New Record Collector review of the Cathedral Oceans DVD:
5/5
Will even teach Brian Eno a music-and-visual lesson or two . . .
In recent years John Foxx has dug himself out of the grave whose headstone suggested that his post-Ultravox! life ended in the mid-80s, after a series of interesting, if not commercially successful, solo releases. His recent albums though, have been excellent, showing that he really has got the bit between his teeth again.
This DVD makes it clear that the Cathedral Oceans album should only be experienced as images and music. Foxx has blended together a series of photographs that slowly dissolve, allowing another to bleed through each time one disappears. The vibrant colours change as another image rises to the surface, with some sort of reference point to that which passed before. Greek and Roman faces, stone walls, vegetation and portions of paintings all shuffle forward and spread over 12 perfectly complementary musicial tracks. It's mesmerising. This could be shown in museums, nightclubs, post office queues and restaurants, on long-haul flights or MTV, and easily elicit a strong emotional response. It is one of the most beautiful mixes of music and images Record Collector has ever seen. A masterpiece.
Ian Shirley
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1 comment:
I'd see this site as the future.
Now that rogue free downloading has finally defeated selling songs, artists creating animated interactive spaces 'online' seems to me superior to the static product they used to try and make fortunes from.
I personally follow John here, and if I ever get organized should set up a web site presenting all my work - sound/text/visual for free. CD's with sleeve notes are so limiting compared to the Web.
I'm doing it on Myspace now, but as usual lagging years behind John Foxx. So my point is - the man does it again. A unique expression of something valid. Brilliant.
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