{"id":337,"date":"2016-09-02T09:46:00","date_gmt":"2016-09-02T13:46:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thememorexe.com\/?p=337"},"modified":"2021-04-07T11:53:47","modified_gmt":"2021-04-07T15:53:47","slug":"lovemad-vermillion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thememorexe.com\/wordpress\/?p=337","title":{"rendered":"LOVEMAD: VERMILLION >>"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/w.soundcloud.com\/player\/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F5165704\" width=\"100%\" height=\"166\" frameborder=\"no\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>five parallel universes\u2014<\/p>\n<p>a bout with homemade psychedelics transforms an already warped dynamic between a couple into a police investigation. the forensics are stymied: a neural surge that created an explosion, traces of honey in the blood\u2014 what was in that bindi spot?<\/p>\n<p>a first date in Central Park. fireflies, deathbirds and vertigo\u2026<br>\na radio broadcast seems to intercept the reality of the new couple, who become susceptible to the information transmitted via the airwaves\u2026<br>\nnext, they discover a corpse\u2026<\/p>\n<p>a wedding night that turns out to be a nuptial flight. the blushing bride is really a black widow\u2026<\/p>\n<p>radio waves at war! a live broadcast from Central Park intercepted by the rantings of one from beyond the grave; a bee documentary, infected becomes infested with dark prognosis. in a living room ,a listener lays dying: theorizing the venomous nature of her death\u2026<\/p>\n<p>a funeral service for the young woman found dead in Central park: the friend who missed it, waylaid by the mysterious railings of a strange young man. he claims his mind is pure glitch. and finally the one who presides over her own funeral assures us that her death was caused by neither murderer nor executioner. it was an ecstatic glitch\u2014 in a split split second, she finds herself flitting over her own body, like so many fireflies\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Inspired by equal parts fascination with sacred erotic texts, neurological disorders and Hitchcock-ian suspense, &lt;&lt;lovemad&gt;&gt; is a cinematic love story in five parallel universes. Written and directed by Onom\u00e9 Ekeh, this \u2190sound-cinema event\u2192 is modeled after old-style radio plays and the narrative unfolds in linearly progressed loops.<\/p>\n<p>The initializing concept behind this project was the idea that the first cinema we experience is in vitro. As fetuses, we are awash in sound waves, via amniotic fluid, that create our first virtual reality.<\/p>\n<p>In Vermillion&gt;&gt; we are introduced to Franz &amp; Maya. The myth about Maya is that she is the bastard offspring of an Indian Bollywood star, cut off from her family when she drops out of pre-med Columbia and opts for a \u201cbohemian lifestyle\u201d. The truth may be that she is dark Italian or Latina from Long Island. Or even Jersey. The myth about Franz is that he is Maya\u2019s whipping boy, completely beneath her spell; escaping reality by watching TV all day. The truth is that he watches TV all day.<br>\nWhatever Maya\u2019s enigma, one thing is for sure\u2014she has a talent for transgressive pharmaceuticals. The night Maya comes home with a new improved version of Vermilion, a profound mischief of another kind ensues. Vermilion is a bindi spot that disappears into the Third Eye\u2014but actually activates the lower, more sensual centers of the body. Vermilion makes her horny. Vermilion makes her levitate. Vermilion makes Franz shoot her.<br>\nOr so it seems.<br>\nForensics are stymied by whatever device has killed Maya. Perturbed because of the molecular alterations in her body: a beehive seems to be forming out of her cell structure. Franz lays claim to guilt and is interrogated, but makes no sense. A simulation of the incident is run\u2014with the use of Vermilion. What happens next is too unintelligible for any police report. Franz is released, free to wander to wander the streets: the screen between him and reality torn forever. And the truth revealed about Maya is that she is the Bewilderer in this World.