Dirty Projectors – Uninhabitable Earth, Paragraph One

Dirty Projectors’ latest release, Uninhabitable Earth, Paragraph One, introduces listeners to the sweeping, layered soundscape of Song of the Earth, a bold song cycle for orchestra and voices composed by David Longstreth. Set for full release on April 4, 2025, via Transgressive Records, this project marks Longstreth’s most ambitious foray into concert music.

Performed by Dirty Projectors—David Longstreth, Felicia Douglass, Maia Friedman, and Olga Bell—alongside the Berlin-based chamber orchestra s t a r g a z e, the album is a tapestry of collaboration. Contributors include Phil Elverum (Mount Eerie), Steve Lacy, Patrick Shiroishi, Anastasia Coope, Tim Bernardes, Ayoni, Portraits of Tracy, and David Wallace-Wells.

The origins of Song of the Earth lie in the turbulence of 2020, as Longstreth navigated the chaos of the pandemic, California wildfires, and the existential weight of impending fatherhood. This potent mix of disorientation and urgency catalyzed six weeks of manic writing, followed by years of meticulous revision. The result is a cycle that blends beauty and devastation, acknowledgement and hope, and irony and rage—a reflection of a fractured world.

While Song of the Earth draws thematic inspiration from Gustav Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde, Longstreth emphasizes that it is not a climate change opera. Instead, it channels Mahler’s spirit of contradiction while forging its path.

This project also underscores Longstreth’s versatility, spanning collaborations with Solange, Björk, and Kanye West to recent film scores and production credits. Meanwhile, s t a r g a z e, under the direction of André de Ridder, continues to bridge classical and popular music, making them ideal collaborators for this ambitious endeavor.