February 2010: Best Animated Films

According to Rotten Tomatoes, (their fifty best animated films of all time) i selected nine from this list to watch, all great choices i think, in the end, aesthetic value depending on film
LIST:

1) Paprika (2006) Satoshi Kon - this one needs another watch, (dense, with psychoanalytic symboletry) but definitely has harbored in my mind some of the most iconic images of dreams/insanity i've ever seen.




2) Akira (1988) Katsuhiro Otomo - I am Tetsuo. Anime at its finest, dark, surreal, techno-religious underpinnings, epic, nice

3) Bambi (1942) Walt Disney Classic - Mythological, symbolic of the cycle of Life/Death, nature and its cycles of youth, love, death, metamorphosis, didnt realize that Bambi was a prince! along with iconic characters as Thumper and Flower, attributing a most heart-wrenching scene where Bambi makes it back to safety harbor,with cries of "we made it momma!" to no reply, and from there on in, the father, absent as he was, nopw speaking to him from behind a wall of gently falling snow (which you could taste the blood on each little flake) that now he was to become a "man" a "deer" all grown, and this could only happen with his safe surroundings, his maternal force, ripped away

4) Yellow Submarine (1968) George Dunning - Beatles' flair, dry Liverpudlian humor, blue meanies and such, all with a decent and thoughtful appraisal including philosophy, loneliness, and a sublime sect of sadness harbored at within the screenplay, there might be more here than meets the eye, perhaps a second viewing will reveal more? funny cameo by band at the end

5) Dumbo (1941) Walt Disney Classic - great animation, creative use of the "drunken" scene (what else was in that champgane those hoodlum clowns were drinking?) liquid LSD! crows were characterized as black, the elephantess older cows you just wanted to whip and beat with all their judgments, a stereotypical look at females btw, great story of coming round despite character flaws, physical abnormality and due stress because of each, thanks to that mouse, timothy, they were able to rise above states of despair, together, poor dumbo and his mother, but freak show turned hero, you know the story

















6) Spirited Away - (2001) Hayao Miyazaki - great story, children's story, liked the hog motif, the place of the dead, of spirits, showcasing japanese culture and folklore here, the stuff of great legend and myth, No Face has become a greatest character of all time to me, what he represents, that malleable consistency within each of us, the force of environment, that all one needs, is that right puissance in your surroundings, thanks no face, go have some more cake

7) Fantasia (1941) Walt Disney Classic - a masterwork, really shows the tightly knit ties between visuals and audio, the forerunner of the modern music video, Disney's dream to incorporate all the sense dates back some time, probably 19th century? after developments of opera, therefore incorporating even touch and smell, taste even, this was Disney's dream too, too far beyond his time, has withstood the test of it, night on bald mountain/ave maria was brilliant and the firebird suite, all of it was inspired and creative, one of my favs

8) Pinocchio (1940) Walt Disney Classic - just now realized how heavily I relied on Disney movies for my list, anime as well, and there is still so much more Disney to watch, this was grand, a real mythos capture, the fox as "evil seed", the island with all boys who sinned turning into asses, neatly opposes the wish motif, something that against common belief, one must work for, conflicts involved, one must strive for the wish to come true, as opposed to the mode of everything handed to you on silver platter as in the Pleasure Island motif, where once given and slackened, one is transformed to gruel, physically, morally and spiritually

9) Snow White (1937) Walt Disney Classic - there is a god in this version? is there one in the grimm's? must see...only problem i had with this one was the music, and that only in certain parts, they dated it by using some jazz instrumentation (namely muted horns) dated it to the era, late thirties, yet most of the rest of musics were mythical and worked well in this fairy tale complex, violent, the evil witch with her dagger, remember this distinctly when younger, this mixed with baptist blood imagery, the daggers, the blood, the hearts pierced, the man upon the cross! it goes on, yet twas the need to puncture her virginity, her purity, ) a jesus theme as well?) so that she would be tainted, polluted, like the mature and evil witch, her vanity sought to destroy her, and off her off the side of a cliff she was, right to the depths of her self-loathing, corruption of the pure, a very old story eh?

