I don't blog as much as I'd like to these days, however, when I find something that is really worth sharing I stop editing and go for it. Nic James - one of Dublin's finest DJs and resident of Toe Jam at the Bernard Shaw, told me about L-VIS 1990 a few weeks ago, mumblings about being an old man at a gig with youngsters/hipsters but gushing about a great young DJ that makes his own crazy music videos. Nic James was correct with his trend predicting as L VIS 1990 has the most exciting 'sound' I have heard in a long time. Hyper Bass draws on all 'aspects of dance music that have really inspired me over the last 6 years. Electro, Breaks, Dub step, B-more, Booty Bass and Drum & Bass… its all about the energy.' ( L VIS 1990 via Electrique Boutique )Hyper Bass does express an energy infused amalgamation of genres and subgenres with tribal drum beats thrown in for good measure.

What's interesting to me and to the ethic of this blog, is the cut and paste aesthetic of LVIS 1990's videos. The visual is synching to the sound and tempo of it, something I am aspiring to create in my own work. DJ Yoda uses popular references (eg. The Simpsons) in his live 'multimedia' shows but what visual sources does someone use whilst playing a sound that is essentially 'new'?

'the bass music sound is a lot more complex and varied. I have this thing in mind for my AV set. There is a Japanese film called Tetsuo, a really dark, hyperactive, industrial film about guy whose body mutates into to a machine…There are some incredible visual snippets that I'm going to try and match to my sounds. Its gonna be intense audiovisual assault!'

Have a look here at United Groove as a recent sample of work:

L VIS 1990 is playing at The Button Factory, Dublin on December 4th.

This track has been out a while, but wow, look at Ciara. I love the rawness of My Goodies, however this is channeling a more J Lo and Beyonce sound plus Gaga styled pants. The more I listen to it the more I kind of like it - talking about love sex and magic is way more fun than being a poker face.

My favourite song and collaboration of 2008. Due to lack of good films on television over the holiday break, I watched music videos on The Box and various MTV channels. Flicking past the MTV dance channel I began to notice the current trend in euro-dance videos of 'empowered' females dancing in their underwear whilst tormenting an 'idiot' male - usually tied up or in some kind of dilemma. Similarly in the Guru Josh Project video Infinity (2008) the female protagonist hits a brick wall with a sledge hammer - in her underwear of course. I find this depiction of women unsettling and unnecessary. I also am dubious of the Kid Cudi's Vs Crookers video of Day 'n' Night.

Cudi said the following on his website on Dec 5th:

'SEE, THIS IS ONE OF THE REASONS I HATE THIS INDUSTRY….MUTHAFUCKAS GET CONTROL OVER YA MUSIC AND YA IMAGE AND DO WUTEVER THE FUCK THEY WANT TO DO WIT IT….THIS CROOKERS VIDEO WAS NOT APPROVED BY ANYONE ON MY TEAM….WE JUS EXPRESSED TO THE PEOPLE WHO SHOT THE VIDEO AND TOL THEM WE DIDNT LIKE IT AND WANTED TO TRY SUTTIN DIFF, NEXT THING U KNO WITHIN HOURS ITS ALLLLLLL OVER THE FUCKIN INTERNET….NOW, SUTTIN SEEMS FISHY HERE…..ID B WRONG TO START PUNCHIN MUTHAFUCKAS IN THE JAW BONE (AND IM REALLLLY NOT A VIOLENT PERSON, I HATE VIOLENCE ACTUALLY) BUT DATS HONESTLY HOW I FEEL RITE NOW….PEOPLE R TAKIN SUTTIN I CREATED, SUTTIN DATS SPECIAL TO ME AND PUTTIN IT OUT CUZ THEY WANT TO…'

and on Dec 30th Cudi said this:

'I WASNT SAYIN I DIDNT LIKE THE CROOKERS REMIX OF MY SONG (I LOVE DAT SHIT ACTUALLY), I WAS ONLY MAKIN REFERENCE TO THE MUSIC VIDEO…

AND ALSO, AFTER SEEIN PEOPLE EMBRACE THE VIDEO IM NOT MAD ANYMORE…JUS A LIL DISAPPOINTED THAT SHIT WAS HANDLED WITOUT MY CONSENT….BUT WATER UNDER THE BRIDGE I GUESS'...

CUDI - HOLD MY JAR - I'M GONNA DANCE WIV DIZZEE.

This is beautiful. I found it on Pitch Fork and whilst I wouldn't normally listen to Mercury Rev this strangely hypnotic video has got me kind of interested. A cat with butterfly wings flies through landscapes akin to those in Hero or Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, this hybrid creature subsequently submerges into the hidden depths of the sea.



