10 Reasons to love Pipilotti Rist at the Hayward

1. She's got a cool name - Pipilotti Rist was born Elisabeth Charlotte Rist in Grabs, Switzerland, in 1962. As a teenager she renamed herself Pipilotti in honour of Pippi Longstocking, the fearless, funny and uninhibited heroine of Astrid Lindgren’s children’s books *

2. Her work has a sense of wonder - By combining videos with everyday objects, she changes their nature and imbues the most ordinary events or objects with a sense of wonder *

3. She uses technology in intriguing ways - She integrates video projectors and screens in unexpected things and places: tiny monitors are hidden in handbags or displayed on a gigantic lettuce, projectors are placed in a watering-can and a hanging saucepan, and a book, a vase and a chair are all used as projection surfaces *

4. Her work is personal but is something that everyone can relate to - She believes that the objects that surround us contain memories and have stories to tell. She has progressively redefined the relationship between audience and art work, creating all-enveloping visual environments that place particular importance on the viewer *

5. She creates a parallel world and invites you into it - "When I close my eyes, my imagination roams free. In the same way I want to create spaces for video art that rethink the very nature of the medium itself. I want to discover new ways of configuring the world, both the world outside and the world within" *

6. Her work is psychedelic - She fuses dazzling colour, sensual images and mesmerising music to create immersive video installations in which the visitors themselves become important elements *

7. Her work is playful - She studied graphic design in Vienna, where she made Super-8 animation films, created stage sets for bands and did a lot of drawing. Deciding that she wanted to work with moving images, she returned to Switzerland to study video in Basel *

8. She loves music - Her first video work, I’m Not The Girl Who Misses Much, was made there in 1986 while she was still a student. Soon afterwards, she began working as a freelance video technician and joined the folk-punk band and performance group Les Reines Prochaines *

9. Her work is sensual in a 'nice' way - At no point is the content ever sordid, only ever a sensual exploration of the female and male form - Ann-Marie Rayney, Artists Insight

10. She presents a personal feminist viewpoint - Her works seem like necessary, important counters to a more mainstream image of women's bodies in film – an exploration of looking, spying, glimpsing - Laura McLean-Ferris, the Independent

Quotes marked with an asterisk above are taken or adapted from the Hayward Eyeball Massage website. The site also carries a lot of background information and a number of videos, including this taste of the exhibition:

And an interview with Pipilotti Rist:

If you want to read an excellent 'proper' review of Pipilotti Rist's exhibition see Adrian Searle's piece in the Guardian. And then go and see it (until January 8th).

Happiness is a Warm Gun features in Rist's I'm not the Girl who Misses Much 1986 installation (which is part of this exhibition). Here are some Beatle mixes that keen fans may enjoy: The left channel mix with unused Tuba overdub; the control monitor mix; the opal organ mix; and, of course, the original:

Finally, a Happy New Year to everyone - To finish up, here's a fun New Year's Eve game to play (courtesy of Mondo Blogo - click for more pics):

Far out, man ...

The Crazy World of Arthur Brown and Focus at Exeter Phoenix

Last week two legends appeared at the Exeter Phoenix: Arthur Brown and Thijs van Leer of Focus.

First up was Arthur Brown, who didn't seem to have changed much physically from those old 1968 performances of Fire.

I am the God of hell fire and I bring you ... Fire!

He started the set in a black hood and then had regular quick-changes of clothes throughout the set. Howard Marks, in his foreword to Polly Marshall's The God of Hellfire: The Crazy Life and Times of Arthur Brown, says:

The Crazy World of Arthur Brown were the first psychedelic soul spectacle, a memory that neither experience or drug could ever erase ... the cops busted Arthur because his music made people take drugs. They were right. It did.

Brown's life has been every bit as incident-packed as that of Marks. Arthur Brown was there when pretty much when everything important happened back in the sixties.

Fire is still the serious stoners' favourite anthem

Not only did he have huge success in America, but he played with all the big names, lived a life of excess, was arrested and jailed, and has generally had an incredible life (try reading the whole of Howard Marks' foreword on Google books - or better still buy a copy of Polly Marshall's book and be amazed).

Today's show is a pretty tame compared with those heady days, but is enjoyable and great nostalgia for an audience of a certain age. His band - The Crazy World - are all young. The keyboard player, Lucie Rejchrtova, acts as a foil to Arthur's antics on stage, along with Angela Fallon who dances with the band. They started the set with Dylan's Hard Rain and included an excellent version of Kites - the old hit for Simon Dupree and the Big Sound - who went on to become Gentle Giant.

Apologies for the sound quality - I was right in front of the speaker stack

The remainder of the set included I've Put a Spell on You and of course Fire! (with no combustion - although he was apparently performing with the flaming headdress as recently as 1997), as well as some numbers from his psychedelic repertoire. It was a good show - especially when you consider that Arthur is 69 years old. There was, disappointingly, no time for an encore as the stage had to then be reset for Focus.

Thijs van Leer, the sole remaining original member of Focus is 63, but the rock and roll lifestyle has not treated him well - He was barely recognisable as the guy from the 1970s as he shuffled on stage with a plastic carrier bag containing his stuff - his flute, melodica etc.

The artist as a young man

But once they got going it was clear that he has lost none of his passion for Dutch melodic rock, or his jocular approach to the full range of whistling, nonsensical vocals, falsetto singing, and yodelling that he is known for.

The hits were all there: Sylvia, Hall of the King, and Hocus Pocus.The guitarist,
Menno Gootjes, and the bass player, Bobby Jacobs are both talented players and at their best you could hear the roots of later work by the likes of Steely Dan (self-styled jazz-rock ambassadors to the galaxy). The veteran drummer Pierre van der Linden also put in a lot of effort and did the obligatory - and dull - drum solos.

The fans loved it but, honestly, I would have preferred more Arthur Brown. Nevertheless here's some vintage Focus, with Jan Akkerman doing the honours on guitar, while Thijs van Leer yodels ...

The Monkees at Plymouth Pavilions: I'm a believer

A great gig by the Monkees at Plymouth Pavilions on Monday - Previous tour dates had received lukewarm reviews but in Plymouth the guys were on good form. They adopted the Brian Wilson approach of having a large backing band to actually play the tunes but all three have still got surprisingly strong voices (compared with Brian Wilson, Ian Anderson and others) and delivered pretty much their whole catalogue of hits. plus a chunk of songs from Head, their 1968 movie.

 
Davy looked a little hunched, Micky a bit chunky and Peter a little worn but they showed no signs of the animosity that had been suggested at other gigs. The screen behind showed extracts from their TV shows and, during the Head part after the intermission, a hefty slice of 1968 psychedelia - great stuff.

Micky disappeared behind the drum kits from time to time but when he returned showed all the stage presence of an old trooper. He led the final sequence of hits and the audience loved it. A nostalgic but not maukish evening of great hits. Brilliant.

 

While you're at it, why not try a couple of psychedelic Monkee-related tracks. The first is Psychedelatrip's version of Carole King's 'The Porpoise Song' from Head (some serious phasing here).

The second is Lola Dutronic's version of 'The Porpoise Song' (best on headphones), complete with underwater belly dancing?   Far out, man ...

But if it's nostalgia you're after, try this: The original video for 'I'm a Believer'.