Shirtless rock icon Iggy Pop and Belgian composer and multi-instrumentalist Catherine Graindorge released a thrilling EP on Sept. 9. The Dictator was born from a mutual appreciation … and a radio show.
Videos by American Songwriter
“He played two tracks of mine on his BBC 6 Music show last November,” Graindorge recalled in a statement, addressing the collab’s origins. “So I sent an email addressed to Iggy to the producer of the show, saying that I was very honored and that I’d be delighted to work on a track with him. It was completely spontaneous; I never thought anything would really happen.”
In the past, Graindorge has worked with other rock artists, composing with the likes of Nick Cave, Hugo Race, and producer John Parish. When she received a yes from the rocker in response, it wasn’t just for a violin sampling.
“Iggy said to send him a track,” the composer added. “I began to improvise and came up with three pieces at home. We communicated and began to exchange ideas.”
“Over Christmas, I recorded another track that was more rock. That grabbed him,” she explained. “Then he wrote the lyrics for ‘The Dictator’ two months before Russia invaded Ukraine.”
In the four-track project, ominous strings meet sparse synths, creating an apocalyptic wasteland of sound. Narrated by Iggy Pop’s gruff baritone, the songs play like unsettling tales, chronicling current events and painting perfectly the uncertain world of today.
Adding his admiration, the “Passenger” rocker said Graindorge’s music “creeps up on me like a fog; like winter in Venice, like a midnight wind.
“There is a gothic masonry at work here, with a very old force abetted by very cunning structures,” he explained. “My contribution is to report, through words, the current threat, and the longing for happiness and peace.”
TRACK LIST:
1. “The Dictator”
2. “Mud I”
3. “Mud II”
4. “Iggy”
Photo Credit: Rob Baker Ashton
