Nearly finished with their fourth full-length and first since 1998's Gentleman's Blues, Cracker frontman David Lowery says his band is half-jokingly considering calling the album, "Uncle." According to Lowery, the Kid Rock sideman turned platinum solo artist Uncle Kracker had originally hoped to go by Kracker alone, going so far as to ask Lowery & Co. for permission.

"His label actually contacted us," Lowery says. "The letter said, 'If we call him 'Kracker' with a 'K' are you guys gonna sue us?' We said, 'Yes.' I mean, duh? How stupid have people in the music industry become? I was gonna write the guy a letter and say, 'I really feel for you. We wanted to call ourselves the Rolling Stones, but the Rolling Stones wouldn't let us.'"

Moniker mayhem aside, Cracker have tracked more than twenty songs since beginning on again/off again sessions back in October and are eyeing a fall release. Recording of the new Cracker collection went down at Lowery's own Sound of Music studios in Richmond, Virginia, with the band self-producing. Lowery and guitarist Johnny Hickman recently holed up in Tucson, Arizona to pen a few more songs for possible inclusion.

Musically, Lowery says the album alternates between an almost funky, "War or Prince vibe," courtesy of groove-minded new bassist Brandy Wood, and an alternative sound that's "somewhat more English." Thematically, he says listeners can expect a simian obsession, after he and album contributor Mark Linkous of Sparklehorse brainstormed a way to raise doubts about the band's sanity.

"We were wondering how you would make a record, like a Syd Barrett record, where someone is obviously going crazy," Lowery says. "If you set out to do it on purpose, how would you fake it? Mark had been bitten by a monkey named Happy when he was little so he mentioned that if we mentioned monkeys in every song, people would sort of think, 'David Lowery is kind of losing it.' So, there's like four or five songs that make mention of monkeys."

Cracker will be mounting a brief run of tour dates to road test their new material.

Cracker tour dates:

5/25: Kill Devil Hills, NC, The Pit
5/26: Charlotte, NC, Speedstreet Festival
5/27: Asheville, NC, Asheville Music Zone
6/06: Charlottesville, VA, Starr Hill
6/07: Winston-Salem, NC, Ziggy's
6/08: Fairfax, VA, Celebrate Fairfax
6/09: Portsmouth, VA, Sea Wall Festival
6/21: Indianapolis, Birdy's
6/22: Chicago, Taste Of Randolph
6/23: DeKalb, IL, Otto's

GREG HELLER
(June 7, 2001)