Anyone who's been lucky enough to see U.S. Girls perform live knows what a show Meg Remy and co. put on — in any of their many forms, they're consistently one of the best live bands around, so lucky for us that they've decided to capture the experience on record.
Today sees U.S. Girls surprise-release Lives, a new 15-song live album that captures the last five years of performances on a variety of stages. Out now on Royal Mountain, the album is presented in non-chronological order and represents "three distinct versions of the U.S. Girls live band," including the jam-oriented Poem band, the stacked female vocals of the Heavy Light band and the current, synthesized Bless This Mess band.
Featuring members of the Badge Époque Ensemble and the Cosmic Range along with the likes of Geordie Gordon, Dorothea Paas and Carlyn Bezic, Lives was inspired by live albums like Alive! by Kiss, Cannonball Adderley's Mercy, Mercy Mercy! Live at "The Club" and Frampton Comes Alive! — the album presents recordings from a variety of performances as a single concert, produced by Remy's husband and long-time musical collaborator, Maximilian Turnbull.
In a statement about Lives, Remy said:
I cannot fathom all the rehearsals hobbled through, miles travelled fast and crawling, enough coffee cups to build a bridge (from where to where?), dismantled and rebuilt floors & stages, feedback fever and ringing ears, blind hangovers, laughter til peeing pants and spitting out whatever is in the mouth, professional-level passive aggressive bickering, singing with no voice left, questioning what to wear as a way of holding the self together. All this happening in the background of forever war…
Sometimes I can't remember much before starting bands, writing songs, recording music, making artifacts, performing, traveling to perform. It's a dreamy way to approach life but it's a raw way to live.
Lives:
1. CIUT Spot
2. M.A.H. (Live)
3. Pearly Gates (Live)
4. Navy & Cream / Window Shades (Live)
5. Rosebud (Live)
6. Pump (Live)
7. Incidental Boogie (Live)
8. Sororal Feelings (Live)
9. 4 American Dollars (Live)
10. IOU (Live)
11. Bless This Mess (Live)
12. Red Ford Radio (Live)
13. 28 Days (Live)
14. Time (Live)
Today sees U.S. Girls surprise-release Lives, a new 15-song live album that captures the last five years of performances on a variety of stages. Out now on Royal Mountain, the album is presented in non-chronological order and represents "three distinct versions of the U.S. Girls live band," including the jam-oriented Poem band, the stacked female vocals of the Heavy Light band and the current, synthesized Bless This Mess band.
Featuring members of the Badge Époque Ensemble and the Cosmic Range along with the likes of Geordie Gordon, Dorothea Paas and Carlyn Bezic, Lives was inspired by live albums like Alive! by Kiss, Cannonball Adderley's Mercy, Mercy Mercy! Live at "The Club" and Frampton Comes Alive! — the album presents recordings from a variety of performances as a single concert, produced by Remy's husband and long-time musical collaborator, Maximilian Turnbull.
In a statement about Lives, Remy said:
I cannot fathom all the rehearsals hobbled through, miles travelled fast and crawling, enough coffee cups to build a bridge (from where to where?), dismantled and rebuilt floors & stages, feedback fever and ringing ears, blind hangovers, laughter til peeing pants and spitting out whatever is in the mouth, professional-level passive aggressive bickering, singing with no voice left, questioning what to wear as a way of holding the self together. All this happening in the background of forever war…
Sometimes I can't remember much before starting bands, writing songs, recording music, making artifacts, performing, traveling to perform. It's a dreamy way to approach life but it's a raw way to live.
Lives:
1. CIUT Spot
2. M.A.H. (Live)
3. Pearly Gates (Live)
4. Navy & Cream / Window Shades (Live)
5. Rosebud (Live)
6. Pump (Live)
7. Incidental Boogie (Live)
8. Sororal Feelings (Live)
9. 4 American Dollars (Live)
10. IOU (Live)
11. Bless This Mess (Live)
12. Red Ford Radio (Live)
13. 28 Days (Live)
14. Time (Live)