There were a lot of people taken by surprise when it was announced that Mastodon was going to record a split 7″ with Feist. Well, that proposed single is going to have to settle for the #2 most offbeat collaboration between metal and indie rock in2012, as it’s just been announced that L.A. Guns and Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks will be collaborating on a split 7″ for their “Singles Going Home Alone” vinyl subscription club. “We’ve waited nearly 23 years to tell the world L.A. Guns are Matador Recording Artists, and finally we can say it at parties without lying,” the label says on their blog.
Former Pavement singer Malkmus and his current band will be performing a cover of “Wheels of Fire,” from L.A. Guns’ sophomore 1989 album, Cocked and Loaded, while L.A. Guns will be putting their stamp on the Jicks’ “Gorgeous Georgie.” It’s hard to imagine either band having any sort of tolerance for the other. Or for there being any big fan of both bands, for that matter. I guess that might be why it makes sense.
The only way to get this vinyl, which comes out on January 17, will be by enrolling in the Singles Only Home Alone club, which will get you six singles every other month starting with the Guns/Malkmus one. The next two singles will be by OWN III and The Men, to which we say, who? The singles club will cost $45, which in addition to the singles, also come with a tote bag, a “bonus item,” and a10% discount on Matador’s store. You can sign up here.
Aside from the question of how Matador, L.A. Guns and Malkmus/Jicks came together, the next biggest question would be who’s singing on the L.A. Guns track, as there are currently two versions of L.A. Guns. Phil Lewis, who sang the original version of “Wheels Of Fire,” has his own version of L.A. Guns, while founder Tracii Guns has the more established version. But Guns’ version of the band has had a variety of lineup changes, first with former Love/Hate singer Jizzy Pearl leaving in September, then Rock Star: Supernova finalist Dilana joining for only 71 days. She was just replaced by Blacklist Union vocalist Tony West.
Update: The band’s PR contact has confirmed to Metal Insider that L.A. Guns is NOT featured on this split. Contrary to Matador’s blog posting, the split will feature Tracii Guns covering “Gorgeous Georgie” with soul singer Bronx Style Bob. Though at first this sounds like an even weirder combo, Bronx Style Bob was a founding member of the funk rock supergroup Trulio Disgracias (which over time also featured members of Fishbone, Suicidal Tendencies and the Red Hot Chili Peppers). Plus, the singer also supposedly helped the Deftones get noticed by Maverick Records.
