Sign up for our mailing list Real artists creating records on their own terms

News

Listen to Cass McCombs' New Album 'Tip of the Sphere' Now Via NPR First Listen
Thursday, January 31st, 2019

Listen to Cass McCombs' New Album 'Tip of the Sphere' Now Via NPR First Listen

Cass McCombs will release Tip of the Sphere, his ninth full-length album, on February 8th via ANTI-.

Ahead of its release, the album is now available to stream via NPR Music’s “First Listen.” Additionally, McCombs shares “Absentee,” a track infused with waltzing organ and subtle saxophone. Its accompanying video, which was directed by Lydia Greer and Caryl Kientz and filmed at Dresher Ensemble Rehearsal Studio in Oakland, California, features cinematic shadows created by 3-dimensional handmade objects, cardboard instruments, masks, hand-cut paper sets and shadow puppets that illustrate the story of the Absentee Landlords during the Irish Potato Famine. In “Absentee,” McCombs ruminates on ancestral memories of British, colonialist absentee landlords during the Irish Potato Famine, on longing, hunger and untended places in the heart. Cass plays multiple characters in a play created with cast shadows, masks, puppets and analog visual effects created by Lydia Greer and Caryl Kientz of Facing West Shadow Theatre.

Stream Tip of the Sphere via NPR Music - https://n.pr/2RWfYPD

Watch “Absentee” Video - https://youtu.be/4ujcP9S1Gmc

[youtube id=4ujcP9S1Gmc]

Tip of the Sphere presents an artist trying to make sense of it all through a relentless, ever searching creative process. Throughout, he floats through a suite of songs driven by a journeying mysticism and dark grace. While most of his albums have been pieced together in different studios over an extended period of time, Tip of the Sphere was recorded quickly and with a strong sense of purpose at Figure 8 Studios in Brooklyn. This new approach for McCombs brought his songs a raw immediacy and a special balance of compassion and experimentation with the intent of making a more consistent statement. On “Absentee,” he’s joined by Otto Hauser (drums), Dan Horne (bass), Dan Lead (pedal steel), Frank LoCrasto (hammond organ), and Sam Griffin Owens (saxophone).

As previously announced, the ‘Castillo de la Esfera,’ created by fellow Northern California artist and contemporary Tahiti Pehrson as an homage to Brion Gysin’s dream machine, is featured inside the vinyl edition of Tip of the Sphere. Watch the Tip of the Sphere Instructional Video & Castillo de la Esfera Assembly, narrated by Robyn Hitchock, here.

Watch/Listen/Share:

“Sleeping Volcanoes” Stream – https://youtu.be/aJd_bd9vBFc

“Estrella” Stream – https://youtu.be/sJTR-d8X2jk

“The Great Pixley Train Robbery” Video – https://youtu.be/tJweioHk6t0

Pre-order Tip of the Sphere

https://ffm.to/cm_tipofthesphere

Cass McCombs Tour Dates:

