New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Manchester underground music icon Harry Stafford and US-based Brazilian guitarist
Marco Butcher present the new 'Bone Architecture' album, a 12-track effort, made possible thanks to the power of the internet.
Despite the distance, Stafford and Butcher are punk soul brothers from the same muddy musical pond. Connecting during a year of 'lockdown hell' inadvertently led to their collaboration. Marco's tracks were recorded at his Boombox Studio. Harry laid down vocals, piano and other instruments at
Black Lagoon Records. London trumpet supremo
Kevin Davy added jazz tones into the mix.
"There's something about collaborating that is pure magic to me, cause you're not sharing ideas at the same time and you're in the moment. There's something about the not knowing what the other will bring . . the surprise factor. The fact that music is very elastic and not always the way ya listen to it in your mind but something else, something cooler, greater," says
Marco Butcher.
'Bone Architecture' is a superb collection of songs that is raw and, at times, an unforgiving forage into urban punk blues with fuzzed up jazz and garage trash rock. Here, Harry and Marco's styles have clashed magnificently into a powerful record that crosses a multitude of genres but with a dirty blues makeover. The LP includes reworked older material, brand-new compositions and even a dirty blues version of the
Pink Floyd classic 'Arnold Layne'.
The duo have also revealed the video for 'Termite City', featuring Stafford riding through England's northern capital, half scoffing at it while fully loving it nevertheless.
"'Termite City' is a celebration of the dirty city that always keeps standing no matter what people throw at it. Bombs, Riots, Scottish Football fans, Demolition, bad planning. People love this city and will do everything to protect it and despite their cynicism, they just can't help themselves but be proud. Show a little love. A city is a termite tower with thousands of people all working to make their way in it. This termite Tower is Manchester; termites even build cathedral mounds," says Harry Stafford.
Earlier, Stafford and Butcher released 'There's Someone Tryin' To Get In', which has garnered the duo press attention and airplay in several dozen countries.
Best known as founder, guitarist and vocalist of Manchester post-punk gothic rockers Inca Babies, Harry's two most recent solo albums ('Guitar Shaped Hammers' and 'Gothic Urban Blues') reflect a cooler, less frenetic vibe, leaning on piano, trumpets and blues guitar. All this made him the perfect collaborator to set words and lyrics to Marco's sonic backdrop.
From Sao Paulo,
Marco Butcher now lives in Winston Salem, North Carolina. A prolific artist, his acts include The Jam Messengers, Chicken Snake, and The Jesus and The Groupies. Professing the American underground of blues, jazz, rockabilly and screaming punk blues, he has collaborated with Hugo Race and members of Tex and the Horseheads, Pussy Galore, Gumball, The Gories, Gibson Brothers, Jerry Teel, The Oblivians and The Workdogs.
On
September 3, the 'Bone Architecture' LP will be released on CD and will also be available everywhere online, including Spotify and Apple Music. Both formats can be ordered via Bandcamp and the Louder than War shop.
Harry Stafford - vocals, piano, guitar
Marco Butcher - drums, percussion, bass, sax, guitars, vibraphone
Kevin Davy - horns
Written by Harry Stafford and
Marco Butcher
Produced and Mastered by
Marco Butcher at Boombox Studio.
