A gorgeous new film clip has been unveiled for ‘Secret Fires’ recorded for The Jeffrey Lee Pierce Sessions Project and performed by alternative artist Suzie Stapleton and blues multi-instrumentalist Duke Garwood.

The song was originally released by The Gun Club on The Las Vegas Story and is one of the more delicate moments from ‘The Task Has Overwhelmed Us’, the fourth volume in The Jeffrey Lee Pierce Sessions Project series which was released on September 29th via Glitterhouse Records. Overseen by producer Cypress Grove, the project presents stellar interpretations of tracks from Pierce’s Gun Club and solo canons along with fresh works constructed from rehearsal skeletons, and previously unheard lyrics.

This interpretation of ‘Secret Fires’ showcases some of Pierce’s most beguiling lyrics and sees Stapleton at her enchanting best with the deft touch of Garwood enhancing the performance on both lead nylon string and slide guitar. The combination will no doubt intrigue fans of both artists and adds to the many interesting collaborations the project has spawned – Nick Cave duetting with Debbie Harry, Lydia Lunch crawling over a desolate sonic landscape imagined by Jim Jarmusch and Josef van Wissem, and the
full of sensory assault of Peter Hayes and Leah Shapiro of Black Rebel Motorcycle Club joining forces with Humanist to name a few. Other contributors on this volume include Warren Ellis, Mark Lanegan, Mark Stewart, Alejandro Escovedo, Mick Harvey, Jim Jones, The Coathangers and many more.

Stapleton also had a hand in several other tracks on the record, including producing and performing with Dave Gahan of Depeche Mode on the album’s stunning opener; a gospel-infused, piano led cover of ‘Mother of Earth’. Stapleton invited Gahan to take part in the project after he purchased a copy of her album ‘We Are The Plague’.

Stapleton explains, “I’d been playing around with an arrangement of ‘Mother Of Earth’ in my home studio. When I emailed Dave it was not long before the Soulsavers cover record ‘Imposter’ was due to be released and he mentioned that at some point he’d also been playing around with a version of ‘Mother Of Earth’ which didn’t make it onto that album. That was too much of a coincidence to let slide, so I showed him my arrangement and asked if he’d like to sing on it and, much to my delight, he agreed.”
Gahan says, “I imagined a gunslinging version of it where I played the guitar, so when Suzie and I joined forces, it really worked out and we were able to build this beautiful song. It was great to work with Suzie, she’s so good at what she does.”

This collaboration lead to an invite to open for Depeche Mode during the Memento Mori World Tour in 2024. Stapleton will be joining the tour with her band for a run of arena dates in Spain, France, Germany, and Portugal. See full dates below. You can also catch Duke Garwood playing live in London on January 11th, 2024 at The Victoria, Dalston.

DEPECHE MODE + SUZIE STAPLETON
MEMENTO MORI WORLD TOUR MARCH 2024
3rd Accor Arena PARIS, FR
5th Accor Arena PARIS, FR
7th Olympiahalle MUNICH, DE
12th WiZink Center MADRID, ES
14th WiZink Center MADRID, ES
16th Palau Sant Jordi BARCELONA, ES
19th Altice Arena LISBON, PT
21st Bizkaia Arena BILBAO, ES
For more information visit www.suziestapleton.com
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