Featured Artist of
August 27, 2025
with
the album: "Desire
on Ice "
Artist's Biography
Musician,
filmmaker, performer, and all-around cultural conjurer, Tav Falco moves with
ease between Memphis juke joints and Weimar cabarets, blends tango, vocal
jazz, rockabilly, and noir Americana into a personal mythology, and does it
all with a wink and a streak of cultivated danger. His soul is part
Neapolitan, part Southern gothic, part Buenos Aires café, and part backroom
of an old Paris cinema. Falco has written books, directed films, and
embraced African American and Argentinian traditions with equal curiosity.
He has been fronting Panther Burns since 1979 — a loose vehicle for
outcasts, hipsters, and other beautiful misfits.
About the Album
The songwriting of Southern rock ‘n’ roll provocateur Tav Falco will be
celebrated on his 14th studio album, Desire on Ice. With basic tracks
recorded at Sam Phillips Recording Services in Memphis, Tennessee, Desire on
Ice was created over an 18-month period by Falco and his longtime producer
and musical partner, Mario Monterosso. Undoubtedly the most ambitious
project in the artist’s 40-plus-year career, Desire on Ice features an
astonishing lineup of all-star talent who are sympatico with his singular
flair and vision. The album will be released on LP, CD and digital formats
by Org Music on September 12. Pre-order now at Org Music.
The first digital single, “Doomsday Baby,” features guest vocals by Bobby
Gillespie. The song appeared in its original form on Falco’s 2015 album,
Command Performance, but its themes of political tumult and emerging
authoritarianism now sound even more urgent and prophetic.
Listen or purchase “Doomsday Baby.”
“The concept for Desire on Ice was developed by Mario after having lived
with my music for a long time,” says Falco, “that of rendering these
original songs — written solely by me, others in musical collaboration —
with newly-evolved treatments. Although sui generis in their original forms,
these songs now manifest in unlikely ways.”
The oldest song on the album, the live favorite “Cuban Rebel Girl,” dates to
1986. Desire on Ice also features one new original, “Crying for More,” as
well as a “Prologue” and “Epilogue” conceptualized and developed by
Monterosso.
The lineup of featured players on Desire on Ice is impressive. The sessions
were anchored by the members of Falco’s current touring band, Panther Burns:
guitarist Mario Monterosso, bassist Giuseppe Sangirardi, and drummer Walter
Brunetti. The guests include Ann Magnuson, Nicole Atkins, Jolie Holland,
Bobby Gillespie, Pete Molinari, Kid Congo Powers, Jon Spencer, Rev. Horton
Heat, Jimmy Rip, Chris Spedding, Boz Boorer, Richard Barone, Eddie Angel,
Bubba Feathers, Chris Maxwell, Charlie Musselwhite, Mirko Dettori, Kai Eric,
Rene Coman, Bertrand Burgalat, Alex Greene, Michael Perry Allen, Jim
Sclavunos, and Ross Johnson, among others. Memphis writer and longtime
Panther Burns confidante Robert Gordon has contributed new liner notes for
the release.
“I began my collaboration with Tav in 2014,” recalled Monterosso. “After
many tours and recording five records with him, I feel like we’ve built
something special over this decade. Desire on Ice represents my vision of
Tav Falco, and the evolution we’ve made together.”
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