The ludic ludicrous
Apr. 16th, 2005 09:58 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
imomus
You know, it's a very sad thing when pretension seems to have left the building, left the district, left the nation, or left the world. Do I mean pretension, or do I mean the outrageous dandyism of the charlatan or shaman? Where has that dandy-charlatan-shaman gone? I used to find dandyism in Japanese street fashion, but these days there's precious little inspiration there. Beige, cream and black seem to be the rule, with a denim jacket flung on top. In the whole of Japan, only Eye Yamataka dresses well any more.It's helped that I've just moved to a new apartment in a hipper part of Friedrichshain; I'm seeing a lot of pleasantly pretentious people right outside my door now, or sitting in pleasantly pretentious cafes with pretentious small dogs, talking pretentiously on cellphones. I'm still more pretentious than most of them, though, which is disappointing: I want someone to look up to, someone to egg me on to even more ludic ludicrousness.
Well, there's one megalith of pretension, a wise, kind, gifted centre of the ludic ludicrous. Its earthly name is Devendra Banhart. I'm sure you know Devendra's charming, warbly records by now. They're some of the least futile sound recordings currently being issued. He's working on a new one at this moment, according to Pitchfork, who've just published an e mail interview with him. His insanely interesting answers to their insipidly boring questions fill me with joy. I like Devendra's records, I like the license he gives himself to wander and ramble (in interviews, only Tom Waits does this better) and I especially like his outlook on life, his references to Donovan and Caetano Veloso, his subcontinental looks, his hippy-glam-indie-Indian fashion sense, his spiritual absurdity, his charismatic gentleness...
Pitchfork: How does this album differ from your previous work?
Devandra Banhart: "I wanted it to be a circle, a red ring representational of human feelings whole — all feelings, I suppose. That's the way Donovan's Barabajagal album makes me feel, or all of Caetano Veloso's albums make me feel. I wanted to make something like walking down the road and to your right is a mango tree, your left a peach tree, a guava on the road, a bee stings you past the fig tree, you hear a
cow, you get pissed, you get cold, you get overjoyed, you get warm, you swim in the road of fruit trees, but it ain't all fantasy goodness. It's like the seabirds who don't dig the land but gotta go to it and have kids on this one perfect-to-them tree, but they can barely balance on it. And that's not the point, the balancing — the point is the trees release their seed pods which are very very sticky and some get stuck to the mama and papa birds and the birds can't use their wings so they drop dead around the trunk and turn into fertilizer."
Before I knew about Devendra, I had a Devendra-shaped hole in my life. It gapes most screamingly in my February 2001 essay The Invisible Opera Company of Tibet. I wanted a contemporary figure in the mold of Gong's Daevid Allen or the Incredible String Band's Mike Heron. And, by Shiva, we've got one.
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(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-16 08:26 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-16 10:04 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-16 09:23 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-16 10:15 am (UTC)Donovan
Date: 2005-04-16 10:16 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-16 10:56 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-16 11:43 am (UTC)I like the Indian thang; is he actually Indian-American or is it just fashion?
(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-16 11:49 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-16 12:34 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-16 04:24 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-16 05:29 pm (UTC)Sounds like a very old Boston law firm.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-16 05:53 pm (UTC)We could specialize in non-Indian turban wearer discrimination suits; I can put a "Whimsy Whammy" on the juries so they always find in our favor.
(Sadly, I do not know any Deweys, Cheethams or Howes.)
W
(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-16 01:29 pm (UTC)When I heard this, I almost started crying. Forgive me for anything bad (http://www.livejournal.com/users/klasensjo/2004/12/25/) I may have written about Devendra...
(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-16 01:38 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-16 01:54 pm (UTC)He was calm and soft spoken when he preached universal or cosmic spiritualness ( though strange enough reduced to a single earthly manifestation in the form of an Indian TP around which a musical community will r/evolve ).
He was as close as one can come to being a musical guru.
Under his charismatic spell, it seemed a good idea at the time (judging from the unequivocal savvy nods all around) to establish a movement that would erect TPs on top of one of Galilee's mountains.
Sadly, it never materialized despite Daevid's promise to come and play there, and the warranted abundance of pipes of peace without which such Tp would not be complete.
My guess is that many people prefer to remain capitalist hippies who can buy a ticket to a cosmic spiritual experience, rather than become real spiritual messengers. Still this kind of magical moments leave even the greatest cynic warm-hearted.
A few years later, a plan to build a spaceship that would fly to planet Gong seems more applicable.
P.S "Where has that dandy-charlatan-shaman gone?"
http://www.zeronews-fr.com/flash/70s.php
BTW, Momus, now you can Japanize (or East-Asianize) your face, at least skin deepwise, courtesy of the School of Psychology at the University of St Andrews.
http://www.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~morph/Transformer/index.html
Japanese style photos
Date: 2005-04-16 02:43 pm (UTC)Last night, I posted this link on my lj.
http://www.iranian.com/Arts/2004/August/Dress/index.html
It gives surprising insight into women's fashion in Iran, Tehran in particular. The imagination and the risk inherent in their style has nothing to do with the ludic ludicrousness you mention, but it is very much worth viewing.
Here's a few snippets from the photographer's preface:
"I returned to Iran after 23 years, it was a journey which made a deep impact on me.
I never saw so many well educated young people. So much cultural, political and scientific potential. And so much suffering, sadness and apathy."
The pictures of the youth of Tehran seem to contradict his statement of apathy, though the sadness and potential is certainly present. Their style inventive and beautiful in its own right, but it is also political...a "dare to punish me" to the moral police walking the streets alongside them.
