Recommended Music

Is this the new longest song in the world? It lasts for 48 hours.

There are a number of songs that profess to be the longest ever, including a bunch of AI-powered composition programs that generate theoretically endless tunes. But that seems to be kind of a cheat because a machine is making the music.

If we look to the Guinness Book of World Records, they have declared that the longest officially released song is “The Noise Militia (#38/76)” by Steve Lieberman, an American performer. It runs 35 hr 41 min 9 sec and was released on 3 December 2020.

Now, though, the Guinness people will have to consider “Song for First Contact” by the Pocket Gods, a British band that has up until now become infamous for releasing about 6,000 songs that are around 30 seconds long. (Guinness is well-acquainted with the Pocket Gods having recognized them in a number of categories for their short songs.)

The new composition ticks along for 48 hours, cut into 16 sections of three hours each. “Song for First Contact”–and yes, it’s inspired by the possibilities of finally coming face-to-face with aliens–will be officially released at the end of the month. But if you want to get a jump on things, it’s already on SoundCloud.

Alan Cross

is an internationally known broadcaster, interviewer, writer, consultant, blogger and speaker. In his 40+ years in the music business, Alan has interviewed the biggest names in rock, from David Bowie and U2 to Pearl Jam and the Foo Fighters. He’s also known as a musicologist and documentarian through programs like The Ongoing History of New Music.

Alan Cross has 37979 posts and counting. See all posts by Alan Cross

One thought on “Is this the new longest song in the world? It lasts for 48 hours.

  • dear Alan–firstly, it is an honor to be mentioned in your article and for introducing me to the music of the Pocket gods.
    my name is Steve Lieberman and yes i hold the current Guinness World for Longest Officially Released Song, ‘The Noise Militia (#38/76)’. The recording of the song , at least the first 35.41.09 took 18 months in which time my leukemia was terminal and was in home hospice when i started , but discharged when they found out of this very physically taxing project. additionally i tragically lost both my wife and oldest daughter during this time.

    all that being said i must said, playing 18+ instruments and singing this long fusion of noise punk, thrash metal and military music, i must say that providing all the evidence to Guinness was actually more tiring. it included the giving of a 65-page lyric sheet, numerous videos of my recording process and documentation of the recording schedule. the process took 7 months but i got the award and that was amazing officially. however, i kept going with the next epic, ‘The Post-Militia Pogo=Battalion’, which now is up to 68 opuses and runs an additional 21-hours and yes i’m still working it. i won’t stop because this is nothing short of a miracle that i could still do this.at this rate in a few weeks, this will run over the 48-hours of ‘song of first contact’

    Alan–thanks for listening . you are one of the best

    Reply

Let us know what you think!

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.