Mike Patton from Faith No More and Mondo Cane partnered with the renowned French composer Jean-Claude Vannier, best known for his work with Serge Gainsbourg to release Corpse Flower, an album featuring 12 songs including “On Top Of The World.”
“Jean-Claude and I met while working together on a Gainsbourg retrospective at the Hollywood Bowl in 2011,” explains Patton. “We bonded immediately. I could see he had a dedication and attention to detail that was relentless so the respect I had for him in my mind was magnified in person. We spoke loosely about working together in the future… and it took some time, but after a few years I contacted him and we began to ignite some sparks.”
“I would send Mike rough versions of the songs to get his thoughts, then I’d wait impatiently, staring at the clock, until I received his response,” offers Vannier about the process the duo used to create Corpse Flower. “He made my music awaken with his unique perspective and interpretations of my songs. A formidable vocalist, with a sense of humor, Mike and I created a strong, beautiful and sincere collection of music, as well as a friendship.”
The recording of Corpse Flower involved a variety of musicians in both Los Angeles and Paris. The Los Angeles team included Smokey Hormel, Justin Meldal-Johnson and James Gadson. On the Paris side, players included Denys Lable, Bernard Paganotti, Daniel Ciampolini, Didier Malherbe, Léonard Le Cloarec and the Bécon Palace String Ensemble. The lyrics of the song “Ballad C.3.3” find inspiration from Oscar Wilde’s “The Ballad Reading Gaol” poem which was first publish under the name C.3.3.
Fans can pre-order Corpse Flower which will include a special embossed version featuring Kenro Izu’s cover photo. The album will be available on colored vinyl in addition to a CD digipak and digitally.
Corpse Flower Track List
- Ballad C.3.3.
- Camion
- Chansons D’Amour
- Cold Sun Warm Beer
- Browning
- Ghost
- Corpse Flower
- Insolubles
- On Top Of The World
- A Schoolgirl’s Day
- Pink and Bleue
- Yard Bull
Photo credit: Raymond Flotat
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