MEDIA ROOTS – Since we U.S. citizens all live under a government, which has chosen to engage in perpetual war at great cost, it is important to use every tool available in order to analyze our collective condition.  Heliofant’s recent release, entitled I, Pet Goat II, is a mindblowing short film rife with explanatory symbolism and profound juxtaposition, from which we all may learn.  

The animated film tackles many intertwining, contemporary dilemmas: false flag attacks, rampant consumerism, corporate power, invasive religion, and money’s influence over politics.  On an esoteric level, Heliofant broaches the Illuminati, the Masons, the Orphic Egg, the hammer & sickle, and the Federal Reserve.  For Heliofant’s own breakdown of some of the symbolism, click here.  

Beautifully elucidating the last decade of chaos and human suffering, the moving film leaves many feeling encouraged.  After all, we still have the beauty of personal choice.  Through exercising this choice, we may eventually save ourselves. 

Christian Sorensen for Media Roots

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Heliofant: I, Pet Goat II 

A story about the fire at the heart of suffering. Bringing together dancers, musicians, visual artists and 3d animators, the film takes a critical look at the events of the past decade that have shaped our world.

Original soundtrack “the Stream”, written and performed by Tanuki Project.

Animation is about half keyframe animation and half motion capture. Motion capture recording by Lartech. 

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Photo by Flickr User The Halo Above

MEDIA ROOTS — Jason Forrest‘s name used to be synonymous with the electronic music genre breakcore and with expert remixing and plunderphonics under his own name as well as the alias, “Donna Summer” (possibly to confuse unsuspecting Donna Summer fans in record stores).  For the last decade, Forrest has run his own record label ‘Cock Rock Disco.’  He now resides in Germany and has founded, and now maintains, with the help of many volunteer workers, the net’s best curated internet video repository, Network Awesome. 

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Media Roots:  “What is Network Awesome?” 

Jason Forrest:  “Network Awesome is a website that broadcasts six video programs a day.  These programs can be collections of music based on a theme, or whole movies, or documentaries, or anything else.  All the shows then go into an archive that’s organized by theme, type, style, etcetera.  Or, in other words, we’re like a TV station, but online, free, and damn good.”

MR:  “I heard of you in the form of ‘Donna Summer’ when I first visited New York.  I asked the store clerk at Kim’s Video if they carried any really good local electronic music and she handed me a copy of your CD—”This Needs To Be Your Style.”

Jason Forrest:  “Wow!  That’s so cool to hear!  I don’t think I ever really got any love from those guys before, so that feels nice!”

MR:  “Since then you’ve been running a record label, Cock Rock Disco, and continuing with your own musical projects.

“Most recently, I have been seeing a lot about Network Awesome and watching it myself, without realizing it was ran by none other than Jason Forrest.

“How did Network Awesome start?  Was it a gradual build or was there a lot of pre-planning involved?”

Jason Forrest:  “I started thinking about what was to become Network Awesome back in the summer of 2010.  After doing a lot of research on both broadcast TV Networks and also investigating a lot of online video sites (especially what works and what doesn’t work), I reached out to a friend, Greg Sadetsky, to develop the idea.  Then, in a mad flurry, we built the basic version of the site in about five weeks and launched it on January 1st, 2011.  For the first few months we were both doing a lot of other stuff, but around May of last year we started to really focus on the site.  And since then it’s been one exciting thing after another!”

MR:  “At first glance Network Awesome seems like a really sophisticated Youtube playlist; what makes it different than a playlist?”

Jason Forrest:  “It’s more like a library filled with books and each book is made of lists.  We currently have over 4,200 shows that extend in pretty much all areas of culture and entertainment.”

MR:  “Was your history as a crate-digger/sample-sleuth valuable for scouring the internet for obscure content?”

Jason Forrest:  “Great question, it actually didn’t dawn on me until a few months into the project that Network Awesome acts very much in the same way that my previous music did.  But while we do play a lot of lesser-known media, I know that it is not our agenda at Network Awesome to be obscure.”

MR:  “You have great video categories like ‘jazz drumming’ and even entire playlists for mostly unheard of sketch comedy shows like ‘The Dana Carvey Show.’  Were these your ideas originally?”

Jason Forrest:  “Some were, like the Awesome Drummers show.  But Network Awesome actually has something like 148 volunteers who work on the site.  So, there’s so many ideas flying around that I can’t claim them all!  Haha!”

MR:  “You just answered one of my next questions.  I imagine if you would do it yourself it would be a full-time job to find constant content.  Any obstacles when having that much content coming in?”

Jason Forrest:  “Network Awesome is getting to the point where we have so much great content that it’s become a problem to organize and present it efficiently to the viewer.  We just made a major design update, which has made the site so much better to stumble upon great stuff, but it’s possible to improve still.”

MR:  “With the introduction of high end consumer multimedia, Blueray and other media players and Apple TV that have access to Netflix, Vudu, Amazon, do you think there is a place for Network Awesome in this arena?  A lot of these players come with Youtube built in, but the navigation to different videos is cumbersome.”

Jason Forrest:  “‘Cumbersome‘ – haha! I think of Youtube as an unbelievable public database, and while their search functions are very good, it’s not an enjoyable experience.  I think Network Awesome can be both compatible and competition to the sites you mentioned.  And, if we continue to grow at this rate, we’ll also become a force for a better quality of content as well.”

MR:  “By cumbersome, I was referring to the way wireless network-capable TVs and DVD players now commonly have a Youtube feature that requires a numerical remote control to search through it. 

