Set to release on August 27th, the Art-pop phenom, Big Red Machine, is returning with their sophomore album How Long Do You Think it’s Gonna Last.
Who is Big Red Machine?
Big Red Machine is a musical collaboration of the musical geniuses, Aaron Dessner from The National and Justin Vernon a.k.a. Bon Iver.
They began working together in 2008 when Dessner reached out via Myspace asking Vernon to help write a song for a compilation album named Dark was the Night. This project was under the name Big Red Machine and after this collaboration they kept the music going. They released their self-titled debut album in 2018. This 10-track album included over 40 different collaborators some of which included Phoebe Bridgers, Kate Stables from This Is the Kit, and Richard Parry from Arcade Fire.
In an exclusive interview with Zane Lowe from Apple Music, Dessner expressed that Big Red Machine was less a band and more, a collaborative effort to experiment with music.
“The project has been an excuse to work with Justin…and also a way to collaborate with a lot of other friends,” Dessner states. “For me personally, a way to push music forward… to grow and to try different things and sort of experiment with sounds.”
How Long Do You Think it’s Gonna Last?
Starting last week, three singles from the new album were dropped with one of the tracks featuring none other than, Taylor Swift.
During the pandemic, Dessner co-produced and co-wrote many of the tracks on Swift’s sister albums Folklore and Evermore. Folklore went on to win the Grammy award for album of the year. Dessner said his connection with Swift and their musical journey together helped him connect back to his work with Big Red Machine.
“Whatever wildfire happened last year creatively for Taylor and…we didn’t want to stop writing songs together,” Dessner states. “Honestly, I learned so much from the process of making those albums that I think when I came back to Big Red Machine, I had this newfound drive and…intuition.”
Swift’s track on this upcoming album is called “Renegade.” Dessner expressed how strongly he felt about Swift’s songwriting on the track.
“it’s…something that I, emotionally, was really struck by,” Dessner states. “She talks about anxiety and fear getting in the way of loving someone…or creating an inability for someone to love, and I think it’s incredibly relatable.”
Overall, this album is sure to be a transformative and immersive record that’s unique sounds pull the listener in.
“That’s what makes it special,” Dessner states. “With everyone that’s on this record, there’s an openness, a creative generosity and an emotional quality that connects it all together.”
