{"product_id":"califone-roots-crowns-ice-age-blue-vinyl","title":"Califone - Roots \u0026 Crowns (Ice Age Blue Vinyl)","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eRoots \u0026amp; Crowns\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e. “Uniting where you come from – your roots -- with what you strive to be or what you reinvent yourself to become -- crowns,” explains Califone’s Tim Rutili. “At the bottom of these songs are the memories and images you sift through in the process.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCalifone’s earliest roots lie in the band \u003cstrong\u003eRed Red Meat\u003c\/strong\u003e, from whence came Califone’s founding members Tim Rutili and \u003cstrong\u003eBen Massarella\u003c\/strong\u003e and its longtime producer \u003cstrong\u003eBrian Deck\u003c\/strong\u003e. The band’s first release was a self-titled EP on \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eFlydaddy\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e in 1998, followed later by the full-length debut, \u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRoomsound\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e, in 2001 (recently re-issued on Thrill Jockey) and eventually the band’s Thrill Jockey debut, \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eQuicksand\/Cradlesnakes\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e in 2003. After touring for the release of \u003cem\u003eRoomsound\u003c\/em\u003e, Califone had little time off to take in the impact of the music they were creating. In three years, they recorded four albums (two instrumental, two song-based including \u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eHeron King Blues\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e) and toured heavily in between with \u003cstrong\u003eWilco\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003eModest Mouse\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003eThe Sea and Cake\u003c\/strong\u003e and others. They performed at \u003cstrong\u003eAll Tomorrow’s Parties\u003c\/strong\u003e curated by \u003cstrong\u003eSonic Youth\u003c\/strong\u003e and Rutili contributed to \u003cstrong\u003eIsaac Brock’s Ugly Casanova\u003c\/strong\u003e project and \u003cstrong\u003eMichael Krassner’s Boxhead Ensemble\u003c\/strong\u003e with \u003cstrong\u003eFred Lonberg-Holm\u003c\/strong\u003e and members of \u003cstrong\u003eSmog\u003c\/strong\u003e and \u003cstrong\u003eDirty Three\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAfter the tour for \u003cem\u003eHeron King Blues\u003c\/em\u003e in 2004, Califone finally took a breath. Rutili moved to LA to work on soundtracks, including Rank, a documentary about professional bull-riders for IFC (again working with Krassner) and a feature horror film called \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Lost\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e. \u003cstrong\u003eJim Becker\u003c\/strong\u003e did the soundtrack for \u003cstrong\u003eJim Finn’s\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eInterkosmos\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e and the band worked together on \u003cstrong\u003eBrent Green’s \u003cem\u003eHadacol Christmas\u003c\/em\u003e \u003c\/strong\u003eand \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003ePaulina Hollers\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e. Rutili produced the \u003cstrong\u003eFreakwater\u003c\/strong\u003e album \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eThinking of You\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e; all four members of Califone guested, and percussionist \u003cstrong\u003eJoe Adamik\u003c\/strong\u003e even went on the road as Freakwater’s drummer. Jim Becker toured with the Dirty Three, and Ben Massarella worked on a forthcoming disc from \u003cstrong\u003eOrso\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“Before we started to work on the new the record, I was listening to ‘Orchids’ by \u003cstrong\u003ePsychic TV\u003c\/strong\u003e on repeat,” says Rutili. “This song made me want to start writing songs again.” Califone offers a sparse and beautiful cover of “Orchids” on \u003cem\u003eRoots \u0026amp; Crowns\u003c\/em\u003e. The line from the song, ‘In the morning after the night\/ I fall in love with the light,’ became a theme for the new album..\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eImagery of rebirth comes up often on \u003cem\u003eRoots \u0026amp; Crowns\u003c\/em\u003e. On “3 Legged Animals,” Rutili sings, “3 legged animals shut their sweet eyes\/ lick your scars and grow wings,” and later, “leave your memories, we’re almost new.” He explains, “that song started out as a song called ‘Dreamless’ for the end credits of \u003cem\u003eThe Lost\u003c\/em\u003e. The last scene in the film is a total bloodbath; after that it seemed like the film could use a little sweetness, a bit of salvation for these dark, misfit characters after a period of intense violence. We re-recorded it with Califone and took a more detailed approach, both lyrically and instrumentally. Where the first version felt more about balancing the mood of the film, the one from the album feels more about hope and joy, rebirth, survival and self-acceptance.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCalifone started recording \u003cem\u003eRoots \u0026amp; Crowns\u003c\/em\u003e in October 2005 and worked on it in chunks at 4Deuces Studio in Chicago with Brian Deck, in Long Beach and Phoenix with Michael Krassner, and at home in Los Angeles and Chicago until May 2006. “Some of these songs started as hummed melodies into my cell phone recorder while I was driving. Others were triggered by overheard conversations, loops brought in from home, field recordings or sounds we made in the studio before the tape was rolling,” says Rutili. For instance “Spider’s House” is built on the sound of a piano with duct tape and paper clips all over its wires. “We took our time to shape and manipulate a more experimental collage of sounds into solid melodies and more concise song structures.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe time away and each member’s individual work naturally brought new elements into the sound of Califone’s music. Both Rutili’s and Becker’s soundtrack work are more atmospheric, however the challenge of enhancing a scene of film without cluttering it or overwhelming it informed their approach to the new recording. Similarly, the burglary of Califone’s equipment during the band’s last tour (including guitars, banjo, a 1917 violin, bells and more) altered the sound as they had to find new gear on a tight budget. The instruments are new partners, new sounds that forced them to stretch in new directions.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLimitations, obstructions and darkness, and the new possibilities they illuminate; roots and crowns. “In that way”, says Rutili, “this album is a conscious and resolved thing. It fully realizes ideas we touched on in the past and where we come from as a band, and takes us into our next phase of life.”\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Thrill Jockey","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45797127520514,"sku":null,"price":29.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0352\/6174\/3148\/files\/0028439125_10.jpg?v=1737405530","url":"https:\/\/goodrecordstogo.com\/products\/califone-roots-crowns-ice-age-blue-vinyl","provider":"Good Records To Go","version":"1.0","type":"link"}