Powell Turns Steve Albini’s Anti-Dance Music Email Into Video for Albini-Sampling "Insomniac"

Powell has shared the video for “Insomniac”, his new single that samples Steve Albini‘s vocals. The video takes the form of Albini’s now-notorious email to the producer, in which he authorized the sample while slamming club culture. 

To briefly recap: This week, XL bought a billboard in London (that’s it above) to promote the “Insomniac” single. The billboard featured an e-mail the producer received from Albini, concerning Powell’s request to sample his vocals on the track. (They’re taken from an old recording of a Big Black live show.) Among other gems, the email contained Albini’s declaration, “I detest club culture as deeply as I detest anything on earth. So I am against what you’re into, and an enemy of where you come from but I have no problem with what you’re doing…”

(Powell was later quick to disavow any notion that he and Albini are mad at each other: “What’s being lost on people is that it’s being positioned as Powell against Steve Albini but it was never like that, it was me and Steve against stuff – without him I wouldn’t be making this kind of music,” he said.)

So, here we have it: A song that inspired an e-mail thread that inspired a billboard has now inspired a video.

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