controversy surrounding the “Ground Zero Mosque” in Manhattan.
Belly Kids informs us that the overall aesthetic of the opera is “like a radio play for the post-television era” and makes ample use of Talibam!’s signature genre-riddled style, featuring synthesizers, trombones, voices, guitars, banjos, and homespun sound effects in an Ethiopian-jazz-meets-Balkan-folk rhythmic style.
Talibam! and Sam Kulik will be touring Europe in support of the release from February 27 - March 25. The trio will perform tracks from the album in full costume, with puppets and video accompaniment. After returning to New York, they will showcase the work in an eight-night festival at St. Mark’s Church, presented by Incubator Arts Project. The CD and comic book will be sold at all performances this year and will be available from retailers in New York, London, and wider Europe.
Tourdates:
02.28.12 - Italy - TBA
02.29.12 - Italy - TBA
03.01.12 - Torino, Italy - TBA
03.02.12 - TBA
03.03.12 - Straubing, Germany - Raven
03.04.12 - Munich, Germany - TBA
03.05.12 - Germany -TBA
03.06.12 - Hannover, Germany - Cafe Glocksee
03.08.12 - Bremen, Germany - Lagerhalle
03.09.12 - Germany/Netherlands - TBA
03.10.12 - Germany/Netherlands - TBA
03.11.12 - Kiel, Germany - TBA
03.12.12 - Berlin, Germany - Schokoladen
03.12.12 - Cologne, Germany - TBA
03.14.12 - Antwerp, Belgium - TRIX
03.16.12 - Ebensee, Austria - Kino Ebensee
03.17.12 - Basel, Switzerland - Hirscheneck
03.18.12 - Besançon, France - La-cour-des-miracles
03.12.12 - Paris, France - TBA
03.20.12 - Tours, France - Le Temps Machine
03.21.12 - UK - TBA
03.22.12 - London, UK - Cafe OTO
03.23.12 - Dublin, Ireland - Whelan’s
03.24.12 - Cork, Ireland - Triskel Arts Center
03.25.12 - Dublin, Ireland - Whelan’s
• Talibam!: http://talibam.bandcamp.com
• Sam Kulik: http://www.myspace.com/samkulik
• Belly Kids: http://www.bellykids.co.uk
