ORGAN VOODOO is the exotic, hypnotic, erotic, and rhapsodic ninth album by the VOODOO ORGANIST in which he leaves behind the rough-edged blues and vaudevillian industrial of previous releases and sails into the seductive Space Age sounds of exotica.
Once upon a time, the VOODOO ORGANIST was a blue-collar kid from Detroit who went to Holy Innocents Catholic school, named after a Bible story in the Gospel of Matthew describing the bloody slaughter of thousands of children. He began playing the organ at the age of 10 when, as an altar boy at the adjacent Holy Innocents Church, he became fascinated with the sonic grandiosity of the church organ. Thrilled that their son showed genuine, avid interest in something church-related, his devout Catholic parents happily arranged for him to start taking lessons from the resident organist, not realizing their boy was embarking on the path to rock ‘n’ roll instead of redemption.
In the mid ’90s Wexton left the Murder City for the Music City—Nashville, TN—to work with Amphetamine Reptile noise legends Today Is the Day. He eventually moved on to San Francisco and then Los Angeles, where he launched his solo career. He now resides in the Mojave Desert. He began performing as the Voodoo Organist in 2001, released his first VO album that same year, and booked his first tour in 2002. Since then, and as of the pressing of this album, he has played over 800 shows nationwide and received over 250 press articles.
VO’s sound is difficult to describe yet instantly recognizable, weaving together elements of blues, rock, punk, goth, industrial, and even Latin music. He self-describes his sound as “a one-man band in Satan’s Tiki Lounge.” With Organ Voodoo he’s gone full-on Tiki; the album is influenced by his love of Exotica, Lounge, and Space Age Pop music and was inspired by artists such as Sir Julian, Enoch Light, and Martin Denny (who he shares a birthday with). Highlights of the album include “Mojave Midnight Moonlight,” which evokes the surreal Joshua Trees and hoodoo rock formations that dot the landscape of his high desert home; the toe-tapping, surf-inspired “Bombay Beach Bondage Boogaloo”; “It’s Smokey,” a red-hot blues jam that would ignite any lounge; “Violent Pillage,” a subversive, digital-age tribute to the Martin Denny Lounge classic “Quiet Village”; and “Detroit It,” an urban tribal drum jam perfect for restless natives.
So kick back, grab a cocktail, and enjoy. Zombies won’t be chasing you in this recording—but you may find yourself drinking Zombies in some far-away island cantina. The first pressing of 500 is on red vinyl and includes a digital download code!
1. Mojave Midnight Moonlight
2. Dry Martinis and Wet Bikinis
3. The Chow Chow Cha-Cha
4. Bombay Beach Bondage Boogaloo
5. Rattlesnake Rhumba
6. Violent Pillage
7. Whiskey Tango Fox
8. It’s Smokey
9. Stomp That Bug
10. Steely Tiki/Prog Grog
11. Detroit It
12. Desert Dream Scene
Have a listen!
Product Code: ID1233160-1