David Byrne backed by the Dirty Projectors, Feist with Death Cab For Cutie’s Ben Gibbard, Sufjan Stevens, the Decemberists, Grizzly Bear, Bon Iver, TV On The Radio’s Dave Sitek and Sharon Jones are among the acts confirmed to appear on the next “Red Hot” compilation, which, as first reported here in December, is being produced by the National’s Aaron and Bryce Dessner.
The Byrne/Dirty Projectors pairing was instigated by the Dessners. “We found out David was a fan of Dirty Projectors, and he was at our show at the Brooklyn Academy of Music,” Aaron Dessner tells Billboard.com. “So, we kinda cornered him and suggested it. The songs are amazing.”
“I’d been told more than once that we should all work together, and it seems the suggestion was fated to be realized,” Byrne writes on his blog, adding that he revived lyrics he wrote in “maybe ’75 or ’76” for their two-song collaboration.
The National will have a track on the compilation, while Bryce Dessner has recorded a song with vocalist Antony for the album. Aaron Dessner expects the final track list to include between “24 and 30 songs,” and says the album will either be out in the fall or in early 2009, depending on when some of the tracks are completed.
The “Red Hot” organization has released more than a dozen compilations since 1990 to benefit AIDS research and causes, with Byrne appearing on several over the years. “We’re really excited to be putting this together for Red Hot,” Aaron Dessner says. “They have such a great track record.”
As for the National, the group tomorrow (May 23) begins its summer run with Modest Mouse and R.E.M. in Vancouver. Vincent Moon’s documentary about the band, “A Skin, A Night,” was released earlier this week on DVD by Beggars Banquet.
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