Teargas and Plateglass
While working on the Alice sequel during pre-production I’ve been listening to a wide range of music. NiN and Manson can still evoke a proper degree of harshness and anger. While Vrenna’s original “Alice” soundtrack serves to remind me of the important movements and discoveries in the first game. When writing I try to avoid lyrical music – mainly turning on classical composers like Tcaikovsky and Saint Saens (both of who were debuting new works during the time Alice Liddel was alive).
But one group that has an especially “Alice” tone about them (at least in relation to what I’m thinking about for the new game) is “Teargas and Plateglass”. Aside from the fact that they’re rep’ed by Waxploitation, the same label Chris was on when he created music for Alice, it seems not much is known about this group. From Waxploitation, this bit of “info”:
In many
ways, what’s not known about the band says more about them than what is known. We don’t know who they are or where they come from or where they reside. But we know they are fond of the works of Godfrey Reggio and Sebastaio Salgado, David Sylvian, Jennifer Charles, and David Hykes. We know the last interview the band did was five years ago. What others have said about the band, from time to time, has helped fill in some of the details. The American Film Institute, which exhibited their music videos, called them “a bold experimental visionâ€. URB says the band “pave the way so the dark side can take its rightful place at the forefront of the genreâ€. XLR8R described their sound as “darkness mixed thick like a pool of blood†and advised listeners to “take with a stiff glass of Absintheâ€. Danger Mouse likened their music to “the end of the world†and King Britt noted that “their music restores my faith that deep, dark music still moves the massesâ€.
You don’t have to take my (or their) word for it though… because you can download their latest album completely free from Waxploitation’s website. Check it out here: “Black Triage”
And be sure to head over to the official Teargas and Plateglass website. There you can access more of their music and see some really beautiful music videos they’ve created.
8 responses to “Teargas and Plateglass”
[…] band electronica che potrebbe essere candidata, aggiungo qualche brano: Maggiori info in questa pagina del blog di McGee, dove tra l’altro è possibile scaricare l’ultimo album del gruppo, offerto […]
cool, i’ll check them out
what about Marilyn Manson? can’t he, again, be part of the project?
hope it’s going well.
Sounds kinda like DJ Shadow. Pretty cool although I hope Chris Vrenna can contribute.
I never saw any of the x-men movies, but I still remember seeing the trailer for X-3 and being pulled in by the music to the degree that I just couldn’t leave it alone. Turns out it was “Plague Burial” by Teargas & Plateglass. That song has stuck with me ever since.
As for Saint Saens, have you heard his Danse Macabre? That remains one of my favourites of his.
American,
Really interesting music. Some of their stuff sounds a bit like something from Rob Dougan out of “The Matrix”, or “Requiem For a Dream”, while other songs I can’t really even describe.
At first I couldn’t really see it in Alice, but after listening to the melodies and trying to imagine them without so much heavy percussion, I definitely could start to picture it.
I especially like the song “plague burial”, and “fury of an aroused spectator”.
“One day across the valley” sounds like it should be in a Lexus commercial.
Very cool stuff man, thanks for sharing. This is right up my alley.
If you like these guys, you might want to check out Johnny Hollow. very similar in style but more ‘song form’ pieces.
All the best
kevin
Excellent choice of inspiration for the new Alice – haunting, Lovecraftian melodies and the imagery from the videos remind me of early Bill Viola/Dave McKean with just a dash of Tool (the band) and Adbusters style quotes. We can only hope that you’ll be able to conjure the darkness in a way that’s yet be seen in the gaming world ie. fractal-geometrical landscapes meet insipid insanity fraught with perils from the abyss. But if anyone can do it…
[…] even find out where the fuck they are from… but during my research for this post I discovered American McGee’s blog entry stating how much he digs them (and that he’s making a sequel for ALICE!!!!). Oh yeah, […]