Christmas week at Melophobe is over, and sadly, we must now be a bearer of bad tidings rather than digital presents. The bad news being that Vic Chesnutt died on Christmas Day after overdosing on muscle relaxants earlier in the week.
The Athens, GA based singer-songwriter drew major label attention in the mid-90s around the same time fellow Athenians and big Vic Chesnutt fans R.E.M. were being tendered a record breaking contract and the burgeoning rock underground was becoming increasingly infatuated with Elephant Six Collective groups such as Elf Power and Neutral Milk Hotel. By most accounts, however, Chesnutt was making some of the best music of his career near the end of his life. At the Cut was released last September to strong reviews, and Chesnutt's band featured members of Thee Silver Mt. Zion, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Witchies and Guy Picciotto of Fugazi, who co-produced the album.
So in his honor, click below for a rambling but charming story/acoustic performance of "New Test Leper," a song Stipe wrote, in part, to impress Chesnutt.