Jahzzar

Dmitri’s ghost

Every time I watch Star Wars, Shostakovich appears. Behind every lightsaber duel, every flight of the Millennium Falcon. Behind Vader’s breathing… there is Dmitri:

Every time I watch Gladiator, it happens again. When Maximus shouts “At my signal unleash hell”, Dmitri’s ghost appears.

Beside Chabrol, with his elegant and distinguished, dark and dissonant music. A reflection of family relationships that guide the movie. It’s inevitable, Shostakovich visits me. Other composers are speaking , but with their language.

When it happens, I always ask to Dmitri’s ghost the same questions: And you? Who are your ghosts? Who inspires you? He never answers, goes out.

Only when he disappears I can relax and enjoy. But when the movie ends…

A Shot: The Story of “Railroad’s Whiskey Co.”

At the end, the story of each song is the story of the videos where it plays, of the ideas that the song accompanies. But it’s also true that most of these songs have a single origin. The memory, the place or the scene that inspired me when I wrote it. “My story”.

It’s an exercise I do sometimes: I think about a scene and try to put music in it. Something like going to the gym, but much more fun (at least for me).

“Railroad’s Whiskey Co.” for example. I imagined an off voice telling a story. With a surreal touch, black humor. Absurd. A man walking along a deserted road, dragging a heavy suitcase. Exhausted, sweating alcohol. Without destination. This was my video, my story for Railroad’s. And the story of John…

There are times when two stories overlap. Someone who doesn’t know the origin of the song but posts a video that may just be my original idea, or something very similar. Moments when the music seems tailor-made. Which makes you think “Hey, That’s it”.

Productions that could be a videoclip or promo of the song but no. Not my story, despite appearances.

GQ April 2013 Issue

After the video of John Hawkes for December’s Issue, this month I return to collaborate with Condé Nast, on two of their productions for GQ magazine.

This time you can hear me on the videos of the Knicks center Tyson Chandler, and the new king of late night TV, Jimmy Fallon (what a pleasure).

The songs are “Shine”, from Wake Up, and “Dirt” from 1Up.