"Kit Bashing" Exhibition at Western Bridge - Christian Marclay and Others : Jan 16 - May 5

Link to Western Bridge Gallery site




Post holidays-season and the arts are happening again in this city. Group show at the Western Bridge Gallery of visual arts, video, installation and soundwork titled "Kit Bashing" - involving these notable names:

Christian Marclay
Gretchen Bennett
Steve Brekelmans
Carsten Holler
Ryan Gander
Steve Roden
Paul Morrison
Ben Rubin

The Marclay is the same audio/video installation piece that showed at SF MOMA a couple years back and was briefly at SAM last year. Certainly worth witnessing again, even if you've already had the privilege. Holler's work tends to be synthetic installation/sculptures and Steve Roden has amassed a large body of excellent sound-art and installation/visual art works in the past decade. Looks to be a diverse group of artists who's work is all of a consistently engaging depth and quality.

From the Western Bridge Gallery:

"Christian Marcay, Video Quartet, 2002. Four channel video installation with sound, 14 minutes. Image courtesy of the artist and Paula Cooper Gallery.
Western Bridge begins 2007 with Kit Bashing, a group show on appropriation and archives, and Christian Marclay's Video Quartet, 2002. These exhibitions conclude a series of three collection hangings built around Paul Morrison's commissioned wall painting mesophyte.

Marclay's synchronized four-channel video installation is one of the treasures of the William and Ruth True Collection. The southernmost gallery at Western Bridge, was designed to accomodate the spatial requirements of Video Quartet, whose forty linear feet present an inventive and rich audiovisual collage of quick cuts drawn from the broad history of sound cinema. Working with film clips as a DJ does with sound samples, Marclay finds music in cacophony.

Kit Bashing looks at Paul Morrison's mesophyte as the product of a specific kind of use artists make of archives. Kit Bashing casts the artist not as archivist, but as a disruptive force within the categorical order of the archive. The title is derived from Steven Brekelmans' Drums (Kit Bashing), 2006, named after the practice of repurposing existing scale model kit parts to create novel designs."

Bong Joon-Ho's new film "The Host" opening at Landmark Theatres : Jan 24 - Mar 23

Here's the trailer:

Link to unrated US Trailer for The Host


And the release schedule:

Link to Theatrical Release Schedule


Yeah... incase you didnt know, I'm a lifelong sucker for Kaiju Eiga (yep, Monster Movies). "The Host" being even more atypical for the genre for having a decent 'human element' and a odd sense of political awareness to it. In essence its a weird combo of social consciousness/family values/mutant tadpole-monster eats picnickers as monster flick... which even more oddly was really well received at film fests all around Europe last year. And was on the cover of ARTFORUM (??) last month.

"Long Take on Mizoguchi" Film series at NWFF : Jan 26 - Feb 28

Mizoguchi series at the Film Forum running Jan. 26 - Feb. 28 spanning his most well known and considered films. Including the war tragedy/ghost story "Ugetsu" and the rarely seen in the west "Sisters of the Gion", the latter being an (atypical for the time) examination of the life of the geisha and a criticism of the social position of women in the then-changing Meiji period. Beautifully shot black and white tragedies that delve into the depths of human experience often through the themes of societal and personal injustice. These themes more often than not, explored from the perspective of female protagonists - seriously tragic and beautiful stuff by turns.


NWFF "Long Take in Mizoguchi" site




From the Northwest Film Forum:

"Born impoverished in 1898 Tokyo and exposed first-hand from an early age to the systematic oppression of women in Japanese society - his sister was sold as a geisha and his father abused his mother and sister - pantheon film director Kenji Mizoguchi had numerous influences molding his worldview. From early silent films such as A PAPER DOLLS WHISPER OF SPRING (KAMI NINGYORU NO SASAYAKI, 1926), to his first sound masterworks OSAKA ELEGY (NANIWA EREJI, 1936) and STORY OF THE LAST CHRYSANTHEMUM (ZANGIKU MONOGATARI, 1939), to such final treasures as UGETSU (1953) and SANSHO THE BAILIFF (SANSHO DAYU, 1954), Mizoguchi created a sublimely timeless body of work that transcends the aggression and exploitation of the world-at-large. A painstaking attention to period detail, lighting, frame composition and long takes, coupled with his intuitive outlook and empathy for his characters, reveal a simple poetry of supernatural power. Along with Akira Kurosawa and Yasujiro Ozu, Mizoguchi remains at the pinnacle of not just Japan's motion picture legacy, but of international cinema. All films in Japanese with English subtitles. Seven New 35mm Prints!

