Posted on: November 20, 2012 Posted by: James McQuiston Comments: 0

The Long Wives today announced the release of “Dark Horse,” the self-released debut single on Renee Marie Records.  “Dark Horse” is produced by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ Nick Zinner and Karen O and will be accompanied by two more songs – “La Vengenista” and the “Dark Horse Zinner and KO Remix” – and is available via The Long Wives Bandcamp page http://thelongwives.bandcamp.com/album/dark-horse-la-vengenista-single for $3.  Proceeds will be donated to Hurricane Sandy Relief.

The Long Wives is the solo project of Los Angeles goth-folk songstress Brandy St. John. She has been recording and sharing demos written on her acoustic guitar and 1930 upright piano for the past two years.  St. John has garnered an international underground following with reviews comparing her to Cat Power, Nick Cave and goth-folk contemporary Chelsea Wolfe.

“It was like a first-recording dream; to work with your incredibly talented friends,” said St. John. “Everything sounded great immediately, and our ideas were well aligned.  We had a really great time. Especially me.”

“Karen’s instincts are razor sharp. She knows immediately and she doesn’t have to analyze- she feels it. She’s a natural producer, because she’s a very sincere artist. And of course she’s always been one of my biggest inspirations,” she adds.  “The way Nick layered the instrumentation on ‘Dark Horse’ was absolutely beautiful. The way that everything interacts and creates a feeling of movement, of the wind that I’m singing about, it gives me chills. His work in orchestration really comes through.”

St. John and Karen O became friends in 2008 after being introduced by mutual friends in their Silverlake neighborhood. In December 2011, Karen O and Nick Zinner offered to produce her debut single.  They recorded two songs in the band’s studio, area 52, located in New York, New York.

Brandy St. John, who plays piano and sings lead vocals, wrote the two songs. Yeah Yeah Yeahs drummer Brian Chase plays drums.  Nick Zinner plays acoustic guitar, slide guitar, and keyboards.  Zinner also recorded and mixed the three tracks.

The end result is a haunting and captivating set of songs.  “Dark Horse” is a Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds style rocker that was inspired by the Mario Bava short horror film “The Wurdalak,” while “La Vengenista” recalls early PJ Harvey and is a tragic and dusty tale set in Mexico; the story of a woman’s vengeance against the men who killed her lover, Anhelo.

For music, information and more please visit http://soundcloud.com/thelongwives

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