I love my job. Nearly everything about it. But sometimes, I love it a whole lot. One of those high points came at this year’s ASCAP “I Create Music” EXPO, when I found myself interviewing ASCAP member Nick Zammuto, from one of my all-time favorite bands The Books. He was participating on our Life Is a Highway: Making the Most from Touring panel, excerpted below:
I’ve been quietly marveling at The Books’ strange combination of acoustic instruments and electronic bloops and found sounds and profundity and playfulness for a decade. I’ve had revelatory experiences at live The Books concerts with two separate girlfriends (those were two separate concerts, FYI). I own more merch detritus from The Books than any other band - all the albums of course (one, The Lemon of Pink, on both CD and vinyl) but also a DVD, a 7”, a poster, a t-shirt - even a branded oven mitt.
Long story short, I’m a mega fanboy, as are many others. So while I was ultra-bummed to hear that The Books were being shut for the last time earlier this year, it is some solace to know that they’re not leaving without a proper sendoff.
As Pitchfork recently reported, The Books will release a lavish retrospective box set, A Dot in Time., out on July 24th via Temporary Residence. The set collects all four of the band’s official releases, plus three additional LPs of rare and unreleased material. Plus a USB containing all of the above in MP3 format, a 2-hour DVD, and a book about golf thrown in for good measure. All in a handsome package. My Chanukah gift has been decided. Here’s a video of Nick Zammuto introducing the whole shebang while drinking his second-ever beer.
As one chapter ends, another opens: Nick Zammuto has a new band, named after himself, and they’re awesome, and so is their new record (also called Zammuto), and it’s streaming in full at their website. And wouldn’t you know it, Zammuto is on tour this fall with Gotye, ensuring that Nick Zammuto will remain much more than somebody that I used to know. Find Zammuto’s tour dates here.
The Books on the web: www.thebooksmusic.com
Zammuto on the web: zammutosound.com