After her offbeat portraits of the underground film directors, Guy Maddin, Richard Foreman and George and Mike Kuchnar, Marie Losier is now striking at the portrait of Tony Conrad.
The documentary is as much entertaining as rewarding, with Conrad revealing himself to us with infectious gaiety while humorously remembering his youth, his collaborations with the late filmmaker Jack Smith, and his career as an underground musician.
Born in San Francisco in 1977,Tuxedo Moon is an odd mix of electronic, punk and new wave music. However, trying to give it an actual label would be a vain attempt.
While opening for Devo in 1978, Blaine L. Reininger and Steven Brown’s band was given creditable attention. Thanks to their newborn fame, they gained surprising collaborations with people such as Maurice Béjart for the ballet ‘Divine’.
After a 16-year period of inactivity, the band reunited following an Italian fan calling them back. It is this reunion that Merrill’s film immortalises.
Filmed between 2003 and 2004, Merrill’s camera follows the band as if it was a member of it. A member who obviously stands back but simultaneously allows us to follow the musicians in rehearsal, on stage and in the studio to record their album "Cabin in the Sky". The result is a visual musical diary, which manages to capture this intimacy to the essential, to the creation itself.
