yet another indie disco! (relax, it's only herr waldar!)

a video: sigur rós's »gobbledigook«

waldar — 2008-06-01T21:30:00Z

ryan mcginley, »ann (slingshot)«, 2007

ryan mcginley (en.wikipedia), born 1977, is a new york city-based photographer, short film-director and artist. »ann (slingshot)« is a piece of his taken in 2007 (from the series »i know where the summer goes«): it shows a girl being thrown into the air with a jumping sheet. the interest of ryan mcginley is to portray aspects of youth, life and love to the viewer. heavily inspired by icons like larry clark, terry richardson and wolfgang tillmans, mcginleys artistic language is to capture moments of detachedness. for his works, mcginley usually gathers different close friends of his together and travels with them to earlier on scouted locations in the free nature. because of this, he predefines what might happen during the field trips, but not, what actually occurs.

in 2001 he was at the age of 24 the youngest artist to perform a solo exhibition at whitney museum of american art, new york. in 2007 he was awarded with the young photographer infinity award. 2008 sees the publication of »ryan mcginley«, a collection of 47 pieces of work plus essays by music journalist vince aletti and sylvia wolf, curator of photography at whitney. the 196-pages strong, multicoloured book can be preordered casebound at amazon. a recent interview with larry clark and ryan mcginley by ulrike knöfel can be found here (in german).

sigur rós, » gobbledigook«, dir. arni and kinski, 2008

sigur rós (en.wikipedia) is a 1997 formed icelandic post rock-quartett. similar to bjork, sigur rós defined a genre of their own, combining elements of classical music with field recordings, custom made instruments and the intimate falsetto voice of singer jón pór birgisson. their influence on pop music and modern culture is undoubted. in late 2007, sigur rós released a beautiful photographed band documentation (»heima«), shot entirely on location in iceland. their seventh studio album »með suð i eyrum við spilum endalaust« will see its release on june 23rd.
»gobbledigook« is the first single off this album, it is avaiable as a free mp3-download at sigurros.com. the video in question is directed by swedish direction duo arni and kinski. recent works of theirs include a documentary on icelandic electronic project gusgus, as well as commercials and music videos for sigur rós, dave gahan, placebo and editors.

the video for »gobbledigook« shows a couple of young, naked people in the free nature: beneath a lake, in the woods, climbing rocks and stones, jumping around the fireplace and taking baths in the sundown. the aesthetic is brilliant: youth, vulnerability and light heartedness are the key points of »gobbledigook«. we see people running, singing, drumming on trees, making out in the grass, falling from the sky, simply celebrating themselves. the photography of arni and kinski is brilliant and sharp, images are edited very fast next to each other, and though the tempo of the video seems very high, there are always some images, that have a very calming function. the music adds to the visuals: rhythmic handclaps, a straightforward bass-drum, soft guitar-pickings and soft vocals backed by hymnic chorals.

the opening credits of »gobbledigook« show the words »inspired by and in collaboration with ryan mcginley«, though it stays unclear, to which part sigur rós and/or the directors arni & kinski worked together with mcginley. the artist himself was also involved in »irregular regulars«, a portray of morrisseys recent touring and the fans accompanying the moz. also, he shot a well-known commercial for puma clothing.

more information on the new sigur rós-album can be found here. id recommend to start watching this great video right now, wouldnt that be nice?!

download quicktime, 50 mb (right click, save target as)

bizarre and adorable! but: what do you think?

a video: goldfrapp's »happiness«

waldar — 2008-04-05T19:17:00Z

bobby van, »small town girl«, metro-goldwyn-mayer technicolor, 1953

bobby van (en.wikipedia) born december 6th, 1928, was an american singer, musical actor and »entertainer's entertainer«. in the 1953 lászló kardos-directed musical production »small town girl«, bobby van plays the character of ludwig schlemmer, whose »hippity hop«-dance performance with it's 8523 hops soon became very popular. more on »small town girl« is avaiable in the new york times' review.

