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Theme From “The Phonokinetoscope” (2003)

Rodney Graham

Rodney Graham

Ti­tle of the album: Rock is Hard
Ti­tle: Theme From “The Phonokinetoscope” (Track 16)
Publisher: -
Da­te: 2003
Me­di­um: 2 re­cord 30 cm
Performers: Rodney Graham, David Carswell, Mike Ledwidge, John Collins, Pete Bourne, a.o.

 

Theme From "The Phonokinetoscope" is the last song on the 2003 album Rock Is Hard. The double LP includes a unique blend of rock'n'roll, psychedelia and folk-country. The song is from the 2001 installation Phonokinetoscope.

Graham's song is an adaptation of the song "Bike" by Syd Barrett. Written and sung by Graham, the song quotes Barrett's song in the chorus: "You're the kind of girl that fits in with my world."

i'm the i they failed to dot
from the land that time forgot
i just lost my train of thought
i saw someone sitting on a rock
you're the kind of girl that fits in with my world (3 times)
who is it that does not love a tree?
i planted one, i planted three
two for you and one for me
botanical anomaly
you're the kind of girl that fits in with my world (2 times)
when i fell off my medication
seems i lost the art of conversation
drape the dump in shades of grey
declare it 'i feel fucking awful day'
you're the kind of girl that fits in with my world (4 times)
who is it that does not love a tree?
i planted one, i planted three

Rodney Graham recorded this song for the phonographic component of his Phonokinetoscope. Rodney Graham's Phonokinetoscope (2001) consists of a five-minute looped 16mm film of the artist riding his Fischer Original bicycle through Berlin's Tiergarten park while taking LSD. This is accompanied by the soundtrack of a fifteen-minute song (which includes the song Theme From "The Phonokinetoscope") written and sung by Graham and performed with his band on a vinyl LP. The film begins when the needle is placed on the record and stops when the needle is removed.

Graham's ride is reminiscent of Swiss scientist Albert Hoffman's famous 1943 bicycle ride after an experimental dose of LSD, as well as Paul Newman's reverse ride in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. The accompanying music, as well as the images and visual details of the film, refer to an astonishing number of artworks and literary models, full of subtle hints and meanings.

ATJ