Carl Sagan wrote in his book, Pale Blue Dot, "Think of the rivers of blood spilled by all those generals and emperors so that, in glory and triumph, they could become the momentary masters of a fraction of a dot." This image, of massive actions being reduced to their fractional universal significance, inspired Albert Hammond Jr.'s latest album's title, Momentary Masters. The LP comes eight years after his last ¿Cómo Te Llama? EP. After spending the last few years sobering up after an explosive career with The Strokes and a destructive relationship with substances, Momentary Masters expresses a moment of clarity. It travels through bubbling melodies with guitar riffs that would make The Strokes weep and includes some of the strongest songwriting in Hammond Jr.'s career: he's asking the big questions on death, success, and teetering on the edge of it all.
In preparing for the album, Hammond Jr. collected philosophical bits and pieces that add a poignancy to his sunny guitar lines. The music video for "Losing Touch" was inspired from The Seventh Seal, a Swedish film about a medieval knight who challenges death to a game of chess. He also cites confessional poet Anne Sexton (also a muse for Morrissey and Peter Gabriel) as an inspiration, introduced to him by a friend who later passed away. Less philosophical and more bitterly comical is the angry voicemail which provided the opening line of the album. It comes from a woman accusing Hammond Jr.'s wife of sleeping with her husband - something Hammond Jr. says didn't happen. It seems like a hodgepodge of influences, but it's communicated in streamlined and inventive melodies.
Hear Albert Hammond Jr. perform a few songs from Momentary Masters with his new touring band in the studio.
Setlist
See Albert Hammond Jr. perform two nights at the Bowery Ballroom September 21 and 22.