Triumph Of Lethargy Skinned Alive To Death is the longwinded name of the Seattle-based quartet comprised of Spencer Moody (Murder City Devils), Andrea Zollo (Pretty Girls Make Graves), Corey J. Brewer and Joel Cuplin. Besides its stellar lineup, this band will force you into a state of awe and utter respect between its drone-y, eerie sound and devil-may-care attitude (its catch phrase being, “We do what we want. We will never break up”). Oh, and this killer mix tape (check out the video playlist) the band members made for MAGNET helps, too. Newest LP, Some Of Us Are In This Together, is out now via Don’t Stop Believin’ Records.
“The Dirty Street” (download):
https://magnetmagazine.com/audio/TheDirtyStreet.mp3
Earth “Tallahassee”
Spencer: Pentastar: In The Style Of Demons is the most important record Sub Pop ever put out, with the exception of the Steven Jesse Bernstein record.
Corey: When Spencer and I met (around 1998?), we bonded over our mutual love for those early Earth records. At the time, most people had foolishly written them off. They still slay. Their new Southern Lord LP is going to destroy minds and reap souls.
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John Lee Hooker “Tupelo”
Corey: Amazing drone and repetition. Nick Cave probably owed him money for this.
Spencer: This man couldn’t read or write.
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Marianne Faithful “Sister Morphine”
Spencer: Tears my heart out.
Corey: She grew into this amazing voice, like being given a bucket of gold for living hard.
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Nico “Janitor Of Lunacy”
Corey: More drone, dark as it comes.
Spencer: Now she reigns in hell. I mean, she earned it and owns it.
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Gun Club “Sex Beat”
Spencer: Corey and I had a Gun Club cover band for a little while. We’ll get back at it at some point.
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Morrissey “Ganglord”
Spencer: The king.
Corey: Overlooked b-side from 2006, given the spotlight on the Swords compilation. A great, grinding track.
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Konono No. 1 “Lufuala Ndonga”
Spencer: You can’t even think about touching it.
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Micheal Cohen “Bitterfeast”
Corey: Heard this on the comp Queer Noises 1961-1978: From The Closet To The Charts and found it absolutely devastating. Very little is known about Mr. Cohen: early-’70s NYC queer songwriter/cab driver who released three hard-to-find LPs.
Spencer: When you come across records on Folkways, you should buy them. When you write a song, the song should just say it.
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Jean-Luc Godard Band Of Outsiders
Spencer: In the future, Triumph Of Lethargy will be more like this.
Corey: This is what most of our “rehearsals” look like.
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Serge Gainsbourg “Requiem Pour Un Con”
Spencer: He’s no Jacques Brel, but we still love him.
Corey: Spencer got me into Serge Gainsbourg on tour back in the late ’90s. Great music to drive to through the square states.
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Blacktop “Planet Earth”
Andrea: The coolest
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Chrissy Zebby Tembo “Trouble Maker”
Andrea: Infatuating Zambian psych from 1974.
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Huggy Bear “Pansy Twist”
Andrea: Does it make you more a kid if you want to off a pig?
Corey: A huge influence on us. We’ve covered “Carnt Kiss” a million times live.
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Tinariwen “Matadjem Yinmixan”
Andrea: This might be the happiest song on earth. Can’t even tell you how many dance parties that this has been cranked at. Legendary poet guitarists and soul rebels, and their history only makes it more incredible.
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Nina Simone “Be My Husband”
Andrea: I love Nina Simone’s “Be My Husband” for its utter rawness. Its fervor is encompassing, and her presence is gigantic. This song is also a great example of how sometimes less can have a much more powerful impact.
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Ronnie Moipolai “Happy New Year”
Andrea: Ronnie Moipolai from Botswana. Truly incredible, because it shows how amazing that music can be without following traditional rules.
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