| Watch this movie: War/Dance [trailer] |
This movie angered me, possibly broke a small piece of my heart and filled me with hope and awe over the power of music.
Set in Northern Uganda, a country ravaged by more than two decades of civil war, WAR/DANCE tells the story of Dominic, Rose, and Nancy, three children whose families have been torn apart, their homes destroyed, and who currently reside in a displaced persons camp in Patongo. When they are invited to compete in an annual music and dance competition, their historic journey to their nation’s capital is also an opportunity to regain a part of their childhood and to taste victory for the first time in their lives.
14 year old Dominic had this to say in the opening minutes of the film [which was also beautifully shot on location] on the importance of music:
In our daily lives their must be music. In everything we do, if there is music, life becomes good. That’s why I want to be part of music.
Watch the film and tell me you wouldn’t want to grab that kid [or any of them in the film] and hug the hell out of him and then have a mad jam!
The film reminds me of Daniel Levitin’s book, This is Your Brain on Music, from which the following quote comes from:
No known human culture now or anytime in the recorded past lacked music.
There is something universal and powerful about music and I feel fortunate enough to be part of it (and also not to have endured what these children and their families have).
I don’t want to give too much of the movie away but here is just one example of what these children have been left to deal with [copied from PopMatters review of the film):
The film illustrates a story told by Rose, a singer. Initially, the camera takes her point of view, running through a field in the sunlight, her hand trailing over the tall grasses. This pleasant perception is interrupted when Rose recalls LRA soldiers taking her to see a large pot, near a “big tree” swarmed by ants and flies: “It was so ugly,” she says, as the camera shows close-ups of bugs. “The soldiers,” she says, “removed heads one by one from the pot. I recognized my parents. When I saw my mother’s head being pulled from the pot, I felt like I was losing my mind… There is nothing more I can say.”
You really should see this movie.
Kudos to Th!nk Films for producing the movies they do - high quality productions that entertain while making you think and are almost guaranteed to get a response of some sort from you.
Meanwhile…..
Radiohead, although trying all kinds of online experiments including their own social network and a remix contest fetching over 2200 remixes [one of the highest voted remixes is Holy Fuck - 3/4s of whom hail from the east coast which is nice to see considering the recognition they are getting of late].
However, they are not the innovative leaders they may have appeared to be:
Radiohead’s Thom Yorke: Free Album Offer Was a “One-Off” - Digital Media Wire
Thom Yorke: no more free Radiohead albums - Guardian UK
TechDirt’s Mike Masnick has his own take on it in “Don’t Read Too Much Into Radiohead’s Claim That It Won’t Offer Music For Free Again“:
Reznor expressed his less than favorable opinions on Radiohead’s release:
Trent Reznor: Radiohead’s ‘In Rainbows’ promotion was ‘insincere’ - CNet News
From the same CNet article above:
The truth is that Reznor, who at times is volatile–and is always outspoken–is doing more for music fans and fellow musicians than anybody.
Continue reading for complete details on “The Slip” (more…)
Obey Convention II
Last year’s Obey Convention was excellent, but this one looks as if it’s going to overshadow it by far. Darcy Spidle, owner of Divorce Records, has been pulling some strings and has managed to pull in a variety of very excellent local and national acts. I’m going to profile a few artists, starting with the group I’m the most excited about.
NADJA (Toronto, Canada)
are musicmakers Aidan Baker and Leah Buckareff. They make heavy, soul-crushing and uplifting ambient metal (/shoegaze/doom/drone/). Seldom completely abandoning melody and never letting up a wall of sound; Nadja makes some of the most immersive music I’ve ever heard.
Nadja began in 2003 as a studio project for Aidan Baker. In 2005, after releasing three studio albums (Touched, Skin Turns To Glass, Corrasion) and an EP (I Have Tasted the Fire Inside Your Mouth), Aidan brought Leah Buckareff into the project in order to perform live. They have since released 10 more full length albums, an EP, and 7 collaborations. Not only do they have a massive amount of material, but the quality of it all is very impressive.
Of course, Aidan Baker is a prolific artist on his own. Classically trained on the flute, and self-taught on guitar. He has over 100 albums and EPs that he has composed, contributed to, or collaborated on, as well as several books of poetry. His writings mirror his musical style in their darkness, brooding, length, and heresy; his book ‘Wound Culture’ includes the eleven stanza poem ‘Angel Tales’ which muses on the sex life of Angels.
Nadja’s most recent album, Desire in Uneasiness, is a more human offering than their older albums. A drum kit, rather than a programmed drum machine beat, makes the swelling sounds more accessible. While still dominating your sense, they make the feeling less abstract and more like a natural disaster. Seeing this version of Nadja in person promises to be a very memorable experience.
Myspace
Official Website
Label Website
A collection of excerpts of Aidan Baker’s poetry.
For more information on Sappyfest, visit: www.sappyrecords.com/festival.htm
Continue reading for a complete list of acts and their websites (more…)
Via Listening Post: “Fairly Violent, Pretty Amazing”
justice stress (official video)
by 75_prod
Need new music the moment it is available online, then you probably want to bookmark Did It Leak?
Regular - almost daily - updates of the newest albums available WELL before their official release dates.
Last week when I posted about this free compilation I failed to note Toyota’s involvement.
Smart move on their part. Just giving credit where due and suggesting you take a listen with their embedded player in this post (if you have not yet downloaded it) - which much to my surprise does not include any Toyota branding….
Via Ten Music and Ad Age
Continue reading for the widget - had to hide it to stop the autoplay (more…)
I will not even waste my time linking to countless examples old DRM screwing consumers in countless ways - they are out there, this is the latest example. DRM does nothing for consumers and fans of music.
Copying the following from Listening Post because they have lots of good points I will highlight:
Microsoft’s Final ‘Up Yours’ To Those Who Bought Into Its DRM Story - TechDirt
And from Hypebot:
I’ll let the evil corporate giant do the talking:
In simple terms, if you get a new computer next year; all the tunes you bought from MSN Music won’t play in it. “We will no longer be able to support…” sounds like “screw the consumer” to me.
There’s more out there but you get the point……