i-N Session: Wise Blood
Warped hip hop beats, gospel cries and noisy synths layered over samples and self-penned neo gothic lyrics, Wise Blood is the 21-year-old Brooklynite on a DIY musical mission
Chris Laufman is the singer, writer and producer currently operating out of New York under the Wise Blood moniker. Working with a ‘do-it-yourself’ ethos, Laufman’s arrival on the scene was quickly hyped by the blogosphere and picked up by Dovecote Records, who introduced session musicians to his live shows. Laufman creates stomp-poppin’ tracks swamped in samples and lyrics possessed by his time spent as a cemetery worker. Laufman notes high school days spent listening to Slim Thug’sAlready Platinum, Joy Division and the progressive productions of The Neptunes as some of his key influences. Hailing from the same Pittsburgh hometown as Girl Talk, he shares a fondness for sampling heavy hooks, with added zeal for ‘take over pop music’. Get your Wise Blood transfusion with this live session exclusively recorded for i-D online.
Wise Blood, “Spliff” MP3
Wise Blood’s frontman, Chris Laufman, is losing it. His just-launched rabbit hole/website, designed in collaboration with artist Borna Sammak, is full of weird messages and new work. An angular yin-yang shape cuts through the landing page, framing a video of Laufman talk-singing alone, backed by a new pan-flute and chant incantation. Click through deeper for Laufman’s life story—he’s been in three bands and interviewed on television once (about feral cats). To find “Spliff,” a new demo, enter the site’s blog and then“click here” on entry four. Drag around the shredded clip art, there’s a glittering, clickable “Spliff” MP3 hiding there, underneath. Its broken guitars and occasional screams are rich, foul and satisfying. To approach it by manically rummaging is appropriate. It’s an anxious song that feels like a bad and a good omen. We found some other weird stuff in the pile too (no spoilers). A full-baked Wise Blood project is expected early next year. For now, Laufman is on tour with Wise Blood in Europe through Thanksgiving. See dates here.
This makes us excited for their EPNME Track Review
Wise Blood - ‘Loud Mouths’
Two-and-a-bit minutes of what sounds like ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ backwards, tumbling piano motifs, an eerie Jack White-y falsetto and a waltzing drum machine give away little about Pittsburgh’s most mysterious, but they do make us excited about the forthcoming ‘These Wings’ EP, of which this is the lead track.
SPIN’s 30 Can’t-Miss Acts at CMJ 2011
Wise Blood
Hometown: Pittsburgh, PA
Why We Like Him: This Pittsburgh-native native ignores any and all genre conventions, making cut-n’-paste sample pop that’s shaped by everything from ’70s rock (he samples Led Zeppelin, brazenly) to present day hip-hop (he loves himself some Slim Thug). Then there’s Christopher Laufman’s charming falsetto, which comes off like Smokey Robinson singing through your high school’s PA system. He’s post-millennial to his core.
