Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project Pres; Killing Joke

This week on my Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project; Killing joke.

Killing Joke's 1980 first album practically invented Industrial Rock. There had been Industrial bands since the mid seventies with groups like Throbbing Gristle, Cabaret Voltaire and Destroy All Monsters. But these groups largely rejected traditional rock & roll lineups, riffs and song structures, aside from a few exceptions like Cabaret Voltaire's "Nag Nag Nag" or their cover of the Seeds' "No Escape'. Killing Joke however were clearly a rock and roll band with punishing riffs and pounding drums.

KILLING JOKE ~ "CHANGE";


For this song off the second 1981 album I used footage from the end of the 1916 German Expressionist Horror film "Homunculus". Although little known now this film was one of the influences on later horror films like "Frankenstein".

KILLING JOKE ~ "BLOODSPORT";


This instrumental off the first album uses an early American film "Fire".

KILLING JOKE ~ "$0.36";


This one, also off the first album, uses an earlier fireman film, Edwin S Porter's "Life Of An American Fireman from 1903. I also used this film for a Siouxsie & The Banshess film but decided to keep both versions.

KILLING JOKE ~ "TOMORROW'S DREAM";


Another song off the first album, this time using a short art film "Bad Burns" by Paul Sharits from 1982 made of spliced together strips of over-developed film. Note I had some sound problems on this one. Note also this is not a cover of the Black Sabbath song.

KILLING JOKE ~ "THE FALL OF BECAUSE";


This song off the second album uses a French Pathe film

KILLING JOKE ~ "HARLEQUIN";


This one is off of the fourth album, "Fire Dances", and uses a British film that features some early claymation

The Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project Pres; Savage Republic, pt.2

This week on my Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project; Savage Republic pt.2.
Once again we return to my favorite obscure post-punk-indie band (American division) with their unique spaghetti-western-surf-guitar and industrial-tribal drums.

SAVAGE REPUBLIC ~ "EXODUS";


This echo and feedback drenched track form the first 1982 "Tragic Figures" album uses Edison Studios newsreel footage from a huge fire in Berkley, California.

SAVAGE REPUBLIC ~ "ATTEMPTED COUP; MADAGASGAR";


Another track off the first album this time using footage from another one of Spanish film-maker Segundo De Chomon's late period actualities, this time shot in Venice in 1912.

SAVAGE REPUBLIC ~ "EMPTY QUARTER";


For this one I used another Edison Studios newsreel footage of a fire, this time a gas refinery in New Jersey in 1900.

SAVAGE REPUBLIC ~ "WHEN ALL ELSE FAILS";


Another track off the first album and one of the bands rare vocals. This time using George Melies film "The Haunted Convent".

SAVAGE REPUBLIC ~ "ON THE PROWL";


For this track I used "The Hasher's Delirium", an early piece of animation.

SAVAGE REPUBLIC ~ "ZULU ZULU";


This short track off the first album uses a short Dada art film made by Paul Sharits for the Fluxus Film collective in 1966.

The Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project Presents; Simple Minds

More from my Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project. This week; Simple Minds.

I know everybody remembers them from "The Breakfast Club", "Don't You Forget About Me", and that terrible hit album they followed it up with, blah, blah blah. But they had actually been around for several years by that time having recorded six fine albums full of atmospheric, almost cinematic songs (including several instrumentals) that naturally lent themselves to silent film. At least I always thought so.

SIMPLE MINDS ~ "PLEASANTLY DISTURBED";


The epic closer off their 1979 first album "Life In A Day" mashed up here with a 1915 film "The Portrait", based on a Nikolai Gogol story directed by Polish director Władysław Starewicz, who would later be better known as a pioneer in stop action animation. This little known film is one of the first real horror films and was an obvious influence on the later German Expressionist films especially the classics "The Student Of Prague" and "Faust".

SIMPLE MINDS ~ "REAL TO REAL";


A song off the 1980 second album "Reel To Real Cacophony" using an odd French farce "The Magic Prisoners", which experiments with backwards projection to show some prisoners apparently falling upstairs and breaking into jail.

SIMPLE MINDS ~ "SCAR";


Another song off the second album using a using a short art film, "Tails" from 1976, by Paul Sharits. This film spliced together the faded, underdeveloped ends of other films, hence the title. I used this same film for songs by Cabaret Voltaire and Siouxsie & The Banshees but couldn't decide which version I liked better so I kept them all.