A Certain Ratio (part of the "Guardian's 1000 albums to hear before you die" list)

A Certain Ratio - Early (2002) - punk-funk fathers? post-punk? cool energy and synergy of funk (leaning heavy on disco at times) mixed with punk, in certain instances/songs not really clear where the punk lay, yet others is clear and distinct, usually when vocals are present, no typical funk slogans here, energetic like punk, seems only natural the two would pair, much like the punk/reggae fusion of ska, the Police, etc. This record comps up all singles (I suppose?) from their heyday which seems to be primarily from the late 1970s to the early 1990s (?) also fused latin within their mash-ups, dark at times and aggressive, danceable and unique, nice...

A Winter of Industry

And so, January 2010 was all things industrial month, 9 new albums i've never heard (well except for two, wanted to revisit those) So what is the ethos/aesthetic behind industrial musics? From sources they list things of transgression, punk provocation, totalitarianism, futurism, also been called brash, repetitive, melodic, noisy, it focuses on transgressive themes and polemics but this only focuses on one side and really embodies the early movements...it has split into many sub-genres as genres are wont to do, which include, as ive learned, death industrial, EBM, industrial metal, industrial rock, dark ambient, among others...the vocals can be harsh or melodic, could be bubble gum pop or abrasive authoritarian slogans...ive found that it embodies similar themes that cyberpunk conveys and the two seem to be comfortable bedfellows because of this, the use of certain aesthetic, technological techniques such as electronic instrumentation, beat loops, synths etc, give rise to a repetitive discourse, (and a synthos (as synthetic ethos, ethics of syntheticism) at times even seeming as perfect propaganda, and i think all these seemingly controlling aspects are but a ideology and social outcry against such mainstay ideas of status quo and hegemony, that in fact through what seems as adherence is undermined as rebellion (the "noise" aspect is also regarded as retaliation against what music is, or at least considered to be) it seems that although some groups implement a fascist tendency in their music, only rarely is it meant in regular and should otherwise be seen as discourse and criticism...
as stated in regen's article, (which i consulted for my list: top 10 best industrial albums ever ) industrial has spawned so many offshoots that it is incredibly difficult to pinpoint what it is exactly, so therefore has become a state of mind, sitting firmly within a modern and better yet post-modern ideology, which the cyberpunk film/literature genre is also comfortably placed. this attitude of dystopian futures, cold atmospheres, technology, control, authority, rebellion, very indicative of current psychological/political climates, esp of the past 30 years
learned much (and still much more to go) about industrial genre, esp the fact that it has grown to be an overarching ethos and that, at least in its earlier days, was combined with other forms of artistic expression and culture including but not limited to performance art and tape trading (mail art), also learned of its history from throbbing gristle and its own industrial records (hence name of genre) and even this name is multilayered in many interesting ways...
SO here's the list of what i absorbed (based on regen's results (except the skinny puppy which i added myself))

1) Ministry - The Mind is a Terrible Thing to Taste (1989) excellent. one of the first, if not the first, industrial albums i ever owned, still great after 2 decades Breathe, Thieves, Cannibal Song oh the list goes on...ministry helped bring metal to the genre, more guitar driven, cool that electro and live percussion was used

2) Nine Inch Nails - The Downward Spiral (1994) u have to give reznor (along with ministry) the credit for introducing industrial to the masses, he also brought (according to wiki) more standard song structure formats to the genre (hence, or at least attributing to, its appeal) also didnt realize that this was a concept album, nice

3) Haujobb - Solutions for a Small Planet (1996) this was the first album in this series that i listened to that i had never heard and has instantly placed itself among my favs, according to regen it is a more subdued album for them and more beat heavy, i see this, excellent use of atmospheres and textures heard some electronica in there, vocals were a bit weak at times, couldve been more meaty, a la skinny puppy, had 3 instrumentals (actually 4 but the 3 aforementioned seemed to be of a running exposition) liked it, gave breathing room and nuance to the tracks/track order, upon hearing it i instantly saw the progression that industrial had made since my initial experiences of the genre, which were limited to late eighties/early nineties recordings - mainly skinny puppy and ministry

