John Carpenter, Cody Carpenter and Daniel Davies have announced their forthcoming album Lost Themes IV: Noir is set for release on May 3rd via Sacred Bones Records.
In conjunction with the announcement, they shared a video for the album’s first single, “My Name Is Death”, a miniature noir film directed by Ambar Navarro, starring Natalie Mering (Weyes Blood), Staz Lindes (The Paranoyds) and Misha Lindes (SadGirl). “Noir is a uniquely American genre born in post-war cinema,” states Carpenter. “We grew up loving Noir and were influenced by it for this new album. The video celebrates this style and our new song, My Name is Death.” The scene-setting single marks new territory for Carpenter and his cohorts, propelled by a driving post-punk bassline that is embellished by washes of atmospheric synth, pulsing drum machine, and, at the song’s climax, a smoldering guitar solo.
This week, the group also shared the second single, “He Walks By Night”, from their forthcoming. In addition to streaming release on all DSPs, the trio have unveiled a visualizer by acclaimed animator and longtime collaborator Boneface. The freakish and high contrast visuals underscore the noirish atmosphere of the instrumental that gives a sense of impending danger through the menacing guitar riff that slices through the core of the song’s spectral electronic pulse.
It’s been a decade since John Carpenter recorded the material that became the initial Lost Themes, his debut album of non-film music and the opening salvo in one of Hollywood’s great second acts. Those vibrant, synth-driven songs, made in collaboration with his son Cody Carpenter and godson Daniel Davies, kickstarted a musical renaissance for the pioneering composer and director.
Since that first Lost Themes, John has referred to these compositions as “soundtracks for the movies in your mind.” For the fourth installment in the series, those movies are noirs. Like the film genre they were influenced by, what makes these songs “noirish” is sometimes slippery and hard to define, and not merely reducible to a collection of tropes. The scores for the great American noir pictures were largely orchestral, while the Carpenters and Davies work off a sturdy synth-and-guitar backbone. The noir quality, then, should be something you understand instinctively when you hear it.
Over the years, John, Cody, and Daniel have released close to a dozen musical projects, including a growing library of studio albums and the scores for David Gordon Green’s trilogy of Halloween reboots.
Lost Themes IV: Noir Track List
- My Name is Death
- Machine Fear
- Last Rites
- The Burning Door
- He Walks By Night
- Beyond The Gallows
- Kiss The Blood Off My Fingers
- Guillotine
- The Demon’s Shadow
- Shadows Have A Thousand Eyes
Lost Themes IV: Noir Physical Variants
- Sacred Bones Exclusive Red on Clear Splatter vinyl w/ Screen Printed 7” bonus track “Black Cathedral”, a Silver Foil Stamped Jacket and poster.
- Sacred Bones Society Exclusive on Black and White Splatter on Clear w/ Screen Printed 7” bonus track “Black Cathedral”, a Silver Foil Stamped Jacket and poster.
- All retail Transparent Red, with a Gold Foil Stamped Jacket and poster.
- Indie Exclusive Tan and Black Marble, w/ Screen Printed 7” bonus track “Black Cathedral”, a Gold Foil Stamped Jacket and poster.
- Rough Trade Exclusive Oxblood Red and Black Splatter, w/ Screen Printed 7” bonus track “Black Cathedral”, a Gold Foil Stamped Jacket and poster.
- Shout Exclusive Black and Clear cloudy, w/ Screen Printed 7” bonus track “Black Cathedral”, a Gold Foil Stamped Jacket and poster.
- Black LP, with a Gold Foil Stamped Jacket and poster.
- CD & Tape
Click here to Pre-Order / Pre-Save Lost Themes IV: Noir.