SIMPLE MINDS ~ "CACOPHONY";


An instrumental off the second album using a 1907 film "En Avant Le Musique" by Spanish director (albeit working in France) Segundo De Chomon, a contemporary of George Melies whose style he built upon.

SIMPLE MINDS ~ "VELDT";


Another instrumental off the second album using yet another Segundo De Chomon film "Les Lanatiques" from 1908.

SIMPLE MINDS ~ "FILM THEME";


Yet another instrumental from the second album, this time using some newsreel footage from Edison Studios of an gas refinery explosion from the early 1900's.

SIMPLE MINDS ~ "KANT KINO";


Another track off of "Reel To Real", this time an instrumental, using an early (1902) stop action film "The Destruction Of The Star Theatre" by Edward Armitage

SIMPLE MINDS ~ "ROOM";


Another track from "Empires & Dance" using a 1969 performance art film by Ben Vautier

Next time; More Simple Minds.

The Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project Presents; Siouxsie & The Banshees (pt.1)

More from my Throwback Thursday Retro Video Project. This week; Siouxsie & The Banshees. I always though their music had a cinematic quality.



SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES ~ "CARCASS";


Happily this track off the first album about festishizing "dead pork" turned out to be perfect for this weird French film

SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES ~ "SUBURBAN RELAPSE";


Here's another song from the first album using an early French film from Pathe;

SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES ~ "RED OVER WHITE";


This song originally appeared as the flipside to the "Israel" 45. This second, more lush version, appeared on "The Thorn" ep. The video is a collection of fan dancers from the 1900's. Some of the footage are of Loie Fuller, an American who invented the style and became very popular, especially in France. The others are various imitators from France and America including American Chrissie Sheridan, filmed by Thomas Edison. This may be my favorite video.

SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES ~ "PLACEBO EFFECT";


Another song off "The Thorne" the original version of which on the second album, this one using a film by Segundo De Chomon

SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES ~ "OVERGROUND";


Another song off of "The Thorn" this time using a fairly obscure silent film "A Daring Crime".

SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES ~ "MELT";


A song off the 1982 "Kiss In The Dreamhouse" album using an abstract film by German experimental film-maker Walter Ruttman; "Opus 2" from 1921.

SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES ~ "GREEN FINGERS";


Another song off of "Kiss In The Dreamhouse" using a short art film, "Tails" from 1976, by Paul Sharits. This film spliced together the faded, underdeveloped ends of other films, hence the title. I used this same film for songs by Cabaret Voltaire and Simple Minds song but couldn't decide which version I liked better so I kept them all.

SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES ~ "CITIES IN DUST";


This video shows Berlin shot from the air in the 1920's, it's only a fragment but it suited the sunject matter so perfectly that I couldn't resist.

The Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project Presents; Cabaret Voltaire pt.2

More in my ongoing retro video project. This time more Cabaret Voltaire, pt.2, mid-period recordings.

"IF THE SHADOWS COULD MARCH";


This video for a remixed track recorded in 1974 which eventually turned up in a shortened form on the second album. The footage is from a short art film made by Wolf Vostell for a Dada film collective called Flux Films who made a series of such shorts in 1965-67. I think this one really captures the feel of the Cabs early vids.

In 1983 Cabaret Voltaire did a soundtrack for an obscure film called "Johnny Yesno". I took a couple of these tracks to make videos of.

JOHNNY YESNO";


For this one I used a short art film, "Tails", by Paul Sharits. This film spliced together the faded, underdeveloped ends of other films, hence the title.

"TAXI MUSIC";


Another from "Johnny Yesno". For this one I used one of DW Giffith's first film (from 1908) about a home invasion. I also used this film for a Monoton video but couldn't decide which I liked better so I kept both.

"SPREAD THE VIRUS";


This track is off the 1981 "Red Mecca" album. The video uses newsreel footage of the Red Baron's funeral and wreckage of his plane from 1918.

"INVOCATION";


This track is from the 1988 album "Eight Crepescule Tracks" using a performance art film from 1968 directed by Dutch art film-maker Franz Zwartjes.

Besides these found film videos I also made a few collages using still images.

"BAADER-MEINHOFF";


For this track off the second album about the 1970's terrorist group I used newspaper footage of the group.

"SLUGGIN FOR JESUS";


OK; the idea of three (very) pale white English dudes covering the theme from a 1970's blacksploitation flick may seem ill-advised but you can't argue with the results. We're just talkin' bout Shaft. Shut your mouth.