Hear Iggy Pop Sardonically Recite Danny Elfman’s ‘Kick Me’

A year after the release of his first solo album in decades, Big Mess, and a few months after his mind-bending appearances at Coachella, Danny Elfman will return with a star-studded remix album, Bigger. Messier. The record, due out Aug. 29, features rejiggered versions of Big Mess songs with guest shots by Trent Reznor, Xiu Xiu, Health and many others. Elfman is introducing it with a new version of “Kick Me,” which now features Iggy Pop.

The original song was a spasmodic, almost stream-of-consciousness aural seizure on which Elfman sings, “Kick me I’m a celebrity, kick me I’m a celebrity/Losers not invited.” The Bigger. Messier. version dials back some of the musical intensity to play up Pop’s super sarcastic reading of the lyrics. Elfman also added jazz horns, which work well when Pop sings, “I love it when you treat me like a scumbag.”

“At the onset of the Bigger. Messier. I asked the same thing of every artist: ‘Express me through your own eyes,’” Elfman said in a statement. “Not only was I surprised at the artists that wanted to participate, but completely blown away by what everyone contributed. There’s a tremendous amount of diversity represented throughout, and I couldn’t be more excited to announce the record with Iggy’s version of ‘Kick Me,’ which not only serves as a reinvention of the song vocally, but instrumentally as well. This record became such an enjoyment of experimentation and relinquishing control of my own work in a way that I’ve never done before.”

The album will be available digitally, as well as on CD and vinyl. The digital edition will contain two extra tracks.

Elfman has previously released several Bigger. Messier. tracks, including versions of “True” and “Native Intelligence” featuring Trent Reznor, and remixes by Kid606 (“Sorry”), Death Grips’ Zach Hill (“Kick Me”), Squarepusher (“We Belong”), and Xiu Xiu (“Serious Ground”).

The artist turned heads at Coachella in April with a stunning, career-spanning set list that included songs from his days fronting Oingo Boingo as well as his iconic themes for TV and movies. “Metal fans got a kick headbanging to tracks from Elfman’s recent solo album Big Mess, while the crowd was universally giddy when he rolled out classic scores like the Simpsons and Batman themes,” Rolling Stone wrote. “It’s hard not to smile hearing an entire crowd gleefully chant, ‘This is Halloween’ in between hip-hop-heavy sets from Megan Thee Stallion and Stromae.”

Bigger. Messier. track list:

1. “We Belong” (Squarepusher Remix)
2. “Happy” (Little Snake Dying in the Club Edition)
3. “Happy” (33EMYBW Remix)
4. “Sorry” (Kid606 Remix)
5. “We Belong” (Rafiq Bhatia Remix)
6. “Kick Me” (Zach Hill Remix)
7. “Insects” (Machine Girl Insecticidal Tendencies Remix)
8. “Serious Ground” (Xiu Xiu Remix)
9. “Cruel Compensation” (The Locust Remix)
10. “Everybody Loves You” (Boris Remix)
11. “True” (feat. Trent Reznor)
12. “In Time” (feat. Blixa Bargeld)
13. “In Time” (Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith Remix)
14. “Native Intelligence” (feat. Trent Reznor)
15. “Kick Me” (feat. Iggy Pop)
16. “Kick Me” (feat. Fever333)
17. “In Time” (HEALTH Remix)
18. “Native Intelligence” (feat. Trent Reznor – Ghostemane Natural Selection Remix)
19. “Happy” (Boy Harsher Remix)
20. “True” (feat. Trent Reznor – Stu Brooks Remix)
21. “Happy” (Little Snake Lunar Climax Edition)
22. “Serious Dub” (Scientist Remix) (Digital Bonus Track)
23. “Happy” (A. Fruit Remix) (Digital Bonus Track)