Audio By Carbonatix
Is music really “art”? What about music videos?
The Pérez Art Museum Miami seems to think so. For Art Basel Miami Beach 2014, PAMM commissioned and premiered a music video from NYC production collective Future Brown for the song “Vernáculo,” featuring Maluca and directed by Rory Mulhere.
The museum also hosted a live performance by the group during Basel. And if you missed the gig, that’s too bad. But you can still watch the video online and discern the fruitfulness of this “exercise in capitalist surrealism” for yourself.
See also: Music’s Five Dumbest Marketing Trends
Commercialism is every-fucking-where. It’s the bread and butter of our economy way of life. Holiday songs are all that’s left of American folk music, besides maybe blues. Some people wanna tell you that a good commercial is art, but those people are brainwashed.
It is possible, however, to take elements of commercialization and pervert them into a commentary of cultural substance. And with “Vernáculo,” Future Brown appropriate overused phrases and images that have become staples of the beauty industry in an attempt to reflect the absurdity of the establishment and give voice to its own musicality. Words like “tone,” “volume,” and “base boost” take on double meanings.
Is Future Brown taking over the world with its elevating soundscapes? Are slogans and buzz words the parlance of our time? Undoubtedly.
Crossfade’s Top Blogs
Follow Kat Bein on Twitter @KatSaysKill.
Follow Crossfade on Facebook and Twitter @Crossfade_SFL.
