The Problem of Leisure: A Celebration of Andy Gill and Gang of Four is out May 14 and features an impressive lineup of artists remixing and reimagining Gang of Four's music. One of the most exciting collaborations is between Massive Attack's 3D (Robert del Naja) and the late Andy Gill that features UK duo Nova Twins (Amy Love and bassist Georgia South). The track, "Where The Nightingale Sings (Redux)," began life before Gill's death, when this album was originally envisioned as a celebration of Gang of Four's 40th anniversary. It truly sounds like a combination of Massive Attack's dark, low-key cool and Gang of Four's signature angular style. Nova Twins' chilled out vocals seal the deal.
"I first met Andy in a hotel bar in Glasgow and gushed drunkenly about the importance of the Entertainment album for an hour," Robert tells us. "He'd secretly recorded the conversation and played it back though my hotel room door later that night while I was delirious. In fact, the Mezzanine album project was named ‘Damaged Goods’ until I fell out of the hotel lift and into the mini bar. Gang of Four were a foundation stone for us, even though we never successfully sampled or covered a single track of theirs." He adds, "Years later, when we hosted them at Meltdown, I mentioned this fact to Andy after the show and he said 'That’s because you’re crap'...Provocative but true. I got the Anthrax beetle tattooed on my back, 'Love, leisure, work and war.'"