Hear John Malkovich’s Terrifying Ric Ocasek Collab
John Malkovich: actor, director, portal vessel, sonic explorer. The performer has teamed with an eclectic group of musicians – including Yoko Ono and Sean Lennon, the Cars‘ Ric Ocasek, OMD, Young the Giant, Dweezil Zappa and the Dandy Warhols – to create Like a Puppet Show, a Record Store Day Black Friday vinyl exclusive. The album finds Malkovich reciting classical musician Eric Alexandrakis’ version of Plato’s Allegory of the Cave over original material composed and produced by Alexandrakis, paired with bizarre photos of Malkovich taken by Sandro.
The 11-track Like a Puppet Show began as a collaboration between Malkovich, Alexandrakis and Sandro. After Malkovich finished his spoken word parts, the trio reached out to artists across the musical spectrum to mix the material. The LP also features contributions from Efterklang, Placebo, the Cranberries‘ Dolores O’Riordan, Harry Waters (son of Roger Waters) and Blondie‘s Chris Stein (credited in a statement with “epic gangsta rap”).
Ocasek’s creepy mix, “Cryoblue Cheese O,” is available to stream below. The Cars veteran adds unsettling synth soundscapes as Malkovich recites lines like, “The prisoners have been here since childhood.”
“The poem Allegory of a Cave narrated by John Malkovich sounded eerie to me, so I set it into that kind of musical landscape,” Ocasek said in a statement. “The poem felt current, even though it was written around 380 BC by Plato. Only the ridiculers and weapons have changed as we move through time.”
Like a Puppet Show will be released for Record Store Day’s 2015 Black Friday event, “followed by two more releases to retailers, and direct to consumers via the web for the Christmas holidays.” The LP is reportedly the “first of many” vinyl-only, limited-edition projects planned by the trio for their Cryogenia π label.
Like a Puppet Show Track List
1. “Cryocarbon 14C” (mixed by OMD)
2. “Cryolife 7:14 A.M.” (mixed by Yoko Ono and Sean Lennon)
3. “Cryoblue Cheese O (mixed by Ric Ocasek)
4. “CryoZolon X” (mixed by Dweezil Zappa)
5. “Cryoparoxsym A” (mixed by Young the Giant)
6. “Platogenia X And The Caves” (mixed by the Dandy Warhols)
7. “Cryostat Ø” (mixed by Efterklang)
8. “Cryoplacebo 47/XXY” (mixed by Placebo)
9. “Photogenia C (Ruler Of Light)” (mixed by Chris Stein)
10. “Optimogenia Z [Edit Mix]” (mixed by Harry Waters)
11. “Cryopian D” (mixed by Dolores O’Riordan)