Chris Cunningham at the Brighton Dome review
For some reason I thought we had standing tickets but we'd somehow booked seating at the Brighton Dome which was perfect. We'd come into halfway of the one of the warm-up acts, Beak> (that's not a spelling error by the way). At first they sounded awful as they distorted electric guitar and pots 'n' pans rock sound but after a couple more songs and swapping of instruments their sound transformed past the distortion into a rich, eerie but lo-fi soundscape. I noticed their merchandise stand only had their album on vinyl plus some really cool t-shirts (later bought). They have a blog too called Dream of Beak.
The second warm-up act was DJ Jackson of Jackson and his Computer Band. His music choice was as bizarre as his own personal look. He had a blond He-Man haircut and a white denim jacket and jeans (though could have been the stuntman for Spinal Tap). The first part of his set sounded more like a Black & Decker radio advert then mixed up hardcore rave, some punk sounds, a great cover version of Beck's I'm a Loser as I'm a Raver then continued blasting us with late 80s/early 90's classics like 808 State and Dominator. Some inspired choices and some dodgy mixing.
Right on schedule, Chris Cunningham strolls on stage with a technician and his huge display screens activated with test colours and shapes. It looked like they had technical problems but this was just part of the entertainment as you saw what seemed like a live feed of the technician plugging in the mains. A menacing feel took over with the crackle of electricity and the green laser activated like a futuristic killing machine. The sound effects were intense thanks to the Dome's excellent set up. As the Terminator-like visuals changed a naked couple came on screen fighting, wrestling without any care to each other. Sprays of blood added to the shock factor but the sight of the naked guy stroking himself as if holding a baseball bat took it to another level. It was as erotic as chemical warfare with each punch striking each other like a huge pulse of sound and energy where a beat formed and a side-helping of oral sex visuals projected.
Kerry descrbed it as "(exorcist + cocks) x lasers = chris cunningham"
More shocking stuff to give you nightmares including a drum and bass track with a lady flashing us with what looked like an octopus. Maybe Chris Cunningham liked the Roger Moore, James Bond film?
The set included a couple of more familiar pieces using Aphex Twin's Windowlicker remixed and Chris Cunningham's own disturbing film of Rubber Johnny film cut-up and remixed. The set finished with a blues song and visuals of the NY subway. It was an entrancing end to help sooth away the scary monsters of before though surprise you that 60 minutes had just flown by.
Overall, an excellent performance though can't help feeling my nightmares in future will be influenced by Mr Cunningham.
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Comments
Not sure about Beak, but the DJ was excellent (I was having a major early 90s retro moment) and loved the laser with the backdrop with Cunningham's set!