4) VNV Nation - Empires (2000) regen says vnv nation is a hybrid mix of industrial, trance, synthpop and EBM i saw this right off, liked the vocalist's timbre and the pounding beats, instantly saw the trance influence in the synth lines and appegiator, only used a couple samplers and the access virus synth to produce the record which is another feat, very lyrically driven, liked and the begin/end duo of Firstlight and Arclight, also enjoyed Fragments ... had a knack for repetitive sloganeering in Fragments ("all great things to come"), the whole album is very apocalyptic and dark even given the trance-y mood

5) Nitzer Ebb - That Total Age (1987) should have been called total ENERGY, it truly seems to be driven by a drum machine and the vocalist whose energy works to keep the album going, very punk provocative, sloganeering at its finest, Join in the Chant is a fav (Books Books, Books, Books, Burn , Burn, Burn etc...) gives more weight and power to the word when used in this way, also (where is the youth?) (now dont be lazy!) great energy, still relevant today, can see how this album spawned many dance floor hits

6) KMFDM - Angst (1993) prob my least fav overall out of this whole list yet can still see how it was included on regen's list, an extension of ministry's use of guitars, bringing metal to the genre (at least on this record) Blood Evil and Glory were my favs, another sloganeering attitude on this record, with all the KMFDM self-referencing involved, which from what i understand is something they do all the time anyways, which according to wiki is them satirizing themselves in a bit of lampoon

7) Einstürzende Neubauten Zeichnungen des Patienten O.T. / The Drawings of Patient O.T. (1983) apparently the fathers of dark ambient, very abrasive, what i think of when i think pure industrial, since they did use jackhammers and metal objects for the recording, disturbing, dark, cold, Armenia is a def fav

8) Front 242 - Front By Front (1988) first front 242 album ive heard, although i had seen them live - lollapalooza 1993 and remembering twas one of the most energetic/aggressive parts of the event, circling overland is a fav, lyrically and musically, great theme, from the planes perspective - supposedly vnv nation has done a cover must check this out, regen says front 242 are the fathers of EBM could see this in headhunter and several other songs, Agony (Until Death) was charged, regen also put this album at the top of their list, which was curious to me, nto sure why, but perhaps this album has more influential/historical effects that i am not considering, also perhaps the album succinctly displays the industrial ethos, in its purest sense? overall great album, still resonates today over 20 years later

9) Skinny Puppy - Mythmaker (2007) awesome, was wondering about this one, as so many bands seem to lose energy and edge with age, this album was a complete surprise esp for an act that has been active for so long, still seems relevant (as a group) and still has teeth, a perfect example to me of growth in an artist's career, an example of how a group can grow, within its own set framework, without having to resort to genre switches, seems to be a perfect evolution in their career, pedafly, politikil, and ugli are all dynamic, groove-centered, dark skinny puppy as i have known them yet with a sensibility that shows even more strength in their songwriting and production. instant classic!

Death Metal

Could Phobophile by Cryptopsy (album: None So Vile 1996) be the greatest death metal song ever?...

Canary in a Coalmine...Police Lyrical Analysis

First to fall over when the atmosphere
is less than perfect
Your sensibilities are shaken by the slightest defect
You live your life like a canary in a coalmine
You get so dizzy even walking in a straight line

You say you want to spend the winter in Firenza
You're so afraid to catch a dose of influenza
You live your life like a canary in a coalmine
You get so dizzy even walking in a straight line

Canary in a coalmine
Canary in a coalmine
Canary in a coalmine

Now if I tell you that you suffer from delusions
You pay your analyst to reach the same conclusions
You live your life like a canary in a coalmine
You get so dizzy even walking in a straight line

Canary in a coalmine
Canary in a coalmine
Canary in a coalmine

First to fall over when the atmosphere is less than perfect
Your sensibilities are shaken by the slightest defect
You live your life like a canary in a coalmine
You get so dizzy even walking in a straight line

Canary in a coalmine
Canary in a coalmine
Canary in a coalmine
Canary in a coalmine
Canary in a coalmine
Canary in a coalmine

Great Police song, from Zenyatta Mondatta (1980), ascribes the canary subject to indiviudal(s) who live their lives in extreme suspect, to everything, who live irrationally, based on fear, hegemony, an overexercised paranoid mental state, etc...in avoidance of problems, which are in themselves (or at least could be) grounds and material for growth, yes these subjects are suffering from heavy doses of inertia. A neurotic. A hypochondriac.

