Bill Callahan may be idly rocking back and forth on his porch these days, gazing half-lidded at the whippoorwill as it flits through the tall trees, but that doesn’t mean he’s checked out of society. No, the artist formerly parenthesized still sits among the common folk from time to time — provided the common folk are accomplished musicians willing to play on his new record. Common folk with no musical ability can die in a lake of fire, for all he cares.
Which brings us to the events at hand. As you may have heard, Callahan is planning a fiery Apocalypse in LP form for April 19 via Drag City, his third full-length under his Christian name and something like his 70th overall (and even so, the man shows no signs of dropping a Down in the Groove any time soon). What you may not have heard is that the album is a scant seven tracks long, one of which is titled “America” with an exclamation mark next to it. Daring! Portentous! Yes, these are the initial rumblings of what could be a grand audio statement by Callahan. The press release hints at a live-in-the-studio feel to the recording, with a set group of performers and few if any cuts or overdubs — though it also mentions somebody involved named “Abacus Coopdawn,” so I don’t really know what to believe. You can peruse the tracklist after this brief message from our sponsor, The Bible.
The first living creature was like a lion, the second creature like an ox, the third creature had a face like a man’s, and the fourth creature looked like an eagle flying. Each one of the four living creatures had six wings and was full of eyes all around and inside. They never rest day or night, saying: “Holy Holy Holy is the Lord God, the All-Powerful, Who was and who is, and who is still to come!” (Revelation 4:7-8)
Apocalypse tracklisting:
01. Drover
02. Baby’s Breath
03. America!
04. Universal Applicant
05. Riding for the Feeling
06. Free’s
07. One Fine Morning
And if you’re dying to see the man in person, slide guitar be damned, pencil the following date into your planner, when Mr. Callahan will be reading from his first novel, Letters to Emma Bowlcut, released last year to modest applause:
04.10.11 - Austin, TX - BookPeople (at 5 PM)
• Bill Callahan: http://www.dragcity.com/artists/bill-callahan
• Drag City: http://www.dragcity.com