The Books have confirmed that they are set to part company and work on separate projects.
The Books were always a band out of time. In a literal sense, Nick Zammuto and Paul de Jong built their music out of an enormous archive of old tapes, recording snippets of conversation from archaic radio shows.
However alongside this, the duo's output made little sense within the wider musical community until the rise of Hypnagogic pop / chillwave. With the cultural setting now ready for The Books, the duo have - logically enough - decided to call it quits.
In an email to Pitchfork Nick Zammuto explained that The Books have come to an end. ”It seems the air has gone out of the Books for the last time" he wrote. "It’s been an extraordinarily painful year coming to the realization that there was no way forward for the band. I love the Books and all that it became, and it still feels strange to me that such an odd little project moved people like it did.”
Refusing to divulge any personal details, Zammuto said: “Right now, going into the details of it does not serve anyone, and I’m still too close to it to talk about it without getting angry.”
“It’s best for it to remain a mystery for a while. I doubt we will work together again, and unfortunately it almost certainly means we will retire the name after these last releases are out.”
Searching through the archives, fans of The Books can expect the band to deliver "a couple LPs worth of B-sides and soundtracks, a box set with the four (Books) records, and an updated DVD later this year."
Nick Zammuto isn't set to remain silent for long, however. The producer is preparing to launch his new project - appropriately titled Zammuto - later this year.
Find out more on the Zammuto project HERE.
