In a world where attention spans are decreasing and the traditional album format is drifting away, it’s easy to become complacent to the same generic formula a lot of pop singles stick to; but not ‘70s experimental post-punk legend Chris Butler who is aiming to write the longest song ever (again).
The guitarist/songwriter played in Ohio outfit The Waitresses in the late ’70 and early ‘80s, most famously penning Christmas Wrapping and I Know What Boys Like before going on to work in a number of other underground and influential bands throughout the scene.
In 1995, Butler produced the world’s longest recorded pop song, The Devil Glitch, which ran for 69 minutes and was accepted by Guinness Book of World Records in 1997.
The 69-minute version was largely due to the technology available at the time, with CDs hindering Butler’s grand plan, so he’s since uploaded a version that runs for four-and-a-half hours, The Major Glitch, and is now running fan-submission project The Infinite Glitch to get the song going for even longer.
The Infinite Glitch is an “infinitely (or at least indefinitely) regenerating stream” that includes original recordings of The Devil Glitch and The Major Glitch among fan submissions, with an automated system randomly sift through and connect parts while new “chunks” are submitted to the database.
There’s an ongoing stream via Butler’s website, with the musician encouraging everyone to get involved, regardless of whether or not they have access to a recording studio, can play an instrument or sing.
“The part that I'd like for you to expand upon is the ending vamp where every lyric line begins, ‘Sometimes you can fix something by...’” Butler’s guidelines read.
“Please remember that a ‘song’ is legally defined in America as having ‘a melody and lyrics’, so please include some variation.”
“I am not a prude, so rough language is not a turn-off...but neither do I wanna get busted for distributing internet obscenity, so use your head about what you say, okay?”
There’s a number of templates and more guidelines available on the Infinite Glitch website.
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