Chromeo Bonafied Lovin from VICE Records on Vimeo.

KID Cudi's music is described on his official website as 'the next level of music in our generation and for generations to come'. Cudi (originally from Cleveland, Ohio) fuses alternative rock, hip hop and occasionally R & B, to form feel good and emotionally honest records. He is signed to Fools Gold (A-trak's label) who also work with Chromeo, Jokers of the Scene, Kid Sister and Nacho Lovers, to name just a few. I think Kid Cudi is about to explode in popularity, his music is great, he looks hot and seems really likeable especially when compared with musical predecessors such as Tricky. Below is an Kid Cudi interview with the wonderfully named Gak City and click here for a link to his mixtape.

Thunderheist, Jerk it. (director Go That)


Santogold, Lights Out. (director Rob 'Whitey' McConnaughy)

Having seen Noah and the Whale's video for 5 years time I could not help think of the font Futura and Wes Anderson's films. Having looked at the video for 2 Bodies 1 Heart, Noah and The Whale are obviously keeping to the same theme as Anderson. They also appear to have the same cast and crew - visually branding the videos. However, it is unmistakably a Wes Anderson trait, although it works with Noah and the Whale's twee folk sound. Typographically, Anderson uses Futura (and altered versions of Futura) as his house font. Though it’s not as omnipresent in The Darjeeling Ltd as it has been in many of his past films (Rushmore, The Royal Tennenbaums, The Life Acquatic), it does appear on some key elements such as the Louis Vuitton luggage insignia and many of the train amenitites.

I am delivering a mash-up of my favourite YouTube clips at the Darklight Film Festival Launch at Filmbase, tomorrow evening, at 9pm. Expect clips like the one below and music videos I have already critiqued on this blog. The YouTube salon was an experiment in a communal screening environment inspired by Web 2.0 (user controlled content), and might be a hint of how we enjoy our social cinema time in the future. The director Eoghan Kidney is the driving force of The You Tube Salon at Darklight.

I was over at Suck My Art and [dave]'s post Buff Nuff, with a chuckle-out-loud video of Roots Manuva's new single Buff Nuff, reminded me of one of my favourite tracks of late - Waxmaster's rework of Soft Tigers' Ice Cream. The original version of Mr. Ice Cream and it's video, whilst containing an element of nostalgia and humour similar to Buff Nuff does not have the same impact as the Waxmaster's rework. Have a listen and watch here:

In the past few weeks I have noticed a revival of the Funkadelic/Parliament vision of the futuristic. The DFA remix of M.I.A.'s Paper Planes, while more reminiscent of an updated clash than p-funk, has laser beam shooting effects instead of the gun shots that you hear in the original. I watched a random episode of The Mighty Boosh and the character Old Gregg had a Funkadelic funk. Old Gregg's story of how he got this funk was portrayed by an animation akin to the illustrations that are seen on the album covers of funkadelic records. The video below is Snoop Dogg having a great old funkadelic time. Hardcore fans think he is selling out by using a vocoder but I think it's genius.

Snoop Dogg 'Sexual Eruption/Sexual Seduction' (2007/2008)


Funkadelic 'I Got A Thing, You Got A Thing, Everybody's Got A Thing' 1970

I love Amanda Blank (I was brought to Troca Bhrama in Glasgow last Summer just to see her rhyme and sound nasty). I have seen this video a few months ago on Spank Rock's myspace - its a collaboration between Spank Rock and Benny Blanco aka Bangers and Cash. They also have a tune B.O.O.T.A.Y. which links in nicely with the Cheer music I am listening to regarding my project with The Rialto Twirlers - I doubt that that I will have them chanting B.O.O.T.A.Y. but it does have that school yard chant to perfection and the fast rhythm is worthy of cheerleading counts. All the girls in Loose did the video for free (apparently it looks good on porn resumes). However, it is a much more natural way of portraying a tired and tested aesthetic (hip-hop men flanked by scantily clad women). Amanda Blank looks uncomfortable in the setting which is one reason why I love M.I.A.'s Boyz video - she is flanked by men and a neon len lye aesthetic but it is her words 'how many boyz does it take to make a war' which makes you take notice or redeems her ranting on about boys (it is evident that there is a whole set of different rules for women but I am not going to discuss it here).

I have posted the two videos - B.O.O.T.A.Y. with Santogold and Loose featuring Amanda Blank. The Bangers and Cash EP is on repeat in my studio.