Being meta can be cliche nowadays. As boundaries of fact and fiction become more blurred in the Documentary Renaissance that we are currently living in, this film tests said boundaries, veering in left turns that may seem disingenuous, but in the end, is both a commentary and love letter to an artist who navigates and challenges the absurdity of the modern art scene, and always on her own terms. The jury is honored to announce the documentary award to WHO IS LUN*NA MENOH? - Masashi Niwano, CAAMFEST and Exhibitions Director.
"Who Is Lun*na Menoh?" won the best documentary at the CAAMFEST 2021.
David Bowie - "Look At The Moon! (Live Phoenix Festival 97)" Parlophone, 2021
What surprises me about the discography of David Bowie is the albums released after his death. Sometimes when an artist dies and record companies release material, it's often the Earth's dregs. Bowie, on the other hand, had some exciting and superb album releases. My favorite of the bunch is his live album from 1997, "Look At The Moon!" There are many fine or even excellent live albums from Bowie, but "Look At The Moon!" is superb. At this time, Bowie got his groove or poison out, and he was coming with influential albums at the time. Especially 1995's "Outside," and the next album, "Earthlings." Bowie made the conscious choice not to rely on his older material but focus on his new interest in electronically orientated dance music that still rocked.
Bowie had consistently surrounded himself with great musicians. Lots of distinctive players throughout the years give the Bowie sound that special kick. It strikes me that he was a great collaborator and knew how to be a proper band leader by having his musicians offer their unique talents to the mix. When I listen to "Look At The Moon!" I get the impression I'm listening to a band and not an artist with a backup band. In all the other albums, I feel the presence of Bowie and whoever is playing behind him. But here, I'm hearing a band's effort, and this is what makes this live album exceptional. Four musicians are playing with Bowie, and each one has the space to fill out their instruments. The guitarist Reeves Gabriels plays like the combination of Eddie Van Halen and Robert Fripp. His guitar is in your face, but he also adds textures to the soup that are important to the overall sound. Bassist and singer Gail Ann Dorsey play aggressively as well as having a voice of a fallen angel. Tender, soulful, and a perfect compliment to Bowie's vocals. Their version of Laurie Anderson's "O Superman" is pretty spectacular. The harmonizing of Bowie and Dorsey's vocals are matched perfectly. The drums of Zachary Alford, throughout the album, you can feel it in your gut. You can say that about the bass as well. This has to be, on a sonic level, the best live album I have ever heard.
Mike Garson doesn't do small backup piano, he's up there in the mix, and his playing is a combination of Monk and Liberace. I heard his excellent work throughout the Bowie decades, but here you can really hear the magic that he makes. Another beautiful thing about the recording is that one can clearly hear each musician and their contribution to the song. These musicians have played with Bowie for years. Still, this particular recording or show comes off as a singular unit.
There are surprises here, even on the songs you know. The old Blues standard "Driftin' Blues" introduces a driving "The Jean Genie."
This is not a variety show by Bowie. Five of the songs are from "Earthling," his current album at the time. Two tunes from "Outside," and every other piece is a reloaded, remodeled, re-texturized version of his deep cut hits. Garson puts slight touches of Gershwin in the song "I'm Afraid of Americans." The songs from "Earthlings "are more fleshed out than their studio versions. But still, it's almost like a techno garage rock band arrangement. This is music being performed than staying close to the studio version—an aggressive and muscular approach to these songs. There are traces of "The Man Who Sold The World" era sounds, but with the addition of the jazzy Cecil Taylor touches by Garson. Come to think of it, that album does have a band sound as well.
"Look At The Moon!" in a manner captures Bowie's entire music life at that point. There are many references to classic soul music throughout the album/performance. Bowie sings the faint traces of Chic and The Commodores "Brick House" in the song "Fashion." The "Where do we go from here" line in "Looking For Satellites is like a great song from a forgotten Broadway musical. Bowie has the riff going, and then there is a beautiful melody behind the riff. I never get bored with his music because the layer of melodies/textures/word fragments makes the listener's brain go with the groove. Still, also a lot of brain food is here as well. Reeves guitar playing on a melody is noise but never losing the beauty of the music. When he's good, he's great. And the song ends in a classic piano motif one can hear in an elegant piano bar in Manhattan. On "Scary Monsters," Bowie does Anthony Newley. It is really a Newley-based song (at least in style) than anything else, at least in the live version. "Hallo Spaceboy" quotes the Everly Brothers "Bye-Bye Love." Bowie gives a James Brown tip-of-the-hat in "Little Wonder" by putting in "Night Train."
Criminally this is released as a limited edition of 6,000 copies. By luck, I pre-ordered the album for $39.95. Now it's going for over $100 in the second-market places and sites. The album is too good to be left in the hands of the few. And as I mentioned, the recording itself is so vivid and wonderful. I rarely call a live album a masterpiece, but this is true in that category and the case.
A remarkable documentary by Edgar Wright on my favorite group, Sparks. I'll write a longer appreciation/thoughts on the film shortly. Still, I want to recommend people to see this excellent work. I'm in it! Beyond that, it's still super good. More later!
The presence of Movie Cowboy great Tom Mix in my neighborhood of Edendale, now known as Silver Lake, is of great importance to me. From my living room, I can oversee the strip mall that is 365 Whole Foods, and that property used to be Tom Mix’s film studio. I’m a firm believer that there are spirits from that era and beyond that lives on that property. Tom Mix died in a car accident, and he was 60-years old. These days that is still considered young, but a man who spent a great majority of his life on a horse named “Tony the Wonder Horse” and did his own stunts. An excellent shot with a pistol, Mix was the real deal.
Like America itself, Mix had the talent to make a new identity for himself. He enlisted in the Army during the Spanish-American War. Tom went AWOL when he married his first wife, Grace Allin. That marriage was annulled after a year, and a few years later, he married Olive Stokes in 1909. Mix rode in President Theodore Roosevelt’s parade with horsemen, who some were former Rough Riders. Years later, with the help of Hollywood publicists, Mix suggests that Mix himself was a Rough Rider.
Tom Mix joined up with the Miller Brothers 101 Ranch, which was a large ranching business. The ranch had its touring Wild West show, and Mix was part of the spectacle. His horse riding skills, using the rope, and pistol-shooting came handy as he turned into an entertainer. It was around this time that my German Grandmother as a teenager, joined the Mix Wild West Show and toured America and Cuba. Mix started to make films in Edendale (Silver Lake) and made over 100 films for the production house Selig Polyscope Company. And here is where the presence of his being comes into my life.
I have an 8mm print of “The Cowboy Millionaire” (1909). I play it on his birthday at least three times while looking out the window simultaneously, imagining the scenes from the film are happening down below. The gunfight specifically between Mix and the bad guys made an impression on my imagination. With the images of the movie burning in my brain, I go out and put on a large white cowboy hat and a toy pistol and a gun belt around my waist. I reenact the scene in my head (and heart) from the film as I look over the property that was once owned by Tom Mix.
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