First stanza: subject described
Second stanza: subject described with issue of Body
Third stanza: subject described with issue of Mind (hegemony of professionals know best)
Fourth stanza: repeat of First

Based on canary as used for methane/carbon monoxide gas detection leaking into new tunnels in coalmines, canaries are extremely sensitive (crux of song) to these gases (gases as metaphor for the World). Canary in a coalmine is also used as a metaphor for early warning, warnings in general, so the subject is living its life as if everything is a warning for something destructive, and therefore cannot live a life stabilized.

Sounds like OCD to me.

Christmas 2009

For December/Christmas 2009 I whipped out some festive nougat musics for the Holidays, reaching out far and wide for my selections, from Russian and Ukrainian carols to Vince Guaraldi's famous soundtrack for A Charlie Brown Christmas, (and much more on the in-betweens). All of it was delicious, here's a program list with a few notes and favs:

1) The Choir of King's College, Cambridge - Christmas Carols From King's College, (1986) splendid recording and performance of trads and new carols I've never heard, examples: I Sing of a Maiden, Myn Lyking (Welsh perhaps?) Loved the lyrical quality of Once in Royal David's City and In Dulci Jubilo. Holly and the Ivy, prob one of my favorite carols with their treatment being the best I've heard so far, interesting that, according to my sources anyways, they for some reason cut out the last verse in their version, not sure why...lyrics:

The holly and the ivy,
When they are both full grown
Of all the trees that are in the wood
The holly bears the crown
O the rising of the sun
And the running of the deer
The playing of the merry organ
Sweet singing of the choir

The holly bears a blossom
As white as lily flower
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ
To be our sweet Saviour
O the rising of the sun
And the running of the deer
The playing of the merry organ
Sweet singing of the choir

The holly bears a berry
As red as any blood
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ
To do poor sinners good
O the rising of the sun
And the running of the deer
The playing of the merry organ
Sweet singing of the choir

The holly bears a prickle
As sharp as any thorn;
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ
On Christmas Day in the morn.
O the rising of the sun
And the running of the deer
The playing of the merry organ
Sweet singing of the choir

The holly bears a bark
As bitter as any gall;
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ
For to redeem us all.
O the rising of the sun
And the running of the deer
The playing of the merry organ
Sweet singing of the choir

The holly and the ivy
Now both are full well grown,
Of all the trees that are in the wood,
The holly bears the crown.
O the rising of the sun
And the running of the deer
The playing of the merry organ
Sweet singing of the choir

oh can'st thou see-est the Christian/Pagan thematics? So why? Why did they omit this last verse?
Beginning with the solo voice of boy soprano (swapping with a tenor at times) for a couplet. more boy compatriots in on the second couplet, and the full chorus for the rest, which leads to a satisfying end, form AAAAA...etc. (on general scale)

2) Robert Shaw, Atlanta SO and Chorus - The Many Moods of Christmas (1963) PATAPAN! PATAPAN! PATAPAN! my first dosage of how Christmas carols can rock, had never heard Patapan before, must find out more...
This performance, as arranged by Robert Russell Bennett, and conducted by Robert Shaw is supposedly a classic(al) recording which many people favor, I'm the newest convert...
Check it out here.

3) Various Artists (and Choruses I would believe) - Christmas in Russia (1995) - Russian choral music has the ability to make the soul quiver, at least mine, has the knack of giving the so sought after "goose-bump" effect, and this CD is full of these moments, haunting, beautiful, sad, sublime, earthy, aspects of the Russian spirit (eh?), favs: The Virgin Gave Birth to The Son but honestly, it was all great.

4) The Taverner Consort & Choir - The Promise of Ages: A Christmas Collection - And as opposed to the Cambridge all male choir, this is (seemingly) an all female choir...nice, included is a very different and stirring version of Hark! the Herald, which isn't one of my fav carols (in its traditional setting), but with this version mmmmm...testify. Many more great ones. Check out the ladies here.

and the rest: (not that these were in any way inferior)

5) The Cambridge Singers - Christmas Star - Carols For The Christmas Season (1981)
6) Vince Guaraldi Trio - A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965)
7) London Symphony Orchestra - The Nutcracker (?)

I'll have to revisit all this in the coming Christmas season 2010, more in-depth analysis...