goldfrapp, »happiness«, dir. dougal wilson, 2008

goldfrapp (en.wikipedia), is a 1999 formed british pop music duo concisting of singer alison goldfrapp and producer (i.e. »keyboarder«) will gregory. »happiness« is the second single off their fourth album »the seventh tree«, the video in question is directed by dougal wilson (videoville). recent works of his include videos for jarvis cocker, bat for lashes, four tet, lcd soundsystem and the latest goldfrapp-single, »a&e«.

in the video for »happiness« we see once again a kind of suburbia. alison goldfrapp is being shown in the opening scene, sitting on the stairs, singing. nice! but it's getting even better. a young man pops up, pops down, pops up and down, over and over until the end of the video. though it might seem as if it was being filmed in one shot, there are several cuts in the piece. but back to the jumping man again: he's dressed in a nice cut white suit, wearing white slippers and a black&white tie. the similarities in the imagery of »small town girl« and »happiness« are huge, dougal wilson's music video obviously is a deep hommage to the musical. we see alison consistently in different cameos (the nerdy girl at the bus stop, the rigid police officer, the flower girl), we see skipping children, bmx-bikes, the friendly postman, construction workers, a lovely old couple and a dancing dog! crazyness!

find more information on the single-release here, a broad discussion on the clip at videoville, but i'm sure you would like to buy the limited 7"-picture-vinyl of »happiness« (itunes here) right away. but let's have a look at this splendid video first:

download quicktime, 22,3 mb (right click, save target as)

by the way: i counted 391 hops. how many did you see?

yet another where-to

waldar — 2008-03-30T21:32:00Z

an album artwork: neon neon's »stainless style«

waldar — 2008-03-17T23:19:00Z

it's been quiet a while since i got boom bip's and gruff rhys' joint effort-album »stainless style« into my hands. back then i guess it was in january. or was it earlier? later? nevertheless: quite a while so back then i just gave the album a short listen. at that time i've been pretty obsessed with burial's »untrue«, so that's why. but »stainless style« was a good one, too! it still is!

watching róisín dance the mess around for 30 times over the weekend was good, though i simultaneously fell in love with neon neon's tune »i lust you«. after playing the song for 279 times or so, and after watching the video for around 726 times, i thought i might need to take a closer look at »stainless style« than i did before. i guess you should have a look at it, too, so here it is

neon neon, »stainless style«, lex records, 2008

this is the packaging, obviously. it shows a female foot in a silver pumps and an older man holding the heel of said court shoe. it looks very mysterious. they seem to make a little sexy time in a car (which is making totally sense btw, since the album is a concept album about john delorean). pretty fancy! but there's more. let's open it up

this is the inside. surprisingly there isn't a mp3 download voucher nor an usb-stick or all that modern stuff in it. instead, the package contains a so called »compact disc« which used to be pretty popular around the year 1891. it is round and has a hole in the center. also it's reflecting in silver and it says »neon neon« on it. brilliant!

here you can see the booklet. what you can learn pretty soon after unfolding it is that this album is not only a concept album about delorean, but also one about long, silver finger- and toe-nails. the nail art features orange details which might look pretty slick if one is into fetish stuff etc.

the flipside of the inside looks good, too. there are less pictures displayed here since someone decided to write various names, copyright information and all that arty jazz inside of the booklet. the typo is all shiny silver and reflecting my flashlight.

ambitious!

and that was in fact the new neon neon-album sadly, there is no feet bareness involved in their brilliant, klaus thymann-directed video, which is good for a watch, though!

utterly astonishing!

a video: róisín murphy's »you know me better«

waldar — 2008-03-15T18:25:00Z

cindy sherman, untitled film stills, »untitled #87«, 1981

cindy sherman (de.wikipedia), born january 19th, 1954, is an american film director, artist and photographer. »untitled #87« is a piece of her 1981 series of images, portraying sherman herself lying on the floor, on the couch, in bed, waiting beneath the telephone. »untitled« shows her preoccupied, distant and intimate at the same time, inspired by american centerfolds and b-movie aesthetics. find a selection of images of the »untitled«-series here, buy her book »centerfolds« there.

róisín murphy, »you know me better«, dir. jaron albertin, 2008

róisín murphy (de.wikipedia), born july 5th, 1973, is an irish musician, artist and former singer of pop duo moloko. »you know me better« is the third single off her second solo album »overpowered«, the video in question is directed by jaron albertin (videoville). recent works of his include videos for emily haines & the soft skeleton, death from above 1979 and maxïmo park.

