Black Lips
200 Million Thousand
Released February 24th on Vice Records
Atlanta’s Black Lips formed in 2000, after longtime friends Cole Alexander, Jared Swilley and Ben Eberbaugh left their previous bands (The Renegades, The Reruns). But just days before their tour was slated to begin in December of 2002, Eberbaugh was struck and killed by a drunk driver while he was parked at a toll booth. The band would continue on, stating that’s what he would have wanted.
Over the next few years, they released a few albums while slowly building a fanbase, but gained national recognition in 2006 from Rolling Stone and Spin magazines, and the New York Times. They broke out at South by Southwest in 2007, playing twelve shows in just three days. With their mix of blues, country, punk and psychedelic garage rock, Black Lips have earned a reputation for crazy and intense live shows that have included vomiting, urination, nudity, kissing, electric mini-car races, fireworks, flaming guitars and a chicken. But as the years have progressed they’ve matured and gotten a little bit away from that, noting that they have at times been kicked out of certain venues. Some of the members also play in a number of side projects, like The Spooks, TheFixedFocus, The Original Three, The Gaye Blades and Ghetto Cross.
Their most recent album, 200 Million Thousand, is their best received work yet. There’s quite a clear transition here from their previous works; where their past efforts were more messy and sloppy like their live shows, Black Lips have developed their sound, creating well crafted hooks and riffs. But it still has that crazy Black Lips personality. Don’t look for this to be one of those bands who goes from living the rock and roll dream, to calming down and concentrating on their art. Black Lips art has forever been noise and mayhem and will always be. Four stars from Spin, three from Rolling Stone, and ratings of 7.3 and 7 from NME and Pitchfork, respectively.
Enjoy the albums’ first single, “Short Fuse.”