music video

The Self You Think You Are and Those You Think You See

Robert Cochrane — Tue, 02 Feb 2021 15:18:44 +0000

The Self You Think You Are and Those You Think You See Robert Cochrane February 2, 2021 - 10:18

Topics

Music Review

Tags

music video

Our eyes are our cameras.

The windows via which our souls are thus informed.

Mostly they do not lie but can be lied to.

We are beguiled by, and are, willing victims of what we witness.

A wish to be mesmerised, to be abducted on a journey.

Nowadays nothing can be taken for granted.

Our stimulus of desire may be tricked and yet we respond as though it all were real.

What we see is what we feel.

The perfectly edited lies of the flat screen.

In the digital age, unless you're connected properly, no-one will hear you scream.

You expect an arrival of reward in the hope to dream.

What has connected us has thus infected us.

Does it matter any longer if what we want to believe is patently untrue?

It can be a form of consolation.

A sense of inner devastation.

Truth dressed as something so perfectly fake.

There is a question of self, a desire to be seen as we wish to be percieved.

The shop window and facade that hides imperfect emptiness.

We are bombarded and thus we bombard.

Images of adulation as aspects of ideals that hide a fear of rejection.

To be seen as we believe ourselves as we should have arrived, although deep down we have gilded a lie.

The perfect lips, the faultless nose and brightly coloured eyes.

We have corrected the wishes that had failed us.

Everyone is ready, ready for their close-up on the small screen.

Steven Wilson's presentation of his song "Self" is a visual confection of deceit, disingenuosly delivered.

Crafted like a symphony of greys favoured in fashion shoots, it is a casual creepy nightmare.

What you see will make you respond though you know it isn't real.

The revolution has not only been televised it had been perfectly digitised.

It is also scarily appropriate for our time of masks and the perfect entree for his latest album 'The Future Bites'.

Miles Skarin is Wilson's collaborator in this skin-deep lie.

A magician without a rabbit, dove, or hat.

He presents us with Wilson in a suit and glasses like a promo shot for an advert selling classy facial furniture.

The show begins underscored by stacccato lyrics that emerge in deep red text.

A visual jarring of celebrity faces you recognise but are thrown by.

Hard to place initially they haunt.

They are transposed on Wilson's body.

A Frankenstein a go go pandrogyny.

Theirs is a subtle smack that jars the casual gaze.

Stops you in thoughts of suspended speculation.

It is a stroke of subtle genius.

Graceful takes that also are a litany of false impressions.

Nothing is of the sort of what it seems.

All flickers by in classy black and white.

Perfect proof that something catchy can be relevant, rewarding and simply divine.

"Self" skips along like Talking Heads in tandem with Scritti Politti.

A casually infectious piece of aural tease.

The final frame is a heart chiller.

An icicle across the soul.

The ghost in your machine.

- Robert Cochrane

Add new comment

Video of the Week: "Alexa"

Dusty Wright — Thu, 15 Nov 2018 13:57:32 +0000

Video of the Week: "Alexa" Dusty Wright November 15, 2018 - 08:57

Topics

Music Review

Tags

music video

British folk/indie singer-songwriter BEANS ON TOAST new single and video for "Alexa" is required viewing for all tech savvy, tech-challenged, and music lovers alike. This clever animated video -- using discarded Amazon boxes -- is a cautionary tale that examines the future of AI, voice-activated Internet controls, and Amazon's continued world domination. The video begins with Beans saying: "And this one's got an intro that goes 'ALEXA play Beans on Toast... ALEXA' so nobody can listen to it on their Amazon Echo." This is a funny but thought-provoking tune warning us about our Brave New World.

Add new comment

Song of the Week: "Cocaine and Abel"

Dusty Wright — Tue, 06 Nov 2018 15:03:04 +0000

Song of the Week: "Cocaine and Abel" Dusty Wright November 6, 2018 - 10:03

Topics

Music Review

Tags

music video

Video of the Week

"The distance from the man that I am to the man I want to be \ The time it takes to realize time is the distance I need"

On this election Tuesday, I wish we had more politicians this honest. Thought I'd share this raw and haunting acoustic-driven confessional from the LA-based singer-songwriter Amigo The Devil (Danny Kiranos). Think Johnny Cash meets Father John Misty. "Cocaine and Abel" is taken from the troubadour's latest album Everything Is Fine, and viscerally produced by Ross Robinson (Korn, At the Drive-In). You can find Amigo The Devil's tour dates here. He'll be in Brooklyn on Saturday night, Nov. 10th.