The photographer also noted that:
"I think I was the only one who took pictures with a mirror reflex digital camera on the streets, because everybody, including the police was watching me. Even the Basijis (The Moral Police!) told me at one point to put my camera away immediately, they raided a mall, so I did. I remembered Zahra Kazemei (Zahra is an Iranian/Canadian journalist killed at a Persian in Tehran during last year protest marches) very well."
So, if you have time, please check it out.
The couple daring to hold hands, the girls eating ice cream, and the woman in sneakers and cuffed jeans really get to me.
Re: Japanese style photos
Date: 2005-04-16 05:59 pm (UTC)I would rather resist the view that these women are just waiting to wear only jeans, T shirts and sneakers, though. I certainly don't think that Western garb is either elegant or free, and I don't think that all of civilisation is on a converging "upward" path towards denim and pseudo-sportswear. I think the Teheran women have the mix of traditional and modern about right just now. I was slightly worried by the ads on the site by the US Department of Immigration, offering US citizenship and green card lotteries. I'm not quite sure what the site's agenda is.
Re: Japanese style photos
Date: 2005-04-16 06:42 pm (UTC)I do think it is relevant to note that Hisae and you have the option of wearing a head scarf. As of now, Iranian women don't. Technically (I believe) the law of the republic actually demands the veil be black or navy blue and no hair should be showing underneath. It is encouraging to see a relaxing of the rules.
I too don't think the intention of the youth in Iran is to move toward western garb. I completely agree that "all of civilisation is [not] on a converging 'upward' path towards demin and psuedo-sportwear". Such a belief would not only be exceptionally arrogant and ignorant, but would provide frightfully boring consequences. At present, I think the style in Iran is a mixture of defiance and curiosity about the forbidden as well as a way of uniquely retaining Persian (and by this I mean pre and post revolution) culture. The photographer ably captured this, but there was a certain amount of western romantism to his written explanation that I felt inadequate to what is truly going on in the culture and fashion.
I'm sure you are familiar with this artist already, but on the off chance that you are not, I thought you may enjoy this picture:
<img src="http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y105/be I don't know if this is actually going to work as I've never posted pics into a comment before. If it doesn't, go here: http://www4.plala.or.jp/kusanagirin/kawashima.html and check out "Sebastian" under works. It completely reminds me of the cover of Circus Maximus.
Re: Japanese style photos
Date: 2005-04-16 06:44 pm (UTC)http://www4.plala.or.jp/kusanagirin/kawashima.html
go to works. The one I am talking about is "Sebastian", and it reminds me of the cover of Circus Maximus (for obvious reasons).
Re: Japanese style photos
Date: 2005-04-16 07:05 pm (UTC)Re: Japanese style photos
Date: 2005-04-16 09:59 pm (UTC)p.s. I should mention my gratitude for your Momus Radio page, as I have an asphyxiated cornea (due to excess contact lens wear) and I've been laying around listening to them all with one eye, contemplating making an eyepatch since it's rather annoying to keep shutting one eye. How ironic, no? They're marvelous when I'm suffering from cabin fever and can't see quite enough to do anything else. (http://vagrantly.com/04/05/scarves_on_mannequins.php)
(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-16 02:56 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-16 03:48 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-16 04:15 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-16 06:07 pm (UTC)a) a placebo or "fake drug" often works as well as a real one
b) a prophet, if he's charismatic enough can often make his prophecies self-fulfilling
c) a subculture can be revived if it looks attractive enough to enough people.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-16 10:42 pm (UTC)Andre Golke
(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-16 03:34 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-16 03:56 pm (UTC)As for Devandra - you're so cute when you're a fanboy. :-)
(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-16 05:01 pm (UTC)Love,
Mitch
Slow
Date: 2005-04-16 05:11 pm (UTC)Do you know the arquitect Herman Verkerk? he has this website www.sloom.org with projects that long for a slow, moderate and organic growth.
||||||||||||||||||
In Sloom 03 I travel to Berlin to research the every day working conditions for people that have set up their own office there, or have initiated and are mentoring projects in the cultural sector. I ask them specifically how they deal with the dominance of the market economy. After the fall of the wall, Berlin was suddenly seen as THE new capitalist investment, but now the money is gone the city seems to be forgotten too. I notice a development of independant organisations and design offices. They don't want to be too dependant on the fall and climb of the economy, but want to stay in control themselves on how they can offer their services and products to society. Thanks to the FondsBKVB NL I can stay in an apartment in the Gipsstasse overlooking a triangular green empty space. I decide to take a picture of the view from the window every day. The transitional views caused by the seasonal change give me thoughts about the function of nature in the city. In the end nature changes the city of Berlin as much as any (new) building or design does.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-16 06:23 pm (UTC)adam
Let Bygone's
Date: 2005-04-16 07:21 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-16 07:46 pm (UTC)in reference to eye
Date: 2005-04-17 01:18 am (UTC)info: http://www.transplantny.com/
Off subject
Date: 2005-04-17 08:45 pm (UTC)This has nothing whatever to do with heroes, Devendra Banhart, T Rex, rockism, etc.
However, I am fed up of hearing music in my head and wish to inflict (inflect?) it upon the world. I was wondering if you would let me (and anyone else interested from this 'blog) know what audio equipment you use or would recommend for someone interested in turning internal sound into digital audio for internet and other release. You see, I know nothing at all about digital music creation and you were my obvious first choice for information, as you do very well yourself!
I should like to be able to digitally record vocals, guitar, violin and perhaps keyboards at least! If a reply would be too long (and you still feel like making it...) for this blog please write to me via simon.t(at)inbox.lv
Thanks!
(no subject)
Date: 2005-04-18 08:30 pm (UTC)This Eye Yamataka you speak of isn't the same guy that plays with John Zorn, is it?