:::: ALBUMS OF 2006 ::::

HERE ARE MY TOP ALBUMS OF 2006 IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER
------------------------------------------------------------------

FM3 "Buddha Machine" (Staalplaat)
Tim Hecker "Harmony in Ultraviolet" (Kranky)
Alog "Catch that Totem" (Melektronik)
Mountains "Sewn" (Apestaartje)
Modern Institute "Excellent Swimmer" (Expanding)
Alva Noto / Sakamoto "Insen Live" DVD (Raster-Noton)
Triosk "Headlight Serenade" (Leaf)
Sickoakes "Seawards" (Type)
Mono "Palmless Prayer/Mass Murder Refrain" (Temporary Residence)
Francisco Lopez "Untitled 2005" (Aneoma)
Gruppo Di Improvisazione Nuova Consonanza "Azioni" -Reissue (Die Schachtel)
Sunn O))) / Boris "Altar" (Southern Lord)
Machinefabriek "Marijin" (Lampse)
V/A "OHM - Early Gurus of Electronic Music Box-Set" - Reissue (Ellipsis)
3/4HadBeenEliminated "Year of the Aural Gauge Operation" (Hapna)
Chihei Hatakeyama "Minima Moralia" (Kranky)
Toru Takemitsu "Complete Edition - Music for Movies Box-Set" (Made the list eventhough I can't afford the darn thing, but I've heard it all and its a amazing collection of soundtrack work from the 50's-80's) (Shogakukan)

Another pretty darn explorative year in sound, there were many works that took the ears to exciting places (especially appearing this past fall) that did so in distinct, expressive and adventurous ways. Oh and hey, where's that new Supersilent album anyway?!!

Here's a sub-list for the hip-hop as it certainly does get play/listening time alongside all that avant/dissonant/brainy/abstract stuff:

Lady Sovereign "Vertically Challenged" (Chocolate Industries)
Ghislain Poirier "Rebondir" (Big Dada)
Spank Rock "Yo Yo Yo" (Big Dada)
Mr. Lif "Mo'Mega" (Def Jux)
Clipse "Hell Hath No Fury" (Re-Up Gang)
Dabrye "Two/Three" (Ghostly)

:::: FILMS OF 2006 ::::

HERE ARE MY TOP FILMS OF 2006 IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER
----------------------------------------------------------------

Lucile Hadzihalilovic "Innocence" (France)
Hou Hsiao-Hsien "Three Times" (China/Taiwan)
Cristi Puiu "Death of Mr. Lazarescu" (Romania)
Jean-Pierre Melville "Army of Shadows" (France)
(Rereleased classic noir from '69 with new print/subtitles
and given the Criterion treatment)
Yoji Yamada "Hidden Blade" (Japan)
Nuri Bilge Ceylan "Climates" (Turkey)
Mikio Naruse "Flowing"/"When A Woman Ascends the Stairs"/
"Repast"/"Sound of the Mountain" (Japan)
(Late 50's/Early 60's tokyo dramas - first time in the west
subtitled and given the Masters of Cinema treatment)
Bong Joon-ho "The Host" (South Korea)
Pen-Ek Ratanaruang "Invisible Waves" (Thailand)
Michel Gondry "Science of Sleep" (France)
Victor Erice "Spirit of the Beehive" (Spain)
(Another rerelease, this rarely seen Spanish film from the 70's
gets the new print and Criterion treatment as well)
Pedro Almodovar "Volver" (Spain)

