This gives the music video industry hope. A one take wonder. zZz is playing: Grip is the first video of Roel Wouters aka Xelor. It’s a one take music video simulating typical video effects that we encounter from day to day. The video was recorded live as part of the opening ‘Nederclips’ at the Stedelijk Museum Holland.
The project was commissioned by the TAX-videoclipfonds. The proviso of shooting it was that the audience at the opening would be able to witness the whole shoot, and that the videoclip would be added to the exhibition immediately after filming. There was no option to reshoot or edit if something went wrong. It is really clever and a breath of fresh air. It is a great way of seeing things that we take for granted and using them to illustrate something completely different. You can check out more from this years ‘Romo’s One to Watch’ here. I predict big things in the world of music video and advertising for Mr Roel. And you can check out ‘the making of’ here...just as interesting as the video itself. I love the marriage of music and maths.
A short quiz as inspired by having to endure T’Pau on the radio the other day. I swear Carol Decker is stalking me – she just won’t take no for an answer and is still wanting to be my friend on Munterspace. What does she want – China in her hand? Anyway – before I start doing an impression of Microdwarf Simon Amstell…
Who/which band is the odd one out…and why?
or
or
or
I have been a bit diverted by commenting rather than posting lately – I have thought of many things to post like how much I have been enjoying the rather marvellous Electric Roulette. Go, see, hear, read, watch, learn, listen. They even wore their fingers numb and bleeding scouring the internet for this: Iggy and the Stooges ‘doing’ Madonna at the Hall of Fame ceremony the other week. I have to say – not everyone’s cup of tea but quite frankly had I been there I would not have been able to contain myself. I would have leaped atop my hosts table, started ripping at my clothes and generally inciting all and sundry to join in and behave with great badness. Even Madonna sat there like a dork – a shocking waste of a performance if ever I saw one. She should have at least tried to move one of her heavily botoxed eyelids. Feel something! Feel something Iggy rasped as a line of elderly record executives looked on in horror and frantically popped another Ambien.
Talking of great music I went to see Supergrass at the Roundhouse last Friday. I can’t post a proper Rockmother Review as I drank so much champagne and vodka the larger detail is still missing but when it comes back in some sort of coherent form I will. All I can say is that they were absolutely brilliant, loud, in time and generally on faultless form. I fear I may have cracked a rib jumping up and down too much and attempted to breakdance at the backstage aftershow party and I might have taken Gaz’s kebab home by mistake and left it in the back of an Addison Lee cab (sorry Gaz) but you know – that’s what it is like in the rock and roll fast lane. Look out for Glange Fever – the Chas Harrison Rokumentary to accompany the forthcoming Diamond Hoo Ha album release – you can see the trailer here as shot and edited by none other than my eater algo Mr Cafe Del Nightmare. Wow is that the time? I really must be going but before I do – my old college friend Steve who is something of a genius clever cyber uber overlord and is always getting asked his opinion on stuff like the internet and often more complicated things like how do you widgify that into a host-based online multistreamlined creational environment? In his own words he can ‘state the total cost of a job during a pitch without laughing, proofread a Powerpoint presentation on a moving escalator, get a smile from the snootiest Venture Capital receptionist in Mayfair and divine the secret purpose of a digital strategy using only instant coffee and a pencil’. Added to which he has come up with the great invention of Speechification and Watchification – both a sort of diagonal slice through the output of Radio 4 (and various other speech radio stations delivered as a podcast) and BBC TV respectively. Watchification are making regular selections from the BBC’s new streaming iPlayer. By the wonders of ’embedding’ you can watch the video direct at Watchification without having to wade through the Windows only iplayer format. An interesting amalgam of distributing a ‘best of’ selection in a completely user friendly way. You can even follow on Twitter and tell your friends.
Miaow. And look what the cat dragged in! Sayonara until next time my little love kittens xx
Now and again I listen to my local radio station – Radio Jackie FM – especially in the car for some reason. There is something really comforting and normal about local radio wherever you are. Radio Jackie’s main claim is that they go out ‘Live! From Tolworth Tower!’ I don’t even know where Tolworth is. I used to catch the 72 bus from Hammersmith to Barnes after school – the 72 went to Tolworth Broadway – that is all I know about Tolworth. Actually the real reason why I like Radio Jackie is because they play a lot of 70’s and 80’s music which always sends me into a reminiscent reverie of too much eyeliner, remembering boys I used to fancy and feeling ashamed at knowing all the words to songs from bands I purported to hate at the time (mainly Duran Duran). The other thing I like about Radio Jackie are the local advertisements – “Get on down to Ashford Aquatics! Just past the Middlesex Crematorium on the A326. Ashford Aquatics – come on dooooown!”