<\/p>\n<p>credits:<br>\nvermillion&gt;&gt; (11:16)<br>\nwritten &amp; directed by onom\u00e9 ekeh<br>\nfeaturing dave simonds, okwui okpokwasili, tami dixon, christian rummel<br>\nexcerpts from \u201cprimal image\u201d by alan lamb \u00a9 2001 dorobo<\/p>\n<p>_____________________________________________________________________________________<\/p>\n<p>Prelude:<br>\nA gramophone: the needle touches the surface of the record, it crackles and the enchantment begins\u2014 first a lilting tango that transforms into a tropical breeze and carries us out into the rumbling bass of the high seas (radio waves of pirates and muezzin calls) and then into the space of &lt;&gt; our first stop in the realm of &lt;&gt;<\/p>\n<p>&lt;&gt;<\/p>\n<p>Maya:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIts perfection<br>\nI add to my perfection,<br>\nIts\u2019 brilliance<br>\nMy brilliance\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Segueway: a jazzy riff speeds up accompanying the narrator. Beneath him and the music is a muted TV show with a laugh track.<\/p>\n<p>Narrator : There is a myth about Maya that she perpetuated by herself. In it she is the scion of a wealthy Bombay family&#8211; but disowned, because she dropped out of Pre-med at Columbia , moved downtown and opted for a \u201cBohemian Lifestyle\u201d. The other story is that she is the bastard love child of a famed Bollywood star (disowned for his bohemian lifestyle) and an Italian makeup girl, tainted by her promiscuity.<br>\nThe truth?<br>\nWho knows? For all we know she\u2019s from Long Island, or better still New Jersey.<br>\nThe truth about Maya is that she has a talent for illusion\u2014 not just in the myth making department: Maya understands something about pharmaceuticals.<br>\nThe girl is gifted<br>\nAnd full of surprises.<\/p>\n<p>The Myth about Franz is that he is Maya\u2019s whipping boy. Nobody really understands the reason for his existence\u2014<br>\nThe truth about Franz is that Franz always sits at the screen,<br>\nsometimes its a computer screen,<br>\nother times it\u2019s a TV screen. Sometimes its a neural screen between him and reality.<br>\nIt\u2019s always an escape route.<br>\nFranz checks out daily,<br>\nMaya comes home and hauls him in,<br>\nShe\u2019s wearing red, again,<br>\nIn more ways than one<\/p>\n<p>We hear the TV, fighter planes dives, broadcaster voice, documentary noises, The March of Time:<\/p>\n<p>Maya: Hey baby\u2014<\/p>\n<p>Franz: Hey.<\/p>\n<p>Maya: TV, Franz?<\/p>\n<p>Franz: There\u2019s this is a great special on Hungarian fighter planes<\/p>\n<p>Maya: Turn it off<\/p>\n<p>moment of silence, a minute of Hungarian fighter plane noise and commentary. Then a click. Silence.<\/p>\n<p>Franz: Fuck Maya, what did you do that for?<\/p>\n<p>Maya: Get up. Time to play<\/p>\n<p>Franz: Come on, not now. Turn it back on\u2014<\/p>\n<p>Maya: Don\u2019t be an idiot.<\/p>\n<p>Franz: I\u2019m not in the mood (clicks TV back on)<\/p>\n<p>Maya: Franz! Don\u2019t make me turn that off again<\/p>\n<p>Franz: (mumbling) fuck you Maya, fuck you<\/p>\n<p>Maya: Franz\u2014<\/p>\n<p>Franz: Alright dammit!<\/p>\n<p>TV clicks off, muted spirally music and beneath it, laugh track<\/p>\n<p>Maya: Much better. Guess what I have for us&#8211;<\/p>\n<p>Franz: I can\u2019t wait.<\/p>\n<p>(laugh track)<\/p>\n<p>Maya: The new improved Vermillion. They come in Bindi spots, come here baby&#8211;<\/p>\n<p>Franz: Maya I really don\u2019t want this\u2014<\/p>\n<p>(laugh track)<\/p>\n<p>Maya: Shut up. There, You look super pretty. Alright we\u2019re ready to go. I want you to take a walk around the block<\/p>\n<p>Franz: Why? Do I have to\u2014<\/p>\n<p>(laugh track)<\/p>\n<p>Maya: You know the rules, get going Franz, there\u2019s my pet (door slams)<\/p>\n<p>Maya laughs ferally for a minute that seems like eternity , the soundscape shimmers and spirals<\/p>\n<p>And now I adorn myself<br>\nwith Vermillion<br>\nNew and Improved as a bindi spot<br>\nfits perfectly over the third eye, but that\u2019s not what we\u2019re getting to<br>\nthe trick is to use counterpoints<br>\nto attract each other<br>\nI am aiming for that lower end of things<br>\nthe base<br>\nwhere the lovegod inhabits<br>\nhe is vermillion<br>\nand I see vermillion<br>\nHe flashes like young lightning<br>\nand I am the lightning<br>\nluminous as ten million suns<br>\nI am resplendent as his radials<br>\nHe resides as a whirlpool<br>\nand I am the whirlpool<br>\nlike a new leaf<br>\nI am the bud<br>\na four petaled lotus<br>\nI float above surfaces<br>\nI look down and survey<br>\nmy apartment<br>\nAnd see the world<br>\nthe streets outside my door<br>\nand perceive\u2014<br>\nFranz,<br>\nHe walks round the block<br>\nhe comes up the steps<br>\nand now my lover enters the room<br>\nHello Franz<br>\nis that a gun?