Add new comment

Video of the Week: "Mr. Weinstein Will See You Now"

Dusty Wright — Sat, 06 Oct 2018 14:55:11 +0000

Video of the Week: "Mr. Weinstein Will See You Now" Dusty Wright October 6, 2018 - 10:55

Topics

Music Review

Tags

music video

NSFW

Bold, courageous and required viewing, the video for the song "Mr. Weinstein Will See You Now," by singer/songwriter Amanda Palmer (The Dresden Dolls) and co-singer/writer Jasmine Power, who have literally bared their souls on this song and video, have created art that cuts to the bone. It must be seen and shared with everyone. Released on October 5th, the one-year anniversary of the #MeToo movement, it has quickly gathered press attention all over the globe. This past July, a group of women from all walks of life gathered one Sunday in a former Episcopalian rectory in Brooklyn, NY under the direction of choreographer Noemie Lafrance to create an explosive video to accompany the song. The cast, production and set crew were comprised of over 60 women from the New York area working on both sides of the camera. Many of the cast were performers with little or no film or stage experience from Palmer's extensive internet fanbase. The results of this fearless collaboration will shake you to your core.

Add new comment

Dusty Wright - "Mellow Yellow"

Dusty Wright — Sat, 25 Aug 2018 01:08:45 +0000

Dusty Wright - "Mellow Yellow" Dusty Wright August 24, 2018 - 21:08

Topics

Tags

Donovan-approved cover of his 1966 hit "Mellow Yellow." Produced by Dusty Wright for PetRock. Co-directed by Dusty Wright & Matt Dehoff. Edited by Matt Dehoff. Smiley Grin by Ron English. Anxious Man T-shirt by Rashid Johnson. Custom Hat by Bunn.

Available on iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/ca/artist/du...

Dusty Wright - vocal/acoustic guitars/percussion, Donovan - background vocals, Brandon Wilde - bass/harmony vocals, Howie Halpern - snare.

Available on: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3olwB...

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Dusty-Wright/e...

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/music/a...

BandCamp: https://dustywright.bandcamp.com

Song produced by Dusty Wright, mixed by Brandon Wilde, and mastered by Aria Analog Mastering. Recorded at Straus Park Studio, NYC. Mixed at Studio 76, Brooklyn. This arrangement by Dusty Wright with Donovan's blessings. BMI. ©1966 Donovan P. Leitch/Sony Music Publishing.

Add new comment

Video of the Week: "One For Chuck"

Dusty Wright — Thu, 23 Aug 2018 22:19:53 +0000

Video of the Week: "One For Chuck" Dusty Wright August 23, 2018 - 18:19

Topics

Music Review

Tags

music video

A little slice of funky, eye-popping psychedelia from the album Let It Wander (Rhino), the second long player from guitarist/singer-songwriter Neal Casal's quartet Circles Around the Sun aka CATS. With an intro from the legendary Chuck D – the charismatic leader of the legendary rap group Public Enemy! Formed in 2015 -- with keyboardist Adam MacDougall (Casal's bandmate in the Chris Robinson Brotherhood), along with bassist Dan Horne and drummer Mark Levy -- to record some Grateful Dead-influenced instrumentals to be played during the set breaks at the Dead's "Fare Thee Well" concerts, the band was too good not to continue to record new songs and go on tour. Catch them when you can.

Add new comment

Video of the Week: "Bikini"

Dusty Wright — Mon, 23 Jul 2018 14:00:00 +0000

Video of the Week: "Bikini" Dusty Wright July 23, 2018 - 10:00

Topics

Music Review

Tags

music video

Singer-songwriter Caroline Rose knows how to crank out a party tune with a political message that screams out at sexism and misogyny while riding a B-52's groove throughout. The indie pop-rock "Bikini" is from her new album Loner (New West); she played most of the instruments herself and it's definitely a left turn from her previous folk and country-tinged Americana tunes. Regardless, this infectious ear candy is on my summer play list. Dance!

