Self-producing dirty, lo-fi records has been the modus operandi for successful garage rockers the Black Lips. But after five studio albums, the self-described "flower punks" turned heads by recruiting a flashy, high-profile producer who has worked with pop stars Amy Winehouse and Lily Allen to record their upcoming "Arabia Mountain."
Tacitly defying pressure from their label to work with a producer for the first time, the boys compiled what they thought was an unattainably star-studded list of people they would be willing to work with, including Jack White, Danger Mouse and famed British producer/DJ/musician Mark Ronson.
To their surprise, Ronson agreed to do the project and despite some initial reservations, the quartet got behind the idea of bringing an outsider into the studio.
"I was scared that he'd try and make us a Top 40, pop-sounding band," Black Lips guitarist Cole Alexander said, "but he really listened to our music a lot and found out what we could do and just tried to enhance on that."
Ronson produced nine of the 16 tracks on "Arabia Mountain," in stores June 7, with Deerhunter guitarist Lockett Pundt also handing production duties. On the surface, the pairing of Ronson, whose original compositions are flash bombs of gaudy synthesizers, hip-hop beats and pop melodies, and Atlanta's gritty psych-punks seems a discordant blend. But "Modern Art," the first Ronson-produced song to be released, fits comfortably within the Black Lips' basement-born catalog, while cleaning up their traditionally grimy production quality. It's like rubbing shoe polish on an old pair of Chuck Taylors.
"It really still sounds fundamentally like a Black Lips record," Alexander said. "[Ronson] spent a lot more time trying to get the drums to really cut through so it pops a little more, but I wouldn't say it's like a great departure from what we've already done. It's more like an enhancement."
Studio recordings aren't all the band has been working to enhance. Known for an over-the-top live show, with onstage make-outs, male nudity and voracious alcohol consumption, the Black Lips are students of stage antics, constantly sifting through YouTube videos of legendary rockers like Jimi Hendrix and GG Allin looking for ways to bolster their performances.
"GG Allin gave 100 percent every night," Alexander said. "If I could even give 25 percent of what he gave one night, that's like an incredible show."
