I first saw A.I. at the movies in the summer of 2001. I distinctly remember enjoying it. I haven’t watched the film since but in the past 10 years I’ve heard people talk about how they didn’t really like it. Not that it was bad, mind you, but just that it didn’t knock their socks off; overall just not especially memorable, you know?
I’m trying to remember the plot points now and, honestly, am having a difficult time. There’s that kid from Sixth Sense and he’s a robot but he’s unhappy, right? Does he want to be a ‘real boy’ or something? I feel like there’s definitely some Pinocchio similarities or some shit.
Anyways, what I do remember are the visuals. I was always into watching stuff from a young age but 2001 was towards the beginning of when I started to set aside time to appreciate culture. When I realized art isn’t just Vivaldi or Rembrandt (though they both most certainly are); that it’s anything people create that inspires them; that the things I love – movies, music videos, electronic music, video games etc. – are worth admiring and paying attention to.
Oh right, about that: the visuals! Just rich, colorful and all ‘glow-y’. Great costumes, make-up and set design too. Spielberg is a wizard at atmosphere. Speaking of which, that’s why I’m diggin’ hard on this, the latest from our good pal Pogo. He leverages all the little visually-rich moments that stand out, mining them of their audio and then reassembling it back together again, creating an entirely unique experience. It’s all mood and feeling and I fucking love it. So much so that I’m going to give the movie another go in the coming weeks and then starting disseminating my thoughts in 140-character increments over on Twitter. Do you have an account there? Wanna talk about movies or something?
Oh and just wait til 2:01 when the Jude Law melody kicks in. Nice.
Lights down, volume up and enjoy!
posted by respondcreate on Feb. 04, 2012 in Videos | tags: a.i. artificial intelligence, ambient, chill, colorful, electronic music, future, moody, nick bertke, pogo, remix, robots, science fiction, steven spielberg, technology
“Gotta let this go;
Gotta field tomorrow on my own,
Your touch keeps on hurtin’.”
Back in September we posted a video by David Lewandowski that perfectly encapsulates one of our favorite flavors of internet: the ever elusive LOLWAT, comprised equally of parts silly and strange. We love that shit, bro.
Anyone who’s seen Tron: Legacy knows that David has talents beyond creating the fleetingly bizarre – he crafted the exquisitely rendered opening title sequence – so we were thrilled to discover that he recently directed a music video for Friendly Fires who, besides having a fantastic band name, write some super-catchy ‘choons.
David’s grandiose, hyperbolic visuals mirror and amplify the torturous experience, as described in the song, when an object your affection doesn’t feel the same way about you as you do of them. Love is a strange/alluring/wonderful thing and we’re willing to endure a lot of pain and bullshit for a shot at it.
There’s loads of fantastic visual touches sprinkled throughout, so keep your eyes peeled the whole way through. Serving suggestion: Full-screen HD with the volume way up. Enjoy!
A big thanks to William Doran, who first brought this to our attention two months ago, and to Joe Findlay who wrote us a couple of weeks back to remind us we hadn’t posted it yet. Cheers, guys!
posted by respondcreate on Feb. 04, 2012 in Videos | tags: bizarre, colorful, david lewandowski, friendly fires, good times, love, music video, trippy, wormhole
“When things go wrong, people need help;
lend them a hand, the best you can.
We can help each other out!
Team work is what it’s all about!”
We’re huge fans of Will Sweeney – he’s been an integral part of some of our all-time favorite music videos: The Parachute Ending, The Game and Goin’in – so we were thrilled to discover that he lent his unique visual style to a Yo Gabba Gabba jingle written by DeVotchKa. It’s an excellent way to ingest some sage advice. Enjoy!
Previously: Argyle The Octopus
[ Help Your Friends – Will Sweeney for Yo Gabba Gabba! ]
posted by respondcreate on Jan. 31, 2012 in Videos | tags: aliens, animation, colorful, dan britt, devotchka, hd, joe pelling, robots, space, trippy, will sweeney, yo gabba gabba
The first rave I ever went to was in Harrisburg Pennsylvania circa 1999. It was a memorable evening overall but a single moment stands out: at one point I overheard someone say that a particular song ‘blissed them out.” I dunno, just a nice play on words. Anyways, whenever I hear Nick Bertke (a.k.a. Pogo’s) movie remixes I ‘bliss out’. They’re so nice.
