How did the idea for Hear My Eyes come about?
Combining a film with a live score isn’t an idea that’s exclusive to Hear My Eyes – what makes our performances unique is that the film is chosen with a specific band in mind and then that band writes and performs a completely original score to accompany the film. The idea was born from my obsession with cinema and music, and my desire to combine the two mediums in a live, performative context.
How is the night going to play out? What can people expect?
The musicians will combine analogue synthesis, guitars, bass, drums, saxophone, clarinet and tape loops to create a series of ambient and experimental soundscapes. The performance will also incorporate singing and live narration.
The film that’ll be The Vanquishing of the Witch Baba Yaga directed by Jessica Oreck, previously screened at the BFI London Film Festival. Can you tell us a bit about it?
The Vanquishing of the Witch Baba Yaga is a fusion of documentary footage and hand drawn animated storyboard panels. The animation sections tell a traditional Slavic folktale about a young brother and sister who get lost in a forest and meet an evil witch named Baba Yaga – the tale is designed to make children fear the forest. But the director disagrees with the moral of this folktale. Her visual essay argues that we shouldn’t be afraid of nature but instead we should be wary of the evil that lurks within humankind.
The score will be performed by the local dream pop/shoegaze band Sleep Decade. In what way will their sound will compliment the film?
The film was shot on 16mm celluloid film stock and the band only use live instruments and analogue synths. The warm analogue textures of both aesthetics and sonics, in film and performance, complement each other perfectly. Also, Sleep Decade’s minimalist, ambient soundscapes pair extremely well with the films gorgeous imagery of dense Eastern European forests and luscious countrysides.
Don’t miss this truly unique event of The Vanquishing of the Witch Baba Yaga with music by Sleep Decade, Thursday April 30, 7pm at Howler.
