photo manipulation & text by nacrowe
i took this PHOTOGRAPHY CLASS my senior year. it was at a public school in a SACRAMENTO suburb that my uncle taught at and i was there in the wake of 9/11 as my family decided it was better for me not to be with them in KUWAIT during that tense GEOPOLITICAL MOMENT. i remember being beside myself with boredom in this class and feeling ISOLATED. there was this assignment i had to complete which entailed taking someone's portrait. now at the time i didnt know anybody so i turned that relative ANONYMITY to my advantage. right before the shutter opened id gently toss a candy bar or tennis ball i stole from physical ed at my subject. what i got were these looks of genuine SURPRISE and/or FEAR in my photographs. funny enough i won an award for them at the end of the year.
THE INCOMPARABLE ROSE HARTMAN (GRAVITAS VENTURES, 2016) follows the NOTORIOUS celebrity photographer ROSE HARTMAN, known for her ability to take exquisitely COMPOSED and EMOTIVE photographs under less-than-stellar lighting conditions at OPENINGS, GALAS and PRIVATE PARTIES, some she was invited to and others not so much. in some ways her objective was not dissimilar than my own, capturing that PERFECT MOMENT when the subject has UNVEILED themselves and made apparent, however briefly, their TRUE SELVES and not some PREPARED MASK or PRACTICED PUBLIC PERSONA. the details of the NYC NIGHTCLUB, GLITERATI and HIGH SOCIETY events is not something i find terribly interesting or COMPELLING, but the idea of subterfuge and pressing forth into EXCLUSIVE SPACES where one was not invited to capture a FLEETING MOMENT perfectly seems absolutely THRILLING. it should be noted that HARTMAN is not a member of the PAPARAZZI in that she is not looking to embarrass, diminish or expose her subject for short term gain in a low-brow tabloid. she is much more interested in documenting the nighttime FANTASY WORLD that she has come to term the "CHIFFON JUNGLE" of which she is involved in but a exactly a part of. its quite an INTERESTING dynamic at play. the other COMPELLING dynamic on fully display throughout the documentary is her unrelentingly DOMINATING personality. HARTMAN comes off as a force of nature as she browbeats the director as well as revelers at her own showing, making sure full well that she and her work at the forefront of everyone's attention. its a personality quirk that is easy to mock and betrays some deep need for CONFIRMATION, as if controlling people is a substitute for AFFECTION. there is something DISTURBING and even TRAGIC about that dynamic, as if HEISENBERG's UNCERTAINTY PRINCIPLE is put into practice in the SOCIAL SPHERE, i.e. she can affect people's behavior but at the core is still on the periphery never really connecting in any sort of INTIMATE sense. ive looked through her work and it is beyond INCREDIBLE, almost HENRI CARTIER-BRESSON-esque in capturing that "DECISIVE MOMENT." its just at what price? it all feels like a distraction from some deep UNSPOKEN personal TRAUMA.
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photo manipulation & text by nacrowe
its difficult for me to watch the highly AFFECTING GOODNIGHT BROOKLYN - THE STORY OF DEATH BY AUDIO (GRAVITAS VENTURES, 2016) documentary, it being a lovingly INTIMATE eulogy to a performance space that brought CULTURE, JOY, MUSIC, ART and COMMUNITY in a DILAPIDATED WILLIAMSBURG warehouse to a new generation of MUSIC fans, and not think of the similar real estate-related demise of my cousin's nearby [the end] recording studio in nearby GREENPOINT. in both cases the property values went to high for landlords not to convert the land into high-end retail office and/or residential buildings. if anything, both facilities were playing with borrowed time.
i learned about DEATH BY AUDIO via their TOTAL SONIC ANNIHILATION guitar pedal that i heard about but couldnt secure until i took a trip up to MAIN DRAG MUSIC in WILLIAMSBURG. the pedal basically sends the signal back into the previous chain and all i knew was that combined with my PROCO RAT and DIGITECH WHAMMY pedals it made everything sound like an ornery pterodactyl in its final death throes. i still love that pedal. at the time i knew nothing about the band A PLACE TO BURY STRANGERS or their headquarters which doubled as the focal point for DEATH BY AUDIO's manufacturing efforts or the INFLUENTIAL performance space that shared the same name. GOODNIGHT BROOKLYN basically documents the final few weeks of the DEATH BY AUDIO performance space and showcases the ART and MUSIC that made it such a VITAL part of the BROOKLYN CULTURAL scene for its 2007-2014 run. it very much concerns itself with two main threads. the first and far and away the most important is the scene itself that the nonprofit live venue integrated and ingratiated itself into, as manifested by the quality of the EXPERIMENTAL bands DEERHOOF, THEE OH SEES, GROOMS, LIGHTNING BOLT, FUTURE ISLANDS, LES SAVY FAV, PROTOMARTYR, DAN DEACON, JEFF THE BROTHERHOOD, TY SEGAL BAND and (of course) A PLACE TO BURY STRANGERS that played there over the last few weeks as a proper send off to the venue and the COMMUNITY DEATH BY AUDIO built. likewise interview participants for this film ranged from various former EMPLOYEES, music JOURNALISTS and AUTHORS (BILL PEARIS, MICHAEL AZERRAD), as well as PROMINENT MUSICIANS (KYP MALONE, SAM HERRING, LAUREN STERN, BRIAN CHIPPENDALE and TY SEGALL) , ARTISTS (NICK KUSZYK) and local CONCERT PROMOTERS (TODD P). all make self-evident the impact of the whole venture. the second thread deals with VICE MEDIA, who while expanding their reach soon after its influx of major capital investment in 2013 form the likes of RUPERT MURDOCH and DISNEY, decided to rent out the building and effective push DEATH BY AUDIO out. VICE likened itself as an outsider publication that had its ear to the CULTURAL UNDERGROUND. its lost on no one that by snuffing out DEATH BY AUDIO they were effectively smothering an artistic and musical DIY COMMUNITY that they were supposedly championing. safe to say that if you take money from the likes of FOX NEWS executives, you have no credibility or cultural urrency to effectuate any change and are essentially a vulture. but such is BROOKLYN. and NEW YORK real estate in general going back to the likes of JACKSON POLLOCK in CHELSEA. cheep rent and real estate cycles are what draw artists into new COMMUNITIES which are in turn swallowed up by the money and investment set. no more CBGBs. no more DEATH BY AUDIO. same story, different decade. its PAINFUL nonetheless. when [the end] closed it very much took a toll on my cousin. a few years later when the physical building was demolished it left a deep PSYCHIC and EMOTIONAL scar i have no doubt, even though his POSITIVE temperament and default mode was to push forward and seek out new opportunities elsewhere. the DEATH BY AUDIO pedal company moved to QUEENS and is still very much part of a new breed of mutually SUPPORTIVE boutique small pedal manufacturers such as EARHQUAKER DEVICES, OLD BLOOD NOISE ENDEAVOURS, MR BLACK, CHASE BLISS, JHS PEDALS, WALRUS AUDIO and so on. it may be me, but i feel that this CREATIVE network of like-minded, EXPLORATORY sound engineers carries the same DNA of the celebrated former performance space. although technically in competition, these brands all seemingly promote each other via their social media accounts. venues come and go, but for me that sense of COMMUNITY and LOVE of NOVEL ART and MUSIC for its own sake is the cool lasting legacy of DEATH BY AUDIO. you really get the sense that their pedals are tools for nurturing and promoting future CREATIVITY and independent SELF-EXPRESSION out in the ether. just pushing that EMPATHETIC energy forward. its a good thing. photo & text by nacrowe
not sure why but i recently watched the documentary DYE HARD (SKY ISLAND, 2022), which effectively promotes the idea of TIE DYEING shirts and related paraphernalia as an ARTISTIC recruit worthy of COMPETITION and critical assessment. going into this film i was more than SKEPTICAL but then i am the wrong demographic. i have never owned a TIE DYED shirt or had any inclination to procure one, furthermore i am not a fan of PHISH, THE GRATEFUL DEAD, WIDESPREAD PANIC, MOE. or THE STRING CHEESE INCIDENT despite having been in and around VERMONT during my FORMATIVE years as an underclassman in high school. i was exposed to the MUSIC, DRUGS and SUBCULTURE and promptly rejected all of it. including the TIE DYE.
but on some level what interests me about this brief film is the ARTISTRY and TECHNIQUE, specifically the MATH involved, to create DIZZYING MANDALAS and impossibly COMPLEX FRACTAL PATTERNS by hand. the idea that you spend up 8, 10 or 20 hours preparing a shirt, tying it up with varying materials and dousing it in specifically procured DYES and PROPRIETARY chemical solutions, only to have a rolled out canvas that is largely a MYSTERY is particularly FASCINATING. DYE HARD, which i must admit is a great title, AGGRESIVELY attempts to promote specific ARTISTS that are a part of the COMPETITION at the focus of the film. the fact that some take TIE DYEING very seriously above and beyond a hobby is more than a bit COUNTERINTUITIVE, especially given the ANTI-COMMERCIAL ETHOS of the JAM bands that support such designs for decades. the COMPETITIVE ego-driven CAPITALIST mindset that has set in for a few of these ARTISTS is more than a little JARRING and UNFORTUNATE, since undoubtedly the vibe of the COMMUNITY at large is one of mutual COLLABORATION and SUPPORTIVE and EMPATHETIC COMMUNICATION. then again, some of the most SUCCESSFUL VENTURE CAPIRALISTS in SILICON VALLEY have long been deadheads so maybe that ETHOS was BULLSHIT all along. probably. others look at the competition as a family reunion where they get to share their art with close FRIENDS, COLLEAGUES and potential future COLLABORATORS. definitely a compelling look at an EMERGING SUBCULTURE that since the pandemic has found new interest from a younger generation that has already innovated on TECHNIQUE, materials and overall ARTISTIC COMPLEXITY. all that being said, i would still not be caught dead wearing one of these rainbow monstrosities. photo & text by nacrowe
its always COMPELLING to learn about the INDUSTRY GATEKEEPERS that had a demonstrative impact influencing and effectively curating AMERICAN culture for a period, be they RODNEY BINGENHEIMER of 106.7FM KROQ in LOS ANGELES in the 1970s/1980s/1990s or MARCO COLLINS of 107.7FM KNDD THE END in SEATTLE in the 1990s. these DJs are in essence force-multipliers who communicate novel sounds and new artists to a much wider audience, essentially giving permission for bigger entities like MTV or national radio to add them to the rotation. in a pre-internet age, these GATEKEEPERS were incredibly POWERFUL and BINGENHEIMER and COLLINS cultivated such influence by staying true to their ears and sense of tase. this in the face of the industry practice of PAYOLA whereby RECORD LABELS courted RADIO STATIONS and program directors with massive amounts of money for airtime, which had been a thing going back to the 1930s. such was still the case with the competition for both BINGENHEIMER and COLLINS.
as someone who has a regular INTERNET RADIO SHOW on a much lower scale, i can assure you having that sort of EMPATHY and capacity to lock in with emerging cultural movement is a RARE gift. scratch that, an extremely rare gift. the recent documentary THE GLAMOUR & THE SQUALOR (ORANJE FILMS, 2015) follows the COMPLICATED LIFE and impactful career trajectory of celebrated SEATTLE DJ MARCO COLLINS who in essence gave emerging local bands in the early 1990s their first radio exposure. current and past local bands like SOUNDGARDEN, DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE, SEAWEED, ALICE IN CHAINS, HARVEY DANGER, SCREAMING TREES, PEARL JAM, SUNNY DAY REAL ESTATE, MUDHONEY, THE PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA and NIRVANA as well as national acts like BECK, THE CHEMICAL BROTHERS, WEEZER, EVERCLEAR, THE CRYSTAL METHOD and GARBAGE and even international acts THE PRODIGY and DAFT PUNK. participants in this documentary include everyone from musicians like CARRIE BROWNSTEIN (SLEATER-KINNEY, WHITE FLAG), SHIRLEY MANSON (GARBAGE), MIKE MCREADY (PEARL JAM, MAD SEASON), PATTY SCHEMEL (HOLE), BEN GIBBARD (DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE, THE POSTAL SERVICE) SEAN NELSON (HARVEY DANGER) and MACKLEMORE to MUSIC WRITERS and JOURNALISTS like MATT PINFIELD (120 MINUTES) and CHARLES R CROSS (HEAVIER THAN HEAVEN, ROOM FULL OF MIRRORS) as well as RECORD EXECUTIVES such as DEBI LIBETZ (EPIC RECORDS), MIKE TIERNEY (EPIC RECORDS), SUSIE TENNANT (GEFFEN RECORDS), SCOTT PERLEWITZ (SUB POP RECORDS) and ERROL KOLOSINE (ASTRELWERKS, CAROLINE RECORDS) among other INDUSTRY VETERANS. all that aside, one aspect of this film i was particularly struck by was the argument that COLLINS' HOMOSEXUALITY gave him a sort of OUTSIDER STATUS that enabled him in his PROFESSION. it was almost an UNEXPECTED and UNINTENTIONAL competitive advantage in the sense that his very perspective and formative experiences as a GAY MAN surrounded by HOMOPHOBES (including his father) engendered him to go his own path and trust his instincts. surviving childhood in the sticks made the insular RADIO and MUSIC INDUSTRIES a breeze in comparison, although being 'out' publicly was another matter entirely. i just found it interesting that within a community of artists and musicians, COLLINS was excepted intrinsically due to his PASSION, INTELLECT and even his SEXUALITY. i wonder if there is something about being an OUTSIDER that resonated with the KURT COBAINs and EDDIE VEDDERs of the PACIFIC NORTWEST ALTERNATIVE ROCK scene at the time. interesting to consider when you take in the similar dynamics of BIGENHEIMER being an EFFEMINATE male, who likewise broke a whole platoon of HARDCORE, NEW WAVE and ALTERNATIVE bands a generation earlier. less interesting was the drug angle and COLLINS coming to terms with his chemical addictions. i have no doubt that such were a massive DISAPPOINTMENT and PERSONAL FAILURE for him and dealt lasting blows to his work and close relationships. but such is not as interesting as his recovery which includes reintegrating himself in the current music scene and enabling new bands to get their initial exposure, much like he did nearly 30 years ago. that dedication to the here and now is what radio in my opinion is all about. its also nice to know that in years since this documentary COLLINS has been a regular contributor at the massively INFLUENTIAL 90.3FM KEXP in SEATTLE which has innovated the digital landscape with its high-quality recorded and mixed live performances at its dedicated multi-use CREATIVE SPACES. seems he is where he should be. which is exciting for new music lovers and bands alike. photo manipulation & text by nacrowe
it is quite EXTRAORDINARY and even OVERWHELMING to consider the level at which we are inundated with industrial designed OBJECT. so much in fact that much of that interaction is not consciously considered or even experienced unless said OBJECT malfunctions or lacks in some aspect that we have come to expect at a base INTUITIVE level (i.e. uncomfortable chair, kitschy furniture, car in an undesired color).
the documentary OBJECTIFIED (PLEXI PRODUCTIONS, 2009) takes a closer look at the INTENTION involved in the careful DESIGNING, SOURCING and MANUFACTURING of modern industrial OBJECTS ranging from CONSUMER ELECTRONICS and FURNITURE to AUTOMOBILES and even SOFTWARE. participants include DESIGNERS from CHRIS BANGLE (BMW), JONATHAN IVE (APPLE), DIETER RAMS (BRAUN), NAOTO FUKASAWA (MUJI), KARIM RASHID, AGNETE ENGA & DAN FORMOSA (SMART DESIGN) and BILL MOGGRIGE (IDEO) among many others. at its core, OBJECTIFIED is an examination of that distance between the INTENTION of a MANUFACTURED physical OBJECT and the implications of such with regard to issues related to SUSTAINABILITY, UTILITY, EFFICIENCY and COMPATIBILITY. DESIGN, the film argues, at its best is not about securing a particularly ADVANTAGIOUS niche in a current MARKETPLACE, but rather a specific consideration for a future more PERFECT world. at its heart is a sense of progress and OPTIMISM not just for the product itself, but how such raises the consciousness and life quality of its user base. now i am not completely bought in on that rather POLLYANNAISH and QUIXOTIC ideations regarding the spiritually elevatory aspects of material OBJECTS. CAPITALISM has provided participants with the need to differentiate themselves from one another via physical OBJECTS which makes the whole enterprise rather ISOLATING and spiritually BANKRUPT in some respect since it separates people from their COMMUNITY. why else would someone by a third IPHONE in five years other than to keep up with their cohort and secure some type of socially-attributed BENEFIT. the film makes reference that WELL-DESIGNED physical objects are constructed with INTENTION to improved ergonomics and other expanded UTILITIES to the user. such may be the case when DESIGNING improved household items that otherwise cause physical pain due to their repetitive use as currently constructed (i.e. peelers, graters, openers and crushers), but in large products such as AUTOMOBILES, FURNITURE and TECHNOLOGY, the opposite seems to be the case. the UTILITY therein is the newness of the OBJECT, in other words it promotes MINDLESS CONSUMERISM. as humans we have a COGNITIVE BIAS towards new things so this ENDLESS cycle is baked into our sense of IDENTITY and interpersonal relationships within our COMMUNITY. i dont know how you get out of this hamster wheel. these DESIGNERS would probably argue for a better considered and improved hamster wheel itself. the FINANCIAL IMPERATIVE is the original sin of the whole operation. purchasing more shit we dont need. OBJECTS defining you rather than the other way around. i feel like im turning into NAOMI KLEIN over here. the film caught me as i am in the midst of a semester in a COMPLICATED SUPPLY CHAIN class in pursuit of an MBA. if anything OBJECTIFIED got me thinking about issues that have been percolating over the past year, so i'm glad i found it and look forward to watching the rest of director GARY HUSTWIT's films (HELVETICA, URBANIZED, WORKPLACE, RAMS, etc.). photo manipulation & text by nacrowe
filmed shortly before his passing in 2014, DARK STAR: H. R. GIGER'S WORLD (T&C FILM AG, 2014) documents the life and laters years of the brazenly IMAGINATIVE and ENIGMATIC SWISS artist of subconsciously-inspired phantasmagorical BIO-MECHANICAL renderings that call into very question the ethical limits of man's detours into GENETIC ENGINEERING and BIOTECNOLOGICAL TECHNIQUES. his often MONOCHROME paintings are seemingly ELEMENTAL, referencing the ETERNALLY CYCLICAL interplay of BIRTH, SEX and DEATH and the SUBLIME nature of reproduction. with references to MODERN INDUSTRIAL DESIGN and ANCIENT EGYPTIAN RELIGIOUS ART, his paintings often depict a merging of humans with TECHNOLOGY, where one becomes the other to the point that it is impossible to see the symbioses for its composite parts. its all one thing.
like most people, my introduction to H.R. GIGER was his work on RIDLEY SCOTT'S ALIEN film franchise that began in the late 1970s, but was reintroduced time and again by his visual work's association with NEW WAVE singer DEBBIE HARRY, BAY AREA HARDCORE legends DEAD KENNEDYS , PROGRESSIVE ROCK pioneers EMERSON, LAKE AND PALMER, and the early SWISS extreme METAL band CELTIC FROST. one surprise from this film was the revelation that CELTIC FROST / HELLHAMMER / TYPTYKON frontman THOMAS GABRIEL FISCHER has worked as GIGER's longtime assistant since the mid-1980s, their relationship being established from an early letter he wrote thanking him for the inspiration to create ART. its fair to say quite a few musicians have found such in the work of GIGER over the years. much is made in the film about the meaning of his work and its supposed NIHILISTIC overtones, but the HUMANOIDS i experience in his work seem empowered by their connection to TECHNOLOGY, not subsumed by it. in fact id argue that he presents a sort of IDEAL that i am nowhere remotely near with my own relationship to TECHNOLOGY, which seemingly bends me to its will and not the other way around. its interesting to consider when that SINGULARITY will occur between HUMANITY and TECHNOLOGY and what form we will seamlessly evolve into during our next stage. the idea that we deliberately planned and initiated our own evolutionary step that permanently divorces us from the ANCIENT rhythms of nature. it feels like with the advent of CRISPR TECHNOLOGY and GENETIC EDITING becoming a science fact rather than FICTION, we may be on the doorstep of some version of GIGER's FANTASTICAL vision. whether that is a net benefit or not is another question entirely, but its fair to say that GIGER is a visionary and a prophet who held such ethical dilemmas explicitly as the crux of his intensely SYMBOLIC CREATIVE LIFE. and we are all better for it. photo manipulation & text by nacrowe
there is perhaps nobody more responsible for the visual aesthetics of PUNK ROCK than the late legendary ICONOCLASTIC BRITISH FASHION DESIGNER VIVIENNE WESTWOOD, who with her former partner MALCOLM MCLAREN helped initiate the notoriously CONFRONTATIONAL counterculture revolution in BRITAIN. but that known biography is not what makes the recent retrospective documentary WESTWOOD: PUNK, ICON, ACTIVIST (FINISHED FILMS, 2018) such a COMPELLING artifact. it is what she was doing at the then-current cultural moment, taking on ARTISTIC and POLITICAL stands that made her life's creative work in FASHION such a TRANSCENDENT and INSPIRING narrative.
and what is she focused on at the time of this film: CLIMATE CHANGE. having visited the melting glaciers in the arctic via GREENPEACE, WESTWOOD is seen attempting to leverage her public profile and reputation as a FREE-THINKER to promote GREENER ENERGY ALTERNATIVES and better business practices. with the latter at front of mind, her business (note: film was shot pre-pandemic) for the first time has been witness to incredible growth on a global scale which means growing pains regarding less control and oversight relative to such an expanded operation. that such comes at a time when WESTWOOD is prominently voicing a more CONSCIOUS approach to objectively UNSUSTAINABLE INDUSTRY PRACTICES is the challenge of her late career. but her creative work has always served as an ALTERNATIVE to the predictable, so there is no doubt she'll figure it out. i believe words like IDIOSYNCRATIC and ECCENTRIC have a negative connotation about them, so i will utilize words like SINGULAR and UNCONVENTIONAL to describe her ECLECTIC and ever EVOLVING aesthetic style which seemingly borrows from all aspects of history and geography. there is a moment in the film where WESTWOOD showcases her latest collection on a BRITISH daytime talk show only to be laughed at in scorn by the geriatric audience. its the perfect visual metaphor for why her work is such a VIBRANT expression of being BRITISH, fuck the boring middle-class bourgeois sensibilities regarding respectability. relatedly, one of the key declarations in the film by WESTWOOD is how PUNK ROCK was not a revolutionary movement but a temporary distraction that was soon commodified and appropriated into the corporate structure for ripe exploitation of the youth. having remained INDEPENDENT and SELF-OPERATED her whole career, there is an argument that WESTWOOD is more PUNK than the actual musicians that popularized the movement. just that insight alone into owning your own future and gaining the benefits from your own hard work outside of the fiefdom of corporate overlords feels in keeping with the stridently DIY aesthetic of 80s HARDCORE bands, not a fashion label. its hard to watch WESTWOOD: PUNK, ICON, ACTIVIST and not be INSPIRED to create and take real chances. most definitely a film worth watching irregardless of your interest in FASHION or PUNK ROCK. its a documentary about being a SELF-ACTUALIZED individual and wearing your freak flag no matter the consequences or public ridicule. those people will be forgotten. VIVIENNE WESTWOOD and her contributions to world culture, never mind the UNITED KINGDOM, will live on. RIP VIVIENNE WESTWOOD photo manipulation & text by nacrowe
for some reason around 2001 i became deeply interested in the VIENNA SECESSION MOVEMENT of the late 19th and early 20th century and related AUSTRIAN artists such as GUSTAV KLIMT, OSKAR KOKOSCHKA and EGON SCHIELE. with the later two there was an EXPRESSIONISTIC and VISCERAL nature to their paintings that i found compelling, especially when held in comparison to GERMAN EXPRESSIONIST painters like EMIL NOLDE and ERNST LUDWIG KIRCHNER from roughly the same period and later NEUE SACHLICHKEIT ("NEW OBJECTIVITY") painters like OTTO DIX, GEORGE GROSZ and MAX BECKMANN. SCHIELE in particular was just so EXRREME in his depiction of HUMAN FRAILTY with his nudes. there is an ingrained sense of PHYSICAL DETERIORATION and DISFIGUREMENT with the SALLOW skin, BLANK UNADORNED countenances, oblique sight-lines and CONTORTED corpse-like postures against a WHITEWASHED floating background that put the emphasis front-and-center on the nude figure in a PROVOCATIVE manner. i was taken with SCHIELE's work immediately as a teenager.
my mother on the other hand, initially was revulsed and put off by those nude paintings and that reaction is pretty common. his work can be interpreted as RAW, BLEAK, UNROMANTIC and CONFRONTATIONAL in the extreme. i was lucky enough to visit the scenic CZECH village of CESKY KRUMLOV where SCHIELE lived and his gallery is stationed, in between stops in VIENNA and PRAGUE on a trip with my father in 2002. where that capacity for depicting the human form in such a blemished, convulsive and wholly compromised state is rooted i will never know. but i saw that unflinching artistic gaze and capacity to depict REPRESENTATIONAL REALITY "as is" as a sincere form of EMPATHY and COMPASSION, not DEBASEMENT, PITY or SCORN. and such is also the opinion and central thesis of the recent GERMAN documentary EGON SCHIELE: BETWEEN LOVE AND HATE (METAFILM, 2018), which recounts not only the life and impact of the painter on future GERMAN-speaking artists, but also the story of how his work grew over time to be celebrated on the same level as his peer, predecessor and one-time mentor KLIMT, whose own art in dialogue almost feels like an INVERSION of sorts in terms of TONE, TECHNIQUE and INTENT with that of SCHIELE. KLIMT's work was a celebration of the body and its status as a vessel for PLEASURE, VITALITY and REJUVENATION. with SCHIELE, his work seemingly depicts the body as a messy, fleshy, unsavory PRISON that is the locust of PAIN and DEBILITATION that the individual tolerates until ultimately freed from their mortal coil. this documentary makes an interesting choice in having the narrator interview two of SCHIELE's favorite models, that being his girlfriend WALBURGA "WALLY" NEUZIL, sister-in-law ADELE HARMS and younger sister GERTRUDE. given his lack of resources and the PRIVATE nature of his visual experiments, its particularly interesting that he utilized his sister as a nude model. the narrative device of breaking the fourth wall and interviewing both of the DECEASED subjects firsthand is done partly to dispel a misinterpreted sexual interpretation of these rather EXPLICIT paintings. its still jarring though to consider that many of these paintings are of an underage family member and is most definitely still TABOO. for SCHIELE, the film argues, utilizing such a model was done out of necessity and was done in collaboration with his sibling. overall, this brief documentary is successful in explaining how his paintings were informed by his technical training, preternatural artistic abilities and even access to emerging technologies such as x-rays. definitely worth checking if you are interested in TRANSGRESSIVE ART and the EXPRESSIONIST movement writ large. photo manipulation & text by nacrowe
in the recent documentary THE KATE BUSH STORY - RUNNING UP THAT HILL (BBC, 2014) about the TRANSFORMATIVE BRITISH songwriter KATE BUSH, there is much EFFUSIVE PRAISE for such a SINGULAR artist who was seemingly fearless in her experiments to bend aspects of FORM, SONIC TEXTURE and LITERATURE to her will. this aspect of her work is reiterated time and again throughout, as the range of her discography feels as though there was LIMITLESS POTENTIAL at hand and that the rules of pop culture did not infiltrate her CREATIVE PROCESS. she seemingly transcended such considerations and focused on nurturing and expanding her craft and voice as an artist. taking in and synthesizing disparate influences ranging from BRITISH FOLKLORE to LITERATURE (J.M. BARRIE, EMILY BRONTE, JAMES JOYCE, WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE, HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN) to even the 1970s GLAM ROCK she was raised on as a child. the participants alone in this film are a veritable murderer's row of recording artists and thespians that have likewise held experimentation as a core of their ARTISTIC IDENTITY, namely ELTON JOHN, PETER GABRIEL (GENESIS), TRICKY (MASSIVE ATTACK), DAVID GILMOUR (PINK FLOYD), VIV ALBERTINE (THE SLITS), BIG BOI (OUTKAST), JOHN LYDON (THE SEX PISTOLS, PUBLIC IMAGE LTD), NATASHA KHAN (BAT FOR LASHES), ST. VINCENT (THE POLYPHONIC SPREE), BRETT ANDERSON (SUEDE), TORI AMOS, GUY GARVEY (ELBOW) and comedians STEPHEN FRY, STEVE COOGAN and JO BRAND as well author NEIL GAIMAN (THE SANDMAN) and the celebrated late dance and mime artist (and teacher of both DAVID BOWIE and KATE BUSH) LINDSEY KEMP among others.
i remember the first time i heard THE HOUNDS OF LOVE (EMI, 1985) by KATE BUSH at the recommendation of a friend in graduate school and was immediately taken by the sensory overload of her UNIQUE singing style, the lyrics and the LUSH production. it was just too much to take in during one sitting and was eerily reminiscent of my initial experiences coming to terms with other SONICALLY CHALLENGING and EXPLORATORY artists like FELA KUTI, MF DOOM, APHEX TWIN, FRANK ZAPPA, BJORK, CAPTAIN BEEFHEART, PATTI SMITH, MIKE PATTON, GRIMES, JANE'S ADDICTION, DAVID BOWIE, MIKE OLDFIELD, KRAFTWERK, LOU REED, TRENT REZNOR, BRIAN ENO, MY BLOODY VALENTINE, JOHNNY MARR, FUGAZI, PETER GABRIEL, DEVO, GEORGE CLINTON, MASSIVE ATTACK and CHILDISH GAMBINO. at first listen, all of these artists sounded ALIEN to me, but over time contributed to an expanded sonic lexicon of SOUNDS, TEXTURES and IDEAS. what makes BUSH SPECIAL for me is that i feel like in some ways i am still very much in the process years later of coming to terms with her discography. its all enveloping aural density and lyrically EXPRESSIVE intensity means that i am constantly finding new aspects of her music to appreciate and inhabit. it is a SINGULAR experience that is difficult to describe. of course BUSH is also known for her reclusiveness, especially her late career which saw her leave the entertainment industry after THE RED SHOES (COLUMBIA, 1993) to move to the countryside and have a family. there is a sense in the film that this choice to abandon her PUBLIC PERSONA was a means of preserving her sense of IDENTITY and that self-narrative of her existence. it is difficult to not respect such, especially in the modern oversharing digital attention economy (of which this blog is subject to) where there is much ado about presenting oneself rather than being oneself. her life of private quiet contemplation and the shielding of her CREATIVE PROCESS from public consumption until new material is presented strictly on her terms seems fitting for an artist of her caliber. its a gift. it really is. photo & text by nacrowe
it is hard to overstate the importance of the former HACIENDA nightclub in MANCHESTER cofounded by NEW ORDER and their manager ROB GRETTON, as well as FACTORY RECORDS label head TONY WILSON, in the early 1980s. the documentary THE HACIENDA: THE CLUB THAT SHOOK BRITAIN (WISE OWL, 2022) recently featured on BBC2 delves into that unique legacy of this unique nightclub decades on. initially THE HACIENDA was meant to recapture the energetic, all-inclusive vibe of the MANHATTAN nightclubs that NEW ORDER members had witnessed while on tour immediately in the wake of the abrupt fall of JOY DIVISION. unlike the stuffy nightclub scene in ENGLAND at the time, where people drank lager and paraded themselves around in the hopes means of finding company, the point of the NYC scene was a fun night out with enjoyment of the music at the center of the agenda. it was also created with the hope of providing a center to a new generation of MANCHESTER artists and musicians.
THE HACIENDA came out around the time of early SYNTH-POP but a few years later dovetailed with the rise of HOUSE MUSIC out of DETROIT that when paired with the new drug ECSTASY essentially created ACID HOUSE. with THE HACIENDA at the epicenter there was a brief moment where the culture shifted towards an inclusive, comes-as-you-are mentality with participants felt a sense of unity and collective humanity through rhythm, motion and dance music. even INDIE ROCK got pulled into the orbit of ACID HOUSE with MADCHESTER bands like the HAPPY MONDAYS and THE STONE ROSES borrowing both aesthetic and sonic elements from the local scene. OASIS are considered a traditional BRITPOP rock band that borrowed heavily from classic BRITISH INVASION bands, but no less an authority as NOEL GALLAGHER spoke about in this film about the way the scene opened him up to all music. and that seems to be the point of the film. it was not about the bad business decisions that led to its creation or the fact that its demise ruined relationships with NEW ORDER. the real legacy of THE HACIENDA was how it liberated those who came in its confines and provided safe harbor for discriminated minority groups. in so many ways it was a UTOPIA that was destined to fail, but its run is still felt and missed to this day by those fortunate enough to participate. photo manipulation & text by nacrowe
in the feature documentary HOCKNEY (BLAKEWAY, 2014) about the revered 20th century BRITISH painter DAVID HOCKNEY there is a quote attribute to him that paraphrased essentially argues that a transformation in viewing leads to a transformation in feeling. this conceit is the central thread that connects a life of creative work that really runs the stylistic gamut from ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM through POP ART. at heart HOCKNEY's work is concerned with perceived reality and is figure-based, but the aesthetic expressions of such showcase a talent concerned with SELF-ANALYSIS and SELF-EXPLORATION throughout his life: especially regarding his own relationship to his SEXUALITY. as his self-discovery through ART blossoms, so does his feelings towards such and the community that supports him.
being the child of RADIO from the SLEEPY northern industrial YORKSHIRE town of BRADFORD, HOCKNEY was well aware of the exploits of ESCAPISM that his IMAGINATION could provide, especially after discovering the local CINEMA as a child. movies provided both an escape and a spark that transported him far away from his DREARY routine in a crowded apartment that he shared with his parents and four siblings. its hard not to read that TRANSFORMATIONAL dream-like element into his paintings, almost SURREAL and GIORGIO DE CHIRICO-sque, that was no doubt so aided by both CINEMA and TELEVISION. the later of which he first witnessed as a teenager. even the notion of AMERICA and specifically HOLLYWOOD as a locust for personal expression and self-made REINVENTION seems rooted in this childhood attachment to MOTION PICTURES. my feeling is that its truly difficult to properly understand the REVOLUTION that was CINEMA if you were not a child of the RADIO beforehand. it was an EXPANSIVE and MIND-ALTERING INVENTION probably on par with the INTERNET a few generations later. whereas his POP ART contemporaries in ANDY WARHOL and ROY LICHENSTEIN were more concerned with the MARCEL DUCHAMP-ian conceit of locating the AUTHENTICITY found in REPETITION and COMMERCIAL ADVERTISING and INDUSTRIAL PAINTING TECHNIQUES, HOCKNEY seemingly was more INTROSPECTIVE in both his focus and his subject matter. he usually painted associates, family and friends utilizing a CAMERA as the basis for his ART. interestingly HOCKNEY saw the emotional limitations of PHOTOGRAPHY as the starting point for his CREATIVE WORK, as he was able to warp elements such as color, proportion, light, composition and especially PERSPECTIVE to his will. though based in TRADITIONAL representational depictions of reality, over time his work confronted the VANISHING-POINT techniques from antiquity and sought out a wider PERSPECTIVE that took in multiple angles. his later work sought to seek the EMOTIONAL TRUTH found in a myriad of PERSPECTIVES on a single subject. almost twisting the idea of REPETITION on its head towards something altogether INSULAR and undoubtedly INNOVATIVE. in many ways, being a HOMOSEXUAL in BOHEMIAN circles during his career was likewise a bold act of self-determination as such was completely TABOO in polite society. maybe i am reading in too much, but both his ARTISTIC and SEXUAL pursuits were related activities. i can only imagine the tragedy of the 1980s where the rise of AIDS effectively rendered two-thirds of his COMMUNITY gone seemingly overnight, especially in NEW YORK. that deep loss of vitality. that loss of potential. the seeming indifference of a CONSERVATIVE AMERICAN body politic that had yet to come to terms with its own constituent parts. it is still SHOCKING, even in retrospect. many of HOCKNEY's friends, contemporaries, assistants and business partners participated in this film such as ED RUSCHA, JACK LARSON, DON BACHARDY, JOHN KASMIN, RAYMOND FOYE, TCHAIK CHASSEY, MELISSA NORTH, GEORGE LAWSON, WAYNE SLEEP, PHILIP STEADMAN, JOSEPH CLARK, KENNETH TYLER, CHARLIE SCHEIPS and DAVID OXTOBY. they likewise provide a multi-perspective on the subject himself, who is interviewed throughout. HOCKNEY was an absolutely REVELATORY and extremely WELL-CONSTRUCTED film that i highly recommend to anyone interested in MODERN ART or QUEER STUDIES. required viewing in my opinion. photo manipulation & text by nacrowe
with all the enduring and entirely understandable global HYSTERIA centered around the CORONAVIRUS pandemic, it got me considering WESTERN CULTURE's relationship to DEATH. the idea that we FEAR and DELUDE ourselves against its existence and when it does occur in close proximity, we use it to MYTHOLOGIZE in order to OBFUSCATE it and make it more CONCEPTUAL and ABSTRACT. fool ourselves in order to make DEATH seem more MANAGEABLE. during my time in eastern countries like JAPAN and MYANMAR and even non-BUDDHIST influenced countries like ALBANIA and NIGERIA there seemed to be a more PALPABLE, PERSONAL relationship to the idea of our eventual passing as a part of life. something as NATURAL as any other part of the cycle that shouldn't be hidden or shied away from.
in his famous film dealing with the nature of DEATH and the FUTILITY of attempting to negotiate with it, INGMAR BERGMAN's THE SEVENTH SEAL (AB SVENSK FILMINDUSTRI, 1957) revolves around a medieval knight stricken with the PLAGUE confronting DEATH (personified in human form) on a beach. DEATH is INEVITABLE and the knight knows it, but he is trying to fight it anyway. why? because tempting FATE is what we do as humans. when have we ever accepted a role in the NATURE ORDER. our tendency is to define and redefine our role, consequences be DAMNED. its probably been that way since the advent of agriculture or language or PRIMITIVE tools that allowed small bands of humans to efficiently consolidate FINITE labor and resources. at some point our CLEVERNESS allows us to think that we have some type of POWER over the NATURAL world, but really we are just shepherds overseeing it. when i watch this film i read it as our collective inability in WESTERN CULTURE to accept our fate. its odd for me because during my time overseas i've seen funeral processions with boxes being carried through busy streets (ALBANIA) or human remains cremated in public view (NIGERIA) and the end result is that, I feel, these cultures are better inoculated to deal with DEATH / FATE because they see it. they smell it. DEATH in their experience is COMMON, VISCERAL and TACTILE. in the WEST we are cutoff from the consequences of our collective choices. the CRUELTY of the meat industry or the INHUMANITY of our prison system. its all out of view and out of mind. in these countries i've visited DEATH is a CONSTANT reminder. perhaps if we had more HONEST relationships with our FEARS, we wouldn't feel a need to exert such effort in attempting (with complete FUTILITY) to control over them. we'd understand their role and move on. maybe. photo manipulation & text by nacrowe
the relationship between sleeve ART and the MUSIC it promotes has always been an INVIGORATING yet SUBTLE art, especially to music lovers like me. when seeking out an unfamiliar record by unknown ARTIST, seemingly you were always attempting to accurately surmise what the MUSIC would possibly SOUND like given the cover sleeve ARTWORK. most times this was a fool's errand but a fun one. the MAGIC of this interplay between SOUND and VISUALS is now largely lost given the MODERN advent of mobile streaming and various TECHNOLOGY-enabled distribution vehicles that make AUDIO content (as well as VIDEO) available instantaneously. there is no risk in purchasing a record, since commonly in recent years there is no record and consequently there is no purchase anymore (just watch it on YOUTUBE).
the documentary 23 ENVELOPE (BBC, 1985) is short documentary regarding the design firm 23 ENVELOPE, which was made up of graphic designer VAUGHAN OLIVER and photographer/videographer NIGEL GRIERSON. their partnership lasted from 1980 to 1988 and was celebrated for its CREATIVE work with BOUTIQUE BRITISH independent label 4AD and their stable of EXPERIMENTAL artists ranging from COCTEAU TWINS, PIXIES, LUSH, CLAN OF XYMOX and THIS MORTAL COIL to DEAD CAN DANCE and XMAL DEUTSCHLAND. what ties their PHOTOGRAPHIC and TYPOGRAPHIC work together is a commitment to all things and ABSTRACT. their work carries with it an ETHEREAL, OTHERWORLDLY quality that makes it feel very much up for interpretation, much like the MUSIC it serves to introduce. their work is also LYRICAL in the sense that it has an EMOTIONAL RESONANCE despite its OBTRUSIVE nature. too often with commercial COVER ART the images being displayed do not hold up AESTHETICALLY without explicit reference to the MUSIC. famous examples where this is not the case include ANDY WARHOL's iconic THE VELVET UNDERGROUND & NICO (VERVE, 1967) cover, RICHARD KERN's early collaborations with SONIC YOUTH, as well as the images PETER SAVILLE provided for both JOY DIVISION and NEW ORDER at FACTORY RECORDS. these NOTABLE examples standout as ARTISTICALLY compelling statements outside of their commercial associations with the TRANSGRESSIVE and INNOVATIVE MUSIC they were commissioned to promote. the whole discussion regarding the role of ART and MUSIC is endlessly FASCINATING for me since at its core it serves a MARKET FUNCTION of differentiated what crassly very much is a PRODUCT for general CONSUMPTION. but the core INTEGRITY of INTENTION at display with this documentary in reference to the work of OLIVER and GRIERSON proves that more can be accomplished and render this PRODUCT as INDESPENSIBLE to the right constituency. that interplay between ARTIST and PATRON, MARKET and CONSUMER will never be figured out as they are uneasy bedfellows. 23 ENVELOPE voices this dynamic brilliantly and is a relevant documentary definitely well worth checking out. RIP VAUGHAN OLIVER photo manipulation & text by nacrowe
i recently came across the documentary WHEN BOB MARLEY CAME TO BRITAIN (WISE OWL, 2020) on BBC2 that outlines the MASSIVE impact ENGLAND had on the art and career of the ICONIC JAMAICAN ROOTS REGGAE musician. given that he was born the mixed son of a white ENGLISH plantation overseer (who formerly was a captain in the BRITISH ARMED FORCES with previous stints in CUBA and NIGERIA) and a local teenage JAMAICAN woman, by definition BOB MARLEY had a COMPLICATED relationship with the UNITED KINGDOM.
the same could be said about the island nation's relationship to its former colonial authority. in the aftermath of WORLD WAR II, there was a significant influx of immigrants from around the commonwealth that relocated to ENGLAND to assist with the need for low income workers in the many factories being built at the time, especially in the north. this incredible inflow of immigration from the CARIBBEAN specifically from 1948 through 1971 was known as the WINDRUSH GENERATION. when MARLEY came to ENGLAND for the first time in 1972 as part of a tour revue for JOHNNY NASH, nobody could know that in a few short years he would become the spokesman for the second generation of WINDRUSH immigrants would were asserting their ECONOMIC, POLITICAL and CULTURAL power on a ENGLISH culture unprepared for such. MARLEY proved to be nothing less than TRANSFORMATIVE and REVOLUTIONARY in this regard through his music and personality. being signed to the major label ISLAND RECORDS, which had roots in JAMAICAN culture via label founder CHRIS BLACKWELL, by the time CATCH A FIRE (ISLAND, 1973) was released there was a considerable push that found the group on the OLD GREY WHISTLE TEST program on the BBC that put a face to his music and proved to be influential. it also introduced his music to a ROCK N ROLL audience and a mostly white college circuit that permanently shifted and expanded his audience. this was key to his INTERNATIONAL success and positioned him as a cultural ambassador of JAMAICA, a moniker that has not altered some 40+ years after his death from cancer in 1981. the most compelling aspect of this documentary are the testimonials that speak to MARLEY's transformative impact on the way children of the WINDRUSH GENERATION self-identified. interviews with DJ/musician/film director DON LETTS and musicians BRINSLEY FORDE (ASWAD), MYKAELL RILEY (STEEL PULSE) and LOCKSLEY GISHIE (THE CIMARONS) all attest to his influence during his stay in ENGLAND. all knew him personally when he lived locally as a CELEBRATED international musician attempting to break ENGLAND. they speak of the time he had for his fans and locals alike, quickly becoming a part of the fabric of the local community. former schoolchildren speak about a pre-BRITISH fame MARLEY and NASH giving a concert at a nearby school at the behest of a local art teacher, singing unaccompanied acoustic versions of classics like "STIR CRAZY" and "I CAN SEE CLEARLY NOW" no less. decades later the pride in that event is still palpable for these MULTI-RACIAL former classmates. and i feel like that sense of unity is the ethos of the persona and music of MARLEY. he was more than a musician, but a prophet of a FUTURE UTOPIA that we all could imagine and touch via his songs. even today his music cannot be ruined by all the lame college burnouts and wannabe privileged caucasian RAS TRENTS that have attempted to culturally appropriate and weaken his legacy with all their lame attempts at proselytizing and supposedly living an identity they dont understand or have any connection to. ok maybe that last bit was about my experiences around idiots at university, but his music transcends those modern associations. his message of unity cannot be tied down to any group or creed. it cant be debased even by his own progeny actively invoking his name while palling around with the racist likes of CANDICE OWENS and KANYE WEST. MARLEY was quite simply a gift to the world and its interesting to know that such really gained initial traction in BABYLON, i.e. BRITAIN,and used such a spark to spread his light around globe. photo manipulation & text by nacrowe
my god the documentary THE ORIGINAL CHARVEL GANG (ROYALROCKFILMS, 2021) was TERRIBLE.
which is a SHAME, because the story of how TALENTED entrepreneurial-minded craftsmen and startups they initiated took the game from bigwigs like FENDER and GIBSON through INNOVATIVE guitar designs made by and for guitarists is a story very much worth telling. in many ways it reset the table for today's gear landscape with countless high-quality boutique GUITAR, AMP and PEDAL manufacturers. the list of interviewed participants including STEVE VAI (FRANK ZAPPA, DAVID LEE ROTH), WARREN DEMARTINI (RATT), MICHAEL ANTHONY (VAN HALEN), TOM DUMONT (NO DOUBT), STEVE STEVENS (BILLY IDOL), DOUG ALDRICH (WHITESNAKE), BRIAN "HEAD" WELCH (KORN), PHIL COLLEN (DEF LEPPARD), NUNO BETTENCOURT (EXTREME), SLASH (GUNS N ROSES) and past luthiers at every stage of the company's development only goes to show the WIDESPREAD INTEREST and CULTURAL SIGNIFICANCE of CHARVEL and JACKSON guitars over the years. where this documentary FALTERED was in its execution. the sound design and cinematography was uneven and highly DISTRACTING. as a viewer you are made aware of how poorly edited this film was constructed (the ultimate sin in cinema since the medium strives for seamlessness). compounded is the fact that the subject at hand is about the relationship between TECHNICAL INNOVATION and shifts in CULTURE, which means this documentary should have been likewise seamless in its production and quality control. there were also lots of odd choices, like a fully-clothed TOM DUMONT walking around fully clothed on a marina with a surfboard or the director himself walking around in a sand dune like the NATIVE AMERICAN dude from OLIVER STONE's THE DOORS (TRI-STAR, 1991). and then there is the lame jam session with the director and two hired guns in front of lear jet in a hanger. i didnt get the point of that. maybe the director just thought all these DISTRACTIONS looked cool (?), but it just came off completely amateur hour and really sidetracked from the intent of the film which was to showcase the legacy of WAYNE CHARVEL and GROVER JACKSON. this and the fact that it was PAINFULLY obvious the film wasnt able to secure any of the rights to the music of the important artists being interviewed (i.e. VAN HALEN, QUIET RIOT, NO DOUBT, RATT, DEF LEPPARD, OZZY OSBOURNE, KORN) which is just SAD. i think it makes total sense why GROVER JACKSON did not take part in this film. its a total utter DUD. definitely not worth checking out, which again is UNFORTUNATE because this wasted opportunity of a documentary covers a topic i care about as someone who lived within a few miles of SAN DIMAS when the glory days being discussed where underway. its part of my cultural heritage that i wish was presented in a more coherent, mindful manner. photo manipulation & text by nacrowe
for years i had a vague association of what i understood to be the obscure 1980s highly IDIOSYNCRATIC communal art project/quasi-religious/cult parody THE CHURCH OF THE SUBGENIUS with some of my favorite artists including DEVO and PAUL REUBENS (of PEE WEE's PLAYHOUSE fame), but beyond that i knew very little. so i was thrilled to watch the recent JR "BOB" DOBBS & THE CHURCH OF THE SUBGENIUS (DARK STAR, 2020) documentary and learn more about its origin, intent and its two main architects/accomplices IVAN STANG and PHILO DRUMMOND. i really had no idea that there was a whole community of likeminded artists including filmmakers ALEX COX (REPO MAN, SID & NANCY) and RICHARD LINKLATER (DAZED & CONFUSED, SLACKERS), cartoonists R. CRUMB and MATT GROENING (THE SIMPSONS), actor NICK OFFERMAN (PARKS & RECREATION), philosopher ROBERT ANTON WILSON, magicians PENN & TELLER and musicians DAVID BYRNE, THE RESIDENTS and FRANK ZAPPA among many others.
from what i could gather from the film, for all of the parodied RHETORICAL FLOURISHES, CADENCES, MANNERISMS and cyclical SELF-REFERENTIAL LOGIC that defines TELEVANGELISM, there is a value to the effort. at its core the whole endeavor seems to be about COMMUNICATION and COMMUNITY BUILDING. not for money or a RELIGIOUS SOCIOPOLITICAL EXPANSIONIST AGENDA, but seemingly for unfettered SELF-EXPRESSION and the search for SELF-GENERATIVE MEANING. of course by playing with the "us versus them" vocabulary and SELF-AGGRANDIZING MYTHOLOGIZED IDEOLOGY routinely utilized by CULTS and religious sects, they ran the risk of being treated like a cult or new religious sect by the population. or worse, converts. what makes this film interesting is how STANG and DRUMMOND navigate those waters of maintaining a parody religion over time, especially when things get hairy, as in the aftermath of 9/11 and the later rise of DONALD TRUMP. at those points irony was dead and the CYNICISM apparent in the population had seemingly far exceed the parodies and gentle prodding of THE CHURCH OF THE SUBGENIUS. during these periods the MANUFACTURING OF CONSENT and TRIBAL SECTARIANISM in the population through internet-enabled PROPAGANDA made for a DYSTOPIAN REALITY indeed. at one point is the joke not funny anymore and essentially LIFE IMITATES ART. im happy that the film ends with the two founders MOVING FORWARD and EVOLVING with the times. it makes me feel that that instinct to PROD, REJECT, LAUGH, PARODY, INVESTIGATE and ultimately THINK is an ART unto itself and when that is ability is given over to an AUTHORITY FIGURE, that is when it all ends. lights out. so im glad that the film closes with them not giving in to TRUMP. because sometimes i fear i have. JR "BOB" DOBBS & THE CHURCH OF THE SUBGENIUS is definitely a strange film but well worth checking out, whether or not you are a genius or a subgenius. photo manipulation & text by nacrowe
much has been discussed, CELEBRATED and parsed out regarding the generational GLOBAL CULTURAL PHENOMENON that as THE BEATLES, so it is always interesting when a recent documentary takes a stab at a narrative most fans feel they already have a handle on. RON HOWARD's THE BEATLES: EIGHT DAYS A WEEK - THE TOURING YEARS (APPLE CORPS, 2016) as its title suggests is concerned with the influence that their live performances had on the band's state of mind and thus their CREATIVE MINDSET up through their last touring performance in 1966 (famously the band did a one-off final performance in 1969 from the rooftop of their LONDON APPLE CORPS office to a film crew, coworkers and unsuspecting bystanders).
in essence their two major stateside touring cycles that saw them play to FANATICALLY ENTHUSIASTIC crowds, first in theaters and later in stadiums, drained the band. though immensely FINANCIALLY LUCRATIVE (as the band made relatively little from their lopsided record deal), these live gigs due to the feverishly impassioned teenage crowds quickly became an UNCONTROLLABLE CIRCUS. they played through terrible PAs and could barely hear themselves on stage. adroitly the RON HOWARD-directed film picks up on the powder keg of a POLITICAL, SOCIAL and CULTURAL MOMENT that was the UNITED STATES in the mid 1960s in the wake of the JFK assassination, CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT and the VIETNAM WAR. in a sense THE BEATLES found themselves having to deal with issues such as CHRISTIAN FUNDAMENTALISTS manipulating their words in bad faith with sinister ulterior motives and SEGREGATION at shows in the AMERICAN SOUTH. i never knew that THE BEATLES refused to play a series of dates starting in FLORIDA id they did not integrate the crowd. those shows were historically the first integrated events at those football stadiums, which is INCREDIBLE. luckily for the band members, they experienced all of this as a group. unlike say ELVIS PRESLEY who went through similar cultural heights all alone. the band kept each other grounded and when they made a decision as a group they stuck together on such. they essentially EMPOWERED themselves with the further assistance of like-minded manager BRIAN EPSTEIN, who had their best interests at heart. that PRESSURE-COOKER live atmosphere of their gigs led to them developing an INTIMATE sense of group cohesion that led to a deep focus when entering the studio. for them the studio was a place of respite from the press and outside obligations. it was a site of CREATIVITY and COLLABORATION. the push and pull of the road and the studio is something i hadnt considered before. post 1966 the band abandoned live gigs and dove headfirst into expanding their sonic and conceptual palette into a string of records that basically defined their lasting impact on WORLD CULTURE. just seems TRAGIC in a way that their stateside live gigs where such a DANGEROUS and ultimately UNFULFILLING affair for the band on nearly every level. seems a bit of a WASTE. photo manipulation & text by nacrowe
i should start off stating that i am among the CONVERTED.
between my dad and i, we have several guitar AMPLIFIER by the likes of FENDER, MARSHALL, AMPEG, SUPRO, VOX, MESA-BOOGIE, and even a vintage SUNN. i get the appeal of running a guitar straight into a good AMPLIFIER. its because of this predisposition that i am a bit confused by the recent AMPIRE: THE SOUND OF MUSIC (2018, DNR PRODUCTIONS) documentary which is supposedly about guitar amplification but really is about the CULT / OBSESSION / FETISHIZATION surrounding it. the conceit of this film is one of combatting the recent wave of DIGITAL MODELING TECHNOLOGY that has transformed the AMPLIFICATION INDUSTRY, both in terms of high and low price points. even beginning guitarists through low wattage MODELING AMPLIFIERS now have access to a myriad of quality sounds and effects unheard of ten years ago at an entry level price point. likewise, with the advent of studio-quality MODELING / PROFILING PLATFORMS like KEMPER, HELIX and AXE FX, touring and recording musicians have access to the tones of their existing AMPLIFIER collections in a more USABLE, TRAVEL-WORTHY package. the message of this film is one of advocacy for the EMOTIONAL and PSYCHIC, almost ALCHEMICAL, connection between player, guitar and AMPLIFIER (whether tube or solid state). adherents to said worldview include an impressive list of interview participants such as PETER BUCK (R.E.M.), RICK NIELSEN (CHEAP TRICK), ALEX LIFESON (RUSH), JOHN 5 (K.D. LANG, MARILYN MANSON, ROB ZOMBIE), ROBBIE KRIEGER (THE DOORS), PAUL GILBERT (RACER X, MR. BIG), PAT METHANY, MIKE KENEALLY (FRANK ZAPPA, STEVE VAI), PETE THORN (CHRIS CORNELL), LITA FORD (THE RUNAWAYS), TOMMY HENRIKSEN (ALICE COOPER) and JOE BONAMASSA among others. here is the thing: i dont buy the argument. a more thoughtful approach would be to actual explain in some detail what a traditional tube AMPLIFIER actually consists of and how it technically functions. educate your audience. maybe throw in a little history about its TECHNICAL DEVELOPMENT and throw some shine to past and present AMPLIFIER INNOVATORS like LEO FENDER, JIM MARSHALL, MICHAEL SOLDANO, DAVID REEVES, HARTLEY PEAVEY, EVERET HULL, REINHOLD BOGNER, RANDALL SMITH, LYNDON LANEY, DAVE FRIEDMAN, CLIFFORD COOPER, PETER DIEZEL, DON RANDALL and HOWARD ALEXANDER DUMBLE among countless other engineers. better yet, instead of seeing the incoming wave of technology and various techniques regarding onstage miking of low wattage AMPS to massive PA systems as competition, maybe get a little PHILOSOPHICAL about how these are all tools for conveying a musical idea. and they all have their place. AMPLIFIERS are cool, dont get me wrong. but they arent the end-all-be-all of musical expression. arguing against incoming technology is a surefire way of rendering yourself an ANACHRONISM, which is sadly what some of these advocates have exposed themselves to be. others seem to embrace change which is where i stand. this film is essentially a variation on the topic of the relative merits of ANALOG vs DIGITAL equipment and the false attribution of AUTHENTICITY to the mix that was tread notably in DAVE GROHL's SOUND CITY (review linked HERE) documentary. AMPIRE: THE SOUND OF MUSIC is an INTRIGUING and FUN film worth watching but the argument is a bit TEDIOUS and SANCTIMONIOUS at times, even for someone who absolutely adores both traditional tube and solid state guitar AMPLIFIERS like myself. photo manipulation & text by nacrowe
i remember it being a big deal in elementary school when my friend's much older half brother got featured in the national magazine TRANSWORLD SKATEBOARDING. i wasnt a skater but i have a distinct memory of seeing SHON FARREN doing a long FRONTSIDE MANUAL down this pitched road in front of my friend's house in SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA. dude just glided effortless across my vision with a dyed day-glo red hair to match. i think it was then that i realized SKATEBOARDING was not just COOL because of the technicality of its TRICKS, but also the ATTITUDE of its participants. FARREN was a very nice dude and multi-talented as well, i heard he later went into graphic design and worked with various SKATEBOARDING brands over the years.
there is no 1990s SKATEBOARDING magazine that more epitomized that spartan DIY ETHIC and unbridled sense of REBELLIOUS abandon than the NORM-SHATTERING BIG BROTHER. as the recent documentary DUMB: THE STORY OF BIG BROTHER MAGAZINE (HULU, 2017) attests, the publication was as more about the ENERGY and PATHOS of the SKATER COMMUNITY then the actual activity itself. when it began in the early 1990s, the industry was at low point and the two competing publications THRASHER and the aforementioned TRANSWORLD felt played out. both had established core demographics that utilized them for tips and how-to's on landing specific TRICKS and essentially both played into those constituencies. it felt STALE. i dont believe kids get into SKATEBOARDING (or guitar or science or drawing or whatever) necessarily because of the tricks, they get into it because someone way cooler than themselves (and im pretty sure FARREN is absolutely still COOLER than me) modeled it for them. and BIG BROTHER knew about that. the PROVOCATIVE publication itself was helped/hampered by the fact that nothing was off limits. nothing was too CRASS, VULGAR or OBJECTIONABLE to not be put into print, such as but not limited to repetitive MALE FRONTAL NUDITY, FECAL PLAY, SELF-INDUCED INJURIES, DRUG USE, etc. some of it seemed geared at parodying their competition (with how to's on killing yourself and making a baby instead of a KICKFLIP). on the face of it the whole thing went beyond OBJECTIFICATION and PORNOGRAPHY to something completely different, it seems, because at the heart of BIG BROTHER was a genuine sense of (mostly male) CAMARADERIE. these were a bunch of idiots attempting to push each other's PHYSICAL, MORAL and ETHICAL LIMIS by OUTGROSSING and OUTLASTING one another. there was no MALICE seemingly involved. it was all consented upon and done as a joke by various willing participants. whats interesting is how brands at the time bought into the magazine. maybe it was because the industry was in such a LULL at the time that they could take the risk of being associated with such a JUVENILE endeavor. in fact, the downfall of the publication was not the departing of key members (JEFF TREMAINE, JOHNNY KNOXVILLE, CHRIS PONTIUS, STEVE-O, JASON "WEE MAN" ACUNA) for what became the JACKASS franchise. it was the relative health of the industry whose key players all decided to take their advertising portfolios elsewhere. i know most viewers of this documentary are probably going to be either TITILLATED or ENRAGED by the relatively TASTELESS SHOCK ANTICS of the magazine. my interest was more how such a publication exists in the first place and what niche they were exploiting. seems to me that BIG BROTHER could not return as it did before because in essence the culture has morphed along the same lines. modern social media has a never-ending PARADE OF IDIOTS doing STUPID STUFF pleading for your attention and corporations are now incredibly more RISK-AVERSE than they were ten years ago, much less thirty. but who knows. nobody saw BIG BROTHER coming back then. cant say i advocate for this film, but if you are interested in FREE SPPECH issues, GROSS OUT humor, SELF-FLAGELLATION or yes, even SKATEBOARDING, then definitely check out DUMB. photo manipulation & text by nacrowe
the psychology of a CREATIVE ARTIST is such a COMPELLING topic. of course all of them are different and have their own processes and neuroses, but there is this sense of magic that they can create something from seemingly nothing. its almost ALCHEMICAL.
KEVIN BARNES of PHANTASMAGORIC INDIE ROCK band OF MONTREAL as evidenced in the documentary THE PAST IS A GROTESQUE ANIMAL (POLYVINYL, 2014) is of the more SELFISH, JUVENILE sort. the project is in essence his baby, but in order for it to meet his EXPANSIVE visions in a live setting, he relies upon (more like exploits) his numerous collaborators he has gathered over time. its an odd dynamic, especially for a person as UNSYMPATHETIC and CALLOUS to the needs of others as BARNES. for him it is literally all about the art and not the community. he is of the moment and in the moment with sense of CHILDLIKE AMORALITY that makes him an UNRELIABLE partner. the needs of his child are second to his emotional whims. i dont know. this is a hard documentary to stomach since you very much seen the extreme CLAUSTROPHOBIC nature of being a member of his band or even his ex-wife. more than that you see what little effect such has on him other than as gristle for the next OF MONTREAL album. even in retrospect he honestly doesnt care. its not that he is MEAN-SPIRITED, its more like he's a SOCIOPATH or an EMOTIONAL VAMPIRE, feeding off the creative life source of others. i have to stop and remind myself at times just how IMAGINATIVE some of those records are, specifically the landmark album HISSING FAUNA, ARE YOU THE DESTROYER? (POLYVINYL, 2007). im aware that some musicians are bastards, as that concept was part of the second show i ever did with DEER GOD RADIO. the show was called GOOD MUSIC BY BAD PEOPLE. i know JOSH HOMME (QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, KYUSS) has talked in interviews about how members of a band have to accepting of their position in the band for it to work, a bassist cant secretly pine to be the guitarist. so there is a sense that this BARNES ship and that there is no opportunity for advancement within OF MONTREAL. maybe some of these former members had UNREALISTIC expectations, but watching a documentary about how their dreams and aspirations are shot down with no sense of feeling or humanity is hard to consume. at least for me. makes me question why they even made this documentary. if it was to show what an IMMATURE, POMPOUS ass BARNES is, then congratulations. maybe it was to show the music succeeding in spite of being sourced from this sorry MAN-CHILD. i honestly dont know what the point was or who this film was made for. which is why i find it so interesting in spite of such. |
NICHOLAS ARCHIVES
May 2024
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