Thu. Feb. 7 – Los Angeles, CA @ Amoeba Records

Mon. March 4 - Washington, DC @ Union Stage *

Tue. March 5 - Philadelphia, PA @ World Cafe Live *

Thu. March 7 - Brooklyn, NY @ Murmrr

Fri. March 8 - New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom *

Sat. March 9 - Boston, MA @ The Sinclair *

  Mon. March 11 – Toronto, ON @ Horsehoe Tavern *

Tue. March 12 – Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Ballroom*

Thu. March  14 – Nashville, TN @ EXIT/IN *

Fri. March 15 - Indianapolis, IN @ HiFi *

Sat. March 16 - Chicago, IL @ Lincoln Hall *

Sun. March 17 – Milwaukee, WI @ The BackRoom at Collectivo *

Mon. March 18 - St. Paul, MN @ Turf Club *

Wed. March 20 - Boulder, CO @ Fox Theatre *

Sat. March 23 - Salt Lake City, UT @ The State Room *

Mon. March 25  - Vancouver, BC @ St. James *

Tue. March 26 - Seattle, WA @ Chop Suey *

Wed. March 27 - Portland, OR @ Aladdin Theater *

Fri. March 29 – Sacramento, CA @ Harlow’s *

Sat. March 30 - Los Angeles, CA @ The Fonda Theatre *

Sun. March 31 – Las Vegas, NV@ The Beauty Bar*

Tue. April 2 - Santa Barbara, CA @ SOHo *

Thu. April 4 – Santa Cruz, CA @ Moe’s Alley *

Fri. April 5 - San Francisco, CA @ The Fillmore *

Thu. April 25 – Marfa, TX@ Marfa Myths

Sat. May 25 – Madrid, SP @ Tomavistas Festival

Tue. May 28 – Prague, CZ @ MeetFactory

Wed. May 29 – Berlin, DE @ Frannz-Club

Thur. May 30 – Copenhagen, DK @ Alice

Fri. May 31 – Hamburg, DE @ Nochtspeicher

Sat. June 1 – Gent, BE @ DOK Box

Mon. June 3 – Amsterdam, NE @ Paradiso Nord

Tue. June 4 – Paris, FR @ La Maroquinerie

Thur. June 6 – London, UK @ EartH

Fri. June 7 – Helsinki, FI @ Sideways Festival

Fri. Aug. 30 – Mon. Sep. 2 – Larmer Tree Gardens, UK @ End of the Road Festival

Browse by Artist

2121All Artists 100Tom Waits 74Mavis Staples 59Neko Case 51Lost In The Trees 50Sean Rowe 48Dr. Dog 45The Milk Carton Kids
41Jolie Holland 40Bettye LaVette 37Man Man 36Son Little 35Tinariwen 33Tim Fite 33DeVotchKa 31Islands 31Grinderman 29Glen Hansard 28Saintseneca 27Galactic 27Delicate Steve 27Wilco 26Andy Shauf 25The Drums 24Michael Franti and Spe... 24Xenia Rubinos 22William Elliott Whitmo... 22Doe Paoro 22Bob Mould 21Nick Cave & The Bad Se... 21The Frames 20Christopher Paul Stell... 20Joe Henry 19Cass McCombs 19Yves Jarvis 19Sage Francis 19Booker T. Jones 18Calexico 18Gary V 18Deafheaven 17Yann Tiersen 17John K. Samson 16Jason Lytle 16The Antlers 16Ramblin Jack Elliott 16Danny Elfman 14Madi Diaz 14Half Waif 14Jeremy Ivey 14Daniel Lanois 13The Dream Syndicate 13Billy Bragg 12Girlpool 12Leyla McCalla 12Combo Chimbita 12Peter Silberman 12Xavier Rudd 12Lido Pimienta 11Curtis Harding 11Purr 11Roky Erickson 11The Weakerthans 11Lyrics Born 11Jade Jackson 11Japandroids 11Ryan Pollie 11Mose Allison 11Glitterer 11Christian Lee Hutson 11Rain Machine 10Alfa Mist 10Moor Mother 10So Much Light 10High Pulp 10The Melodic 10Darrin Bradbury 10The Swell Season 9N.A.S.A. 9Wynonna 9Josiah Johnson 9M. Ward 9Cameron Avery 9Hey, King! 9Marianne Faithfull 8Katy Kirby 8Solillaquists of Sound 8Cadence Weapon 8James Brandon Lewis 8Greg Graffin 8Rafiq Bhatia 8The Coup 8Slow Pulp 8Kate Davis 7Beth Orton 7Kelly Hogan 7Title Fight 7Eddie Izzard 7Ben Harper 7Dead Man's Bones 7Alec Ounsworth 7Ben Harper and Charlie... 7Richard Reed Parry 7Elliott Smith 6MJ Lenderman 6Waxahatchee 6Foxwarren 6Busdriver 6Deradoorian 6Bonny Doon 6A Girl Called Eddy 6Broken Twin 6Kate Bush 6Os Mutantes 5Ezra Furman 5Jasmyn 5The Field 5sunking 5Art Moore 5Kristine Leschper 5Scott McMicken and THE... 5The Tallest Man On Ear... 5One Day As A Lion 5Beat Connection 5Keaton Henson 5Sam Akpro 4Jackson+Sellers 4Pops Staples 4Ersi Arvizu 4The Good Ones 4Marketa Irglova 4Sparklehorse 3Marc Ribot 3Mothers 3Mavis Staples & Levon... 3Petra Haden 3Danny Cohen 3Plains 3Walter Wolfman Washing... 3Sierra Leones Refugee... 2Jeff Tweedy 2ANTI- Records 2Various Artists: RANGO 2Fleet Foxes 1Solomon Burke 1case/lang/veirs 1Merle Haggard 1Youth Group 1Blackalicious 1Taylor Vick 1The Beths 1Lightman Jarvis Ecstat... 1Simian Mobile Disco 1Porter Wagoner 1Rogue's Gallery 1Antibalas 1Various Artists: ROGUE... 1Kronos Quartet with Br... 1Joe Strummer And The M... 1Tricky 1The Locust
See Full List+