Artist Bonnie "Prince" Billy

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Bonnie "Prince" Billy

Will Oldham—a.k.a. Bonnie “Prince” Billy—has always been insanely prolific, but his résumé has gotten downright ridiculous over the past several years: He’s collaborated with Tortoise, Björk, Scout Niblett, Matt Sweeney, Sage Francis, Mark Kozelek, and Dawn McCarthy of Faun Fables, among others. And there was his lead performance in the 2006 movie Old Joy, not to mention his popping up on Wonder Showzen and opposite Zach Galifianakis in the alternate video for Kanye West’s “Can’t Tell Me Nothing.” It’s easy to imagine Oldham’s solo work being diverted or diluted by all of the extracurricular activity, but last year’s Lie Down In The Light featured some of the best songs of his career. He just released another album, Beware, and it’s pretty stunning, too.

Updated 02/04/2010