Somehow, after 40 years of issuing LPs, quirk-pop brother duo Sparks recently realized that they had actually never managed to issue a live album, but the outfit will rectify the discography oversight soon when they deliver their first official concert set, Two Hands One Mouth: Live in Europe.
The two-disc collection arrives April 1 and features performances recorded last year during a European tour. The trip was the first brothers Ron and Russell Mael undertook without a full band or with computer backups, a feat reflected in the self-aware title (keyboardist Ron is the "two hands," while vocalist Russell is the "mouth"). The band wrote that the experience thus far has been "exceptional."
"While we began the tour with certain fears of not having the safety net of a band or computers, we soon realized that the format was wildly successful (for us and for the audience) in highlighting in the purest form the core elements of what Sparks has always been — our musical world conveyed through our songs and our vocals and performed in a most aggressive way," they said in a statement. "What seemed to always set us apart was, we think, made emphatic in this format."
The "Two Hands One Mouth" tour continues in the U.S. next month, with a handful of California appearances lined up, including stops at Coachella. You can peep the show details beneath the tracklisting and expect more tour announcements to be revealed shortly.
You can pre-order the live album here.
Two Hands One Mouth: Live in Europe:
CD 1:
1. Sparks Overture
2. Hospitality On Parade
3. Metaphor
4. Propaganda
5. At Home, At Work, At Play
6. Sherlock Holmes
7. Good Morning
8. Under The Table With Her
9. My Baby's Taking Me Home
10. Singing In The Shower
11. The Wedding of Jacqueline Kennedy To Russell Mael
12. Excerpts from THE SEDUCTION OF INGMAR BERGMAN:
I Am Ingmar Bergman
Mr. Bergman How Are You?
We've Got To Turn Him 'Round
He's Home
13. Dick Around
14. Never Turn Your Back On Mother Earth
15. This Town Ain't Big Enough For Both Of Us
16. The Rhythm Thief
17. Suburban Homeboy
18. When Do I Get To Sing 'My Way'
CD2:
1. The Number One Song In Heaven
2. Beat The Clock
3. Two Hands One Mouth
Tour dates:
4/9-10 San Francisco, CA - The Chapel
4/12 Indio, CA - Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival
4/16-17 Los Angeles, CA - Hollywood Forever Cemetery
4/19 Indio, CA - Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival
The two-disc collection arrives April 1 and features performances recorded last year during a European tour. The trip was the first brothers Ron and Russell Mael undertook without a full band or with computer backups, a feat reflected in the self-aware title (keyboardist Ron is the "two hands," while vocalist Russell is the "mouth"). The band wrote that the experience thus far has been "exceptional."
"While we began the tour with certain fears of not having the safety net of a band or computers, we soon realized that the format was wildly successful (for us and for the audience) in highlighting in the purest form the core elements of what Sparks has always been — our musical world conveyed through our songs and our vocals and performed in a most aggressive way," they said in a statement. "What seemed to always set us apart was, we think, made emphatic in this format."
The "Two Hands One Mouth" tour continues in the U.S. next month, with a handful of California appearances lined up, including stops at Coachella. You can peep the show details beneath the tracklisting and expect more tour announcements to be revealed shortly.
You can pre-order the live album here.
Two Hands One Mouth: Live in Europe:
CD 1:
1. Sparks Overture
2. Hospitality On Parade
3. Metaphor
4. Propaganda
5. At Home, At Work, At Play
6. Sherlock Holmes
7. Good Morning
8. Under The Table With Her
9. My Baby's Taking Me Home
10. Singing In The Shower
11. The Wedding of Jacqueline Kennedy To Russell Mael
12. Excerpts from THE SEDUCTION OF INGMAR BERGMAN:
I Am Ingmar Bergman
Mr. Bergman How Are You?
We've Got To Turn Him 'Round
He's Home
13. Dick Around
14. Never Turn Your Back On Mother Earth
15. This Town Ain't Big Enough For Both Of Us
16. The Rhythm Thief
17. Suburban Homeboy
18. When Do I Get To Sing 'My Way'
CD2:
1. The Number One Song In Heaven
2. Beat The Clock
3. Two Hands One Mouth
Tour dates:
4/9-10 San Francisco, CA - The Chapel
4/12 Indio, CA - Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival
4/16-17 Los Angeles, CA - Hollywood Forever Cemetery
4/19 Indio, CA - Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival