the videodrome mk XLIII

gil scott heron certainly is quite the character.. regarded as the 'godfather' of rap, and having been somewhat of a social and political inspiration throughout the 70's and 80's, he then descended into drug addiction - an affliction he once so passionately rallied against - in the 90's and into the 00's. it is a tragic story really, and his art now seems much more powerful as a result.

videographer de force chris cunningham (the mind behind such masterful clips as 'windowlicker' by aphex twin, and 'all is full of love' by bjork) recently teamed up with gil scott heron to produce a silkily dark and foreboding video remix full of overlays, train track landscapes and spooky lights.
look hard and you might see shades of the chemical brothers' excellent 'star guitar' film clip by michel gondry:


Gil Scott-Heron – New York Is Killing Me (Directed By Chris Cunningham)

Gil Scott-Heron - New York Is Killing Me (mediafire link)

i love this clip and video remix for its different take on a city that is really quite over stroked in the media. chris cunningham and gil scott heron are two perfect protagonists to relay such a message.

backwards

the craziness of the last couple of weeks has somehow caused me to ween myself off my usual diet of nu disco & electronica and onto material of a slightly older variety. weirdness.

i shouldn't need to tell you just how instrumental larry levan was with this whole modern day djing/disco/music thing. he was the man.
i have spent the last few days basking in live recording glory from back in his paradise garage days.. these sets are an unbelievable collection of 70's and 80's funk and disco (among many other things) and the influence that these artists had on their modern day contemporaries is very clear..
take this crown heights affair track for example - remind you of lifelike at all? or holy ghost?

Crown Heights Affair - I Don't Want To Change You

one levan edit that popped up in the live sets was this one by instant funk. im pretty happy that there was/is a group out there with a name like that. can you pick where this track has been sampled?

Instant Funk - I Got My Mind Made Up (Larry Levan 12" Remix)

far out. this is turning into some kind of spot quiz.. sorry about that.
im pretty astounded by how relevant and fresh sounding these tracks from three decades ago are.. music really does travel in circles doesnt it?

before i sign off, i just wanted to share this gil scott-heron track which i initially picked up from a floating points xlr8r mix from a while back. it may not be in keeping with a lot of the stuff you hear on blouse, but i think its pretty damned classic. and anyone out there into disco should recognise its forebears.

Gil Scott-Heron - Lady Day and John Coltrane