If the album title suggests Mark Lanegan has gone pop, Bubblegum’s creepy opener should bury this notion deep in the cold, hard ground. The funereal, claustrophobic “When Your Number Isn’t Up” features Lanegan’s rich baritone wrapping itself around every murderous syllable. “Did you call for the night porter?” he intones. “You smell the blood running warm.” Although Lanegan hasn’t altered his dark lyrical bent, his recent stint in Queens Of The Stone Age, participation in Josh Homme’s Desert Sessions and numerous collaborations on Bubblegum (with Homme, Polly Harvey, Dean Ween and Greg Dulli, to name a few) have served him well musically. On previous efforts, you could bank on simple acoustic guitar and the occasional piano as the only backdrops for Lanegan’s dark musical paintings. He expands his palette on Bubblegum, deploying fuzzed-out bass on “Hit The City,” clanking, industrial percussion on “Methamphetamine Blues,” spaghetti-Western guitar on “One Hundred Days” and a revved-up Stooges riff on “Sideways In Reverse.” Although Lanegan’s voice will always be the familiar, unifying factor to his work, Bubblegum is a full-blown creative revival for a man whose solo output was becoming far too predictable.

MAGNET woke up at dawn to chat with Lanegan, vacationing six hours ahead in Antwerp, Belgium.

Are you on tour?
I’m living here. I got a bunch of friends here. Just felt like hangin’ for a few weeks.

It looks like you had a cast of thousands on this record. Was it chaotic?
Nah, man. It’s just like some friends came in and … If I had to do it all in one day, I’m sure it would be very chaotic, but it didn’t happen like that.

Bubblegum wasn’t the Mark Lanegan version of the Desert Sessions?
No, although the way I make these records is very similar. Just throwing songs at people and having them do whatever they want. So, yeah, there’s a major similarity there, but I do mine over periods of time in my off hours.

Was the recording process a creative free-for-all, or did you come in with a blueprint?
Listen to it. Of course I’ve got a blueprint. Am I gonna have to kick your ass?

It sounds looser than what you’ve done before. “Hit The City” almost sounds like a demo. I mean that as a compliment, by the way.
I appreciate it. The songs are more playful, for sure. Some of them. In that way, I’m happy that I did something a little bit different. Baby steps, I guess. I’m not exactly reinventing the wheel.

Bubblegum is a little out of the box compared to what you’ve done in the past. There are a lot of styles going on, like the blues …
I don’t feel like I’ve ever played a blues song in my life, so I think we are clearly at odds there. The idea when I started was that I wanted to have the feeling of the blues without having the music be that way, because I think the blues are outdated. If what you mean is the feeling, then we can agree, but I don’t feel like I’ve ever really played a blues song. In fact, I go out of my way to not do it.

OK, so how do you distinguish between the feeling of the blues and playing the blues?
The feel is the content. Just check it out. Everything I’ve ever done is the content of the blues.

Lyrically, or musically?
Lyrically, there’s an emotional ... There’s an ‘x’ factor to all good musicians. I mean the feeling of the fuckin’ blues. If you listen to what’s being said lyrically, it doesn’t really tell a story from start to finish, but what blues song does? They jump from line to line. Listen to fuckin’ Blind Willie McTell and he jumps from “I can’t read and write and spell my name” to “I’m goin’ to fuckin’ Niagara Falls,” all in one sentence. There’s an overall feeling from it. That’s what I mean. It’s the ‘x’ factor that comes from the combo of music, voice and melody. Do I have to write the story for you?

What you just described sounds like the blues to me.
The blues that you’re talking about is the 12-bar, outdated mode, played by people who’ve been dead for 50 or 60 years. At least the good stuff. I wouldn’t want to be siding with that.

Fair enough.
I felt like I was trying something different. Ever since I started, to me it felt like a hybrid of gospel, country and rock music with a feeling of the blues. That’s all. And they called me genius.

Alrighty, then.
I’m walking up four flights of stairs here and I’m dying. I’m sorry for being an asshole.

It’s 6:30 a.m. here. You need to take it easy on me.
That goes for me, too. I’ve been awake for exactly 20 minutes. Carrying my fuckin’ groceries home. It’s hot here, too. Where are you at?

Pittsburgh.
Aw, shit. I’m sorry.

Hey, it’s not that bad.
[Laughs] I love Pittsburgh, man. I was there like 20 times last year.

You didn’t have to say that.
I enjoy it there.

So how long has Bubblegum been in the works? Seems like only yesterday the announcement came out that you were leaving Queens and now your record is out ...
It’s not even out yet. Are you talking about Bubblegum?

Yes. Well, OK, it’s done, anyway.
Well, yeah, it’s done, but it’s not out.

Semantics.
What are you trying to ask me?

I’m asking you whether this was a frantic process or if it has been in the works for a few years.
It was recorded in a few sessions over the course of a couple years, but short sessions. Just when I had time off to do it. I’m in the midst of recording my next one right now; that’s partially what I was doing here in Antwerp. Actually, I’m recording a few. A double album of originals and a little record of covers.

What can you tell me about them?
They kick ass like all the rest of my records.

Could you be a little more specific?
I can’t, because I haven’t really started. I’m going to start in the next couple of days.

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