And there were a number of films I've been anticipating from a handful of rather exceptional directors that have yet to see stateside release/ distribution - that I'm pretty darn sure would have otherwise made the list had they shown. So here are those in the 'Not Seen but much Anticipated' category:

Tsai Ming-Liang "I Don't Want to Sleep Alone" (Taiwan)
Jia Zhang-Ke "Still Life" (China)
Abderrahmane Sissako "Bamako" (Mali)
Apichatpong Weerasethakul "Syndromes and a Century" (Thailand)

A couple of you have asked and yes, the docus should have been included on there. So Here'r those as another sublist:

James Longley "Iraq in Fragments" (US/Iraq)
Davis Guggenheim "An Inconvenient Truth" (US)
(Less for the delivery than its profile and overall message)
Spike Lee "When the Levees Broke" (US)
Hubert Sauper "Darwin's Nightmare" (Austria/Tanzania)

Venice Film Festival + Cinema Miscellanea Asia

All at once, many of my fave unpronounceable-named asian directors suddenly have new films that have just premiered at various fests in Europe. Namely the Venice Film Festival. A couple of these have shown in NYC over the fall, but otherwise havent seen stateside release/distribution yet, unfortunately. Hopefully they'll appear at Scarecrow Video in the coming months.

Tsai Ming-Liang "I Don't Want to Sleep Alone" - after his trilogy of films, "What Time is it There", "Skywalk is Gone" and the nutso-porno-musical(?) that was "Wayward Cloud" looks like he's back with a new stand-alone film. Got really positive, mixed and confused reviews at the Venice Film Fest:


http://www.fortissimofilms.com/catalogue/title.asp?filmID=305


Jia Zhang-Ke "Still Life" - new Chinese director who's last film "The World" was a fave of mine from 2005. This one is apparently about struggling relationships in the midst of the 3 Valleys Dam project in China. Expect to see slowly sinking lives/towns. Won the 'Golden Lion' award at this years Venice Film Fest:


http://ent.sina.com.cn/m/c/f/stilllife/index.html


Apichatpong Weerasethakul "Syndromes and a Century" - another convoluted apparently hypnotic-repetitive film by this Thai director. Reviews again from the Venice Fest have claimed its his most solid film from beginning-to-end to date, which inspires renewed interest for me after the very curious but mixed bag(s) that were "Tropical Malady" and "Worldly Desires":


http://www.kickthemachine.com/works/Syndromes.html


Mamoru Oshii's newest "Tachiguishi" also premiered the Venice Film Fest to some pretty amazing reviews. The premise on this one is "An epic voiceover-loaded animated/live action social history of post-war Japan told through the lives of a fictitious criminal clan"... uhhh yeeeah!:


http://www.tachiguishi.com/trailer.html

"Harmonic Resistance of Bela Tarr" series at NWFF / Almodovar's "Volver" at Landmark Theatres

A couple significant (and totally diverse) cinema goings-on here at the end of Nov/early Dec:
Hungarian filmmaker Bela Tarr's rarely (ever) shown films "Damnation" and "Werckmeister Harmonies"
along with the massive undertaking that is "Satantango" are all screening as a series at Northwest Film
Forum running Dec. 1-17:


NWFF "Harmonic Resistance of Bela Tarr" site





And on the near-complete other end of the cinema spectrum Pedro Almodovar's Cannes-award-winning film
"Volver" is *finally* playing in Seattle beginning Nov. 22 at Landmark's Egyptian Theatre:


Sony Pictures Classics "Volver" site

Krzysztof Kieslowski "Revelations of the Human Soul" Film series at NWFF : Nov 10-19

Northwest Film Forum is hosting 10 days of Films by the master late 20th Century Polish filmmaker Krzystof Kieslowski. The words that I have to say about his films do little to express the genuine emotional/existential life-questioning (and often life-affirming in their own circuitous and poetic way) narratives that are both dramatic and simultaneously true to the complexities and subtleties of the human experience in society. So yes. Theyre beautiful, consciously political and often timeless in their search to express the questions that existence, reflection and shared experience bring into daily life. Not to mention the quality of the casting and cinematography found throughout his work.


