"Souris Calle" - Various Artists
Album
U2 Related Content:
- "Message to Souris" (Album Version) - Bono / U2 (02:09)
Background Information
French artist Sophie Calle put together a compilation of artists about her dead cat, Souris. Souris means “mouse” in English. The album is made up of 37 tracks including artists like Bono, Michael Stipe of REM, The National, and Pharrell Williams, among a number of well known French artists. The album itself is part of Calle’s exhibit at the Perrotin gallery in Paris, which includes text and photographs by Calle, not just about the death of her cat, but also of close friends and family. The exhibit is being displayed at the Perrotin gallery in Paris in October.
The track that Bono contributes is recorded so that it sounds like he is leaving a message on an answering machine to Souris. We hear someone’s message on an answer phone. Then we hear Bono speak and say “Souris, ce Bono ici” (Souris, it’s Bono here) and then the poem starts. The poem that Bono reads is not one that he has composed himself, but rather one by Rainer Maria Rilke called “Black Cat”. The backing music behind the poetry reading is U2’s “An Cat Dubh” (which translates to “The Black Cat”) from the album Boy. At the end of the track as it fades out we hear Bono again saying “I think that worked”. Although it is made to sound like an answering machine call, the backing music is clearly professionally mixed into the back of the track. The song is contributed to Bono on the album, but some online sites are crediting the track to U2.
The track was released on digital sites on October 13, 2018, including storefronts such as Qobuz where the track could be purchased, as well as streaming sites such as Spotify.
Two physical copies of the album are available through the gallery itself. A limited edition triple vinyl album in coloured vinyl and limited to 900 copies is being sold through the gallery. The three vinyl are white, pink and black, and feature images of Souris in the artwork. A more limited version of the album, limited to just 100 copies, includes a special 45 rpm disc including an additional song and spoken text by Sophie Calle, a wooden frame, and a USB containing the digital version of the 45RPM disc. Each of the 100 copies are signed by the artist. Between the two versions 1000 copies are available, and all are numbered.
Liner Notes
Message to Souris:
Bono, Main Artist – U2, Composer, Lyricist Copyright : Perrotin Perrotin