Add new comment

Video of the Week: "This Is America"

Dusty Wright — Tue, 10 Jul 2018 14:00:00 +0000

Video of the Week: "This Is America" Dusty Wright July 10, 2018 - 10:00

Topics

Tags

Protest music for this generation made easy but informed by those that came before, i.e., Gil Scott-Heron, The Last Poets, Fela Kuti, Public Enemy, et al. Childish Gambino nails it in his evocative hip-hop street symphony "This Is America." Thoughtful, direct and riveting, and directed by Japanese-American filmmaker Hiro Murai, a frequent Gambino collaborator, it is non-stop messaging in today's divisive America. The song features background vocals by American rappers BlocBoy JB, 21 Savage, Young Thug, Slim Jxmmi, Quavo and Offset. 327,580,858 views and counting; killer indeed.

Add new comment

Video of the Week: "Weather This Storm"

Webmaster — Mon, 09 Apr 2018 06:42:41 +0000

Video of the Week: "Weather This Storm" Webmaster April 9, 2018 - 02:42

Topics

Tags

As the storms subside and Spring starts to spring... for survivors everywhere, here's the video collaboration of visual artist Ashley G. Garner with Dusty Wright. The song was produced by d. Bindi, mixed by David Lee, and mastered by Alan Douches for West West Side Music. Recorded by Gio Loria at Black Volt Studio, LA & Straus Park Studio, NYC. Co-vocals by Jay Stolar.

"Weather This Storm" is from the album Caterwauling Towards the Light and is available for digital purchase from Bandcamp (below), Amazon, iTunes, plus other digital sites.

&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href=&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;quot;http://dustywright.bandcamp.com/album/caterwauling-towards-the-light&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;quot; _cke_saved_href=&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;quot;http://dustywright.bandcamp.com/album/caterwauling-towards-the-light&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;quot;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Caterwauling Towards The Light by Dusty Wright&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

You can order an autographed CD from Dusty direct; Paypal $12 to: puffdusty@gmail.com

And check DustyWright.com for upcoming shows and performances. Click on this FACEBOOK link to access more info and press.

This album reflects my emotional journey over the past two years.

Side 1

1. Fall Out Of Line - Song started out about the homeless, but I realized it could be about anyone who feels displaced, whether physically or emotionally. And it certainly resonated for me given the theme of this record. Jon Bendis on guitar, London-based singer/songwriter David Ogilvy on background vocals.

2. Life Is Hard - About my younger brother David who was involved in a horrific motorcycle crash this past summer. He remained in a coma for 7 weeks until he mercifully passed away. He battled many demons in his life. HIs death made me examine the history of depression in our family and how I'd become depressed about his passing, as well. My friend Martin John Butler helped co-write it. One of my favorite tracks on the record. Features Queen Esther and Sonya Hensley on background vocals.

3. The Way We Left Our Hearts - In some ways another song for my brother and about anyone who understands how some relationships are fraught with traps, and how hopeless it can all seem. Features Clair Reilly-Roe on background vocals, Gabriel Handy on classical guitar and Matt Goeke on cello.

4. All Revved Up - A song about going nowhere fast and waking up one day to discover that you've really been running in place your whole life. That you never "found" your true destiny or legacy. This whole album was really an examination of my life as seen through the eyes of my father and my brother. I'd lost my father the year before my brother. It was a very brutal one-two punch combination to the heart. And in some ways the first five songs are about my brother David and the second side is about my father Joseph. Drummer Mark Brotter and bassist Pete Hamilton are part of my performing quintet in New York and accompanied me on this track.

5. Weather This Storm - Yet another song about how fragile life is for all of us, whether it's an emotional storm between two lovers or between family members. But the song also offers the hope that we can get past the hurdles. My favorite New York singer/songwriter Jay Stolar sang background vocals and David Lee Waters added slide guitar. Basic tracks were recorded at Gio Loria's Silver Lake studio in LA.

Side 2

1. We Can Set Sail - So if this were a vinyl album, this would the first track of the second side. It was written about two people who fall together with seemingly nothing in common. And it struck me that was the story of my father and mother meeting and falling in love. My longtime guitarist Jon Bendis played that beautiful chiming guitar part. "And I could grow a garden on your barren land..." That last line of the song, that says it all. It offers hope for anyone who says you can't make a seemingly impossible situation work.

2. How Do You Measure A Man? - Written while my father was in hospice and finished after he passed away. I'd been summoned to Florida by my mother and brother after my father had another stroke. I had to make the decision for our family to move him into hospice. The lyrics are straight ahead and self-explanatory. David Lee Waters provided the beautifully nuanced slide guitar and Queen Esther on background vocals.

