25 years after releasing “I’m Nothing” off their sixth LP New Times, the Violent Femmes have rerecorded the track for their upcoming album Hotel Last Resort, out July 26th via PIAS.
Featuring pro skateboarder and artist Stefan Janoski, the track is a much more fervent take on the original, complete with frontman Gordon Gano’s raucous strums and jarring vocals. “Are you a republican or a democrat/A liberal fascist full of crap/I’m nothin,’” he sings. “‘I’m Nothing’ explores the modern conundrum of people needing to attach labels to other human beings,” bassist Brian Ritchie said in a statement. “We refute that in human terms and also with our music.”
The collaboration with Janoski came about when the skateboarder approached the band about teaming up for a skate shoe on his famous Nike SB line. The shoe will feature Janoski’s artwork accompanied by “I’m Nothing” in his handwriting. The left shoe will read VIOLENT while the other shoe reads FEMMES. Seems like a pair of shoes Angela Chase would wear.
“I’m Nothing” is the second track the band has released from Hotel Last Resort — they released the title track, recorded with Television’s Tom Verlaine, last spring. The Femmes will hit the road on a co-headlining tour with Ben Folds on July 28th in Uncasville, Connecticut at Mohegan Sun Arena, playing festivals across the U.S. through August and wrapping up on September 14th at the Meyer Theater in Green Bay, Wisconsin.