Peeping Tom
Biography
Years in the making, PEEPING TOM is finally a reality! Fearless music pioneer and vocal gymnast, Mike Patton is behind the PEEPING TOM project. It is his most accessible work since his days in Faith No More, presenting his copious collaborative effort during the last few years. PEEPING TOM is an 11-track opus, featuring a lengthy and incongruous cast of guest performers.
In keeping with the landmark 1960 psychological horror film that inspired its name, PEEPING TOM had its genesis a modus operandi devoid of physical intimacy. Patton would write songs with a wish list of theoretical collaborators in mind, then hope for a reply in the form of a finished track. "It's an exotic way of working for someone accustomed to a band environment," Patton says. "It was charming, really. None of the usual Animal House stuff. Instead of swapping spit and underwear, we were swapping files."
Lack of face-to-face interaction did not keep long-distance collaborators from turning in exceptional performances: Norah Jones' lascivious "Sucker," Kool Keith's "Getaway" and Massive Attack's "Kill The DJ" are intense and passionate as anything a live band could have produced. PEEPING TOM also includes contributions from Amon Tobin (DJ/Artist on Ninja Tune), Bebel Gilberto (smooth Brazilian songstress), Dub Trio (New York-based live Dub Trio), Kid Koala and several of Patton's San Francisco Bay Area running buddies, such as Dan "the Automator" Nakamura (who tag teams with Rahzel on "Mojo") and Jel, Odd Nosdam and Doseone of anticon records. The end result is an utterly unique multi-genre/multi-artist departure from Patton's more recent noisy output - one that would ultimately have to be classified as a pop record - a Mike Patton pop record, but a pop record nonetheless.
