Have loved every one of these you shot from this show…any chance you got the whole thing? I was lucky enough to catch Alex solo 3 times and saw Big Star in 99ish at First Avenue. Either way, thanks for sharing these
I too saw this in Zeitz Mocaa in Cape Town. I was first drawn by the music, went into the room and was captured by the music and visual masterpiece. I could have sat there forever watching and listening. It touched my soul.
This guy has a hard on for Ragdoll physics lol, seriously though I love how this piece reflects the giddy feeling of elation when you fart in your sleeping girlfriends mouth and it makes a sound like "AAAOUUUUUWAAAOOOO"
I believe this piece represents child abuse. The fiberglass puppet, during its first performance, was shiny and new and had fresh paint. Now, it is grimy and chipped from the dragging around and beatings it takes each day. The chains drag its loose body across the stage, hitting it against walls and having it fall to the floor. This loose marionette symbolizes the powerlessness abused children have against their abusers. Their abusers strip them of their innocence [paint] to hurt them. The monologue is especially distressing, coming from the point of view of the abuser hurting this child. As seen in- "-2. To kill you." "3. To hold you." "4. To believe you." "5. To touch you." "6. To move you." "7. To ask you." "8. To put my teeth in you." "9. To put my hand on you." "10. Two hands inside your hair." "11. Your leg over my shoulder." "12. Your mouth full of coffee." "12. I knew you." "13. I killed you." "14. You're blind." "15. You're spoiled." "16. To lift you." "17. To show you." "18. To lay you." The lack of a number one implies that the child just woke up, or came out of a daze when hearing this. "Spit. Earth." which concludes the speech before the puppet begins to be drug around is spoken by the child. It is a subtle to way to convey the child saying "I hate this place." Also, the lines from 8 to 12 imply physical abuse is not the only type of abuse this child suffers from. It implies the child is also suffering from s-xual abuse. The projections of dancing candies and the clips of cartoons in the puppet's eyes could represent dissociation, in which to try and metaphorically escape this abusive household, the child imagines good things and a whole fake world where they're in control; hence the puppet no longer being moved during the sequence. ~ _I am officially Socrates_
As much as I love #1 Record, I loved Radio City even more due to the rawness. Technically, Chris Bell was a superior guitarist, he took the time to get things right. When Alex took over, the attitude of f*** it produced raw, undisciplined but timeless and beautiful music. Just the way he alternates between rhythm and lead guitar on O My Soul is enough to recommend that album...
I love the analogy of 1 hit wonder going downhill from there but the real success grew as he was free to be himself and explore music how he wanted. So punk rock
