ANDY MACKAY’S SACRED SOUNDS
Roxy Music founder teams up with former bandmate Phil Manzanera on his first studio recordings in a decade.
Andy Mackay is to release 3Psalms on November 23. And the project has taken the Roxy Music sax and oboe player nearly 25 years to bring to fruition.
“In the mid-90s I began to work on an electronic studio project but had to put it on hold because of other commitments. I actually finished all the writing by 2000, and then Roxy Music started touring and that kept me busy until 2012. Once this was over, I got back to the album.”
The four-track post-rock symphony was recorded at Dean St. Studios in London, a studio in Prague where the Czech National Philharmonic Orchestra were tracked, and at Phil Manzanera’s home studio. The guitarist also plays on the album.
Mackay feels the psalms are an interesting subject for the project, which he also admits doesn’t neatly fit into any particular genre. “I have used psalms 90, 130 and 150. Some people might be put off because of their religious connotation, but I feel everyone is intrigued by them because they have given us so many phrases which are part of everyday life.”
Mackay premieres 3Psalms on November 26 at London’s Queen Elizabeth Hall, where he will play the entire album with a band, choir and string section. He will also perform a selection of Roxy Music material with Manzanera as his special guest.
“If all goes well, I hope to do more 3Psalms shows, possibly in churches and cathedrals,” he adds.
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