NWFF Kieslowski "Revelations of the Human Soul" site



From the Northwest Film Forum:
"REVELATIONS OF THE HUMAN SOUL: WORKS OF KRZYSZTOF KIESLOWSKI"
The history of cinema is rich with celebrated moralists, directors intent on examining the human condition and commenting on its flaws and foibles-among the greatest is Polish director Krzysztof Kieslowski, who was plucked from cinema far before his time just ten years ago at age 54. NWFF is honored to present REVELATIONS OF THE HUMAN SOUL: WORKS OF KIESLOWSKI, a retrospective of the lifetime achievement of this great European filmmaker - tracing his evolution from student films to subtly subversive social documentaries to the magic of his first forays into feature filmmaking, CAMERA BUFF and BLIND CHANCE. This series offers a unique opportunity to draw connections between the artist's early film studies and his mature, fully realized portraits. All films in Polish with English subtitles.

Matmos / Earshot Jazz Festival - Seattle : Oct 19 - Nov 5

As part of this years Earshot Jazz Festival those SF Ass-Slapping-Rhythm-Section Musique Pop-Concrete maestros Drew and Martin
aka Matmos will be performing at the Triple Door on October 21st. This being a larger seated venue with a *real* soundsystem,
expect a more lengthy dedicated performance and no doubt a good dose of their typical Inflated-Cow-Uterus type sonic antics!


Matmos at Earshot Jazz Fest


Check the Earshot site for other noteworthy goings on throughout the months of October/November:


Earshot Jazz Fest schedule

Sounds on Rotation - Sept / Oct - Books in Circulation

So here's whats been playing at my place/on my pod this past month or so. Have been particularly pleased with
the past couple months of new albums I've acquired, these being mostly textural, melodic and atmospheric type sounds.
Has really complimented both the change of season and my hyperactive return to bookreading thats happened post-Decibel:

Marsen Jules "Les Fleurs" (City Centre)
v/a "Silva Compilation" (Miasmah)
Tim Hecker "Harmony In Ultraviolet" (Kranky)
Colleen "Et Les Boites À Musique" (Leaf)
Machinefabriek "Marijn" (Lampse)
Alva Noto "For" (Line)
Murcof "Cosmos" (Leaf)
Orla Wren "Butterfly Wings Make" (Expanding)
Steinbrüchel "Opaque (+Re)" (Room 40)
The North Sea and Rameses III "Night Of The Ankou" (Type)
Modern Institute "Excellent Swimmer" (Expanding)
William Basinski "Variations For Tape And Piano: Pantelleria" (2062)
Skoltz_Kolgen "Post Piano 07_05" (12k)
Helios "Eingya" (Type)
One Second Bridge "One Second Bridge" (Buro)
Taylor Deupree "Northern" (12k)
Alva Noto/Ryuichi Sakamoto "Revep" (Raster-Noton)
The Gentleman Losers "The Gentleman Losers" (Buro)
v/a "Expanding Compilation 2006" (Expanding)
Svalastog "Woodworking" (Rune Grammofon)
Pan American "For Waiting, For Chasing" (Mosz)
Richard Chartier/Taylor Deupree "Specification.Fifteen" (Line)
Phonophani "Phonophani" (Rune Grammofon)
Sickoakes "Seawards" (Type)
Triosk "The Headlight Serenade" (Leaf)
v/a "Touch 25 Compilation" (Touch)
Coh "Patherns" (Raster-Noton)

Books in question being split between two authors, some of these being re-reads from years ago.
Both authors of Japanese origin, the first a well known contemporary fellow, the second being
one of the prominent Japanese post-existentialist writers from the 50's-60's post-war era:

Haruki Murakami - "Wind-Up Bird Chronicles" and his new short story collection; "Blind Woman, Sleeping Willow"
Kobo Abe - "Ruined Map", "Face of Another" and "Roadsign at the End of the Street"

...and finished the new Issue 20 of McSweeney's. Which had a pretty stunning visual element this time around.
Including a personal fave of mine, painter/multimedia artist Jules De Balincourt:
Jules De Balincourt links and articles