“Brackett, WI”
from the compilation Dark Was the Night
2009
Some of the biggest names in independent music have banded together to record exclusive songs for Dark Was the Night, a double-disc album whose proceeds will benefit the Red Hot organization’s work with AIDS research.
In the works since 2006, the project is due February 17 from Beggars Banquet and as curated by The National’s Aaron and Bryce Dessner. The lineup includes Spoon, Arcade Fire, Yo La Tengo, the New Pornographers, Bon Iver, Feist, Cat Power, My Morning Jacket, and Iron & Wine, among many others.
“I’ve been listening to some of these bands since I was in high school. Now they’re peers of ours but sometimes you can’t even believe that — these are people I’ve idolized and respected,” Aaron Dessner tells Billboard.com.
The National contributed the song “So Far Around the Bend,” which Dessner says the band “didn’t feel would make sense” on one of its own albums. “It has this pretty crazy orchestral arrangement; it’s a little bit of a throwback song.”
Dark Was the Night is also packed with intriguing collaborations, including Feist with Ben Gibbard and Grizzly Bear, Dirty Projectors with David Byrne, The Books with Jose Gonzalez, Aaron Dessner with Bon Iver, and Bryce Dessner with Antony.
The latter is a cover of the early Dylan song “I Was Younger When I Left Home,” which the artists did in one take. In the case of the Dessner/Bon Iver pairing, Aaron Dessner sent Bon Iver‘s Justin Vernon a piano instrumental, dubbed “Big Red Machine” in tribute to his Cincinnati hometown, in the hopes he’d “feel like collaborating. Then I was in Finland I got an email from him with a fully written song. It’s incredible he could trace the music in the way that he did.”
Those kinds of happy accidents are all over Dark Was the Night, according to Dessner. “Bryce and I found ourselves in the midst of all of our peers and in a position to invite them to participate in this,” he says. “Almost everybody was willing to donate their time and their music.”
The Dessners are hoping to film some of the artists performing their songs to give Dark Was the Night an online presence, and they are planning to stage some “unique performances in New York and other countries” in the spring with as many of the contributors as possible.
Here is the track list for Dark Was the Night:
Disc One
1. “Knotty Pine” – Dirty Projectors + David Byrne
2. “Cello Song” – The Books featuring Jose Gonzalez
3. “Train Song” – Feist and Ben Gibbard
4. “Brackett, WI” – Bon Iver
5. “Deep Blue Sea” – Grizzly Bear
6. “So Far Around the Bend” – The National
7. “Tightrope” – Yeasayer
8. “Feeling Good” – My Brightest Diamond
9. “Dark Was the Night” – Kronos Quartet
10. “I Was Young When I Left Home” – Antony with Bryce Dessner
11. “Big Red Machine” – Justin Vernon + Aaron Dessner
12. “Sleepless” – The Decemberists
13. “Stolen Houses (Die)” – Iron & Wine
14. “Service Bell” – Grizzly Bear + Feist
15. “You Are the Blood” – Sufjan Stevens
Disc Two
1. “Well-Alright” – Spoon
2. “Lenin” – Arcade Fire
3. “Mimizan” – Beirut
4. “El Caporal” – My Morning Jacket
5. “Inspiration Information” – Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings
6. “With a Girl Like You” – Dave Sitek
7. “Blood Pt. 2” – Buck 65 Remix (featuring Sufjan Stevens and Serengeti)
8. “Hey, Snow White” – The New Pornographers
9. “Gentle Hour” – Yo La Tengo
10. “Amazing Grace” – Cat Power
11. “Happiness” – Riceboy Sleeps
12. “Another Saturday” – Stuart Murdoch
13. “The Giant of Illinois” – Andrew Bird
14. “Lua” – Conor Oberst with Gillian Welch
15. “When the Road Runs Out” – Blonde Redhead & Devastations
16. “Love vs. Porn” – Kevin Drew
Saw the link on Stereogum. Thanks.
WEB SHERIFF
Protecting Your Rights on the Internet
Tel 44-(0)208-323 8013
Fax 44-(0)208 323 8080
websheriff@websheriff.com
http://www.websheriff.com
Hi JM,
On behalf of 4AD, we would kindly ask you not to post copies of – or individual tracks from – “Dark Was The Night”, the multi-artist charity album benefitting the Red Hot Organization (release dates February 16th UK and 17th US).
We do appreciate that you are fans of / are promoting the many artists who have generously donated their time and their songs to this project, but Red Hot, 4AD and all of the artists concerned would greatly appreciate your co-operation in removing your links to the files in question (aside, of course, from linking to the series of one-day-only streams on the official, “Dark Was The Night” MySpace page at http://www.myspace.com/darkwasthenight and for the actual day of each preview stream only).
For your info, all proceeds / royalties are going to the Red Hot Organization, an AIDS and HIV charitable organization that raises money and awareness for projects and research. Naturally, everyone involved in this project is seeking to maximize sales and your posting music files can potentially have a negative impact on that goal.
Many thanks for respecting the wishes of Red Hot, 4AD and the thirty plus artists involved.
If you want further, good quality previews, check-out http://www.DarkWasTheNight.com to pre-order the album, download a free promotional MP3 called “Knotty Pine” by David Byrne and Dirty Projectors and to grab a streaming widget. You’ll also find more information on Red Hot’s 20 years of charitable work.
Thanks Again,
WEB SHERIFF
Apparently the “Web Sheriff” is even cracking down on audio streams now. There was no download link here.
If they think this one post will keep people from buying the album and supporting this great cause, they are mistaken. In fact, I have heard feedback from several visitors that they are now likely to buy the album because they heard this song.
Best,
Jonk
i haven’t bought a music album for a while now, but i’m definitely buying this one. not only because of Bon Iver…c’mon this lineup is just crazy! hope it doesn’t take to much time to get to Portugal 🙂
Man, websheriff is such a dick. he’s just promoting the album. It helps to hear what you’re going to buy beforehand. Not everyone gets to spend every hour of the day trolling blogs to hear the streams.
Thanks for hosting the tracks, Jonk.