Vee Hua 華婷婷
Top Ten Hits For The End Of The World Tracks & Backstories
Prince Rama have long been about chasing the conceptual with their multimedia-encompassing theatrics, but their latest idea, Top Ten Hits For The End Of The World, takes our collective 2012 fascination with the apocalypse and turns it into a most playful collection of pop hits. In my opinion, this record, which is comprised of ten tracks from ten fictional bands — all of which have extensive back stories crafted by the girls themselves — is the duo’s strongest to date. With Ariel Pink lo-fi vibes but with collation of genres both fictional and invented (“cosmic disco”, “motorcycle rock”, and “ghost-modern glam”, to name a few), the model of Top Ten Hits… frees the girls from the binds of expectation and allows the to run free on all fronts.
Rage Peace – “So Destroyed” (as channeled by Prince Rama)
For the album’s first single, Prince Rama took on the nihilistic protest band Rage Peace’s violent-turned-pop songs. According to the press release, “Rage Peace formed as a small protest band in the early 90s and before they knew it they were the Bob Dylans of a whole generation of angry youth. They became founding members of the Rage Peace movement, based on the principle of nihilism as the only true order, and wrote songs with violent messages placed in seemingly saccharine pop structures. The band was notorious for staging organized acts of violence and destruction, burning cars and sometimes buildings in the name of chaos. When the end came, their bodies were found locked inside a limousine they had set on fire. The license plate read ‘HEY U’.”
I.M.M.OR.T.A.L.I.F.E. – “Those Who Live For Love Will Live Forever” (as channeled by Prince Rama)
“In the early eighties, a London sex cult infiltrated underground discotheques based on the principle that the secret to immortality was found through engaging in intimate acts of love. To retain their anonymity, members went by the acronym I.M.M.OR.T.A.L.I.F.E., or ‘Inner Messages Morphing Over Resonant Time, Always Loving Infinitely Free and Everlasting’. For years, I.M.M.O.R.T.A.L.I.F.E. dedicated itself to recording dance track hymnals that would provoke lovemaking acts and thus prolong the lives of its members. When the end of the world came, the group was found frozen in midst of an orgiastic collapse. They had not slept or eaten in thirteen days.”
So Destroyed Dance Contest
Today also marks the end of their So Destroyed Dance Contest, where they invited anyone to submit YouTube videos of themselves dancing to “So Destroyed”. All videos will be reviewed by the band, compiled, and featured in an official music video for the song. All who enter will receive a custom mixtape, dubbed and decorated by the band themselves. One winner will receive custom dancing shoes designed by the band, a signed album, and a chance to dance live on stage. See a sample dance video HERE.
Prince Sunarawma (Prince Rama + Sun Araw) – “Irene” 12″
Our friends from French label Atelier Ciseaux have just released a 20-minute lo-fi recording of a shared jam between Prince Rama and Sun Araw. The 12″ is now sold out, but you can stream “Irene” nonetheless!
Prince Rama and the Scorpion Tornado Kickstarter & Film
The concepts don’t stop there. Prince Rama have raised more than $15,000 dollars for a Kickstarter campaign that will go towards a “now-age psych opera of epic proportions”. As a tale about a queen luring “an existential pop star into a web of cyber conspiracy and mind control”, one can expect a most bizarre coming-of-age film with “a whirlwind of ensemble dance numbers, futuristic rock shows, inter-dimensional portals and cavernous underworlds.” They claim that you should think Prince’s Purple Rain meets Bollywood and The Matrix. See below for the original Kickstarter video along with some test footage.
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Navi Esparza
Jake Renn
