Jesus Blood Never Failed Me Yet...

Browsing around the Guardian website a few days ago, I found a contribution from David Bowie in which he lists the things he's listening to on his iPod. Being the good fan of the Thin White Duke that I am, I plugged the playlist into Spotify and had a listen to his selection. All very interesting, but the thing that really grabbed me was the final track - Gavin Bryars' "Jesus' Blood Never Failed Me Yet".

For those of you who don't have Spotify (sorry guys - I don't have any invites), let me talk you through this track. It's basically a recording of a tramp singing a few lines from the song of the title, looped over and over for the duration... which is 25 minutes. He starts out unaccompanied, and by the time we reach the end of the song, he is accompanied by a full orchestra. This accompaniment, of course builds with beautiful subtlety over the course of the piece, so at times we barely notice it building.

The effect is something quite hypnotic - soothing, and yet a little frustrating. And when I gave it enough time, I found it quite meditative. Here's an excerpt from the rationale, from the composer's website:

"... I left the tape copying, with the door open, while I went to have a cup of coffee. When I came back I found the normally lively room unnaturally subdued. People were moving about much more slowly than usual and a few were sitting alone, quietly weeping."

Inevitably, this track has been around for years, without ever entering my field of awareness. But now it has, I can't shake it. Apparently, the the reason it's only (!) 25 minutes long is simply due to the limitations of tape... there's an hour long version that was recorded in the 90s with Tom Waits joining in the singing towards the end! I'm trying to get my hands on a copy...

So Guy in a Skeleton Costume...

...Comes up to a Guy, in a Superman Suit...Runs Through Him with a Broadsword!

So say the Mountain Goats - one of my favourite bands in all of existence. They are heading over from the North Carolina to our wet and windy shores for only 2 gigs in October. And I'm going! I'm gloating here... you may not realise this, if you haven't yet discovered them, but this is a gloat.

But, true to the spirit of the blog, there is a spiritual angle to this. The Mountain Goats' new album is called "The Life of the World to Come." Sound familiar? That's it there, at the end of the Nicene Creed. But not content with leaving it as a subtext, John Darnielle has namede very song on the album simply with a Bible reference. No this is not some hipster gesture - the songs are woven with meanings of the passages.

If you want to know more, then there is an amazing interview with the lead singer on pitchfork. In it, he's incredibly candid about his relationship with Church and faith, saying "Seriously, I get weak in the knees when we go into the Apostles' Creed. I think it's the greatest thing." Well worth a read.

In the meantime, if you haven't yet heard the Mountain Goats, fire up Spotify, or whatever it is you use to listen to music, get hold of Tallahassee, The Sunset Tree or... well, anything by The Mountain Goats and listen to it. Then, when you're finished, listen to it again - it usually takes a little investment to get the most out of their music.

Apparently, this album has leaked onto the net already... I have been well-behaved and chosen not to listen to it. But by its very existence, it may have found its way to the top of my list of scripturally inspired secular albums. Up there with Plague Songs and... well... I guess Slow Train Coming at a push. Anyone got any better suggestions? Comments please!