"Superstar" by Clark

Producer-composer-musician Clark has created a spooky, 21st century version of the song "Superstar," from his new album "In Camera."

The song was written by Bonnie Bramlett and Leon Russell, and the narrative is from the perspective of a sad, slightly deranged fan of an unnamed rock star. Considering the problematic issue of Parasocial Interaction on social media, the topic is timely. The Carpenters made the song famous in 1971, and Bette Midler recorded a heartfelt version in 1972 for her "The Divine Miss M" release. I recall hearing both versions at the time and they were sweet downtempo ballads until one realized the real story.

But this video for Clark's cover adds another layer to the story of fame and one's possible relationship to it. Writer-director Naqqash Khalid re-edited his debut film "In Camera" for Clark. The film stars Nabhaan Rizwan as an actor who is attempting to make a living at acting and become successful. But the industry at most levels does not encourage and support, it uses up and wrings out actors--especially actors of color who are only able to approach such a vicious industry on their backfoot. Constant rejection for a chance to start all over again from the bottom after each audition or job is wearing (I can attest to that from over 25 years of personal experience) and it seems "Superstar" is sung here to a distorted idea of success or, if one allows oneself to truly dream, stardom.

https://throttleclark.com/

"Killing Floor" by Mondo Cozmo

It seems there is a slew of new music coming at us right now and this new track, "Killing Floor" by Mondo Cozmo (the nom de musique of singer-songwriter and record producer Josh Ostrander) is arresting...his music has been described as "chorus-heavy folk-rock" and the epic quality of this track highlights that.

(I hear you calling me, and I’m coming back to you)

She was singer in a punk band when she came for me
You found stability a redeeming thing
I remember when we left that party at that actor's house
You said sometimes the edges will not meet up
Something in their eyes when they walk away
Something in their eyes when you wait

Every little breath that you take is God
Every single smile that you made was yours
Everybody wants what they can't afford
Everybody dies on the killing floor
Everybody dies on the killing floor

(I hear you calling me, and I’m coming back to you)

You are the sunlight on a perfect day
You love the love songs that I won't sing
I remember when you said scatter me across the streets
On the Lower East Side of mansions and time machines
Something in your eyes when you walked away
Something in their eyes now when you wait

Every little breath that you take is God
Every single smile that you made was yours
Everybody wants what they can't afford
Everybody dies on the killing floor
Everybody dies on the killing floor

(I hear you calling me, and I’m coming back to you)

https://www.mondocozmo.com/

"Foz 5pm" by Maty Owl

Wow, I am loving this amazing, hypnotizing groove, "Foz 5pm" by Brazilian DJ/producer/multi-instrumentalist Maty Owl. A little dark, a little psychedelic, and little enigmatic...

https://www.instagram.com/matyowl/

The Minimalist Homes of Ryan Murphy

Television mogul Ryan Murphy ("Nip/Tuck," "Glee," "American Horror Story," "Scream Queens," "Pose," and "Hollywood") has unveiled not one but two of his homes in Architectural Digest. Murphy says he was looking to simplify and streamline the aesthetic of his homes, searching for a hushed, almost-monastic feeling. I'd say he accomplished it.

In Los Angeles, his neo-Spanish Colonial home certainly does feel like a monastery, albeit a very stylish one with a Rick Owens daybed casually placed in front of a fireplace, a Haas Brothers marble bathtub that looks like a huge splash of water in the master suite, Faye Toogood's Roly Poly chairs at a game table, and a Francois-Xavier Lalanne gorilla bust presiding over the end of a hallway. I also really love how the kitchen as well as laundry room were completely wrapped in white subway tile with black grout. This limited color palette throughout unifies the entire home and adds to the contemporary, spartan feeling.

In New York City, a brownstone gets a similar treatment, but whereas the Los Angeles house is light, this one is dark, embracing reclaimed wood and rough plaster. There is a definite Scandinavian feeling in this home (one expects to see a Gustavian clock somewhere) and that, according to Murphy, is not an accident--his two adopted sons are of Swedish descent!

https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/ryan-murphy-nyc-and-la-homes

"Arms Out" and "Panic" by Forest Swords

Forest Swords (the nom de musique of English composer/producer/artist/graphic designer Matthew Barnes) just released a new recording, "Compassion," and here are two songs from that release. "Arms Out" is a unique, shifting piece with a lovely string section. And "Panic" is, as its name suggests, a throbbing, nervous affair. Both pieces have a vague, ethnically ambiguous sound I just love but I wonder if I am being influenced by the minimalist, nearly-Asian look of the art direction in the videos. But music magazine The Fader said Forest Swords' music "exists in that sweet spot of musical influence between everything and nothing." So, it's not just me. See if you agree...

http://www.forestswords.co.uk/

Happy Birthday, Brian Eno!

Accidental musician, Glam Rock dandy, experimental composer, alternative pop music front man, producer extraordinaire, conceptual multimedia artist, and father of Ambient Music, Brian Eno celebrates his 65th birthday today. If you are not familiar with Eno, chances are you are familiar with his work. He was a member of Roxy Music from 1971 to 1973, released solo albums of electronic pop music ("Here Come the Warm Jets," "Taking Tiger Mountain (By Strategy)," "Another Green World" and "Before and After Science"), invented a tape delay instrument with Robert Fripp called "Frippertronics" for their release "No Pussyfooting," invented the musical genre known as "Ambient," collaborated on Bowie's legendary Berlin trio ("Low," "Heroes," and "Lodger"), recorded the precursor to the surge in World Music "My Life In The Bush Of Ghosts" which also pioneered the concept and method of "sampling" music, and produced material for Talking Heads, U2, Devo, Ultravox, James, Jane Siberry, Nico, Genesis, Coldplay, Grace Jones, and James Blake. Surprisingly, he created the six-second start-up music-sound of the Microsoft Windows 95 operating system. He has created art work for galleries around the world including video installations as well as a set of divination cards entitled "Oblique Strategies" intended to stimulate the creative process in any medium. Critic Jason Ankeny at Allmusic argues that Eno "forever altered the ways in which music is approached, composed, performed, and perceived, and everything from punk to techno to new age bears his unmistakable influence."

Above, top row: two views of early "Glam" Eno. Middle Row: Eno with Bowie in the studio in Berlin; Eno with the members of U2 recording as The Passengers; Eno in the studio with David Byrne during the recording of "My Life In The Bush Of Ghosts." Bottom row: Eno earlier and later.

Here is one of the four tracks from his iconic Ambient release, "Music For Airports." This track was HUGELY influential to me when it first came out in 1978.

And here are all sixty glorious minutes and fifty-seven seconds of "Thursday Afternoon," Eno's "holographic" Ambient work. A hologram image is visible because each point in the object illuminates all of the hologram. This means that the whole image can be reconstructed from a small part of the hologram. Put another way, a hologram can be broken up into small pieces and each one will enable the whole of the original object to be imaged. Eno used this idea to structure this Ambient masterpiece. Play any fragment of it, and you will hear what the entire piece is like. If you have not heard this, do yourself a favor: close the door, close your eyes, relax in your chair, and let this waft down into your consciousness.

Happy birthday, Brian Eno! Thank you for your imagination and precious body of work. You have enriched my life and I thank you.

http://brian-eno.net.org/artists/brian_eno/