<br>\nor are you just happy to see me?<\/p>\n<p>Franz: It\u2019s a gun.<\/p>\n<p>(Gun shot amplified into full-scale EXPLOSION)<\/p>\n<p>Forensics expert: The body is completely crystallized by the effects of radiation from a blast which seems to have emitted from the victim\u2019s cervix. The molecular structure of the cells strike me as unusual: hexagonal in shape and secreting a substance that seems to be amber colored, sweet viscose and sticky. Like honey.<br>\nHypothetically, judging from the scar tissue on the victims cervical ganglia&#8211; an excitatory state created a neural surge that flooded the cervix with electrical activity. However the electro-chemical emissions are anomalous to that region. It would seem the neural activity created a radioactive explosion.<br>\nThis is pure conjecture.<br>\nOverall assessment: cause of death UNKNOWN.<\/p>\n<p>The ocean rumbles into a Police interrogation<\/p>\n<p>Interrogator #1: Let\u2019s go over this one more time. You say you\u2019re at home watching TV, your girlfriend comes in, tells you to take a walk, you go round the block, come back in and shoot her, right?<\/p>\n<p>Franz: Yes.<\/p>\n<p>Interrogator #2: Alright Franz, what did you shoot her with?<\/p>\n<p>Franz: My gun.<\/p>\n<p>(laugh track)<\/p>\n<p>Psychologist: The patient is speaking metaphorically, in his psychosis his penis has become a weapon.<\/p>\n<p>Franz: Fuck you.<\/p>\n<p>(laugh track)<\/p>\n<p>Interrogator #1: Hey watch the language!<\/p>\n<p>Interrogator #2: Freak\u2014<\/p>\n<p>Psychologist: I demand the release of this young man into the care of clinical specialists! He is obviously suffering from the shock of his girlfriends death\u2014<\/p>\n<p>Franz: Fuck you.<\/p>\n<p>(laugh track)<\/p>\n<p>Interrogator #1: Hey! I\u2019m warning you\u2014 What are you talking about doc? How the hell are we supposed to release a self confessed criminal? He murdered his girlfriend!<\/p>\n<p>Psychologist: Did he now? With what?<\/p>\n<p>Franz: My gun.<\/p>\n<p>(laugh track)<\/p>\n<p>Interrogator #2: See!<\/p>\n<p>Psychologist: Have you lost your minds, did you see the forensics report? Cause of death UNKNOWN! What is the murder weapon? Show me a murder weapon!<\/p>\n<p>Interrogator #1: Oh I can tell you about murder weapons\u2014 that crazy drug they\u2019re all running around with on their foreheads. In case you didn\u2019t notice Doc, we\u2019re charging him with criminal use of the Third Eye\u2014<\/p>\n<p>Psychologist: That\u2019s preposterous<\/p>\n<p>Interrogator #2: Yeah well maybe\u2014 you should stick around for the simulation\u2014<\/p>\n<p>Psychologist: Simulation? A simulation of what?<\/p>\n<p>Interrogator #1: Our friend Franz over here gets to wear his bindi spot again, we wanna see what he can do\u2014<\/p>\n<p>Psychologist: You have crossed the line here. I completely oppose it\u2014<\/p>\n<p>Interrogator #2: Nothing you can do Doc, he goes on in half an hour\u2014<\/p>\n<p>Psychologist: I can\u2019t believe my ears! I am going to stop this right now&#8211; this man is in need of medical care\u2014<\/p>\n<p>Franz: Fuck you.<\/p>\n<p>(laugh track)<\/p>\n<p>Interrogator # 1: That\u2019s right Franz, you tell the Doc. Crazy ass shrink.<\/p>\n<p>(applause)<\/p>\n<p>Narrator: And so they did run a simulation of the events of that fatal night.<br>\nFranz was given another Vermillion bindi spot.<br>\nAnd what happened next,<br>\nno one in the police department would ever mention again.<br>\nPerhaps some pondered it in their hearts<br>\nThose wounded in the experiment were given new reasons for their existence.<br>\nThose killed\u2014 were awarded posthumous medals for their bravery in the line of duty.<\/p>\n<p>And now Franz is a free man.