whatido_formeforyou

el guincho - bombay

have you guys ever heard the term ‘cinematic excess’ before? it features prominently in low-budget, trashy, poorly held-together movies, with sloppy editing and poor adherence to the plot. i think i remember learning that the definition is ‘when the cue exceeds the motivation.’ an example would be the frontier psychiatrist video by the avalanches, on mute (because the ridiculous video pertains to the ridiculous samples). i brought all that up because this is probably the most gratuitous music video i’ve seen, or at least one of them. above all else, two words — hypersexualized women. it’s presented in ways that barely makes sense though, which i suppose was the point; there’s a bunch of guys doing random shit too, some food porn, nudity, fire-grasping, a little bit of the occult, and a few concepts that are just simply asinine and beyond description. it’s almost a variation on the neo-pagan visions by groups like mgmt and empire of the sun (or at least the people who produce their videos), where they combine bizarre ritualistic practices with titillating pageantry. except in this one, the band are the normal guys.

the whole thing would be much more grotesque if not for the blissfully unaware song that accompanies it, guided by a euphoric steel pan loop, spanish rap-like vocals, and bombastic electronic drums. it sounds like a celebration, and the whole package is as stimulating as anything you’re going to experience today. he describes his sound as ‘space-age exotica’ and i’m inclined to let that stand. i looked up him after glimpsing a few seconds of a live set of his, on a promo video at the red bull music academy session yesterday. the text ‘el guincho’ i sent to myself turned out to be totally worthwhile.