We had posted ‘Alice’ before – which is great – but this one, constructed entirely with samples from Snow White, is a bit special in that it utilizes high-def rips from digital rescans of the original film. It’s gorgeous; there’s loads of warm, hand drawn detail in those cells which we’ve never had an opportunity to see in such fidelity before. Bonus.
As always, Nick’s music is available for name-your-price. Remember: when you support stuff you love, more stuff that you love gets made. Cheers!
[ Wishery (Snow White Remix) ]
posted by respondcreate on Jan. 27, 2012 in Videos | tags: animation, disney, electronic music, hd, pogo, remix, snow white, trippy
I first watched this last night on my laptop and was instantly smitten. My initial assessment was that it was akin to looking through the windshield during a drive-thru car wash within What Dreams May Come. It’s an orgy of sloshing, intermingled color that’s constantly changing costume from a myriad wardrobe of morphing textures. Anyways, after watching it on the laptop I was curious to see what it would be like on the big screen, so I hooked it up to my HDTV and took a seat on a comfy chair about fifteen feet away.
Whoa man.
I highly recommend you do the same and, if you don’t have a large screen available, just take a few giant steps back from whatever device your watching this on; it’s not so much about the size of the screen but your distance from it that’s important. When you do a whole host of imagery will present itself: people, landscapes, things; all fleeting but instantly recognizable. It functions similarly to Chuck Close‘s post-seizure paintings: up close they appear as a grid of imprecise, crudely rendered orbs and splotches while, at a distance, a psychedelic proportional face starts coming into view.
The attached was created by Morgan Beringer as part of a two-video set (the other one is equally hypnotizing and abstract so don’t hesitate to give it a watch) for Matthew Dear‘s recent release on Ghostly International, a label I whole-heartedly recommend you keep an eye on. Their track-record of top-quality releases (with videos to match) is a clear indicator that what they’re doing over there is special. Have you seen Brokendate? Also from Ghostly, also rad.
If you’re diggin’ this then be sure to check out Amalgamation, too.
[ Matthew Dear - "In The Middle (I Met You There) [ft. Jonny Pierce of The Drums]" ]
posted by respondcreate on Jan. 25, 2012 in Videos | tags: abstract, colorful, ghostly international, hd, matthew dear, mind bending, morgan beringer, music video, psychedelic, trippy
I was sick recently – the flu, I think – and the fever dreams that gripped me as I tossed and turned during my first attempt at sleep were truly bizarre. I would describe them as neither pleasant nor nightmarish but simply visions; strange, poignant and fleeting glimpses into another world. They were rooted in reality but wholly separate from it; vague narratives populated by people, concepts and places that I knew but presented in an entirely new context, overflowing with cryptic, I-can-almost-grasp-it-but-not-really messages.
The attached reminds me of those sweat-soaked, unsettling hallucinations so I thought it was only fitting to share it here on my webzone.
It was created by Tobias Stretch – who we’ve featured before – as an unofficial music video for a little group called Radiohead (have you heard of them?) whose tunes, for me at least, are always a bit perplexing so the pairing is just right. Enjoy the ride!
Cheers for sending this one in, Kelsey Guerra!
posted by respondcreate on Jan. 24, 2012 in Videos | tags: bizarre, colorful, ethereal, hd, music video, nature, radiohead, stop motion, tobias stretch, trippy
Been a while since my last post here, so I wanted it to be a good one. While on Vimeo, I searched for ‘gorgeous’ and this is the first video that popped up. Not what I was looking for, but by all means a worthwhile diversion. It’s a video for the track ‘Corvette Cassette” by the band Slow Magic. Video done pretty much completely by Brendan Canty of Feel Good Lost. Hold on tight when the kaleidoscopic action kicks off about halfway through. Enjoy!
