Just when I thought musicians couldn’t get any more ridiculous along comes Josh Ritter to prove me wrong. For his new album ‘Gathering’, music just wasn’t enough.
[Read the bizarre press release in the comments.]
This from a musician I thought seemed almost normal. Ah well.
Is this the beginning of a new trend? And if so, what would other albums ‘smell’ like? The new U2 for instance? Maybe I’m being too cynical, smell is after all one of the most evocative of senses and can transport one to a different time and place, so perhaps this will catch on. What say you, good people?
He wanted to ‘capture the sights, the sounds, the smells’ of the album
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“I’ve always thought of every record as being its own world, each with it’s own collection of sights and sounds. Right around the time I was putting the finishing touches on this record, I met Tanwi Nandini Islam – independent perfumer and founder of Hi Wildflower Botanica – and we started talking about making a scent that would communicate the world of the album in a way I had never considered before. This is a record full of storms – wet earth and electricity in the air. I wanted to see if we could explore not only the sights and sounds of an album, but also its smell – and there were lots of smells on the record. Cherry blossoms, smoke and windswept prairie ground – rain and thunderheads gathering.
I’m not any kind of expert or aficionado when it comes to scent, so I was really lucky to be able to work with Tanwi. I described to her what I believed the world of the music smelled like, handed her an early version of the album, and she went to her workshop.
I’m so proud of the result. Gathering brings together the smell of wet earth, of vines and smoke and charged oxygen. Music and scent both float on the air. This has been a really fun experiment and I hope you enjoy it.”
https://joshritter.merchtable.com/gathering/gathering-fragrance/?no_redirect=true#.WhZLHbacbUI
‘And there were lots of smells on the record’
You can’t make this shit up
@Lemonhope. Scent should be deployed like bombs.
I rather like the idea of a fragrant merchtable! Better cherry blossom than beery farts!
Here’s Tanwi Nandini Islam, who is also a novelist, at work.
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/tanwi-nandini-islam-crafting-bright-lines-beautifully-universal-scents-n600656
Sometimes when I got them home, Vinyl l.P. sleeves smelled of pineapple. I’m all for it.!!
Scratch n Sniff n The Tears did this years ago.
I think Josh is on to something. Everybody knows Goats Head Soup smells of buttercups scattered across a neglected grave and Aladdin Sane has the odour of Smokey Bacon crisps crumbled in the pocket of a pair of denim jeans.
“Space Is The Place” smells of meteorites and “Man Machine” smells of bakelite.
I’m sure @Rigid-Digit will back me up here. Didn’t The Damned – Strawberries come out on smelly picture disc vinyl?
Yes it did.
The standard edition also had a scratch n sniff sleeve supposedly smelling of strawberries.
What it actually smelt like was a small child had vomited over it
Mala’s album Mirrors is rather special according to a Vinyl Factory article.
“Alongside the records, the box contains a CD version of the album, transparent sticker, extensive liner notes and a chip of scented healing wood used by shamans to provide healing.”
https://thevinylfactory.com/features/the-20-best-record-sleeves-of-2016/
Who needs music when you have a chip off the shamanic block?
Never Mind The Block, This Epistle Sucks.
Nirvana albums smell like Teen Spirit.
Stanley Turrentine albums smell like white spirit.
Madonna did this with her Like A Prayer album.
The insert was scented and the musky aroma lasted for years. Possibly, if I got it out, I could still detect the smell. But I’m not home so that will have to wait until this evening.
So Madonna’s insert had (has?) a musky aroma. I am unsurprise.
Well I guess I opened myself up for all that. You smutty, ‘Erberts.
Anyway, I can confirm, having just investigated, that 28 years on, one can still sample the musky aroma of the Like A Prayer album. Surprisingly strong, if truth be told.
Given what’s gannin’ on in the video it’s probably incense.
Supply your own peppermints.
Are we still talking about the album here Carl?
He was talking about getting it out, but I’m sure he was in fact referring to the album.
Where’s Moosey when you need him. A bit slack these days.
The smell of Madonna does not interest me.
Nor, with the greatest respect, does Carl’s doodad.
I’m highly selective.
The smell of Maradona, on the other hand, I am sure we could all get behind.
The sniff of Maradona, you mean.
Not only does my copy of Danny Hodgson’s Non Stop Hammond Organ sound like a workingmen’s club, it smells like one too, i.e. cigs (well the sleeve does).
Given the title, the smell could have been much worse.
Enjoying your tea?
It’s a bit early for dinner, dahling!
Don’t eat too late, lass.
You don’t want to be in bed with something heavy lying on your stomach.
Bad News – Bohemain Rhapsody 7″.
Early issues came with a scratch n sniff panel purporting to smell of the Bad News Tour Bus.
The smell was pretty vile
I like Josh, I have all his albums including the new one. The thing is, all I can smell is bullshit.
Do you have the scent? And if so does it add to the experience? And if not could you buy it and report back – please x