Former New Order bassist Peter Hook’s long-gestating Freebass project — which also features the four-stringed talents of The Smiths’ Andy Rourke and Gary “Mani” Mounfield of The Stone Roses and Primal Scream — is poised to release its debut EP, dubbed Two Worlds Collide.
The four-track collection will be released “soon” by Hook’s just-launched — and appropriately named — Hacienda Records, although an official release date isn’t set, according to fan site NewOrderOnline.com. The EP features vocal appearances by The Charlatans’ Tim Burgess, ex-Wah! singer Pete Wylie and, apparently, notorious drug smuggler Howard Marks. Hooky himself handles the mic on the EP’s final cut, “Live Tomorrow You Go Down.”
The news, of course, comes as Hook’s ex-bandmate Bernard Sumner prepares to release the debut LP by his new band, Bad Lieutenant, which also features New Order drummer Stephen Morris and late-era guitarist Phil Cunningham. Never Cry Another Tear
Hook first began punting the idea of Freebass as far back as 2004 — before New Order’s 2007 dissolution — saying he envisioned the three bassists playing together: “Mani does the low part, Andy Rourke in the middle and I do the high bit,” Hook told the NME in 2005. “But it works out quite well.” In the ensuing years, the trio recorded with a number of vocalists, including Liam Gallagher, Ian Brown and Billy Corgan.
This summer, Freebass finished work on its debut album and mixed the as-yet-untitled record’s 12 tracks, plus the four cuts that comprise the forthcoming EP. For the album, the majority of the vocals are handled by Haven singer Gary Briggs, with Monaco drummer Paul Kehoe filling out the band. (Hear samples of three songs that didn’t make the cut.)
As Hook opened his “mixing diaries” on Freebass’ MySpace page this summer:
“At last the writing has been finished and apart from a few b-side things to finish, the point has come to finish the project. I started work with Mani and Rourky, with Roger Lyons engineering on 2/1/2004, Since then we have had a lot to do, not least on my part New Order until we split up! DJing all over the place, gotta pay the bills, ain’t we?”
Yet Freebass isn’t Hook’s only current project; next week in the U.K., the bassist’s book “The Hacienda: How Not to Run a Club”
See the EP’s tracklist and a video promo ‘How Not to Run a Club’ after the jump…
Tracklist: Freebass, Two Worlds Collide
1. “You Don’t Know This About Me” (f/ Tim Burgess)
2. “Milky Way Is Our Playground” (f/ Pete Wylie)
3. “Dark Starr” (f/ Howard Marks)
4. “Live Tomorrow You Go Down”
Video: Peter Hook’s “The Hacienda: How Not to Run a Club”
PREVIOUSLY ON SLICING UP EYEBALLS
- Video: New Order spinoff Bad Lieutenant’s debut single ‘Sink or Swim’
- Morrissey ‘irked’ at Andy Rourke’s claim he was fired from The Smiths via postcard
- The Stone Roses’ 20th anniversary round-up: Video, audio, links, interviews, podcasts
- New Order’s botched CD reissues finally to be re-reissued by Rhino Records in August
- New Order spinoff Bad Lieutenant announces debut album ‘Never Cry Another Tear’
- Rhino releases its Factory Records box set, ‘Communications 1978-92,’ via iTunes
- New Order members recruit Blur’s Alex James for Bad Lieutenant project
- Smiths, New Order, Stone Roses spotlighted in new book on Manchester scene
Anything Hooky doe’s is bound to be interesting,can’t wait for the album