Pages tagged “saul williams”

Poet, actor, musician, writer: There are few limits to the artistic agenda of Saul Williams. His past role as a pioneer in NYC’s spoken-word poetry scene makes him a definitive witness in the city’s history of underground art and symbolic expression. Currently touring in support of his latest album, The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of Niggy Tardust, and appearing in the upcoming film New York, I Love You, Williams spoke with Paste about his history and thoughts on The Big Apple.

Look for more interviews with some of NYC’s most acclaimed artists in the coming weeks.

With multi-day musical bonanzas like Bonnaroo, Coachella, Bumbershoot and godfather/standard-bearer South by Southwest using massive budgets and marquee status to lure the bands of their choosing and, subsequently, hordes of music fans, single-day city festivals heavy on local acts are often seen as also-rans in the eyes of aural addicts. But the SoCo Music Experience's latest stop in San Diego, Calif., proves that's not always true.

Saul Williams is what you might call a modern-day renaissance man. He acts, he writes, he dances, he slams, he raps. And, thankfully, he's scheduled some summer tour dates.

Beat poet and musician Saul Williams released the provocatively titled The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust in November, allowing fans to pay what they want, even if that meant taking it for free. In the meantime, he spoke with Paste and toured on the record, a trek that just recently finished up.

What do David Bowie, Bono, Public Enemy and Trent Reznor have in common? Obviously, they're all musicians, but what else? What do those four music icons have in common? What ties the cross-dressing husband of a supermodel, the world's most famous musician turned activist, the rap group that gave the world both Flavor of Love and Chuck D, and a man once nicknamed Stimpy together?

The answer? Saul Williams. All four of these seemingly diametrically opposite acts influenced Williams' latest studio album, The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust! in one way or another.

From Bowie, Williams hijacked the title.

From Bono, the song "Sunday Bloody Sunday," as shown in the following music video:

From Public Enemy, Williams sampled excerpts of the song "Fear of a Black Planet," for the third track on his album, entitled "Tr(n)igger." And from Reznor, he drew inspiration, production and a "lovechild."

No, not a literal lovechild. (Although, pause for a moment and imagine what that baby would look like. Answer: kind of awesome.) Together, Williams and Reznor wrote and produced The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust! in its entirety, an album that Williams termed "ghetto gothic" to Vulture.

Now, Williams is about to embark on the requisite tour in support of NiggyTardust!, a trip that he's decided to call The Tar Spangled Banner Tour. Look for him this spring as he tours across the land of the free and the home of the brave.

O say, does that Tar-Spangled Banner yet wave:

March
12 - Austin, Texas @ SXSW*
13 - Austin, Texas @ SXSW*
17 - Vancouver, B.C. @ Plaza Club*
18 - Portland, Ore. @ Aladdin*
19 - Seattle, Wash. @ Neumo's*
21 - San Francisco, Calif. @ Slims*
22 - Santa Barbara, Calif. @ Club Mercy*
24 - San Diego, Calif. @ Casbah*
25 - Los Angeles, Calif. @ Troubadour*
26 - Tempe, Ariz. @ Clubhouse*
27 - Phoenix, Ariz. @ Chandler Gilbert Community College^
28 - Phoenix, Ariz. @ Estrella Mountain Community College^
29 - Albuquerque, N.M. @ Launchpad*
31 - Dallas, Texas @ The Loft*

April
1 - Houston, Texas @ Warehouse Live Studio*
3 - New Orleans, La. @ The Parish*
4 - Atlanta, Ga. @ The Loft*
6 - Annapolis, Md @ Ramshead*
7 - Washington, D.C. @ 930 Club*
8 - Boston, Mass. @ Paradise*
9 - New York, N.Y. @ Irving Plaza*
11 - Philadelphia, Pa. @ Trocadero*
12 - Northampton, Mass. @ Iron Horse*
13 - Montreal, Q.C. @ La Tulipe*
14 - Toronto, O.N. @ Mod Club*
16 - Ann Arbor, Mich. @ Blind Pig*
17 - Cleveland, Ohio @ Grog Shop*
18 - Chicago, Ill. @ Martyrs*
19 - Minneapolis, Minn. @ Varsity Theatre*
21 - Boulder, Colo. @ Fox Theatre*
22 - Aspen, Colo. @ Belly Up*
23 - Salt Lake City, Utah @ Kilby Court*

* - indicates musical performance
^ - indicates spoken word performance

Related links:
NiggyTardust.com
Saul Williams' blog on Myspace
Paste: Saul Williams' Reznor-produced album is (optionally) free

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Yes! Domino effect! Let's just get that obligatory Radiohead story link out of the way now, because Saul Williams is offering his new, Trent Reznor-produced record for free online on Nov. 1. Williams also gives fans a second option, however: a $5 "artist contribution." Those are the only two prices you can choose, but still, this scheme represents a rare instance of a musician's radical methods matching his radical ideology.

You might remember Williams (also a poet, screenwriter, actor and generally artsy gent) from his gripping political manifesto "List of Demands (Reparation)", which appeared on his eponymous sophomore album in 2004. Now he's dropping a record called The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust! on the FADER Label, which is the recording wing of The FADER magazine.

Pre-registration is now ongoing at SaulWilliams.com. An interesting caveat for those looking to get in on this action - the album comes in three formats: 192kbps .mp3s, 320kbps .mp3s, or extra-pristine FLAC files. All versions are completely DRM-free, and come packaged with digital artwork and lyrics. Want the album for free? No problem, but you'll have to settle for those 192kbps files. Those who contribute the optional $5 fee get to choose from the three formats. Clearly, Williams is taking a few cues from those In Rainbows file quality complaints.

The presence of Nine Inch Nails mastermind Reznor behind the soundboard should not seem entirely coincidental - he's already broken from his old record deal with Interscope and decided to release his band's next album as a free agent. The Williams approach could be a preview for future NIN releases.

Here are some thoughts from Williams and Reznor via a press release:

"The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust! is the lovechild of Trent and me," Williams said. "The Niggytardust concept sets me free to do more on stage with costume, etc. than one might expect from a regular Saul Williams show. It allows me to put my theatre training to use. I've also thought long and hard about all the discussion surrounding racial epithets etc. and chose this title as a means of furthering the dialogue while also showing how creativity will outlive and outshine hatred of any kind."

"Working on this project was a real pleasure. Saul was interested in breaking boundaries, crossing genres and defying expectations and we learned a great deal from one another in the process," Reznor said. "After my own recent dealings with record labels we decided to release it directly to the fans. There are obvious similarities in how Radiohead just released their new record and the way we've chosen to. After thinking about this way too much, I feel we've improved upon their idea in a few profound ways that benefit the consumer."

Related links:
Saul Williams on MySpace
Saul Williams - "An Open Letter to Oprah Winfrey"
Saul Williams on IMDb

Got news tips for Paste? Email news@pastemagazine.com.