New Body Rhumba

Album: White Noise soundtrack (2022)
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Songfacts®:

  • LCD Soundsystem created "New Body Rhumba" for the soundtrack of the Netflix film White Noise. Directed by Noah Baumbach, the movie is an adaptation of the 1985 Don DeLillo novel of the same name. White Noise deals with the fear and denial of death, and on the song, group leader James Murphy vents about the aging process. During the thunderous outro, Murphy sings of "an escape into the sky, into the stars" as he gives in to death.
  • Murphy co-wrote the seven-minute-plus track in tandem with his LCD Soundsystem colleagues Pat Mahoney (drums) and Nancy Whang (keyboards).
  • Murphy's production utilizes a sinister groove in a similar vein to LCD Soundsytem's classic dance-punk tunes of the 2000s.
  • The song steps away from the associated film with some attacks on consumerism. Whang contributes rhythmic brand-worship chants of "Pana, sonic" and "Necco mini 'nilla wafers" as she mocks the capitalist desire for wanting more. A shouty backing choir joins her and Murphy on the track.
  • Murphy has long been a fan of Baumbach's work and he scored two of the director's previous films: 2010's Greenberg and 2014's While We're Young. Their friendship and past collaborations led Baumbach to approach the LCD Soundsystem mainman to create an original song for White Noise's soundtrack.
  • LCD Soundsystem released "New Body Rhumba" as a digital single on September 30, 2022. It marks the band's first original material since their 2017 American Dream album.
  • LCD Soundsystem gave "New Body Rhumba"' its live debut during the November 15, 2022 episode of The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, where the band performed the song beneath a large disco ball.

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