Pitchfork

Photo by Shannon McClean

No two ways about it: according to a MySpace blog post from Of Montreal's Kevin Barnes posted today, the veteran Georgia psych-pop combo's next LP, Skeletal Lamping, is recorded, mastered, and ready to deliver in October. Or, as the subject of the post puts it, "skeletal lamping is done!!!" (Also, Category: Automotive)

"i am very happy with it," Barnes writes of the year-in-the-making set, though he notes a "worry that some people are going to misunderstand it. there's nothing i can do about that though, now, it is done. anyways, i didn't create it to give people something to like. i created it because i was compelled to."

Barnes, quite the blogger when he wants to be, claims "it is possible to view this album as one long composition, with lots of different movements, or just as a collection of pop songs." In crafting Skeletal Lamping, Barnes claims to have set out to "make an album that was unpredictable and, at times, startling, yet always hummable and catchy. some of the transitions are intentionally awkward. i did this to keep the listener off guard and to dismantle people's perception of how an album is supposed to be constructed. i am so bored with art that makes sense and 'works'. i wanted to do somethings that didn't 'work.'"

Though not intended to shock, the unorthodox manner in which Skeletal Lamping was pieced together was Barnes' attempt to avoid the feeling he gets in "most contemporary songs, [wherein] you can basically finish the artist's sentences, musically and lyrically. i wanted to make an album where that was not possible."

There's also a little tidbit about Barnes' current mental state, which he describes as "mild confusion and pensiveness," and the role of Skeletal Lamping in calling all the "puzzling,contradicting,disturbing,humorous... fantasies,ruminations and observations to the surface."

We'll spare you a rehash of the whole thing, but the full text is worth a look for fans of the band seeking a little pre-release insight. Likewise, we recommend Pitchfork contrbutor Mike Carriere's interview with Barnes from last fall.

Kev and co. will spend the summer gearing up for the release of Skeletal Lamping with a smattering of live appearances.

Of Montreal:

06-28 Calgary, Alberta - Sled Island Festival
07-04 Rothbury, MI - Rothbury Festival
08-08 Myslowice, Poland - OFF Festival
08-09 London, England - Field Day Festival
08-10 Leicester, England - Summer Sundae Weekender