DOWNLOAD: Ima Robot - "Ruthless"

With the rise of Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, I assumed that Alex Ebert's previous project Ima Robot was dead. Pleasantly surprised to be wrong, Ima Robot's third disc, Another Man's Treasure, comes out October 19th on guitarist Tim Anderson's Werewolf Heart Records.

“Here we are again- or, more accurately, here we aim to be. What we offer here is a collection of songs from the end of an era. Most were recorded between 2 and 4 years ago, a time when none of us were sure what our band was, a time of transition. We feel they make an album- and, perhaps, the proper eulogy and remembrance of a band that was- and the twinkling of a band to come.” –Ima Robot frontman Alex Ebert

Check out "Skate & Create" video below which was directed by Spike Jonze and features two Ima Robot songs from their forthcoming CD.



There is a humility and honesty to Another Man’s Treasure that reflects a bond that only time and experience can create. Be it the background chatter making the cut or the handmade percussion that powers many of the songs, you will hear creative intimacy of the most comfortable sort. Yet, warmth aside, this is no light fare! When the devastating "Rough Night" morphs from an electronic dirge into aggressive noise and then dead ends as a ticking clock, it is as jolting as anything you will hear this year. Still, amidst the sometimes bleak surface, there are slivers of light; the swirling swish of "Sail With Me”, the hopeful plea of "Shine Shine" and the album's final words: "love will lead us home."

IMAR took to the California desert to shoot the album art with photographer Hama Sanders in early May. They transported souvenirs from IMAR’s past such as instruments and old merch, fusing them with personal items: family photos, letters and such. They arranged them on the desert floor as a survey of their collected past, cloaked by a bright blue sky. Ironically, on that trip whilst scouting for photo locations, the band came across various small towns virtually devastated by the financial crisis. Following a dirt road that seeming led to the middle of nowhere, they came upon what appeared to be an entire family’s abandoned belongings. Report cards, a television and even a boat. It was poignant to realize these were likely prized possessions, treasures even at some point, and with that realization the album titled itself: Another Man’s Treasure.

Links:
Ima Robot