Laurie Anderson Finishes 'Homeland' Thanks to Husband Lou Reed's Impatience

Laurie Anderson might still be working on her new album, 'Homeland,' without a push from her husband, Lou Reed. After developing material for the album, a mix of personal and political pieces, during live performances around the world, Anderson faced digging through literally tens of thousands of tracks when she returned home -- an overwhelming task she on which she made scant progress until Reed stepped in.

"I really would sit there all day, tinkering with a violin line, like two bars of it. I'm easily entertained," Anderson tells Spinner. "I'd still be doing that this afternoon unless he said, 'I'm sick of your complaining.'"

Reed helped her sort through the wealth of material, and wasn't shy about telling her when he thought a song was complete.

"He would say, 'Be there until you're finished,' and I was like, 'Um, OK, I guess that's good,'" Anderson says. "But it was fantastic, because really good producers can move you along. He'd listen to something and say, 'That's done. Let's go on.' I'd say, 'But this is not done,' and he'd say, 'It's done. Let's move on.' It was really, really great working with him."

Reed wasn't her only collaborator. Antony Hegarty, John Zorn, Kieran Hebden of Four Tet, Tuvan throat singers and even her dog, Lolabelle, contributed to 'Homeland.'

"She's a rat terrier and when she got very advanced cancer, we got someone to take care of her and she said, 'I taught my dogs to play piano,' so I said, 'Teach our dog!'" Anderson says with a chuckle. "Our dog has been playing piano for a year, and she's a fantastic player, actually. She does notes and chords. She kind of walks up and down the keyboard once in a while, which a lot of keyboard players don't do."

'Homeland' is out now via Nonesuch.