Video Premiere: The Gatekeeper's 'The Patron' Feat. The Residents

Keavin Wiggins | 02-13-2023

Cover art

We are pleased to premiere the lyric video for "The Patron Feat. The Residents", the new single from Alex Wroten's avant-opera album "The Gatekeepers."

Here is the official synopsis for the album: "The Gatekeepers" is a concept album created by a collective of 35 experimental musicians and bands, directed by the composer and multi-instrumentalist Alex Wroten.

The album tells the story of the struggles and obstacles faced by creative individuals through 15 songs, with the gatekeepers symbolizing the incompetent and hostile people who make life difficult for them.

The album draws comparison to the work of Kurt Weill, the Canterbury Sound, and Frank Zappa as well as conceptual progressive rock epics such as Genesis' The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway.

Glass Onyon shared this deeper dive into the album: The Gatekeepers is a narrative concept album that explores the whole creative process from beginning to end. In this 12 song (and 3 interlude) cycle, the cynical aspects of marketing art and the pressure to appeal to mainstream audiences are explored, culminating in the battle for artistic freedom. A whimsical and bizarre feel pervades the satisfying blend of progressive and left-field rock, jazz, and folk that accompanies the precise and biting lyric.

The Gatekeepers album creates a captivating musical contrast with a strong DIY lo-fi ethos. Occasionally hypnotic, sometimes turbulent, the eclectic mix is reminiscent of The Lamb Lies Down Broadway, Of Montreal, Kurt Weill, Canterbury prog such as National Health and Hatfield & The North, all with a nod to Zappa.

The album's composer and mastermind Alex Wroten is joined by an array of highly acclaimed and unconventional vocalists to bring the story to life: The Residents, Shawn Phillips, Brian Poole (Renaldo & The Loaf), R. Stevie Moore, Elaine di Falco (Yugen, Caveman Hughscore), Mont Campbell (Egg, National Health), Bob Drake, Amy Denio, Deborah Perry (Thinking Plague) and CHEER-ACCIDENT.

Other performers in this musical's ensemble include: drummers Morgan Agren (Mats/Morgan Band, Frank Zappa), Jacopo Costa (Loomings), Brian Wnukowski (Salvation, Haymarket Riot), Rob Allum (Add N To (X)); guitarists Frédéric L'Epee (Shylock, Philharmonie, Yang), Alan Jenkins (Deep Freeze Mice, Ruth's Refrigerator), Bill Brovold (Larval, Rhys Chatham Ensemble, East Village Orchestra), Paul Lai (Upsilon Acrux), Ty Citerman (Gutbucket); multi-instrumentalists Dave Willey (Hamster Theatre), Robert Webb (England), Dan Britton (Deluge Grander, Birds & Buildings); flautist Emily Hay (U Totem, 5uu's); keyboardist Duncan Mackay (Cockney Rebel, 10cc); violinist Matthew Parmenter (Discipline); and additional vocalists Molly Harvey (The Residents), Wally Scharold (miRthkon), and Blaine Reininger (Tuxedomoon). Find out more about the album here and watch the video below: