Ladytron: Rockschool documentary
Apparently just an Emperor Norton promo piece, but don't
be surprised if you get one free when you buy Ladytron's album, 604.
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We actually received our early review copy of Ladytron's 604 a month and a half ago, but something very sad happened. As is always possible in the wild and wooly jungle that is the U.S. Postal Service, our 604 arrived with a badly cracked jewel case and a substantial ding out of the back of the disc itself. Undeterred, we attempted to play it...but the blast of clanging dissonance the damaged CD produced sounded more like an Illegal Art release than the latest from our favorite black-clad, eighties-loving, keyboard-toting foursome. Spirits sunk, as spirits are wont to do at times like this.
Right around the time the 604 tragedy faded from our memory, a brand new full art copy of 604 arrived at the Splendid office (watch for a review next week)...accompanied by the Rockschool documentary.
So, you're probably wondering, what the hell is the Rockschool documentary?
I'm glad you asked. Rockschool is a grand, sweeping video production that details the full history of Ladytron, identifying in no uncertain terms the group's far-reaching cultural significance. We learn of keyboardist Daniel Hunt's childhood, tutored by his scientist father -- the man who would eventually invent the Hunt-Soloman Electrovalve, the crucial electronic component at the heart of all modern electronic instruments. We observe the early years of vocalist/keyboardist Helena Marnie, whose rebellion against the unfairly restrictive teaching methods of Glasgow's MacLennan School for Girls sparked an international controversy, not to mention a far-reaching wave of education reform. Vocalist/keyboardist Mira Arroyo tells us what it was like being Bulgaria's youngest-ever heart transplant patient; it's a stirring tale in which a love of the arts helps to heal a little girl long after medical science has given up hope. And keyboard guy Reuben Wu takes us back to the thicket outside Perivale, in which he spent the first three years of his live being raised by a pack of feral terriers.
There's even a dramatic re-creation of Ladytron's beginning -- the quartet's fortuitous meeting in 1997, when they were all working at the same concession stand at the Eurovision Song Contest. It's a very special, very emotional moment. When Daniel Hunt, teenage voice cracking, asks, "So, can any of you lot play any instruments, then?", you'll get a lump in your throat.
Actually, that's all a load of crap. Rockschool is ten minutes of the band members chatting about each other, sandwiched around the video to "Playgirl". There are lots of trendy video effects, lots of pixelated video, lots of shots of the band members looking cool. The voice-overs sound like the band members are speaking on the telephone -- it's either some trendy audio effect or the band quite literally phoned this one in. In other words, the word "documentary" is used very loosely; Rockschool makes Mike Mills' Air documentary, Eating Sleeping Waiting and Playing, look like Hoop Dreams.
That's not to say that Rockschool isn't interesting. If nothing else, we learn that Reuben Wu designed a cool-looking asthma inhaler that succeeded in making respiratory ailments trendy among the pre-teen set. Perhaps this will inspire dedicated fans to pelt the band with inhalers at every live appearance.
But hey, this was a free video. It's even on one of those nifty little disposable video cassettes. So who am I to complain?
-- George Zahora
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