Films of Innocence: another of U2's misplaced grandiose gestures?

You might have thought that U2 would have had enough of springing internet-related surprises on people, following the unfortunate events surrounding the release of their 13th album, Songs Of Innocence. And yet, here we are again, three months on, with the unexpected announcement of 11 “art films” – one for each of the album’s tracks – being simultaneously premiered across a series of music and art websites.
Among the problems with the release of Songs Of Innocence was the fact that the conversation around the album became almost entirely about the means of transmission. The actual contents – what Bono called “their most personal album ever” – got drowned out by people debating the rights and wrongs of effectively sticking an album in 500m people’s inbox without asking them first: one of a number of things you rather got the impression that U2 hadn’t quite thought through before green-lighting the “digital release strategy”. The 11 films are pretty clearly an attempt to redress the balance slightly. Here are the personal responses to the album’s contents from what the press release calls “the world’s most acclaimed urban visual artists”, which is certainly one way of describing children’s author and illustrator Oliver Jeffers, best known for his – admittedly great – kids books about penguins, crayons and little boys flying aeroplanes to the moon.
The Miracle (of Joey Ramone).
In fact, Jeffers’ film, for The Miracle (of Joey Ramone), is one of the more interesting ones on offer: a series of animations interspersed with the processes used to create them, it’s also the film that addresses most directly U2’s instruction that the filmmakers should be inspired by Belfast’s political murals. DaLeast’s film for This Is Where You Can Reach Me Now is also pretty engaging – the artist as a homeless figure, struggling to survive on the detritus of a city – as is Ganzeer’s stop-frame animation for Volcano. At the other extreme, there are films that are either a little clichéd – ROA’s images of environmental destruction and an Ouroborous snake lays it on a bit thick – or a little too prosaic to capture your attention: the video by Portugese street artist Vhils for Raised By Wolves features a lot of slow motion footage of wolves roaming urban landscapes, and Song For Someone is a straightforward documentary film of graffiti artist Mode 2 creating a mural in Omagh.
Iris (Hold Me Close).
You occasionally wonder if the whole process was slightly rushed, and not merely because one of the artists involved, Chole Early, mentions something about the tightness of the deadline involved in making her film, for Iris (Hold Me Close): had Todd James had had more time, he might have spotted that, despite its title, the track The Troubles isn’t actually about the Troubles, and chose not to interpret it via a series of animated images of balaclava-clad petrol bomb throwers, riot police, guns etc.
The Troubles.
As rock videos they’re perfectly fine. You wouldn’t be struck by the particular brilliance of any of them if you saw them on TV, and you wouldn’t go out of your way to share the links to them on YouTube – certainly none of them do anything like radically recontextualise the songs they’re based on – but nor would you be horrified by how awful they are. You could argue that the problem is that the artists involved haven’t done enough to differentiate their work from something that a regular video director might come up with, although in fairness, a regular video director might have insisted that a little more actually happened than does in D*Face’s graphic novel/video game inspired film for California (There Is No End To Love).
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But the real problem is that, unlike plenty of other rock videos made by visual artists from Wolfgang Tilmans to David LaChapelle to Derek Jarman to Sam Taylor-Wood, they’re not being presented as rock videos, but as something rather more important: “art films”, complete with a portentous white-on-black title sequence that gives the artist’s name before the words “inspired by U2”, as if they’re something that really belongs not on YouTube or MTV but in the more rarefied environs of a gallery. What the band have done in commissioning a film for every track of their latest release would once have been called a video album and bunged out on VHS for the edification of die-hard fans: this is labeled a “global multidisciplinary group project”, not a title even the most high-minded 80s video album would have bothered appending to its contents, on the grounds that it sounds a bit pretentious. As it turns out, the Songs Of Innocence films are not unlike the album they’re based on: neither terrible nor incredible, and ultimately undone by U2’s apparently unquenchable desire to make a grandiose statement.

