Amen Dunes is back! It’s been six years since Damon McMahon released his very excellent fifth album Freedom, and today, he’s announced its long-awaited follow-up — Death Jokes is arriving May 10 on Sub Pop, and it’s being previewed by lead single “Purple Land.”
“Purple Land” is a synth-driven piece of spritely, gothic pop music, and it’s definitely new territory for McMahon after the more traditional rock, folk and blues sounds of Freedom.
According to a press release, you can expect more of this sound from Death Jokes — the album is inspired by “the electronic music [McMahon] had grown up with at raves and clubs, but never imagined himself able to make,” with much of it written at the piano. It's described as “a scathing electronic essay on America’s culture of violence, dominance, and destructive individualism.”
Death Jokes features contributions from jazz bassist Sam Wilkes, producers Christoffer Berg and Kwake Bass, and Panoram and Money Mark. The record features heavy sample use, which McMachon pulled from YouTube. The collage of samples includes “an interview with J Dilla, recordings from Type O Negative and Coil, a lyre performance of the oldest written song in human history, protest chants, a grunting powerlifter, and bits of stand-up from Lenny Bruce, Richard Pryor, and others.” McMahon describes the sample use as “thought provocation and irritant.”
Listen to “Purple Land” and see the Death Jokes tracklist below.
Death Jokes:
1. Death Jokes
2. Ian
3. Joyrider
4. What I Want
5. Rugby Child
6. Boys
7. Exodus
8. Predator
9. Solo Tape
10. Purple Land
11. I Don’t Mind
12. Mary Anne
13. Round the World
14. Poor Cops