The Old Ceremony, the orchestral-pop quintet Django Haskins has led since 2004, just released its fifth album, Fairy Tales And Other Forms Of Suicide. The band’s first LP for Yep Roc is also its first to receive a vinyl pressing, as well as its first to be released in Europe. In other words, it’s the perfect time for a provocative album title. Like many of the reinvented and rejuvenated performers the band now calls label mates (such as Robyn Hitchcock, Nick Lowe, John Doe and Paul Weller), the Old Ceremony makes music unencumbered by the ever-shifting demands of new and now. Haskins will be guest editing magnetmagazine.com all week. Read our brand new Old Ceremony feature.
Haskins: The word “legend” gets tossed around pretty freely, making it hard to find the real ones among the merely “esteemed.” But one live experience with Dexter Romweber will set you straight. The Old Ceremony has played with him a few times, and I loved his sound—and soul—so much that I went home and wrote a song called “The Death Of Me” for him, which he generously put on his most recent record. Dex has grabbed the tail of rock ‘n’ roll and is riding out a wild ride to the end. Thank goodness he’s making records to document his journey into darkness and back.
Video after the jump.
