travis egedy goes stand up comedian

travis egedy on madonna's holiday

CULTURAL REVOLUTION AS POP POSSIBILITY

An essay inspired by Madonna's "Holiday"

Travis Egedy

If we took a holiday, took some time to celebrate. Just one day out of life, it would be, it would be so nice

So say the opening lyrics to Madonna’s 1983 mega hit "Holiday."  Simple enough, right? Who doesn’t like a holiday? Indeed, it would be nice. You are sitting on a tropical island, sipping a pina colada under a parasol, listening to the sounds of the waves crashing in the distance, think of those Corona commercials…yes quite nice. But what if this was not the kind of "holiday" being sung about over the catchiest three note bassline ever? What if "holiday" was describing a possibility?  A possibility of a future with a highly radical and extremely revolutionary cultural ideology? It is interesting to project this idea onto a seemingly simplistic sugar soaked pop song, but with this outlook, "Holiday" becomes one of the most culturally progressive and idealistic anarcho-utopianist visions of our time, all while being  broadcast to millions via pop radio and television. (I highly suggest watching the music video on Youtube.) Woah ,woah, what? Yes, a pop song with lyrics that define and outline quite possibly the next phase in human evolution, and one that describes an opening into an alternative reality.

[full text]

[video performance] 

travis egedy aka pictureplane

PICTUREPLANE circa 2006

Pictureplane, aka 24-year old Denver-via-Santa Fe multi-media maker Travis Egedy, popped up on some radars this past April via his remix of Health's Die Slow. Before that, he remixed Crystal Castles, collaborated with hometown New Mexico bud Zach Condon (Beirut), and self-released his debut full-lenght Turquoise Trail. Now the same label's tackling his excellent sophomore collection Dark Riff. It may very well be the dance record of the summer for people who aren't used to dancing: Egedy's expansive mix of 90's house, dreamy '80s synth-pop, poppy darkwave, tripped and colorful Black Dice-style noise, bottomed-out hiss, weirdo Sublime Frequencies drum circles, and a surprisingly ready-for-the-club semi-sheen creates endlessly interesting soundscapes.

Stereogum

Whether he's appearing at the Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art or some dude's basement down the street, Egedy tweaks keyboards and fist-fucks samples into a thick puree of static, ambience, beats and beauty that flows between M83 and the edgier reaches of the Anticon roster. Yes, there's even melody and emotion burbling beneath it all.

Denver's Westword

PICTUREPLANE circa 2007

Pictureplane's Space