“It feels ‘half-hearted’ because it’s far easier to just search for a video on your computer with a alphabetical keyboard.  If someone just simply had a ‘Network Awesome‘ button on this interface it would make the experience 100 times more enjoyable.  

“Do you ever ponder the idea that Network Awesome is such a good concept, a big company may base a commercial product off of it?”

Jason Forrest:  “That’s what we’re actively working towards, but we also have the belief that it’s possible to make a profitable company that also supports interesting content.  I think the idea that advertisers are only interested in the broadest definition of the mass market is not really true anymore.  We’re already starting to produce original content in collaboration with sponsors, so we feel there’s a lot of potential there!”

MR:  “Network Awesome caused me to have a paradigm shift where I first saw the ideal use of  ‘on demand’ content; in the right hands, it can be an extremely powerful cultural tool.  Do you agree that Network Awesome, even though it doesn’t host new mainstream reality TV episodes (why would it), is one of the best curated and most complete ‘niche’ streaming video databases on the entire internet?

If you are too humble about the word ‘best,’ how would you describe it yourself?”

Jason Forrest:  “It’s funny; even though I started Network Awesome, I don’t see it as an extension of my ego.  So, I’m happy to tell people how great we are!  Haha!  If you take a look at the quality of what we show every day – and you compare it to the absolutely horrible state of much of broadcast TV and the many sites that focus exclusively on viral videos, then you might say we’re the best thing on the internet.  I mean, I like it.  Haha.”

Go to Network Awesome and check out the six new programs they curate daily.

Interview Conducted By Robbie Martin of Media Roots

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Photo of Jason Forrest from Network Awesome

MEDIA ROOTS— Plaintive ripples of harp-like plucked string sounds of Björk’s invented gameleste set the aural stage for the Icelandic singer in Biophilia, her eigth studio album.  ‘Moon‘ is a gentle opener, and tesla coil rhythms reminiscent of slightly softened saw-wave synth sounds follow with ‘Thunderbolt‘ procession, ushering the listener into Björk’s latest opus.

The literal and metaphoric are then joined with sculptures of sight and sound in ‘Crystalline‘.

 ‘Crystalline’

In the post-Napster, post-Bit Torrent world, when record companies reel from the digitisation of music, Björk continues to engage listeners on multiple levels and keep them wanting the full package beyond the downloaded mp3.

With Biophilia, Björk delivers a musical experience which functions as a living multimedia art installation.  The ‘ultimate edition’ of the album comes replete with thematic imagery, stories to each song, and more.  Ever the forward-thinking artist, Björk embraces modern app tech and user-interactivity, such as the iPad suite, allowing listeners to easily remix and re-imagine her music.  Biophilia, Björk revealed, was “partly composed on an iPad.”

Björk once noted, in response to criticisms of electronic music being soulless, that if it didn’t have soul, it’s because one didn’t put it there.  Björk shows us just how much humanity electronic music can embody.

“Cosmogony,” like much of this album, is a truly ambitious exploration of human existence, a sensory exploration of the inner and outer universe. 

Biophilia deserves mindful listening, challenging the listener to empathise, as in “Hollow,” with its fugue-like vocal swirls and pedal-point organ-synth tones, before reaching its electronic climax propelling forward continuity of DNA.  “Now come forth, all species,” sings Björk biophilically.

Here, the journey of life means flourishing and affliction.  “Virus,” gently and rapturously reminds us of the reciprocity of living bonds.  “Like a virus, patient hunter / I’m waiting for you, I’m starving for you / My sweet adversary.” 

One may recognise signature phonologies, as in “Dark Matter.”  But sheer conviction intertwined with tonal musicality has always made Björk’s songs function despite unconventional phrasings, which accommodate unusually expressive lyricism.

Some listeners may complain Björk’s ‘artiness’ is too much or that she’s tried too hard to prioritise ‘abstraction’ over ‘songs’ or sing-along ‘pop songs.’  Yet, this offering requires time to grow on the psyche.  As an ever-evolving artist, Björk takes risks that pushes boundaries. 

“Sacrifice” is an example of pushing the tone poem form, inversely punctuated with familiar reassurances of rhythmic regularity, impelling listeners to reconsider the comforts of the familiar and our own self-imposed limits as listeners. 

From the high-energy whirlwinds of “Mutual Core” and “Náttúra” to the meditative counterpoint of “Solstice,” Biophilia glides across and through realms of living energy, form, and motion.

The fact that Björk has largely self-produced Biophilia points to the crystallisation of her artistry, whilst maintaining her unique integrity.  We bear witness to an adventurous and seasoned artist throwing down.  With Biophilia, Björk reaches, quite successfully, for new ground, new planes, and new dimensions.

Written by Felipe Messina for Media Roots

Photo by flickr user Alexandre Hamada Possi

PITCHFORK– When you listen to “Kill Your Co-Workers”, from Flying Lotus‘ latest EP Pattern + Grid World, do you think to yourself, “Man, what would really make this song totally amazing is a video where animated robots kill people holding up nonsensical signs at a parade”? Well, today’s your lucky day, my friend.

Flying Lotus and animator Beeple present brand new video ‘Kill Your Co-Workers’ taken from his new EP ‘Pattern+Grid World’ which is out now. Directed by Beeple.

http://www.flying-lotus.com/

© 2011 Pitchfork

Blockhead’s The Music Scene

  MEDIA ROOTS- An extremely psychedelic and visually explosive animated video for Blockhead’s The Music Scene directed by Anthony Francisco Schepperd. The video encompasses a lot of interesting themes and explores a post human world where animals and televisions rule.