The Society Of The Spectacle

Creating new spins on retro styles is nothing new. So the question is how do you hold someone’s attention with something they are already familiar with?

Well, in the example of these two videos, the answer is simple. Craft. The first video is a music video for the concert season at Bellavista Social Pub (Jesus, what a name…). Ignoring the lameness of the name, the Jazz theme of the season has led the team to create a supreme re-interpretation of some of Blue Note records most beautiful record covers. The attention to detail is exquisite, and I mean exquisite. Even if you aren’t familiar with the content of the records themselves (although I would highly recommend you check some of these out). You cannot fail to be impressed with the level of homage, as well as the bravery of taking this design/moving image challenge on.

While the classic designs of Blue Note were getting a makeover, there appeared another video that took it’s cues from a lower form of entertainment, but nailed this homage just as brilliantly.

A speculative music video made for Buck 65 by Travis Hopkins, it reinterprets the lyrics of this rapidfire tune into a visual assault of the senses taking it’s cue from the 1960′s/70′s/80′s Exploitation scene. There’s so much pop cultural referencing going on here that really, you just have to watch it. But again, the craft, the dedication and the sheer nuttiness of it makes it really stand out.

Inspiring stuff.

My new favourite Tumblr. Cosmic psychedelic coolness. Few of my favourites after the jump… (more…)

Here’s a fantastic flickr set uncovering the delightful world of 1960′s Advertising, US style. It’s illuminating to see the morals and attitudes of the Mad Men world so accurately reflected in these ads, it shows how well the show is researched and written, but also the almost unnerving positivity of advertising of this age. It’s pure unadulterated selling, and in it’s own way is quite a refreshing change of pace.

It’s a big collection, about 300/400, so take some time to really dig around. See some more of my favorites after the jump. (P.S if you want more of this type of stuff then head over to The Footnotes Of Mad Men – beware! Season 3 spoilers will be there for all UK followers…)
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Well Mad Men season 3 is in full swing, and the buzz (as i mentioned in a post last month) has never been greater. So it’s good news that the ratings have spiked for the show and the shows fan’s continue to help fill in the gaps of the Mad Men world, but also fill in some of the contextual gaps. This development in particular is of interest. (more…)

Andrew Andrew, those purveyors of New York cool, brightened my morning with this little clip via Twitter, all from the 1960′s.

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I recently found this fantastic set of images via Flickr of Los Angeles in the 1960′s. The images are that classic mix of 1960′s America, optimistic Mad Men esq stylings (the construction projects, the building of freeways etc…) And the countercultural underbelly that was stirring across the nation (and documented here via the denziens of Sunset Strip). Love it. Take a look here.

Next up is the magic of Mark Eric. I got this album last year, available through Rev-Ola records (where i would also recommend the loveliness of Eternity’s Children, and Bergen White in particular)

So In 1968/69, while most students were either rioting in the streets, turning on and dropping out, or going underground, a foggy haze of singer songwriters and superstar troubadours were ‘getting back to the country’ Roootsiness was the new name of the game, orchestras, session musicians and teenage symphonies to god out: Earnestness; in.

Now while that made superstars of CSNY, James Taylor, Joni Mitchell and the rest of the canyon crowd, the old Hollywood hitmakers of Phil Spector, The Beach Boys (Brian Wilson was hiding in a bed by now), Curt Boecther, Gary Usher and many more found themselves on the wrong side of hip. So probably not the best time to make an album so dumbfoundly entrenched in the L.A of three years previous. But that’s what Mark Eric set out to do. A bronzed, blonde haried Surfer dude, he was actually a TV actor, magazine model and the like who had most recently starred in the Partridge Family. He obviously fancied himself as a musician (and had had one of his songs covered by the Animals) so in he went to the studio, songs in hand and crafted A Midsummers Day Dream, for me the album ends up documenting the last gasp of good vibration, surfin’ that lovin’ feelin’ California.

Because it was made so late in the day, the album has a wistfulness for the an L.A that the Eagles more successfully captured a decade later. (After The Thrill Has Gone could be it’s countryfied sister) It is unashamedly uses the old school vibes of the wrecking crew, and the wall of sound. It’s clean, it’s clear and the harmonies leap out at you throughout. But the last song is the true hum-dinger. ‘Where Do The Girls Of Summer Go’.

The Earl Palmer like drums keep the song rooted in deep harmonies, and the vibraphone over the top of the song gives it a Pet Sounds feel. Of course, the strings and horns are absoultely bang on, following the melody perfectly. His voice does struggle to meet the highest of the high notes, but every oooh and aaah harmony is perfeclty placed. But the lyrics are the killer, evoking love lost in simple terms (boy girl etc…) but putting it in context, and digging a little deeper, this becomes one the last great pean to mid 60′s California.  It also helps this album was never commercially released, only adding to it’s time capsule nature. No one really heard from Mark Eric again (although he did play a gig in LA a few years ago) But wherever he ended up and whatever he did, he created an album and song, that should sit right up there with the best the City Of Angels has to offer

Mark Eric – Where Do The Girls Of Summer Go