Los Angeles, CA – As the producer behind some of the most groundbreaking electronic and alternative music of the ‘80s, ‘90s & beyond, including such iconic acts as Depeche Mode, Nine Inch Nails, Cocteau Twins, Swans, Fad Gadget, and many others, John Fryer has been an instrumental force in pushing the boundaries of musical creativity. His work with the venerated 4AD label led to the creation of This Mortal Coil, the all-star musical supergroup co-helmed by 4AD founder Ivo Watts-Russel, which showed that Fryer had a talent for bringing his own artistic visions to life as well. And now Fryer has returned to one of his most potent and ambitious musical projects to date, the dark electronic Black Needle Noise. Since launching in 2016, BNN has been all about the spirit of collaboration having already featured contributions from Swans vocalist Jarboe, Front Line Assembly’s Bill Leeb, Mimi Page and others. The latest effort is a unique and unforgettable version of Louis Armstrong’s classic “What A Wonderful World” featuring vocalist Tom Berger.

Fryer explains the concept behind his reinvention, saying “I have always loved the Louis Armstrong version of ‘Wonderful World’ from when I heard it as a child and it has stayed with me ever since. So I wanted to make a very different cinematic version, a very depressingly apocalyptic version with an uplifting feel. I thought of Tom Berger, my friend for many a year to sing it and I think he has done an amazing job to convey those haunting sentiments.”

Meanwhile, Berger declares “For me it was a real challenge to sing the vocals of a classical piece of music. After John sent me the instrumental version I thought it wasn’t possible – How can I transform such a fragile and innocent melody into such a massive wall of sound? And that was the thing: I sang it like I’d never heard the 1967 original. The result is not just a cover – it’s something new – and I’m very proud of the final result.”

Stream the single: https://orcd.co/black_needle_noise_what_a_wonderful_world

BNN’s version of “What A Wonderful World” has been brought to life in a stunning video directed by Christoph Vitt & Alex Makarov. 

Watch the video here: https://youtu.be/xLcN9Kmn3Q0

And this is just the beginning – Fryer has been readying a new Black Needle Noise album for 2021 called These Mortal Covers that will feature all-new versions of well-known songs including the recently released Black Crowes’ cover “She Talks To Angels.”