Widow City is the sixth full length album by The Fiery Furnaces

The Fiery Furnaces

The Fiery Furnaces are a U.S. indie rock band formed in 2000 in Brooklyn, New York. The band's primary members are Matthew and Eleanor Friedberger. The siblings are originally from Oak Park, Illinois, a near-western suburb of Chicago.- Band biography :...

. It was released on October 9, 2007 on Chicago-based label Thrill Jockey

Thrill Jockey

Thrill Jockey Records is an American independent record label established in 1992 in New York City by former Atlantic Records A&R representative Bettina Richards.-History:...

. The album art features Eleanor Friedberger on the front and Matthew Friedberger on the back.

Title and themes

The album, although criticized for lacking a unified concept, heavily references occultism, Egyptian thematic elements and mysticism. The album is a reference to the holy city of Vrindavan

Vrindavan

Vrindavan also known as Vraj is a town in the Mathura district of Uttar Pradesh, India...

 in northern India. An estimated 3,000 women have made their homes there begging and praying at the temples. Widows flock to Vridavan and neighboring Mathura because Hindus believe that people who die there are freed from the cycle of birth and death and can obtain moksha (emancipation). Dressed mostly in white, the color of widowhood, the women spend most of their day in prayer earning five rupees a day and a handful of rice or begging on the street.

Track listing

1. "The Philadelphia Grand Jury" – 7:18
2. "Duplexes of the Dead" – 2:39
3. "Automatic Husband" – 2:08
4. "Ex-Guru" – 2:42
5. "Clear Signal from Cairo" – 6:10
6. "My Egyptian Grammar" – 3:21
7. "The Old Hag Is Sleeping" – 2:54
8. "Japanese Slippers" – 2:57
9. "Navy Nurse" – 6:28
10. "Uncle Charlie" – 2:16
11. "Right by Conquest" – 3:36
12. "Restorative Beer" – 2:37
13. "Wicker Whatnots" – 4:27
14. "Cabaret of the Seven Devils" – 2:44
15. "Pricked in the Heart" – 2:15
16. "Widow City" – 4:33
17. "Barnabus and Paul (iTunes Bonus Track)" – 2:43
18. "Mandolin and Maracas (iTunes Bonus Track)" – 2:47

Additional information

A portion of the press release:

As on past Fiery Furnaces' albums, the backing tracks have a narrative aspect, excuse the expression. For instance, the long 'bassoon' and altered tabla part in "The Philadelphia Grand Jury" might indicate the singer in the song's waiting for the word (verdict). The loud guitar-drums-and-Chamberlin 'thunderstorm' part towards the end of "Ex-Guru" indicates the thunderstorm brought about by the jilted ex-guru. The synthesizer filtering of the acoustic guitar in "Duplexes of the Dead" indicates the odd light that filters through the dirty curtains a duplex of the dead would no doubt have. The swelling melody at the end of "My Egyptian Grammar" indicates the pride that likely swells up in the breast of a blue jay referred to therein. The monkey and cow noises in "The Old Hag is Sleeping" indicate the rooster at dawn. The guitar solo at the end of "Cabaret of the Seven Devils" counts to seven. The train sound effect in "Japanese Slippers" indicates a train. And so forth.

David Byrne

David Byrne (musician)

David Byrne is a musician and artist, best known as a founding member and principal songwriter of the American new wave band Talking Heads, which was active between 1975 and 1991. Since then, Byrne has released his own solo recordings and worked with various media including film, photography,...

 recorded a cover version

Cover version

In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...

 of the song "Ex-Guru" for a Thrill Jockey

Thrill Jockey

Thrill Jockey Records is an American independent record label established in 1992 in New York City by former Atlantic Records A&R representative Bettina Richards.-History:...

 compilation.http://www.thrilljockey.com/catalog/?id=101588

Reception