3. I Got Lost - Towards the end of my father's life he had dementia. Anyone who has dealt with this condition knows how crippling it is for everyone around that person. Just how that person is stuck in a world of "gray". Jon Bendis provided the demented electric guitar part.

4. I Am Not Willing - This is a rather obscure Moby Grape cover. It was written by Peter Lewis. It's a song I often performed with my cellist Matt Goeke in our quintet GIANTfingers. When this album was being assembled it took on a whole new meaning. Some people give up on life, on facing the challenges presented to them. For them, it's easier to throw in the towel. Jerry Krenach played drums ,Anton Oppenheimer played bass. Which leads into the last track on the album...

5. Fly - This song was written after hiking in the mountains up near Lake Placid, but when I read a story in a New York paper about a young woman who died by suicide it became something else. Why do some people soar while other people crash? Is the glass half-full or half-empty? That can certainly depend on one's emotional health. I know life is far more complex than that, but the song examines that scenario. Why is it that life can be impossible for some people to navigate and so the only way out is to end life and yet for others... the bigger the hurdle to conquer, or mountain to climb, well, they face that challenge with unyielding determination? I wanted to end this record with an offer of hope for anyone feeling trapped. And it also became my own coda for my own emotional situation over these past two years. Basic tracks were recorded at drummer Sammy Merendino’s studio in Harlem with Queen Esther on background vocals. We are currently raising funds to produce a “Fly” VR (virtual reality) music video for suicide awareness and fighting depression. Anyone can make a legit tax-deductible donation at our website: SilenceIsNOTgolden.nyc

Produced by d. Bindi

Dusty Wright on vocals, acoustic & electric guitars, harmonica, and percussion with Jonathan K. Bendis, Mark Brotter, Martin John Butler, Gabriel Handy, Peter Hamilton, Sonya Hensley, Jerry Krenach, Dave Lee, Gio Loria, Sammy Merendino, David Ogilvy, Anton Oppenheimer, Queen Esther, Clair Reilly-Roe, Jay Stolar, and David Lee Waters.

Mixed by Mr. Dave Lee. Engineered by Dusty Wright, Martin John Butler, Gio Loria, Brent McLachlan, & Sammy Merendino. Recorded at Strauss Park, Two Dog Studio, Silverlight Studio, 30 Below, and Harlem Parlour Recording. All songs written by Dusty Wright and published by PetRock/BMI except "Life Is Hard" by Wright/Butler and "I Am Not Willing" by Peter Lewis. Mastered byAlan Douches for West West Side Music. Layout by Dusty Wright. Photography by Hyuna Shin/CreativeShin.com.

Song of the Week: "For What It's Worth"

Dusty Wright — Tue, 15 Aug 2017 22:07:05 +0000

Song of the Week: "For What It's Worth" Dusty Wright August 15, 2017 - 18:07

Topics

Music Review

Tags

music video

Some music acts deserve our full attention because of the legacy that spawned them. And so it goes that former Oasis lead vocalist Liam Gallagher delivers his much anticipated solo long player As You Were (Warner Brothers) on October 6th followed by short tour in selecti cities in North America in November. The songs -- "For What It's Worth," "Chinatown," and "Wall of Glass" (12 million streams!) -- are deservedly getting fantastic press from journalists and public alike. When the Manchaster-based anthem rock band disbanded, the Brothers Gallagher seemed destined for the scrap heap. Could the parts equal the power of the collective? Well, yes and no. Neither brother has released a solo album to rival either Definitely Maybe or (What's The Story) Morning Glory?. I certainly prefer Liam's sneering vocals over Noel's comfortable vocals and Noel's songwriting chops over his younger brother's tunes. Yes, together they were a force of nature. Apart...? I liked Beady Eye songs, but didn't love either of their albums. And to be fair, I've not given Noel's solo albums my full attention.

That well may change with Liam's latest. And this single may be his best single yet. He's captured a real Lennon vibe on it. Muscular guitars and a strong backbeat that propells this mid-tempo rocker flowing forward into the night; like a sideway glance at the Oasis anthem "Champagne Supernova." And his voice, strong and true throughout; a classic rock and roll voice for his generation. And perhaps a new anthem for a generation not familiar with Buffalo Springfield's timeless classic? We shall see, but in the interim, here's a new jukebox song to confuse search engines. Why not.