We have talked a lot about Ai Weiwei lately, with the unveiling of his sculpture series in Toronto and his recent release of a music video for his song "Laoma Tihua." Well, now we're here to tell you big news: Ai has officially released his full-length album The Divine Comedy, put out on the second anniversary of his 81-day secret detention. The album includes "Laoma" and his first single "Dumbass."
The album contains six songs in total that describe his experiences with Chinese authorities as well as his thoughts about the country's authoritarian state. As we reported before, the artist's friend Zuoxiao Zuzhou produced the songs that explore pop, rock, punk, and heavy metal. Ai's approach is more spoken than sung, and the lyrics have a lot of obscenities to convey his anger over his oppression.
"I had been thinking about how to recover from the trauma. And I came up with the idea of using music to convey a sentiment that is tremendously secret, and private, to the public," Ai said last month when "Dumbass" was released.
Listen to the tracks below or buy the album here. You can also find translations of the lyrics of Ai Weiwei's website.
Song Titles:
1. Just Climb the Wall
2. Chaoyang Park
3. Laoma Tihua
4. Hotel USA
5. Give Tomorrow Back to Me
6. Dumbass
Produced by Zuoxiao Zuzhou
Published by Ai Weiwei Studio
Release Date: June 22 2013
[viaIndependent / Salon]
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