[ Slow Magic // Corvette Cassette ]
posted by tizmatti on Jan. 24, 2012 in Videos | tags: brendan canty, chill, colorful, feel good lost, kaleidoscope, music, music video, photography, slow magic
Oh shit, son!
OK, first off: NSFW WARNING! Boobies ahoy! And secondly: NEW JUSTICE!
The ON’N'ON EP is set to drop at the end of the month (pre-order here) and the fine purveyors of dope at Ed Banger Records were cool enough to fund this fantastic music video to promote the release. It’s directed by the super-talented Alex Courtes whom, you might recall, was one-half of Alex & Martin, the duo that won the best Short Form Music Video Grammy in 2005 for their fine work on Vertigo. Though they’ve since parted ways, I am happy to report that it hasn’t negatively affected Alex’s instinctual knack for creating radness. Oh, and DIVISION was hired to assist on production and they brought the same A-game talent that made No Brain shine.
I’m rather partial to journeys down the wormhole and this one is a non-stop-center-zoom ride from start-to-finish. It’s gorgeous; the perfect accompaniment to your Friday night sesh. Strap-in, crank the volume and get them HD bits loading full-screen, dawg. Enjoy!
A huge, massive thanks to Brent Burtoft for sending this one our way. We are in your debt, sir – cheers!
Related Radness: In addition to the aforementioned No Brain be sure to check out Civilization, also by Justice, and Baby I’m Yours, a deliciously catchy tune with some candy-colorful-bright watercolor visuals. Enjoy your weekend!
posted by respondcreate on Jan. 20, 2012 in Videos | tags: alex courtes, colorful, division paris, ed banger, electronic music, french, hd, justice, music video, space, trippy, wormhole
Cheers to R.E. for sending us this fun, zone-out-retro-eye-candy music video created by Plastic Horse to promote Paul White‘s latest album, Rapping With Paul White. You can download The Doldrums as well as a few other choice cuts from the aforementioned release for free by clicking here or, if you’re willing to part with $9, the entire 26 tracks from either bandcamp or iChoons. Enjoy!
[ Paul White - The Doldrums [Animated Video] ]
posted by respondcreate on Jan. 19, 2012 in Videos | tags: animation, colorful, electronic music, eye candy, hand drawn, hd, music video, paul white, plastic horse, psychedelic, retro, trippy
“I get the feeling that it’s two against one.
I’m already fighting me, so what’s another one?”
The first suggestion to check out the attached came from Dave Hughes (of Off The Air fame) back on January 9th with the second ping, from Hartwell Millett, hitting our inbox just a few days later. Another 48 hours passed and then Zak Standel wrote in with the message, “how about you watch it and then write why its cool on the main page.”
OKLOL
The roster of talent on this one is deep. On the music side of things you’ve got a choice cut from Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi‘s latest project, Rome, with a guest appearance from Jack White (NICE). The trippy, bizarre and dark visuals are provided by the tag team duo of Chris Milk and Anthony Francisco Schepperd who we’ve both featured before: Chris directed the exquisitely bizarre Who’s Gonna Save My Soul? for Gnarls Barkley and Anthony helmed two of our all time favorites, Wail to God and The Music Scene.
Jack’s dark, ominous delivery is caramel-smooth which, as it effortlessly intermingles with the warm, cinematic and slow-plodding production, sets an emotional tone that gets further accentuated by Anthony’s signature forever-morphing animation style and Chris’ acerbic tendencies to push the bizarre. It’s not very long – only two minutes and change – but it doesn’t feel that way which, in this case at least, is a good thing. Headphones on, volume up, full-screen HD and, above all else, get comfortable: the forecast calls for multiple viewings.
A big thanks to everyone who wrote in! Cheers!
posted by respondcreate on Jan. 16, 2012 in Videos | tags: animation, anthony francisco schepperd, bizarre, chris milk, danger mouse, daniele luppi, dark, hand drawn, hd, jack white, monochromatic, rome, trippy