<br>\nHe roams the streets<br>\nThe screen between him and reality torn forever,<\/p>\n<p>High seas. Howling wind, pirate conversations intercepted the sound of Muezzins<\/p>\n<p>Maya: And what ever they might say about me and my origins<br>\nthey will always be wrong<br>\nFor I am Maya<br>\nthe Bewilderer in this World,<\/p>\n<p>Highseas, foghorn: One bell tolls&#8211;a signal for the demise of one narrative and the birth of &lt;&gt;<br>\nThe static radio waves move from pirate cat calls to BBC world reports, finally one broadcast strand dominates the others<\/p>\n\n\n<p><strong>Performed and recorded during a 2002 Artist Residency at Harvestworks Digital Media Arts Center in New York City, with support from the Media Alliance \/ Jerome Foundation Sound Art grant fellowship.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>five parallel universes\u2014 a bout with homemade psychedelics transforms an already warped dynamic between a couple into a police investigation. the forensics are stymied: a neural surge that created an explosion, traces of honey in the blood\u2014 what was in that bindi spot? a first date in Central Park. fireflies, deathbirds and vertigo\u2026 a radio broadcast seems to intercept the reality of the new couple, who become susceptible to the information transmitted via the airwaves\u2026 next, they discover a corpse\u2026 a wedding night that turns out to be a nuptial flight. the blushing bride is really a black widow\u2026 radio waves at war! a live broadcast from Central Park intercepted by the rantings of one from beyond the grave; a bee documentary, infected becomes infested with dark prognosis. in a living room ,a listener lays dying: theorizing the venomous nature of her death\u2026 a funeral service for the young woman found dead in Central park: the friend who missed it, waylaid by the mysterious railings of a strange young man. he claims his mind is pure glitch. and finally the one who presides over her own funeral assures us that her death was caused by neither murderer nor executioner. it was an ecstatic glitch\u2014 in a split split second, she finds herself flitting over her own body, like so many fireflies\u2026 Inspired by equal parts fascination with sacred erotic texts, neurological disorders and Hitchcock-ian suspense, &lt;&lt;lovemad&gt;&gt; is a cinematic love story in five parallel universes. Written and directed by Onom\u00e9 Ekeh, this \u2190sound-cinema event\u2192 is modeled after old-style radio plays and the narrative unfolds in linearly progressed loops. The initializing concept behind this project was the idea that the first cinema we experience is in vitro. As fetuses, we are awash in sound waves, via amniotic fluid, that create our first virtual reality. In Vermillion&gt;&gt; we are introduced to Franz &amp; Maya. The myth about Maya is that she is the bastard offspring of an Indian Bollywood star, cut off from her family when she drops out of pre-med Columbia and opts for a \u201cbohemian lifestyle\u201d. The truth may be that she is dark Italian or Latina from Long Island. Or even Jersey. The myth about Franz is that he is Maya\u2019s whipping boy, completely beneath her spell; escaping reality by watching TV all day. The truth is that he watches TV all day. Whatever Maya\u2019s enigma, one thing is for sure\u2014she has a talent for transgressive pharmaceuticals. The night Maya comes home with a new improved version of Vermilion, a profound mischief of another kind ensues. Vermilion is a bindi spot that disappears into the Third Eye\u2014but actually activates the lower, more sensual centers of the body. Vermilion makes her horny. Vermilion makes her levitate. Vermilion makes Franz shoot her. Or so it seems. Forensics are stymied by whatever device has killed Maya. Perturbed because of the molecular alterations in her body: a beehive seems to be forming out of her cell structure. Franz lays claim to guilt and is interrogated, but makes no sense. A simulation of the incident is run\u2014with the use of Vermilion. What happens next is too unintelligible for any police report. Franz is released, free to wander to wander the streets: the screen between him and reality torn forever. And the truth revealed about Maya is that she is the Bewilderer in this World. credits: vermillion&gt;&gt; (11:16) written &amp; directed by onom\u00e9 ekeh featuring dave simonds, okwui okpokwasili, tami dixon, christian rummel excerpts from \u201cprimal image\u201d by alan lamb \u00a9 2001 dorobo _____________________________________________________________________________________ Prelude: A gramophone: the needle touches the surface of the record, it crackles and the enchantment begins\u2014 first a lilting tango that transforms into a tropical breeze and carries us out into the rumbling bass of the high seas (radio waves of pirates and muezzin calls) and then into the space of &lt;&gt; our first stop in the realm of &lt;&gt; &lt;&gt; Maya: \u201cIts perfection I add to my perfection, Its\u2019 brilliance My brilliance\u201d Segueway: a jazzy riff speeds up accompanying the narrator. Beneath him and the music is a muted TV show with a laugh track. Narrator : There is a myth about Maya that she perpetuated by herself. In it she is the scion of a wealthy Bombay family&#8211; but disowned, because she dropped out of Pre-med at Columbia , moved downtown and opted for a \u201cBohemian Lifestyle\u201d. The other story is that she is the bastard love child of a famed Bollywood star (disowned for his bohemian lifestyle) and an Italian makeup girl, tainted by her promiscuity. The truth? Who knows? For all we know she\u2019s from Long Island, or better still New Jersey. The truth about Maya is that she has a talent for illusion\u2014 not just in the myth making department: Maya understands something about pharmaceuticals. The girl is gifted And full of surprises. The Myth about Franz is that he is Maya\u2019s whipping boy. Nobody really understands the reason for his existence\u2014 The truth about Franz is that Franz always sits at the screen, sometimes its a computer screen, other times it\u2019s a TV screen. Sometimes its a neural screen between him and reality. It\u2019s always an escape route. Franz checks out daily, Maya comes home and hauls him in, She\u2019s wearing red, again, In more ways than one We hear the TV, fighter planes dives, broadcaster voice, documentary noises, The March of Time: Maya: Hey baby\u2014 Franz: Hey. Maya: TV, Franz? Franz: There\u2019s this is a great special on Hungarian fighter planes Maya: Turn it off moment of silence, a minute of Hungarian fighter plane noise and commentary. Then a click. Silence. Franz: Fuck Maya, what did you do that for? Maya: Get up. Time to play Franz: Come on, not now. Turn it back on\u2014 Maya: Don\u2019t be an idiot. Franz: I\u2019m not in the mood (clicks TV back on) Maya: Franz! Don\u2019t make me turn that off again Franz: (mumbling) fuck you Maya, fuck you Maya: Franz\u2014 Franz: Alright dammit! TV [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3728,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[12,115],"tags":[225,220,243,244,112,245,210,248,224],"class_list":["post-337","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-excerpt","category-soundworks","tag-christian-rummel","tag-dave-simonds","tag-harvestworks","tag-jerome-foundation","tag-lovemad","tag-media-alliance","tag-okwui-okpokwasilii","tag-sound-cinema","tag-tami-dixon"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thememorexe.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/337","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thememorexe.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thememorexe.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thememorexe.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thememorexe.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=337"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/thememorexe.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/337\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3933,"href":"https:\/\/thememorexe.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/337\/revisions\/3933"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thememorexe.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3728"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thememorexe.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=337"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thememorexe.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=337"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thememorexe.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=337"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}