Eschewing traditional cameras, the video for Radiohead’s “House of Cards” has been made with frickin’ laser beams. Next week, you can check that shit out here. I read the press release about it, and in lieu of understanding what the fuck they’re talking about, focused on the word “laser.” Blog award, right here.

From Nasty Little Man:

RADIOHEAD MAKES CAMERA-FREE VIDEO
“House Of Cards” Clip Created Exclusively Using Geometric Informatics and Velodyne Lidar Technology
World Premiere Early Next Week at Google
Data Made Available To Enable Fans To Create Their Own Short Clips

In keeping with their decision not to make conventional promotional music videos for any of the tracks on In Rainbows, Radiohead used absolutely no cameras in the making of its new  “House Of Cards” clip, which can be viewed at Google.com

Instead, “House Of Cards”, directed by James Frost of Zoo Films, was created utilizing two technologies: Geometric Informatics and Velodyne Lidar.  The Geometric Informatics scanning system employs structured light to capture detailed 3D images at close proximity, and was used to render the performances of Radiohead’s  Thom Yorke, the female lead and several partygoers.  The Velodyne Lidar system uses multiple lasers to capture large environments in 3D, in this case 64 lasers rotating and shooting in a 360 degree radius 900 times per minute, capturing all of the exterior scenes and wide party shots. Geometric processed their own data while 510 Systems processed the Velodyne Lidar data. The data was then manipulated by Union Editorial and the Syndicate to create the final result.

Google will premiere the video early next week at http://code.google.com/radiohead Additionally,  the band will be making available the data used to create the video for fans to manipulate into their own unique short clips. A short documentary detailing the unique process used to create the video will also be available via this link, as will 3D renderings of selected scenes.

Of Radiohead’s decision to eschew cameras for the “video,” Thom Yorke commented, “I always like the idea of using technology in a way that it wasn’t meant to be used, the struggle to get your head round what you can do with it. I liked the idea of making a video of human beings and real life and time without using any cameras, just lasers, so there are just mathematical points–and how strangely emotional it ended up being.”

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v330/Insomnomaniac/dr_evil_laser.jpg

THE BUG

In Gibson’s Neuromancer, when Case & Molly meet the two surviving founders of Zion, there is talk of hearing a “mighty dub” in the Babel of tongues signaling the “final days”. If indeed we’re living in these ‘end times’, as many predict, then there can be no more of an appropriate soundtrack for the coming apocalypse than The Bug’s “London Zoo”.

The Bug is the main project for Kevin Martin, a producer who over the years has also been behind a diverse range of projects. He is part of Techno Animal / Ice / God (all with Justin Broadrick of Godflesh / Jesu), King Midas Sound, Razor X Productions (with The Rootsman), Pressure and Ladybug to name a few. Then there is the running of his Pathological Records label, collaborations with noise jazz outfit 16-17, Pete “Sonic Boom” Kemper’s E.A.R project, John Zorn, Kevin Shields, El-P, Antipop Consortium. He has recorded for labels as diverse as Virgin, Rephlex, Position Chrome/Mille Plateaux, Word Sound, Hyperdub, City Slang, Tigerbeat 6, Grand Royal, and now Ninja Tune. He has been personally asked to remix Thom Yorke, Grace Jones, Einsturzende Neubauten and Primal Scream, and has compiled jazz & dub compilations for Virgin Records. The new album “London Zoo” is the fruition of all these activities…

“London Zoo” was born of three key moments. An introduction to the thriving Dub-Step scene (of which The Bug is very much a pioneer before it carried a name) and it’s key producers (via Kode 9) where Kevin realized there was others on the same sonic trajectory as himself, an introduction to Warrior Queen via his work with Wayne Lonesome on the Razor X Productions project, and a Mary Anne Hobb’s Breezeblock session which introduced him to Flowdan (Roll Deep), and Ricky Ranking. All three of which figure heavily in the end result and live presentation.

Although the obvious entry point to the album will be the Dub-Step tag, particularly after the success of the three lead up singles (’Jah War’, ‘Skeng’, and ‘Poison Dart’ in that scene) it’s a record that clearly reaches past and brings together/celebrates reference points from dancehall, grime, hip-hop, and noise onslaughts. A record that could have only come out of London sound-system culture but whose appeal spans past any singular city or scene.

From the opening strains of “Angry” (featuring reggae legend Tippa Irie) it’s clear that the world has been served notice from the heart of the UK capital. A position further strengthened as Ricky Ranking (best known for his work with Roots Manuva), Flowdan, Warrior Queen, Spaceape, Roger Robinson, Killa P, and Aya step up to lay waste to the boombastic rhythms put before them, eventually culminating in “Judgement” where Ricky Ranking leaves us with a prophecy … “so much people are losing their minds, because we’re living in a serious time. I guess it come in like a judgement sign, the people have killing on their mind”…. living in end times indeed. Best start building the Marcus Garvey tug now.

In a guest blog for the Guardian, perennially tortured Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke lays out his somewhat surprising feelings of optimism regarding global climate change:

These changes might be small, but they are in the right direction. Unlike pessimists such as James Lovelock, I don’t believe we are all doomed. It was good to hear Sir David King recently saying he was an optimist and human behaviour is changing. As I heard George Monbiot saying not long ago, isn’t it funny how in the space of a year we went from listening to sceptics who denied this was happening to suddenly saying we’re all doomed - how interesting that both scenarios demand that we do nothing. That can’t be right. You should never give up hope.

Thom Yorke as the voice of hope? What is the world coming to?

It was announced last week that Radiohead have signed with British label XL Recordings for the UK distribution of their new album In Rainbows. The special In Rainbows box edition will be available December 3rd.

In anticipation of the hard-release of In Rainbows, their old label Parlophone is issuing a 7-disc boxed set of their previously released albums (including Pablo Honey (1993), The Bends (1995), Ok Computer (1997), Kid A (2000), Amnesiac (2001), Hail to the Thief (2003) and their live album I Might Be Wrong (2001)). That’s cool and all I guess (if you are missing more than one or two pieces of their catalog). If you’re a real n3rd you’ll be purchasing all of that on their 4GB USB stick (which will be shaped like their freaky-eyed bear image). The stick will be released alongside the CD box set on December 10th. You can pre-order that shit here.