Wizard of Oz: An American Fairy Tale

November 2009: Wizard of Oz month, had recently read the book (the first: The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900) by L. Frank Baum), figured late Fall was perfect time for showcasing this material and went with it, watched various Oz film incarnations, including the Pink Floyd+Oz mashup in (among other known titles) Dark Side of the Rainbow. Listed here is an essay contrasting (in superficialities) Wizard of Oz with Alice in Wonderland. Also included a brief treatise on the 1933 cartoon Wizard of Oz.


Dark Side of the Rainbow: ie: the simultaneous performance of Victor Fleming's Wizard of Oz (1939) and Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon (1973) which, upon its viewing, did reveal some really nice moments:
two of my favs:

• Money starts right when Dorothy opens the door from her house, which reveals Oz (in color) a fabled new World
• Eclipse climaxes and ends with the oiling of the Tin Man, or (in meta) oiling of a stagnant soul, to now experience the conclusions and observations of the album, to reach a realization, a la the "oiling of the soul"... the album ends with a heartbeat which coincides with Dorothy beating on the Tin Man's chest
  

Is this a study in apophenia? or synchronicity? artistic synchronicity? David Gilmour's critique of the phenomenon is a bit harsh (where's the value of play?):

"Some guy with too much time on his hands had this idea of combining Wizard of Oz with Dark Side of the Moon."

But what really is the value of these supposed patterns? Beyond trivia? Beyond the novelty, do these connections mean anything? Do they affirm some undercurrent? Learn more about this here.

Wizard of Oz: An American Fairy Tale

Wizard of Oz as the first American children’s book; what is so “American” about it? And how does it differ in its American traits to that of, say, Alice in Wonderland’s British quality? Oz represents American ideals in its democratic uniformity and its goal-centered, want-based plot. Alice is more chaotic in its undercurrents of monarchic rigidity. Oz as a character is a salesman, an entrepreneur who makes a “sale” to the people of Oz that he is in fact a great and terrible wizard, which is completely false; he is just a man from Omaha, an American like Dorothy from Kansas. He has to keep up this “sale” in order for himself to be safe, for if they were to discover his ruse (that he is indeed a “humbug”), then he would be in grave danger. This seems to exemplify the core of American capitalism, in that one centers his safety and security on the idea of sale/trade/bargain cosmology; this kind of idea is nowhere to be found in Alice’s Wonderland.
Much commerce (and give and take) happens in Oz, the idea of “you do this for me and I will do this for you” scheme. Even Glinda the good witch wants the monkeys’ golden cap in order to help the heroes, yet she uses it in order for them to achieve their goals. Each character needs something, wants something, feels that he/she is incomplete without it, and sets off on the book’s journey to claim it. Alice doesn’t even act as if she wants to go home, there is no want, at least not as deeply displayed in Oz. A distinct American ethos is identified with the Scarecrow, Tin Man, Lion, and Dorothy because they want, and will do anything it takes to get it.
Alice has a sense of wanting to see the Queen, a sense of purpose, but it is nowhere near the intense drive that Dorothy and her companions feel in their goal-driven activity. Alice sort of meanders from one scene to the next, from one absurdity to another; it is dreamlike and is a daydream after all. Dorothy is manifest in Oz; this is no daydream. She is actually there and wants to go home; this perhaps could be another American trait, an allegory of reality and its convictions, versus the dreamlike quality of Carroll’s British fantasy?
There is no central leader in the Oz pack, each one has traits that work to help the group; it is communal yet democratic. Alice, in contrast, is an individual locked in an absurd world with an overarching British style monarchy at its core. Yet each has a central figure which the people fear: Oz in the Land of Oz, and the Queen in Wonderland. Oz the fake is a friendly despot replaced by a wise scarecrow who undoubtedly will rule the land with a fair hand with no injustice. Oz is the salesman with a dash of the industrialist since one of the first things he had his subjects do is build something, possibly to get their minds off the fact that he is a sham – he had them build the Emerald City, his palace, the glimmering center of the World (and it is green, the color of money $$$ coincidence?) what lies at the heart of a balanced life? A green palace ruled by a humbug? A fearful man who refuses to reveal his true nature? That of a fake? He refuses to leave his palace for fear of being found out, so therefore he has become a prisoner of his own judgment, and toils away in his home built by people who believe in him and are terrified of him. Good man but a bad wizard, is this at the heart of any salesman? Or are salesmen really good wizards but bad men? Perhaps the most affluent are! Oz is distinctively American because of his salesman status and the fact that as a salesman, he was able to sell the heroes what they wanted without really giving it to them; his magic was real insofar as they heroes had belief, which goes into magic, truth and belief...etc. is there magic in capitalism in this way? To bring morality into it would this be good or bad magic? Is the perfect sale giving someone what they want without really giving anything at all? Is the term right: perfect sale? Or should it be commerce in a vacuum? The commerce of ideas? Sales equal security in some form, truth?
Violence. Oz seemed to be more riddled with acts of violence than in Wonderland. Is this a valid point? Perhaps there were acts of violence in Wonderland but not including brutal death as is the case in Oz. The American sensibility needing that violent edge, the British more mental, absurd. Which brings up the point of views of the body, have to read again but was there views, traits of the body with Alice as there are in Oz? Stuffing the Scarecrow’s head with pins and straw; stuffing his body with straw; the Tin Man and his mechanical body (which brings up ideas of science and progress, the “heart in the machine”; where is the human element more apparent than in the heart, the seat of the soul?) the Lion and his primal strength, his awe-inspiring potential of power, the king of beasts, the cerebellum, the instinct, the Id, the Body.
Could there be a rebellious, social-defying tone in Wonderland since it tends to mock perfunctory social idioms, manners, and culture of “proper” society and etiquette? Versus the Land of Oz where they did whatever they were told to do, with no idea of subversion, no claim to falsehood until Oz was discovered? It is straightforward and matter-of-fact, minus the Oz sham, but even this was found out, resolved and forgotten by the end. Wonderland is full of absurdities, diversions, subversions to the “natural order” in Alice’s real world.
Alice followed a non-linear path from here to there in an instant if need be, in Oz they either had the Yellow Brick Road, or flying monkeys to take them straightaway to wherever they wished to go, which was usually a straight path, linear and focused with a goal in mind. The white rabbit had a mission and was the only stable fixated point in this unconscious realm of the Queen (the maternal overseer of chaos – the female being the land of mystery – menstruation, Moon etc.) Dorothy and Alice are both pre-menarche females who travel through a foreign fantasy-land at an age when exploring the world is still evident and essential to understanding and identity formation—before the rite of passage into adulthood. (or at least the next stage of life)
These comparisons are instant and superficial, and take advantage of certain cultural stereotypes in some arguments. Oz and Wonderland are both fertile grounds upon which those who seek to dig may find interesting parallels and contrasts for deeper discussion.