Wu-Tang Clan’s one-of-a-kind album may debut at Art Basel

Wu Tang Clan’s RZA: ‘They’re planning on something. That’s all I can say. But it exists. And it’s some very interesting people involved with it.’ Photograph: Tom Watkins/Rex
Wu-Tang Clan’s one-of-a-kind rap album might be going up for sale at an forthcoming Art Basel event. RZA has hinted at a surprise announcement regarding Once Upon a Time in Shaolin, potentially due at December’s art show in Miami Beach, Florida.

“I can’t speak to nobody about this – I got an NDA [non-disclosure agreement],” RZA recently told Rolling Stone. But the Wu-Tang leader went on to speak about it anyhow: “[The album has] been handed over to an auction house, and they plan on doing something,” he said. “Art Basel is coming up. They’re planning on something. That’s all I can say. But it exists. And it’s some very interesting people involved with it.”

Art Basel is an annual modern and contemporary art event that takes place at three locales: in Miami in December, Hong Kong in March, and Basel, Switzerland in June. Wu-Tang Clan celebrated their 20th anniversary with an event at the Miami show last year, where Raekwon and Ghostface performed alongside pieces by visual artists. No official Wu-Tang events have been announced as part of Basel’s 2014-2015 schedule.

The Basel showcase would be the perfect stage for the group to introduce their rarest release. While the group has a sixth studio album, A Better Tomorrow, due out on 2 December, Once Upon a Time in Shaolin is a much less conventional project: recorded over five years, only one copy has been made. It is locked inside a hand-carved, nickel and silver box, with the notion that it could be sold as an art object. “This is like somebody having the scepter of an Egyptian king,” RZA told Forbes in March.

 

Still, the group have been silent about plans for their “single-sale collector’s item” since announcing its existence in the spring. In April, RZA claimed there was an offer of $5m (£3m) for it, but the hip-hop crew haven’t announced details of any sale of the item or confirmed a previously proposed worldwide listening tour.

Know About Indian Music Culture

When it comes to the Indian music then the Indian music is as old as the religion itself. It has its origination in the Hindu beliefs, views and the Vedic philosophy.

Classical music is a complete music structures with 12 tones and 7 basic swaras like the most melodious Sa, Re, Ga, Ma, Pa, Dha, Ni, Sa. The Indian Classical music is monophonic, formed by a single melodious raga and rhythmically followed by the beat notes or Tala. Each melody revolves around different moods or seasons and they are even based on the gender characteristics. Thus ragas are voices methods of adopting the self to the different moods or behavior patterns of the day. The basic philosophy behind the Indian Classical music is the reach to the main goal of self realization through meditation. It is based on Ragas and beat rhythms. Ragas are one of the acoustical methods to evolve one self to the moods and the different spheres of life is a way of meditation aiming to draw oneself closer to the nature. These ragas have such innate power that these compositions meant as an invitation to the rain have actually poured the unexpected showers.

Hindustani classical music: This originated during the 13th and the 14th century A.D. in the northern India. It has its origination from the Vedic philosophy and the Hindu religion traditions; it has some resemblance from the Persian music and the Moghuls music. The version starts with an introductory with a short 2 minute aalap to a long 30-40 minute piece. Rhythmically the music becomes fast and it is then joined by the percussionist. The musical instruments utilized to make these tunes more melodious are Tabla, Sitar, Taanpura, Flute, Shehnai and Sarangi.

Carnatic music has originated in the Southern India. The ragas in this music are short and fast paced. They start with versions seeking Varnam, followed by asking blessings. Carnatic music has a most theoretic and rigid musical structure. They have ragams, rhythm beats followed by the raga theme. Carnatic music is more vocal centric. The instruments used in the Carnatic music are Veena, Mridangam, Kanjira and Violin.

Kirtans and Bhajans are oral versions of musical songs devoted to God. Kirtans have their origin from the Vedic traditions; Bhajans on the other hand are more words oriented expressing devotion to God. Kirtans are carried on along with the musical instruments and Bhajans are sung with profound devotion with the intention of moving more closer to the inner self.

The other musical genres include the folk music, regional music. The regional music is the music which is played across the different states of India in different languages. Folk music are played along with the different set of musical instruments.

