STYLE IN ACTION
Showing posts with label plastic ono band. Show all posts
Showing posts with label plastic ono band. Show all posts
June 18, 2011
"LOVE PIECE"
The Beatles community gathered recently for the anniversary of Cirque du Soleil's LOVE show in Las Vegas. The event prompted a new remix for Yoko Ono that is a meditation on friends and lovers everywhere, and is presented today in honor of Paul McCartney's birthday. On the heels of his winning remix and experimental film for Yoko Ono, Spy Vibe creator Jason Whiton composed a new sound collage called "Love Piece" that is a mantra in honor of reunions and reconciliation. Sound file via Jason Whiton on SoundCloud. Image of 2007 LOVE meeting between McCartney and Ono from Life Magazine. See recent Spy Vibe posts about experimental sounds and musique concrete in the 1960s and beyond, including news of Paul McCartney's plans to make a new experimental project with his original Tomorrow Never Knows machines here and a documentary about the BBC Radiophonic Workshop and Doctor Who here.
June 10, 2011
60s EXPERIMENTAL
“When I made my first tape loops, man was it a buzz!” McCartney said. “Bringing tape loops into the studio as I did, finding out that John has got a really funky tune called ‘Tomorrow Never Knows’ that needed a solo…. Well, what was better than the crazy stuff I was doing? (Wired)." Paul McCartney has dusted off his original tape machines and is planning a new experimental project!
At the heart of "1960s Style in Action" remains the magic cocktail that blended space-age experimentation and artistic flair. It's what I love about the combination of Ken Adam set designs with the larger-than-life adventures of 007. It was an era of invention, like Rabanne molding industrial and sculptural materials into new fashion. For songwriter Paul McCartney, who was a fan of musique concrete, Stockhausen and avant-garde expression, the cultural soil was ripe for the planting of a new hybrid of pop music- one might say that hybrid has blossomed as the mainstay of contemporary, loop-based production.
During the mid-1960s, Paul McCartney became fascinated with tape loops and experimental film. As he described in a recent interview for Wired, Lennon's song Tomorrow Never Knows provided a perfect opportunity to bring his experimental work into a Beatles production. Lennon himself would catch the loop-buzz and added his Revolution 9 to the 'White Album' and in three experimental records with Yoko Ono. McCartney revisited the approach again electronically in McCartney II (remastered release out this Tuesday), in his three Firemen projects with Youth, and in his collaborations with Sgt. Pepper cover artist Peter Blake on Liverpool Sound Collage (a fave of mine!).
Maybe it is because I have been working more on experimental projects myself lately and my ears are fascinated to hear and to create in that sandbox of 'chance' and playfulness, but I am excited to learn that McCartney has literally dusted off his original tape machines from the Tomorrow Never Knows sessions and is planning a tape loop project. Read the complete article by Scott Thill at Wired here. You can learn more about McCartney's travels off the pop-path in the books, Many Years From Now and The Unknown Paul McCartney: McCartney and the Avant-Garde. Listen to Tomorrow Never Knows on SoundCloud here. Check out Spy Vibe Jason Whiton's music and remix for Yoko Ono on SoundCloud here. Below is one of my fave documentary clips about how to make analogue tape loops.
Check out 60s experimental: BBC Doctor Who here. Learn about avant-garde composers the Avant-Garde Project here. Readers might also like to check out the series Obscure Tape Music of Japan, which includes Yoko Ono's first husband, composer Toshi Ichiyanagi. Nice overview of the series here, and Julian Copes introduction to Ichiyanagi here. Being a fan of Noh music, I particularly like Vol #1 in the series, which featured Joji Yuasa's Aoi no Ue ("blue above"), and Ichiyanagi's Opera From the Works of Tadanori Yokoo.
At the heart of "1960s Style in Action" remains the magic cocktail that blended space-age experimentation and artistic flair. It's what I love about the combination of Ken Adam set designs with the larger-than-life adventures of 007. It was an era of invention, like Rabanne molding industrial and sculptural materials into new fashion. For songwriter Paul McCartney, who was a fan of musique concrete, Stockhausen and avant-garde expression, the cultural soil was ripe for the planting of a new hybrid of pop music- one might say that hybrid has blossomed as the mainstay of contemporary, loop-based production.
During the mid-1960s, Paul McCartney became fascinated with tape loops and experimental film. As he described in a recent interview for Wired, Lennon's song Tomorrow Never Knows provided a perfect opportunity to bring his experimental work into a Beatles production. Lennon himself would catch the loop-buzz and added his Revolution 9 to the 'White Album' and in three experimental records with Yoko Ono. McCartney revisited the approach again electronically in McCartney II (remastered release out this Tuesday), in his three Firemen projects with Youth, and in his collaborations with Sgt. Pepper cover artist Peter Blake on Liverpool Sound Collage (a fave of mine!).
Maybe it is because I have been working more on experimental projects myself lately and my ears are fascinated to hear and to create in that sandbox of 'chance' and playfulness, but I am excited to learn that McCartney has literally dusted off his original tape machines from the Tomorrow Never Knows sessions and is planning a tape loop project. Read the complete article by Scott Thill at Wired here. You can learn more about McCartney's travels off the pop-path in the books, Many Years From Now and The Unknown Paul McCartney: McCartney and the Avant-Garde. Listen to Tomorrow Never Knows on SoundCloud here. Check out Spy Vibe Jason Whiton's music and remix for Yoko Ono on SoundCloud here. Below is one of my fave documentary clips about how to make analogue tape loops.
