Hasta La Ideas

The shape-shifting David Byrne is a man of many talents, from music and art (we recommend tracking down a copy of his 1999 tome Your Action World, which happens to have been designed by Stefan Sagmeister) to transforming buildings into giant instruments and boosting bicycling. One of the few performers who has drawn sell-out crowds at CBGB and Carnegie Hall, Byrne announced today the imminent CD release of Here Lies Love, his disco musical project involving both Fatboy Slim (Byrne’s partner on the project) and Imelda Marcos (the subject of the 22 songs sung by the likes of Byrne, Santigold, Nellie McKay, and Sharon Jones). The album drops on February 23 from Nonesuch, and in the meantime, Byrne is focusing his considerable energies on an even more personal project. “I have decided to rebrand myself, inspired by Philip Morris changing their name to Altria, Blackwater to Xe, and the train I’m riding on right now that calls itself Acela—none of which mean anything, but they are cleverly evocative,” he wrote in an e-mail sent this morning to friends and fans. “When I decide on the magic word, you’ll be the first to know.”

Previously on UnBeige: