As part of the release of the tribute compilation 'The Problem of Leisure: A Celebration of Andy Gill and Gang Of Four', Idles have unveiled a re-interpreted cover of the post-punk band's debut single 'Damaged Goods'.
The audio for the track is accompanied by visuals of original art by Damien Hirst, who also designed the album artwork. Idles are long time fans of the early-80s Leeds band, whose guitarist Andy Gill passed away in February last year.
"Gang of Four's influence on the bands that follow is present more than ever today", Idles said of their work on the album. "'Damaged Goods' is a rare unanimous favourite in IDLES. To be asked to reinterpret it is an honour."
The album was originally going to be a project marking the 40th anniversary of the band's album 'Entertainment!' in 2019, but the plans changed by the time he passed.
"Andy was massively excited about this project", his widow Catherine Mayer said in a statement. "It wasn’t of course conceived as a tribute album, but it’s comforting to me that he lived to see artists he hugely admired enthusiastically agreeing to participate, signalling that the admiration was mutual."
Other artists that feature on the album are Tom Morello and Serj Tankian, Gary Numan, La Roux, Everything Everything, The Dandy Warhols, Warpaint, Flea and John Frusciante, and Killing Joke.
'The Problem of Leisure: A celebration of Andy Gill and Gang of Four' is set to be released on June 4th 2021 through Piccadilly Records.