March 16, 2006 14:17

Strokes guitarist works on new project

Nick Valensi helps out an old tourmate

Regina Spektor has collaborated with a member of The Strokes for her upcoming new album.

Guitarist Nick Valensi guests on the track ‘Better’, which will appear on the LP ‘Begin To Hope’, due out on June 12.

"Did I know that I was going to have him play? No," Spektor said of Valensi. "It was like, 'Well, do we know any really cool guitarists?' And then he came in."

The singer supported The Strokes during their ‘Room On Fire’ tour and ‘Begin To Hope’ also sees her hook up with the band’s most recent producer, David Kahne.

"I was able to be more playful because it was such a no-pressure atmosphere," she told Rolling Stone. "It was just the two of us, me and David, and we were just working like on an art project. It was the first time when I really let go."

"(Kahne) recorded my voice in this way I hadn't heard before," she added, "I learned a lot about singing on a record versus at a live show - just like acting onstage versus acting in a film. Recordings are like a domain of miniatures; everything is subtle. And I love the idea of singing every song differently. I look forward to the day where I'll have a record where my fans won't even recognize that half the songs are sung by me."

The album features Spektor introducing electric guitars and drum machines into her songs, and tracks expected to appear on the record include ‘Fidelity’, ‘Apres Moi’ and the fan favourite ‘Samson’, which originally appeared on her 2002 self-release ‘Songs’.

"It all started with the fact that I have, like, 700 songs," Spektor said. "So a couple are really old."

Regina Spektor is set to debut new material on her US tour next month.

The dates are:

Montreal Cabaret Music Hall (April 8)
Boston Axis (9)
Brooklyn Warsaw (11)
Philadelphia Theatre of Living Arts (15)
Washington D.C. 9:30 Club (16)
Toronto the Mod Club (24)
Chicago Martyr's (26)
Minneapolis Ascot Room at the Quest (29)
Boulder Fox Theatre (May 2)
Seattle Chop Suey (7)
Portland Dante's (10)
San Francisco the Independent (13)
Los Angeles El Rey Theatre (16)