Danger

Today's post is going to be a little different as I'm going to showcase some audio and visual, but with the emphasis on the audio. I still very much consider today's offering digital arts. I'm mainly writing about this because its close to my heart.


Recently I have been listening to more and more French electro [electro house/breaks]. Most people will know of Daft Punk, Justice and perhaps Mr Oizo, so im not really going to mention them. But, a lesser-known artist that I'm really hot on right now is Danger. Ever since I was a kid I have had a real passion for electronic music, just not the usual chart stuff. I had a Commodore Amiga [computer] with a pile of copied games [I was young and didn't understand the concept of piracy, the Amiga came with all these disks].
In my opinion the Amiga had the best sounding computer sound-chip ever. Most games heavily used it, but my favorite thing about it was the game crack intros and demo's [I will be covering Demoscene soon, your gonna love it]. Basically they were a very short piece of computer generated audio and visual that preceded a game. They had the most amazing synth-heavy music. Sampled hits, sampled vox, HUGE synthesized basslines, intricate sequencing, dark chords and plenty of pitch-shifting. I used to record the tunes onto tapes and lay in bed listening to them at night. My favorites were the epic, sci-fi, breaky structures and compositions. That was MY type of music. Ever since then I have been a keen follower of electronic music. Styles and genres constantly come and go with the current trends already beginning to stagnate. All the time I have dreamed of one day re-visiting the early-mid 90's Amiga style audio. Well, it seems I'm now just a little late to the party and some French producers have been all over it!?


Danger has been on my player non-stop for a few weeks now. I dont know for fact, but this guy must be about my age and must have had the same passion for this style of music. He is creating this exact style of electro, using a lot of the same sounding synths, pitch-shifts, structures and epic, sci-fi builds. But, it has the power of modern production with heavy side-chain beats and massive dance-floor compression. His visual representation is 16bit for fucks sake!? With massive mixes of Sebastian Tellier - Devine, Black Eyed Peas - Imma Be & Estelle - American Boy to name just a few, it would seem that everything he touches turns in to electronic gold. I can't get enough of this music and had to share it in the hope that somebody other than me is interested :D


*yeah, this video has footage of 'Commando' but i thought it would be more interesting than a blank screen. Just enjoy the music!



Estelle ft Kanye West- American Boy [danger remix]

Naked Compagnie

What can I say about this studio that hasn't already been said? Well, not a lot as it turns out. I have tried to find out some really interesting stuff for you and I have contacted them, but alas, they are mystical creatives, floating through the industry and producing very smooth work. What I can tell you is that they are from Paris and they create some beautiful visuals. A lot of Naked Compagnie's work seems to be pop concert visuals, which are played on huge screens across the back of a stage. They have created these visuals for artists such as The Pussy Cat Dolls, Jay Z & Mika.  Its an intriguing use for motion graphics and An angle that I hadn't really considered until I found this studio. Due to the nature/purpose of this work the videos below may seem repetitive, but do have a look because the quality and style of their work is superb. I have contacted Naked Compagnie and if they reply I will definitely update you :D


You can find more Naked Compagnie at Naked-co.com enjoy..

Benny Benassi - Spaceship : Director Ray Kay

I have some great artists lined up to showcase. But, today a video caught my attention, which I felt needed talking about. Here we have the new video for Benny Benassi. The director of this video is Ray Kay. Ray Kay produces some absolutely stunning fashion photography and music videos for all the big names [seriously too many to mention. Just check his site]. All of his work that I have seen really pushes the fashion style visuals and every still of music video is a fantastic, stylishly composed still and very sexy. So with all this credibility and experience it makes me wonder how a video like this has slipped through. I find it uninspired and clichéd. The theme of the track is 'Spaceship' and visually that message comes across, but the way it's done is just so.. cheesy. We have a space ship that looks like a cross between Star Trek and Tron [just not quite as good as either] floating through the clichéd meteor shower. Once inside the ship we are confronted with the stars of the video, green-screened onto a very nightclub looking dock and showered with jerky, unnatural camera movements. The shots are very rarely creative. Also, for years photographers strived to lose lens-flare from their shots, but digital film has over recent years brought it back. With today's software and used right it can look great! Unfortunately, this video abuses the flare and is a good example of why we should stop using it again. Eventually the video lands on an alien planet, but instead of creativity we are confronted with another uninspired and clichéd mars scene with Kelis [badly] floating through an explosion that seems to have finally arrived from 1980. The only perk's being the 3D particle effects ripping through the skies and the colour change from blues to orange. I don't like to rip on other peoples work, but this video pissed me off. With so many super-talented artists struggling to get noticed, it seems disgusting to me that superstar creatives like Ray Kay can get away with this.



