In the Studio: Wilco, Band of Horses, Liz Phair

Wilco have already recorded demos for a new album and are heading into their Chicago studio, the Loft, this month to start rerecording and fleshing them out. "Sonically it's going to be a much wilder, much more unexpected record," says guitarist Nels Cline. "There's going to be too much to choose from. Right now it's an embarrassment of riches, for sure."

Later this month, Band of Horses will begin work on their third album at Alabama's famed Muscle Shoals Sound Studio. "I've read about that place and heard the records out of there for my whole life," says singer Ben Bridwell, who notes that he's already written 27 songs. "We can't wait to get in there and tap some of its mojo."

Liz Phair is working on a new record — due in 2009 — with several producers including Jeff Trott (Sheryl Crow) and John Alagia (Dave Matthews).

[From Issue 1064 — October 30, 2008]

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• Wilco Premiere New Song at Lollapalooza
• Liz Phair: 15 Years in Guyville
• Album Review: Band of Horses, Cease to Begin

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Song Stories

“Smells Like Teen Spirit”

Nirvana | 1991

"Smells Like Teen Spirit," named after a brand of deodorant marketed to girls, was Kurt Cobain's attempt to "write the ultimate pop song," he said, using the soft-loud dynamic of his favorite band, the Pixies. Cobain "had that dichotomy of punk rage and alienation," the song’s producer, Butch Vig, told Rolling Stone, "but also this vulnerable pop sensibility. In 'Teen Spirit,' a lot of that vulnerability is in the tone of his voice." Sadly, by the time of Nirvana's last U.S. tour, in late '93, Cobain was tortured by the obligation to play "Teen Spirit" every night. "There are many other songs that I have written that are as good, if not better," he claimed.

More Song Stories entries »

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