As a decade of confusion winds down, one thing has become increasingly clear: David Cronenberg’s Eastern Promises wins the best fight scene award. In the scene, Viggo Mortensen beats the hell out of two assassins armed with large knives, and does so completely in the nude. It’s badass personified.
Also personifying badass is Mortensen’s ex-wife, Exene Cervenka. Cervenka, the ferocious front woman for The Knitters and classic Los Angeles punk band X, has just announced that she will release her first solo album since 1991. Entitled Somewhere gone, it may shock longtime fans aesthetically, but it will be familiar to them in raw spirit.
A pairing of melodic singing and acoustic strums, with lyrics are falling in Cervenka’s usual territory. They tell bleak, sometimes sarcastic stories about hopeless souls wandering city streets. Another familiarity to be found is Cervenka’s distinct voice, which, like Patti Smith before her, can create unfathomable emotional depths in just micro-variations of breath. Somewhere gone maintains the singer’s strengths, while throwing the music for a loop. It’s raw music, but more than that, it’s exceptionally human – just like the best of her work with X and The Knitters.
Released by Bloodshot Records, Somewhere gone can be picked up today at your local music store.
Somewhere gone Tracklist:
01. Trojan Horse
02. Surface of the Sun
03. Somewhere Gone
04. Where Do We Go From Here
05. Why Is It So
06. Insane Thing
07. The Willow Tree
08. Let Go And Be Sweet
09. Walk Me Across The Night
10. Sound Of Coming Down
11. Fevered Paper
12. Fine Familiar
13. Honest Mistake
14. Pinpoints
Exene Cervenka 2009 Tour Dates:
10/24 – Tempe, AZ @ The Sail Inn
11/04 – Sacramento, CA @ Blue Lamp
11/10 – Los Angeles, CA @ Largo
11/11 – Long Beach, CA @ Alex’s Bar
11/12 – Costa Mesa, CA @ Detroit Bar
11/14 – Carlsbad, CA @ Hensley’s Flying Elephant Pub & Grill
12/19 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Wiltern *
12/29 – Sacramento, CA @ Harlow’s *
12/30 – San Francisco, CA @ Slim’s *
12/31 – San Francisco, CA @ Slim’s *
* = w/ X