To play fair here is a second video by Ray Kay. The video is for 'Adam Lambert - For your Entertainment' and is brilliant. Great compositions and very stylish. The shots showcase his fashion imagery and the lighting is amazing. The shots are tight. The edits are tight. Overall this is a VERY sexy production! What happened with spaceship?
*apologies for bad video. official video has embedding disabled. link above^

Justice - Stress

It's not all about the very latest videos and artwork here at We Take Control. If the content is right, then its going in. This is why todays offering is a video for a music track by Justice, which was released in 2007. The video is directed by Romain Gavras who is making frequent appearances in the media for shock tactics. Stress is not only my favorite video from Romain Gavras , but one of my favorite music videos of all-time. Before you watch the video I need to mention that some people may be offended by it and that it was banned from the tellybox [for all the wrong reasons]. The content [or lack of] has already been documented all over the internet, so i'm not going to dig too deep.


I find this video fascinating. Shot like a documentary and using the good ol' shakey-hand cam we follow a day in the life of a street gang member. The gang seem like they could have been lifted straight from cult film The Warriors and the film seems to reference this on more than one occasion.  The production is absolutely stunning to look at. The de-saturated colour-correction giving a very moody, urban feel throughout. There are also a lot of different shots and compositions used and we are constantly dragged from long chase shots to tight, sometimes unrecognizably close edits. A lot of the transitions use blurred zooms which constantly flicker in and out of focus and the depth of field is used superbly. Then there is the feel of the production. It's uncomfortably realistic to watch. Visceral and primeval acts of violence in a very contemporary setting. It's so close to home that it makes you wonder if your loved ones are really safe out on the streets. Were people actually terrorized for the sake of art? Lastly, I would just like to mention the sound. I'm not here to review music, but the punishing and relentless Justice soundtrack, the ambient sound of the city and the screams of the citizens within it all combine with the visuals to make [in my humble opinion] a truly remarkable piece of art!

enjoy..

Columbus - Love Machine

This video is really doing it for me right now. It has been produced by The Crystal Beach and is stunning! Watching this video I can't help but think its right on trend at the minute and we'll be seeing a lot more from this director in the future. Please have a look at his website as he has some really vibrant artwork on show.

Once again we have a lot of retro 80's visuals which are bursting with effects and I adore the choice of colours. The super-bright neon lighting is stunning to look at throughout the production. Its beautifully composited and seamlessly animated. I love the fast-cuts, the touches of depth-of-field and definitely can't get enough of those pretty lens flares flashing all over the screen! Lets get on to those effects. This video seems like a showcase of how to use after effects in 2010. Its pushing out every trendy effect in the book. You cant watch this production for more than a few seconds before another flashy, contemporary technique is thrust in to your over stimulated eyes. Andrew Kramer would be proud! I also need to mention the fashion. The Shaman is looking like a fly, future pimp and Miss Universe is rocking out with high-tops, space material leggings, super funky space marine armor and The Shamans sci-fi head piece. Very sexy! My last comment on this video is that I couldn't help but get a Mighty Boosh feel from it and in my books thats a good thing. Anyway, thats enough from me. Sit back and enjoy this electro masterpiece..

Mark Ronson - Bang Bang Bang

Here we have the new video to the single Bang Bang Bang by Mark Ronson. I wanted to try and post this before the tune gets too big and your all pig sick of hearing it. The video is great. Okay, so there's this current trend for mimicking the 80's style visuals and its been pushed hard. I love it! A lot of these videos are done with such a quality modern edge and showing so much appreciation for source material that its hard to ignore it. A new generation of visual artists are taking control and I think that you can see a true excitement for subject in their work. 


This video is by Warren Fu. Its Packed with 80's references, film inspiration and we should all know by now that if you have Asian influence in your work, that your coolness skyrockets!! The colour correction on this video is brilliant. Very muted with some great colour combinations and you gotta love those neon lights. You will find out if you continue to follow 'We Take Control' that I am a HUGE after effects fan and this video doesn't fail to deliver. Here the motion graphics are spot on. Full of great screen-wipes, transitions and armed to the teeth with effects. They never become intrusive and always look smooth. With Casio fonts, Gundam shapes, everybody dressed to impress and some lil' breakers dropped in for good measure.. Here we have 'Marc Ronson - Bang Bang Bang'


enjoy :D