photo by Patti Perret

¿Which Side Are You On?
COMPLETE TRACK LIST
1: Life Boat
2: Unworry
3: ¿Which Side Are You On?
4: Splinter
5: Promiscuity
6: Albacore
7: J
8: If Yr Not
9: Hearse
10: Mariachi
11: Amendment
12: Zoo

Singer/songwriter/guitarist Ani DiFranco has announced the upcoming release of her eagerly awaited new album. ¿Which Side Are You On? arrives via the Grammy-winning artist’s own Righteous Babe Records on January 17, 2012. ¿Which Side Are You On? marks DiFranco’s first studio album in more than three years. The collection features 11 new songs alongside a radically reworked rendition of the classic title song, famously popularized by the one and only Pete Seeger nearly five decades ago, but no less relevant today. Backing DiFranco is a remarkably diverse line-up of stellar musicians, including members of her own crack touring band as well as such guest players as Ivan and Cyril Neville (of New Orleans; first family of funk and R&B, The Neville Brothers), avant-saxophonist Skerik (Pearl Jam, R.E.M., Bonnie Raitt, The Meters), acclaimed singer/songwriter(and Righteous Babe recording artist) Anaïs Mitchell, guitarist Adam Levy (Norah Jones, Tracy Chapman, Amos Lee), and a host of New Orleans-based horn players known for their work in such outfits as Galactic, Bonerama, and The Rebirth Brass Band.

Flash forward about 8 years later, I’m still not cool, but at least my phone rings and I pick it up: It’s Count. Will I come over for wine, and hang out with his new client Tom? We’re in the studio, maybe we’ll play some of it for you.

Luce
“Corner of the World” (mp3)
from “Corner of the World”
(Luce)

within 5 minutes of my arrival, it all made sense.

Oh Emm Gee, you’re Tom LUCE! I’m Corey from W.A.R
….and within seconds our relationship re established itself. Too good to be pre written. No deity could think it up. It’s poetry.

And as we re-connected,  I learned of the blockades that LUCE endured before going into the studio with Count.

Tom’s house burnt down, but it didn’t throw him or the band off course – he went on tour the following week anyway. And then the band’s gear was stolen on the road. WHAT? yeah. everything was stolen.

You must have chaos within you to give birth to a dancing star. -Nietzsche

Tom wrote a blogpost about the band’s experiences which lead them to their new release Corner Of The World. After all this time the reward of finding an artist i respect cannot help but remain an artist, forever evolving and creating as he is meant to be, making music as is meant to be – well, it surpasses the pleasure any financial success. Kudos, Tom Luce.

On the lighter and A W E S O M E side, the band has been shooting video on the road and they are f*ing fantastic, short, amusing. In addition the CD Release party for Corner Of The World is July 11, 2009 at Great American Hall in San Francisco (get tickets)