Niall unleashed some Cramps earlier today as I was preparing this and so I thought I might save this post for another time. But then I figured what the hell you can never get enough of The Cramps. So here goes.
Lux Interior was 60 years old in this performance footage and still the hardest working white man in show business.
This was filmed at the Lokerse Festival in Belgium on August the 7th 2006. One month later The Cramps played their last gig at the House Of Blues in Las Vegas.
Watching this I was reminded that Lux and Ivy were together for 37 years! True love. Amazing.
Demdike Stare stand at the crossroads of dub, minimal techno, ambient electronica and abstract expressionism. At midnight under a full moon. Performing ritual musik magick. The duo of Sean Canty and Miles Whittaker, from the greater Manchester area and part of the Pendel Coven family of acts, have been slowly and subtly carving out their own niche over the last few years. They are very witchey, and slightly housey, but this is not witch house. This is something else.
Tending to keep a low profile, their vinyl releases on the Modern Love label have come in beautifully packaged limited editions (with artwork by renowned DJ and designer Andy Votel) and have seen them gain a dedicated following among future music heads. Now all three of their previous albums have been gathered into one deluxe CD set called Tryptych, which also features 40 minutes of bonus material. Tryptych is available from Boomkat in the UK, on both CD and digital formats. This is real headphone music - listen closely to hear the subtle psychedelic details, and to feel the ebb and flow of the seemingly free form tracks. Beautiful, haunting pianos and strings rub up against layers of found sound, treated heavily but subtly, and all underpinned by some seriously heavy bass.
The Demdike Stare live show is worth catching if you can, as they are accompanied by some beautiful visuals made up of obscure vintage horror films,worked live to correspond to the music. There are a few of these audio/visual clips on YouTube, like this one for “Forest Of Evil” (which contains both male and female nudity).
Demdike Stare “Forest Of Evil” (most likely NSFW)
After the jump, more Demdike Stare videos, and artwork by Andy Votel.
Singer with The Cramps, and legendary rock’n'roll front man, Lux Interior passed away two years ago today. It seems more fitting to celebrate the man on the anniversary of his death than his birth (October 21st), and besides, any excuse to get some Cramps up on DM is always welcome.
Lux is up there with Iggy Pop for sheer rock magnetism. His early performances are mind blowing - the way he moved, the way he sang, his physical appearance, it’s just incredible. Many people have tried to cop his moves, but none could do it like Lux. Outside of drag Lux was the only man to ever look good in a pair of stilettos, and I am always amazed at his pants’ ability to stay up even with the flies wide open and his hand in there. It’s what rock’n'roll should be about, but sadly rarely is. Here’s to his memory, and to all the folks missing him on this day.
Here’s the Cramps performing “The Crusher” live in Germany in 1993:
After the jump, more Lux performance footage, Lux in SpongeBob SquarePants, and an interview with the Cramps...
There’s a Sky Saxon tribute album in the works and it looks like some very fine musicians are involved, including some of Sky’s 1960s brethren. The list thus far includes Davy Jones of The Monkees, ? And The Mysterians, The Black Angels, The Damned, Iggy Pop, Quicksilver Messenger Service, The Strawberry Alarm Clock, Hawkwind, Mike Watt, Arthur Brown, The Electric Prunes and many many more. It’s a formidable line up and looks to be a fitting tribute to one of rock and roll’s true originals.
Sky’s wife, the amazing Sabrina Smith Saxon, plans to use any profits from the album to go toward the creation of…
[...] two resting places for Sky’s ashes. First and foremost, I will fly to Hawaii and meet with Sky’s spiritual family and scatter his ashes in the area where his spiritual father’s ashes are spread. Secondly, due to requests from fans for a place they can visit and show their respects, we will purchase a space in the Hollywood Forever Cemetery.
PJ Harvey talks about her new album Let England Shake on New Musical Express TV.
Harvey explains how politics, Stanley Kubrick, Ken Loach and Harold Pinter have influenced her recent songwriting.
Let England Shake hits the streets on February 15. It’s the most eagerly awaited album, for me, of 2011 so far. The tracks I’ve heard are a return to her peak form of Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea. You can buy the CD here.
A collaboration between one Cecil Stokes (1910-1956) and Bing Crosby (natch) sometime in the ‘40s, an Auroratone film was apparently meant to be used in the treatment of mental disorders. As one does. The colors and crystal patterns are indeed quite lovely and Der Bingle and his organ are dreamy (or something).
12ozProphet, “the largest graffiti, street art and pop culture community online”, collaborated with film maker Justin Hogan in the creation of this short documentary on graffiti legend and pop culture icon Futura 2000.
Leonard (Futura) talks about the early days of being a street art pioneer, his experiences with The Clash, Madonna, life in Brooklyn and his current projects.