Wizard of Oz (1933): Animated Short, dir: Ted Eshbaugh **** (4 stars for just being bizarre)

Bizarre. Baum's son credited with storyline, script (?) Interesting how it was loosely adapted, oh so loosely, overtly sexual in content, and in visual display. Dorothy with her underpants exposed in Kansas (in black and white) taken by tornado (lust?) to a fantasy world where she meets the Scarecrow and the Tin Man (eligible suitors), this penchant for the displaying of the Scarecrow and Tin Man as potential mates was not new and was appropriated in earlier film incarnations (see: Larry Semon's 1925 version Wizard of Oz)
They then witness various scenes of fertility and consummation in nature before entering the grand gates of the Emerald City (not before crossing a bridge) Once inside, they take part in a parade (sexual intercourse?) which leads them to the Wizards inner chamber of sorts (womb) where there are scenes of dancing girls exposing their underpants as well, in blatant crotch shots, Oz creates a handful of composite creatures, all of it ending with an egg that grows larger and larger to only explode, leaving a chicken and her new baby chick, with mama chicken singing: "Rock a bye baby..." wtf? A baby was the end product of Dorothy's adventures into this fabled land of Oz. A meditation on sexual emergence? trip to menarche? becoming a mother/motherhood? what was this guy thinking? an allegory of sex/deflowering?
Dorothy looked the part of Betty Boop, Oz was definitely a Wizard (no humbug in this version) and last but not least, this is the original treatment of Kansas as black and white and Oz in color, as the Victor Fleming version used 6 years later, (was this idea "borrowed", or was it synchronous?) Bizarre!