Know More About Chinese Music Theory

As an ethnomusicology major, I am fascinated by how global cultures view music. One culture in particular, the Chinese, view music in such a manner that I believe would change the minds of scholars here in the west if adopted. First, for me to set up my argument, I must delve into the story of how it is believed that music came to be created in China.

Legend states that Chinese music developed when Huangdi instructed a man by the name of Ling-lun to travel the Kwen-lun mountains. There he found bamboo shoots, and wishing to imitate the nearby birds in the forest of the mountains, he cut the bamboo into what would eventually create the chromatic scale through blowing 12 different pitches. This legend is important to state as it gave birth to the belief that each tone in the Lü scale has specific ties to nature.

In the Lü scale, tones like the second tone Tai-tsoh represents rain and the awakening of insects and tones like the eighth tone Lin-tsong represents extreme heat and the beginning of autumn. The significance of this tie to nature is that every note in the Chinese Lü scale illustrates the great care Chinese theorists have approached music.

This is where I believe that the Chinese philosophy of music could help western scholars. Theorists in the west tend to have a scientific, mathematical approach to music theory, but there is little questioning why. They instruct music students to follow part-writing rules of harmony, the melodic rules of counterpoint, but the only explanation they have is "this is the way it is done, and we do not question that."

I believe it is time to question that however, I believe western music theory needs to attach significance to every note played, every subtle nuance, in order to further open up the minds of composers, theorists, and musicians. Like the Chinese, us westerners need to see notes in poetic terms, not simply mathematical terms.

How we do this is complicated, as academia is quite stuck in their approach, but with enough evidence and research, I believe it can be proven that music theory's approach is limited and impeding its own progress. Music is, after all, an art form, and while rules are important, they should not be the only focus of the scholars in that field. I believe that a more poetic, metaphysical view of the notes in the western system will aid every individual involved with music, either on the side of musical scholarship, the side of musical creation, or simply the side of musical enjoyment.

The possibilities that could open up are simply there for the taking. It will just require a few brave, experimental scholars who are willing to be subjected to ridicule by their peers in order to change the view of music.

These Tools Will Help You Enjoy Music Online Well

Music is one of the areas of the curriculum which education technology has been slower to shine a light on, but there are a whole host of exciting user-friendly tools kids can use to explore the joys of composing or simply making some noise.

1. Karaoke Party

A great game for music classes or just for playing with friends, this free site allows kids to sing karaoke online and get a score for their performance, then challenge others or try to improve! No fancy equipment needed – just use your computer's inbuilt microphone and get started!

2. Songsmith

A brilliantly simple project, Songsmith allows users to create a backing track for any song simply by singing into the microphone of their computer – the programme automatically does the rest! Brilliant for using with younger kids, as no technical ability is required and it transforms their songs instantly into professional-sounding tracks!

3. Virtual Drumming

This cool online drum kit allows kids to explore the different sounds and rhythms of a drum kit simply by using the keys on their computer keyboard to activate different drums and cymbals.

4. Club Create MusicLab

For older kids or students learning about music mixing and technology, this fantastic free online music lab gives the opportunity to make a sophisticated track using a range of musical styles and techniques. A pre-loaded online sound library with hundreds of different instrumental sounds and beats makes it fun and easy to create original pieces.

5. Monkey Machine

This fantastic, fun online machine allows kids to create their own drumbeat using over 20 high-quality drum kits. Use it to create a stand-alone project or to provide the all-important rhythmic backing track to a class song or improvised piece of music.

6. Music Memory Game

This fantastic, simple online game is great for introducing kids to listening by ear, as it challenges them to listen to a series of notes and then try to reproduce them in the right order by selecting the correct notes from the musical scale. As they succeed with each level, more notes are added, making it challenging and rewarding as they learn and progress!

7. Tony-B Machine

This cool retro-look tool is sure to be a big hit with kids as it simplifies the process of online music-making by connecting different notes and musical sounds to the different keys of the computer keyboard, allowing them to jump right in and start composing just by tapping away with their fingers!