Bubblegum XX, a 20th-anniversary edition of Mark Lanegan’s 2004 album Bubblegum, will be released as a 2xLP vinyl reissue of the original album and a 4xLP/3xCD/digital release containing 40 remastered tracks. A dozen of those are previously unreleased, including “Union Tombstone” with Beck and six tracks recorded in various hotel rooms with Lanegan’s Queens Of The Stone Age bandmate Troy Van Leeuwen.
Van Leeuwen shared this statement:
“So these hotel demo sessions were basically forgotten…When I heard the news of Mark’s passing, these memories started rushing back to me. I searched through my archive of drives and somehow magically was able to open up these sessions. I thought to myself, ‘That NEVER happens.’ These ideas couldn’t be more fresh out of the tap. The original rough mixes are a real-time capsule that stands up to the 20 years that have passed. It’s a true gift from Mark to those of us who love him and his unvarnished expression of beauty. With every listen, I am humbled and honored to share his gift with you.”
The larger Bubblegum XX box set contains a 64-page hardcover book with essays by Van Leeuwen, Josh Homme, Chris Goss, Alain Johannes, David Catching, Greg Dulli, Duff McKagan, and Brett Netson along with studio notes and previously unseen photographs by Steve Gullick. It also has an expanded edition of Lanegan’s 2003 EP Here Comes That Weird Chill, billed as Here Comes That Weird Chill (Methamphetamine Blues, Extras & Oddities).
Mark Lanegan’s Bubblegum XX is out on 8/23, 2024 via Beggars Banquet. Pre-order it here.