Radio Jackie FM claims to be SW London and North Surrey’s best radio station – actually I think it is the only radio station that covers that area. On looking at their website it reminded me how weird DJ’s look in real life. You can build up a great persona with your radio voice can’t you but in the flesh you might often look a bit of a shock. Why is that? Why are most DJ’s so odd looking? Jimmy Saville being the most extreme example…..
Bruno Brookes with his massive bulbous forehead, Noel Edmonds with his tidy beard and Janice Long with her utter fright of a hairdo. Did they all get dressed in the dark I wonder?
Mike’s on at 16:00GMT today if any of you are interested…
Who is your favourite DJ and why? My only favourite DJ ever was John Peel.And Alan ‘Fluff’ Freeman
Not’arf.
Bye.
As found on glorious munterspace – thank you to the beautiful and clever Namalee (Fashion icon, creator of Super Super, daughter of Rat Scabies and all round good egg).
It is still my heart’s desire to get the word Munterspace (my rapidly catching on slang for Myspace) into the Oxford English Dictionary before I die. And talking of glorious Munterspace – this week my top friend requests have come from none other than flame-haired crooneress Carole Decker and T’Pau – the real Carol Ladies and Gentlemen. For some reason I find this absolutely hilarious. If there are any fans out there I have noticed that you can catch Carol and T’Pau (currently on international tour) here:
Lovely Pontins Canvey Island on 29th Feb. One of my other friend requests this week has been from none other than:
– or S.O.S if you want to have it spelled out in studs on a wristband as it is too long to go round otherwise. Here is a picture of when Gav (Guitar and Backing Vocals) met with Rick Parfitt of Status Quo.
I must say Rick looks a little bemused and his body language isn’t very forthcoming is it?
While we are on the subject of music, I saw a very badly mis-spelt sign backstage at The Brits this week.
A bit of a worry really considering this was a warning sign for a series of very big and dangerous explosive pyrotechnic rigs. Thank you to my great friend and creative partner in crime Cafe Del Nightmare who I relied on to take the photo on his beautiful new iphone because I was too lazy to take it with mine (not an iphone).
Things that have been bothering me this week are: what is white cider? I assumed it was just a form of turps in a brown plastic bottle with lightening on the side to make it look nice. I thought cider was golden or cloudy? Perhaps that’s what happens when you drink white cider – everything goes a bit cloudy and fuzzy? that I logged onto dailymail.co.uk yesterday and actually commented on a news piece. I don’t know what came over me. I have joined the ranks of weirdos that write how pleased they are for Jennifer Lopez and her skeletor husband that they have had twins. Brain bleach brain bleach please. I will not do it again. Although I did quite enjoy the feature on The Bride of Wildenstein – now she is the munter of all munternessness! Better go. I think I have said enough.
Today I put maize in a pan and watched it pop. Then I found this….from Gerry Phillips…..who ‘has been playing with his hands for 38 years’. Right. Yeeees…..
I love the silver and black Marilyn wallpaper of Maxim’s Sex Shop in Soho and I have been meaning to photograph it for years. I haven’t ventured into the shop proper. Somehow I don’t think their budget extended to classy wallpaper for the main shop do you? What if they decide to give it a bit of a spruce up and paint over it in Magnolia or Misty Buff – it would be such a shame.
I went for a walk. Anna and Pat – Pat and Anna. They obviously feel enough for each other to do this:
I must go and see if it is still there this week. Perhaps taxpayers money extends to bolt-cutting people’s padlocked love for each other off random London bridges? Perhaps Pat or Anna might get fed up and have to do it themselves one day?
My favourite font of all time – because it reminds me of the beauty of Letraset and a bygone age:
If you want to know how to write or spell ‘wet paint’ in Chinese – please refer here:
Or you could lose yourself in these reflections instead:
Or you could look down and watch this person having a quiet moment by the river instead:
Then you could look up and see the beautiful lanterns fluttering in the breeze (again):
Or just go somewhere else and work out which one you’ve got. I’ve got that one, that one and that one…
Meanderings.
08 Feb 08….
I walk through Chinatown most days.
Yesterday it was beautiful.
Happy Year of The Rat.
Click here for predictions. I’m a Fire Horse – what are you?
Here is something rat orientated – amazing live footage of The Stranglers performing at the Battersea Park Festival in 1978. The tenuous link is that one of the first album’s I ever bought is still one of my all time favourites – Rattus Norvegicus. Wasn’t that great?
Does anyone know what those weird little scratched messages were called on the inside run-off on vinyl pressings and why people scratched them? One of the best things about buying a record was to read the middle scratched ‘secret message’ before one played it. Was it the Presser or the QC guy. Is this where the The Buzzcocks got the phrase Spiral Scratch from? Can I ask anymore questions? Yes I can. If Hillary and Obama were completely neck and neck and had to join forces do you think they would call themselves O Bummary? I do hope so.
Rockmother 
