The experimental Elephant 6 recording project Von Hemmling (Jim McIntyre of The Apples in Stereo) has had only sporadic output over the years, culminating with the release of the Wild Hemmling CD a couple years ago. McIntyre has dropped hints about an extended work called La Guerre Est Meurtre, and even put an excerpt on the band's MySpace page. Now, at last, the whole work has been made available for download in lossless .WAV format at Von Hemmling's website. Completed in 2002, the records that make up La Guerre date all the way back to 1984. McIntyre writes, "It took me well over a year to put together and another year to perfect. Some might call it a collage but I don't, although there is a collage portion of the last section. It features versions of my songs by the Apples (in Stereo) and the Lilys. It's a huge file, 700 MB in 6 pieces, but I'd ask anyone interested in downloading to please download the entire thing. There's a pace to it that doesn't work unless the whole thing is listened to. It's also made to be cyclical, it can be played on repeat."

Having just listened to it, I think Von Hemmling fans will be pleased and I really dig it myself, although those with an aversion toward the experimental may not have a taste for this sort of thing. But at 70 minutes, it's a pretty mammoth expedition into VH history.

Also, those of you who've installed and use GoogleEarth may be curious to see what the original Pet Sounds studio looks like from a satellite photo. McIntyre has passed along this direct link to the GoogleEarth bookmark for Pet Sounds Denver. Yep, it's a dirt lot!

Tomorrow we'll have a little bit more Von Hemmling music. Of Montreal fans will want to check back later today for an update to our Captain23's Lossless & Live Elephant 6 Archive.

Von Hemmling: La Guerre Est Meurtre Download Page