albertin's clip for »you know me better« shows róisín murphy in a suburban surrounding, sporting (as always) fantastic, oppulent dresses heavily inspired by cindy sherman (the pictures, not the clothing, obviously!). the use of light and shadow adds a very distant, intimate feel to the imagery. gorgeous!

you can read more about the single-release here, or maybe you would like to buy the 12"-vinyl of »you know me better« right away. but take your 03:47 minutes of time and watch this fantastic video first:

so: what do you think?

in english, edited on and off

waldar — 2008-03-13T23:01:00Z

»hypocrite reader - my likeness - my brother!«charles baudelaire, »les fleurs du mal«, 1857

ein album: calvin cameron / wareika hill sounds

waldar — 2007-11-28T21:10:00Z

wareika hill sounds - wareika hill sounds (honest jon's records / indigo)

ganz einfach: die beste reggae-, wahrscheinlich sogar die beste platte des jahres überhaupt. ab hier wird es vermutlich schon wieder langweilig, man könnte es auch gleich lassen. wenige alben oder compilations haben in diesem jahr eine massivere wirkung auf mich gehabt und wenige haben mir weiter augen und ohren geöffnet, als die »wareika hill sounds«. ein roots reggae-kondensat, das mir ganz neue perspektiven eröffnet hat.

im mai auf damon albarn's label honest jon's records erschienen, erreichte mich dieses faszinierende global pop-album erst ende oktober - nur um mich umzuhauen. so geht horizont also auch.

unterstützt von dem percussionisten headley bennett und dem produzenten david madden destilliert der posaunist calvin cameron melancholisch gespielten reggae, dub, blues und jazz ins popformat. glasklare bläsersätze, delays auf der orgel, schnell aber sanft geschlagene drums hört man hier.
hier ist gar nicht alles schwarz-weiß und stereotyp, keinesfalls »immer wieder n-deng-n-deng-n-deng«. elf stücke, nahezu allesamt instrumentals, aber alle elf instant-classics. diese platte bringt nur weiter. wichtige musik!

mehr hören | einkaufen

nenn mich platzhalter

waldar — 2007-11-27T17:00:00Z

denn hier passiert was.

listening:

waldar — 2007-11-07T19:08:00Z

alive 2007 (emi)
photo courtesy of bloglounge2007, cc

es¹: rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrroooobbbbbot
es²: hhhhhhhhhhhhhuuuummmmannnnnnnn

(frenetischer jubel)

es¹: rrrrrrrrrrroooobbbbbot
es²: hhhhhhhhuuuummmmannnnnnnnuunnnn

es¹: rrrrrrrrrrroooobbbbbbbbboooot
es²: hhhhhhhhuuuuuuummmmaannnnnnnnuunnnnnnnn

es¹: rrrrrroobbot
es²: hhhhhuuuummann

es¹: rrroobbot
es²: hhhuumman

es¹: rrobbot
es²: hhumman

es¹: rrobot
es²: hhuman

es¹: robot
es²: human

es¹¨²: rrrhhhoouubbmmooaattnn

es¹¨²: rrhhoubmoatn

es¹¨²: rhoubmoatn

es¹¨²: robothuman

(wahnsinniger jubel)

((die qualität der youtube-mitschnitte ist natürlich eine katastrophe, weshalb ich mich gerade so sehr über die "alive 2007" freue. hätte man natürlich auch gleich der bombastischen show wegen als dvd rausbringen können, aber steckste halt nicht drin. hätte ich jedenfalls sofort gekauft, und das sagt einer, der erst mit der letzten so-called-schlechten - was ich wiederum gar nicht finde, aber das ist ein anderes thema - platte "human after all" so richtig in das universum daft punk eingestiegen ist.))

daft punk - robot rock (live at vegoose 2007)

nie war dieser spruch passender, als heute:

waldar — 2007-11-01T08:42:00Z

"da kommen wieder die leichen aus dem club gefallen..."

y.a.s.a.p.y.t., c.a.t.l., j.e.a.a.b.c., t.h.y.m.i.r.

