Quazar and the Bamboozled have shared a live performance video of “Burning Down the House,” made in collaboration with Altadena Musicians. The org’s founder Brandon Jay (a.k.a Quazar) led a collective of performers impacted by the fires through a high-energy rendition of the Talking Heads classic, which is featured as the closing track on FLOOD’s Gimme Shelter: Songs for LA Fire Relief benefit comp. Which is out today!
The track and video were recorded at Pierre de Reeder from Rilo Kiley’s studio. “I was so glad to be able to contribute to this,” de Reeder shares. “Being able to help Brandon out and host so many fire-affected folks, bringing their talents together for a very cathartic recording of ‘Burning Down the House,’ was very special. Also happy that we were able to contribute a Rilo Kiley track, as well [to the comp].”
“I lost my house and recording studio in the Eaton Canyon fire,” Jay revealed via S.W. Lauden’s Substack, Remember the Lightning. “Talking Heads’ ‘Burning Down the House’ started running through my head as soon as I got the news that our house was completely gone. I played the song for my kids while we were driving back to LA for the first time after evacuating and I told them this was going to be our family’s theme song. Quazar and the Bamboozled played in LA after the fire and we performed the song live with my kids joining in. It felt like my way of taking the power away from the horrible thing that just happened to us.”
Contributors to the track include Pasadena musical theater students, Irina Voloshina of the Pasadena Symphony on violin, Ursula Collision on musical saw, John Mader on steel drum, composer Gwendolyn Sanford on kazoo, and Center Theater Group’s music director David O on piano. The track was produced by Rich Mouser, who also lost his home and studio in Altadena, with strings and horns arranged by Daniel Brummel (who also contributes a stirring cover of Rufus Wainwright’s “Going to a Town” on the comp in collaboration with Rachel Haden).
The Gimme Shelter album additionally features 18 rare and previously unreleased tracks from Elliott Smith, The Flaming Lips, Norah Jones, Local Natives, Chromeo, Dawes, CSS, J Mascis, and more. The album features original artwork by Shepard Fairey, with 100 percent of net proceeds benefiting Los Angeles wildfire recovery.
The launch party for Gimme Shelter takes place tonight, December 16, at 5 p.m. at Amoeba Records in Hollywood. The event will include the opportunity for attendees to win amazing prizes from Amoeba and Shepard Fairey. Read more about the event here, and order Gimme Shelter: Songs for LA Fire Relief here. For a limited time, we’re also offering a discounted bundle with FLOOD’s special tenth anniversary print edition and the Gimme Shelter album for $50 here ($35.98 from each bundle sale directly supports wildfire relief efforts in Altadena and Pacific Palisades).
Check out the clip for “Burning Down the House”—filmed and edited by Rick Ballard for Quiet Films—below.
