Rufus Wainwright, Scott Walker For Macabre Project

Rufus Wainwright, Scott Walker and Brian Eno are amongst the artists who have contributed songs to a morbid album.

As the name suggests, ‘Plague Songs’ is based on the ten biblical plagues – with each of the ten songs chronologically representing each of the afflictions.

Other artists appearing on the collection include Imogen Heap, Stephin Merritt, The Tiger Lillies and Laurie Anderson.

All the songs were originally commissioned by a British Arts Organisation called Artangel which will be performing the songs in Kent later this month.

Now the tracks have been collated for this collection which is released through 4AD on October 2 via CD and digital download.

Scott Walker said of his contribution ‘Darkness’: “In order to avoid purely passive reception, memory kicked in with an elemental lesson from schooldays that the filament of the very first light bulb was a threat of carbonised cotton.

“It then led to other disparate paths like slavery, corporate reach, etcetera.”

The track listing, and their respective plagues, is as follows:

‘Blood’ – Klashnekoff  (The Plague of Blood)
‘Relate The Tale’ – King Creosote (The Plague of Frogs)
‘The Meaning of Lice’ – Stephin Merritt (The Plague of Lice)
‘Flies’ – Brian Eno and Robert Wyatt (The Plague of Flies)
‘The Fifth Plague’ – Laurie Anderson (The Death of Livestock)
‘Boils’ – Cody Chesnutt  (The Plague of Boils)
‘Hailstones’ – The Tiger Lillies (The Plague of Hail)
‘Glittering Cloud’ – Imogen Heap (The Plague of Locusts)
‘Darkness’ – Scott Walker (The Plague of Locusts)
‘Katonah’ – Rufus Wainwright (The Death of The Firstborn)