Reunion Album In The Works For Iggy And The Stooges

05/03/06 6:30pm

by Eva Lampert (CHARTattack)

Iggy Pop and his former band The Stooges are working on their first album since 1973's legendary Raw Power.

The album has yet to be titled, but it will be produced by Steve Albini (Nirvana, The Pixies) and White Stripe and Raconteur, Jack White. Virgin will release the record next year.

"All the same passions and problems are there," the 59-year-old Pop told Billboard.com of what it was like to write songs with guitarist Ron Asheton and his drummer brother Scott. "But the problems are in a more muted style.

"We experimented a lot. We'd have these get-togethers every two or three months for four or five days and bang out some stuff. As time went on it started to sound more and more like us."

The Stooges formed in Detroit in 1967 and, along with such bands as the MC5 and The Velvet Underground, were the forerunners of the punk rock movement that followed in the '70s. They were never a commercial success, but their three albums (1969's The Stooges, 1970's Fun House and Raw Power) are now viewed as influential classics. James Williamson and Ron Asheton both played guitar in the band at different times, but Asheton will handle that role in the 21st century version of the group. Minutemen bassist Mike Watt has been handling bass duties.

A reunion tour is also being planned. The Stooges have played select festivals and one-off performances since first reuniting in 2003, but a major tour is being planned to showcase the new material and old warhorses like "I Wanna Be Your Dog," "No Fun," "Loose" and "Search And Destroy." The only performance confirmed so far will be at the U.K.'s Thurston Moore-curated Nightmare Before Christmas festival in December.