‘Historien om det hele’ is published March 17th

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The book written by Kristian Leth and world-renowned evolutionary biologist Eske Willerslev called ‘Historien om det hele – Fortællinger om magi og videnskab’ (‘The Story of Everything – Tales of Magic and Science’) is out March 17th from Danish publisher People’s Press.

The book is based on years of discussions between writer, artist and thinker Leth and top scientist Willerslev – dealing with the experience of the supernatural, the history of ideas, animism as a valid world view and the limits of science.

None of them claim to have all the answers, but together they argue for a coherent, more open world view, where faith and rationalism do not exclude each other.

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Recording in Brooklyn for new album

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Atlantic Sound Studio in Gowanus, Brooklyn was the framework for an intense week of recording for Kristian Leth’s new solo album.

Recordings were with a full band, featuring Nikolaj Busk and Ale Carr from Dreamers’ Circus, drummer Ray Belli who is in the band Arc Iris, cellist Claire Bryant who normally plays with the Decoda Ensemble, Moogie Johnson of Chorus Grant and Lasse Boman fra Shaka Loveless‘ band.

Diko Shoturma was engineering the entire thing.

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Pelota II premieres at CPH:DOX with soundtrack by Kristian Leth

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about the movie: Pelota II

The ball game pelota is the pride of the Basques. A game borne by ancient traditions and kept alive with a passion that Jørgen Leth already in 1983 paid tribute to in his first film about Basque sport and culture. ‘Pelota II’ is the result of a creative collaboration with the local filmmaker Olatz Gonzalez, who shares an obvious passion with Leth not just for sport, but also for the poetry in the culture around it.

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Album 2015 goes straight to #1 on iTunes

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Due to some delay with the iTunes approval process, Album 2015 didn’t get into the iTunes search system until June 25th. But when it did, the crowd funded podcast went straight to the #1 position, proving that the demand was real and quite large.

Album 2015 is a podcast about “the world’s best albums”. Music critic Ralf Christensen and writer and musician Kristian Leth go through their favorite albums in their entirety, while dispensing biographical details, personal stories and philosophical notes about the musicians behind the music and the impact of the album on culture.

After two seasons on Danish National Broadcasting, Album became a cult phenomenon. So when it wasn’t continued the two hosts decided to ask for the public’s help. In 2015 they gathered more than $20,000 via Kickstarter.

Find it on iTunes here.

‘Possession’ airs on KCRW’s UnFictional

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“I once saw a woman possessed right in front of me. Her eyes glazed over, she shook, and she wasn’t there anymore… someone else was.”

A 26-minute documentary by Kristian Leth was produced for and aired on KCRW’s UnFictional.

Check it out here or get it in iTunes here.

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Here’s the text from UnFictional’s website.

In Haiti, vodou takes many forms. It is their folk religion, an integral pillar in society and a way of life. Spirit possession, sacrifice and ancestral magic are parts of vodou’s DNA. One night when Kristian Leth was 19 years old, he says he met vodou spirits in Haiti. He says they possessed a woman in his father’s house, and proceeded to talk to him – through her – for several hours. 15 years later, Kristian goes back to Haiti to visit his father, to learn more about vodou and possession and to ask the question: What happened that night?

Produced by Kristian Leth. Edited by Nick White and Bob Carlson.

Kristian Leth is an award-winning musician, a poet and writer from the Danish Academy and a Prix Italia-winning radio producer and journalist.

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All photos by Yuri Horowitz.

Album 2015 launches in Denmark

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Danish media history was written when Kristian Leth and Ralf Christensen raised almost 125.000 Danish kroner (around 20.000 USD) for 10 new Album shows. And now the first shows are launching via thelakeradio.com and will be available through iTunes and other podcast apps.

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The 10 albums that will be featured on the new shows are:

  • Velvet Underground: ‘Velvet Underground & Nico’
  • Laurie Anderson: ‘Big Science’
  • Neil Young: ‘Harvest’
  • The Jimi Hendrix Experience: ‘Electric Ladyland’
  • Depeche Mode: ‘Violator’
  • Alice Coltrane: ‘Journey Into Satchidananda’
  • Leonard Cohen: ‘Songs of Leonard Cohen’
  • The Clash: ‘London Calling’
  • Fleetwood Mac: ‘Rumours’
  • Milton Nascimento: ‘Clube De Esquina’