waldar — 2007-10-11T19:29:00Z

whataband: rod stewart, stevie wonder, prince, michael jackson & rick james
youtube direkt
"this is going to be weird!"

jimmy kimmelnoch weirder aber ist der arbeitsalltag dieser beiden franzosen: seit einem jahr aufstehen, wegfahren, depardieu- und spinal tap-dvds schauen, ankommen, ausruhen, interviews geben, brie essen, auflegen, kräutertee trinken, schlafen, neustarten.
keine parties. keine frauen. kein rock&roll. so sympathisch.

previously:
- "this is how we do in paris"
- yet another video by justice vs simian

wo wir schonmal dabei sind: sexy-mini-super-flower-pop-op-blogging

waldar — 2007-10-11T18:50:00Z

alles, ausser den monks
youtube direkt

"die monks die waren einfach dieses blecherne oder stählerne geschnatter eines herbert von karajan!"

charles wilpund wenn man dann wilp sieht, wie er inmitten dieses dreißigköpfigen orchesters steht und die klassischen musiker zu dem fluxus-gezerre seiner brause-spots performen ließ, das ist doch äußerst imposant.

alright, my name's gary. let's go! it's beat time! it's hop time!...

waldar — 2007-10-11T18:27:00Z

wenn man dann aus solchen filmen, gezeigt in kleinen nischenkinos, wieder rauskommt, dann beginnt man einmal mehr pophistorie zu verstehen. ansatzweise zwar nur, aber verständlich genug, um die radikalität des gezeigten für die nächsten dreißig jahre mit sich herumzutragen. "control" kann da ja jeder...

>> the monks - monk time [real / stream]

sag mal, internet ...

waldar — 2007-10-11T17:37:00Z

timeout bei 10%

ist myspace jetzt eigentlich tot, oder bin ich der einzige, der nicht mehr auf diese plattform darf?

"the hoof is on the rise", ...

waldar — 2007-09-21T10:16:00Z

pizza und zeichensalat
(photo courtesy of devonte hynes | cc)

so schließt die "beyond zade"-ep, und natürlich ist dem auch genau so, denn hier stehen alle signale auf wahnsinn. das illustriert alleine schon das zeichenmikado dieses eintrages, in dem es eigentlich um die an magma erinnernden free jazz-prog rock-metal-funk-collagen eines londoner ~~kollektivs~~ projekts namens chrome hoof gehen soll, tatsächlich aber der popkulturelle verweiskasten aufzumachen versucht wird.

da wäre milo smee, schlagzeuger bei chrome hoof und mit mark broom elektroniker alias 5 mic cluster (was für diese geschichte mehr als drittrangig ist), der von jamie reynolds gegen herbst 2006 angesprochen wurde, ob er sich nicht mal das konzert dessen neuer band anschauen wolle, klaxons hießen sie, und hätten schon zweimal geprobt und drei stücke geschrieben. auf der nächsten klaxons-tour geben jetzt also chrome hoof den support, man revanchiere sich damit für das umgekehrte setting ende 2006, als die klaxons noch nicht auf dem nme-titel waren.

chrome hoof hätten auch einen klaxons-remix gemacht, ob der aber jemals veröffentlicht würde sei die andere frage. der mitte 2006 erschienene remix der test-icicles-single "circle.square. triangle." sei hingegen ein erfolg gewesen, vor allem aber musikalisch was anderes, denn der gleiche mehr einem cover mit einer vocal-spur, sei ansonsten aber mehr im proberaum denn am rechner entstanden. kein wunder also, wenn hier jetzt die überleitung zu test icicles gestolpert wird, indem man ein illustrationsfoto von devonte hynes flickr-account nutzt, auf dem der die klaxons jamie reynolds und james righton in chrome hoof-kutten zeigt.

das album "pre-emptive false rapture" (southern records), das mit diesem referenzchaos beworben werden soll, ist glücklicherweise so angenehm sprerrig, dass sich die rave-kids angenervt abwenden und alle anderen eine ziemlich gute zeit haben können. klingt merkwürdig? ist es nicht!

>> chrome hoof - pronoid [mp3 / 3,5 mb]

previously:
- yet another video by test icicles