Check out 60s experimental: BBC Doctor Who here. Learn about avant-garde composers the Avant-Garde Project here. Readers might also like to check out the series Obscure Tape Music of Japan, which includes Yoko Ono's first husband, composer Toshi Ichiyanagi. Nice overview of the series here, and Julian Copes introduction to Ichiyanagi here. Being a fan of Noh music, I particularly like Vol #1 in the series, which featured Joji Yuasa's Aoi no Ue ("blue above"), and Ichiyanagi's Opera From the Works of Tadanori Yokoo.
April 25, 2011
HOLLYWOOD SCREENING
The experimental film for Jason Whiton's winning-remix for Yoko Ono celebrates the meaning of her name, ocean child, with images of sea creatures. Next screening is at the New Media Film Festival in Hollywood on May 21st. More info at the film's website here. Additional Yoko Ono and Beatles-related news on our Beatles page here.
January 10, 2010
JASON WINS REMIX COMPETITION
JASON WINS REMIX COMPETITION
During the flurry of Beatles and Mod style-related posts in the fall, Spy Vibe announced that Yoko Ono released an exciting and richly artistic album with the Plastic Ono Band. Members included Sean Lennon, Yuka Honda, and Cornelius. The band, now on a US tour, held a remix competition in November for their song, The Sun is Down. Music has always been a big part of my life, including remixing, songwriting, guitar & bass, film scores, and many spy-sampled lounge tunes. I jumped at the chance to collaborate with these guys! Yoko provided a handful of vocal clips. It was up to the remixers/composers to interpret as we wished. I planned a number of solutions, but had a busy fall as Spy Vibers will know. In the end I completed a lounge/jazz song- which was chosen as one of the 20 winners of the competition! When I'm not teaching and writing films, fiction, and comics, I'm busy making short films. With my song on the award list, I made an experimental film to promote the track. See it here on YouTube. Remembering the Japanese meaning of Yoko's name, Ocean Child, I shot black & white footage of dancing sea horses, jelly fish, and a dolphin on my iPhone. The film is dedicated to my brothers-in-film Kousuke Ono, Michele Civetta, and Jack Criddle. No stealthy spies or mini skirts in this one, but I hope Spy Vibers will check it out. More news about Yoko Ono and the Plastic Ono Band at Yoko's website Imagine Peace. Information about Jason's films and projects at jasonwhiton.com.
During the flurry of Beatles and Mod style-related posts in the fall, Spy Vibe announced that Yoko Ono released an exciting and richly artistic album with the Plastic Ono Band. Members included Sean Lennon, Yuka Honda, and Cornelius. The band, now on a US tour, held a remix competition in November for their song, The Sun is Down. Music has always been a big part of my life, including remixing, songwriting, guitar & bass, film scores, and many spy-sampled lounge tunes. I jumped at the chance to collaborate with these guys! Yoko provided a handful of vocal clips. It was up to the remixers/composers to interpret as we wished. I planned a number of solutions, but had a busy fall as Spy Vibers will know. In the end I completed a lounge/jazz song- which was chosen as one of the 20 winners of the competition! When I'm not teaching and writing films, fiction, and comics, I'm busy making short films. With my song on the award list, I made an experimental film to promote the track. See it here on YouTube. Remembering the Japanese meaning of Yoko's name, Ocean Child, I shot black & white footage of dancing sea horses, jelly fish, and a dolphin on my iPhone. The film is dedicated to my brothers-in-film Kousuke Ono, Michele Civetta, and Jack Criddle. No stealthy spies or mini skirts in this one, but I hope Spy Vibers will check it out. More news about Yoko Ono and the Plastic Ono Band at Yoko's website Imagine Peace. Information about Jason's films and projects at jasonwhiton.com.
August 18, 2009
PLASTIC ONO BAND
PLASTIC ONO BAND
For Spy Vibers with a taste for experimental grooves and 60s artists working today, there is a new album coming out on Sept 21st by the new Plastic Ono Band, which includes Yoko and Sean, Yuka Honda, and Cornelius. I gather that they formed, as is the tradition with this band, for a group of recent shows and an interesting batch of recordings were the result. You can hear a sample on Yoko's Imagine Peace website, where you can also learn about her Smiling Face Film project, exhibits, and other news. Regardless of whether Yoko is your cup of tea as an artist (and there is great debate among people), she is undeniably a fascinating and creative force whose Buddhist-like subtle conceptions and offerings should not go unnoticed behind the media and hype that follows her. If you would like to look into her artwork further, I suggest the book Y E S, and the upcoming book Yoko Ono (Modern Artists Series). Here is the album cover- great photograph! In youtube footage of the concerts, Yoko was stylishly Mod in a jersey with striped sleeves and short-brimmed white cap. She's industrious and, in her own eccentric way, very cool. All the best wishes to Yoko, Sean, Yuka, and the band from Jason at Spy Vibe.
For Spy Vibers with a taste for experimental grooves and 60s artists working today, there is a new album coming out on Sept 21st by the new Plastic Ono Band, which includes Yoko and Sean, Yuka Honda, and Cornelius. I gather that they formed, as is the tradition with this band, for a group of recent shows and an interesting batch of recordings were the result. You can hear a sample on Yoko's Imagine Peace website, where you can also learn about her Smiling Face Film project, exhibits, and other news. Regardless of whether Yoko is your cup of tea as an artist (and there is great debate among people), she is undeniably a fascinating and creative force whose Buddhist-like subtle conceptions and offerings should not go unnoticed behind the media and hype that follows her. If you would like to look into her artwork further, I suggest the book Y E S, and the upcoming book Yoko Ono (Modern Artists Series). Here is the album cover- great photograph! In youtube footage of the concerts, Yoko was stylishly Mod in a jersey with striped sleeves and short-brimmed white cap. She's industrious and, in her own eccentric way, very cool. All the best wishes to Yoko, Sean, Yuka, and the band from Jason at Spy Vibe.
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