Even though he’s slowed down in his golden years, James Brown will always be known as the hardest working man in show business. And while Mike Patton’s not exactly gunning for the infamous nickname, he’s definitely been giving Brown a run for his money.

Patton — of Faith No More, Fantômas, Tomahawk and about 30 other deranged and wondrous projects — has to work. It’s what he does. In addition to running his Ipecac Records label, the anti-rock-star rock star’s been putting the finishing touches on the self-titled debut from Peeping Tom, his four-years-in-the-making, long-overdue multi-genre pop masterpiece.

Oh, and he’s also tracking vocals for three tunes that’ll appear on Massive Attack’s forthcoming seventh album, Weather Underground. The one song he’s finished thus far for the trip-hoppers “is like a really slow, dirty ballad with mostly acoustic guitar,” he said.

Plus he’s composing soundtracks for two films (one being friend Melanie Lee’s “Pinion”), he recently lent his voice box to the in-development PlayStation 3 game “The Darkness,” and he’s been writing material for the next Tomahawk LP.

And then there’s that trip he’s planning to Italy, where — with help from a string orchestra and a full choir — he’ll record an album’s worth of “my arrangements of ’60s Italian pop tunes, which should be fun.” He’ll also spend some time with composer Eyvind Kang for a collaborative classical choir piece.

That’s just the stuff he can remember off the top of his head. “You know, I always forget about some of the things I’ve done, because you do ‘em, and sometimes they don’t come out and … most of it’s almost like daily chores or something,” Patton explained. “You check it off your list and then it’s gone.”

And when your list’s as long as Mike’s, you can’t be expected to remember every little thing you’ve been involved with. Besides, the last four months of Patton’s life have been devoted exclusively to finishing the first of three Peeping Tom records in the works, which is due May 30.

“I’m overjoyed to finally have this out of my hair,” Patton said. “It’s almost cathartic for me — more than any other project I’ve had. These projects, they’re almost like problems. You have them on your work table and they’re really fun for a minute, and then you get sick of ‘em and you finish ‘em off and move on to something else. This one has lingered for a lot of different reasons.”

One of the reasons has been major-label trickery. “There were offers from major labels, and I made the grave error of entertaining some of those offers, and that cost me about a year of wining, dining, singing and dancing and ultimately, I was left holding my n–s,” he said. “And I deserved it. I should have known better.”

Plus, Patton recruited a laundry list of collaborators, sending tracks across the globe to have other artists add their personal touches. “It was a melee getting all this stuff back,” he said.

The initial 11-track Peeping Tom outing will feature a spate of underground and mainstream experimentalists, including Kid Koala; Odd Nosdam; Doseone and Jel of the Bay Area hip-hop collective Anticon; Dale Crover of the Melvins; Massive Attack; Gorillaz beat maestro Dan “The Automator” Nakamura; human beatbox Rahzel the Godfather of Noyze; Cypress Hill’s DJ Muggs; Amon Tobin; Brazilian chanteuse Bebel Gilberto; Brooklyn’s Dub Trio; DJ Disk of the Invisibl Skratch Piklz; and rapper Kool Keith.

“It’s very streamlined, very slick — it’s a groove record,” Patton said. “I used programmers and producers from the electronic world and the hip-hop world, in some cases. If there’s a sound to [the record], it leans into those worlds. There are simple structures. I’m singing, there’s lyrics — to me, it’s a pop record. It’s something I’d want to turn on the radio and hear.”

One of the album’s highlights, Patton said, is “Sucker,” which boasts the pipes of Norah Jones. “It’s a pretty vulgar song,” he said, laughing. “You don’t recruit someone like that unless you … I mean, I had something real specific in mind for her, and I wanted to take her out of her element and put her in a new environment and make it exciting, and she loved it. She did great. But yeah, you won’t recognize Norah. She’s cussing her ass off. It’s insane. She’s like a cruel vamp, and it’s super sexy, hot and, yeah, cruel.”

After Peeping Tom’s unveiling, Patton said he’ll reunite with Nakamura to begin work on the second Lovage record — the follow-up 2001′s lounge-flavored Music to Make Love to Your Old Lady By. He said there’s no word yet on whether Elysian Fields frontwoman Jennifer Charles would be reprising her role as the Cher to his Sonny, but discussions are ongoing.

And Tomahawk are in “go mode,” he added. “There are three or four tunes for the record that are done, and we’ll be in the studio by the end of the year. Most of the music’s based on old Native American motifs. It’s going to be a real quiet, strange record.”

— Chris Harris

Source: mtv.com
Submitted By: Ben Thomas

The prolific singer lends his askew aesthetic to a true-life indie murder-drama.

Imagine a murder in a small town. A body is found buried in a shed, and the neighborhood is in shock. The person you thought you knew slowly becomes someone you never knew at all. This is the world of Firecracker, a new film from writer/director Steve Balderson that takes its inspiration from actual events in the town of Wamego, Kansas. A true tragedy, Firecracker is an unflinching study of a broken home and the emotional fallout it creates.

Firecracker also marks the film debut of Mike Patton, the creative dynamo better known in the music world as the ex-frontman of Faith No More and Mr. Bungle, and the current frontman of Tomahawk and Fantomas. Along with B-movie goddess Karen Black (Easy Rider, Trilogy of Terror, House of 1000 Corpses), Patton handled two roles as David, the abusive alcoholic older brother, and Frank, the festival owner. We had a chance to speak with the new screen star after Firecracker’s premiere at last month’s Chicago Underground Film Festival.

How were you first approached for this project?
Steve Balderson was a friend of a friend and he asked me to star in it. At first I was more interested in writing the score, but that was already taken care of, so I read the script, liked it, and figured I would give it a try.

How did you get yourself into the state-of-mind of a violent alcoholic?
I really didn’t have to do much. I think anger is one of the easiest emotions to conjure up. But I did spend some time hanging around the town of Wamego, trying to pick up their patterns of speech.

Why were you and Karen Black both cast in dual roles?
I think it helped show two perspectives of the same story. Seeing the same faces helps draw a connection between similar story lines. Karen Black was great. It was humbling to see her prepare for some of her more intense scenes. It’s always cool seeing someone doing their art well.

Do you feel bitten by the acting bug now? Any future acting plans?
Maybe if I was approached about something and it felt right, sure, but it’s not like you’ll see me turning up on sitcoms. I have no more acting jobs lined up right now, and Firecracker is still shopping for a distributor, so we’ll see what happens. What I really want to get into is doing scores for movies. I’m actually working on one now for this movie Pinion that’s in pre-production.

Can you clue us in on any future Patton-related music releases?
I have about three albums worth of material for this new project I’ve been working on called Peeping Tom. I just need to get it wrapped up. Also, Tomahawk will be working on a new album sometime next year.

Is there any chance we’ll ever see another Mr. Bungle show before we die?
It could happen, but I won’t be singing. Some bridges have definitely been burned. It was a fun time and sometimes you just have to move on. I’ve got a lot on my plate now.

Source: Giant Magazine
Submitted By: Don Walheim