Another OK Go Mesmerizing Video: “The Writing’s On the Wall”

Writing's on the Wall
OK Go, known for their amazing music videos that mess with your mind, this week released their latest video for “The Writing’s On the Wall.” The song is from their upcoming album Hungry Ghosts (2014). The new video features numerous optical illusions that will have you watching the video over and over again.

The song’s pretty good too. Check out the video below.

Hungry Ghosts will be available October 14, 2014.

What is your favorite OK Go video? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Dylan’s “Julius & Ethel”

    Rosenbergs

    On June 19, 1953, Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were executed in the electric chair for conspiracy to commit espionage, for allegedly passing information about the atomic bomb to the Soviet Union. Many argued that the two were innocent and not given a fair trial in the face of anti-Soviet paranoia at the time.

    The Bob Dylan song “Julius & Ethel” is an outtake that was recorded during Dylan’s Infidels (1983) sessions with Dire Straits’s Mark Knopfler. The song recounts the story of the Rosenbergs, capturing the persecution atmosphere of the times. For example, the line “Senator Joe was king” refers to Sen. Joe McCarthy, who led a witch hunt for communists.

    Dylan, not surprisingly, takes the position that a societal injustice occurred, putting the case in the context of its time period: “Someone says the fifties was the age of great romance / I say that’s just a lie, it was when fear had you in a trance.” Thus, he concludes that the Rosenbergs were not given a fair trial.

    Now that they are gone, you know, the truth it can be told;
    They were sacrificial lambs in the market place sold —
    Julius and Ethel, Julius and Ethel


    Bob Dylan: Julius & Ethel by CaseyDeiss

    Today, most conclude that Julius had some involvement in the passing of information to the Soviets, although many also debate whether the information was significant. Still, a large number of people continue to maintain that Ethel was innocent. Either way, the prejudices of the times affected the fairness of the trial. And the arguments about the use of the death penalty against innocent defendants continues in the U.S. to this day.

    As for Dylan’s song, around the Internet many fans of the song argue that Dylan should have included it on the album. What do you think?

    Photo via Library of Congress.

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    Samuel Jackson Still Remembers His Pulp Fiction Speech

    Even though Pulp Fiction (1994) was released in theaters nearly 20 years ago on October 14, 1994, Samuel Jackson recently showed he still remembers the famous “Ezekiel 25:17” speech by his character Jules Winnfield. During a recent appearance on BBC One’s The Graham Norton Show, Norton asked Jackson to recite the speech and Jackson did. Check it out.

    By the way, that “Ezekiel 25:17” speech takes some big liberties with what Ezekiel 25:17 actually says in the Bible. But Jackson still makes me believe it is a real quote.

    Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    OJ Simpson, Arnold Palmer, and June 17, 1994

    OJ Simpson

    One of the documentaries in ESPN’s excellent series 30 for 30, lets the viewer watch sports-related events on a single day in June 1994. In 30 for 30: June 17, 1994, director Brett Morgen adds no additional narration but pieces together clips from that day to give you the experience as if you are reliving the day, or for younger viewers, living it for the first time.

    The day began with reporters waiting for O.J. Simpson to turn himself in for the double-murder of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman. As the day went on, other sports stories began to be overshadowed by the O.J. Simpson disappearance and Bronco chase.

    For example, Arnold Palmer played an emotional last round at the U.S. Open, the New York Rangers celebrated their Stanley Cup, the FIFA World Cup began in Chicago, and Bob Costas struggled to figure out how to cover an NBA Championship game as TV stations cut to the Bronco chase.

    The documentary is no longer available in its entirety on YouTube, but it is on Netflix streaming. Below is the preview.

    Vulture ranks “June 17, 1994” as the fifth best film in the 30 for 30 series. June 2016 Update: More recently, the 30 for 30 series took a fascinating in-depth examination of the life of O.J. Simpson in the five-part “O.J.: Made in America.”

    Do your remember June 17, 1994? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Pete Seeger “Forever Young”

    Pete Seeger Forever Young
    Riverfront Park     in Beacon, New York is being renamed after Pete Seeger and his wife Toshi Seeger. The park, which is near where he lived, overlooks the Hudson River, which Pete Seeger helped save. A ceremony at the annual Strawberry Festival this weekend celebrates the park’s new name, and there have been other recent tributes to Seeger. I am sure more will keep coming.

    While thinking about the great singer who passed away in January of this year, I have been listening to Seeger’s last major recording. Seeger recorded “Forever Young” for the 4-CD set Chimes Of Freedom: The Songs Of Bob Dylan Honoring 50 Years Of Amnesty International (2012). When the recording was made near the end of Seeger’s life, he no longer had his singing voice. So, the song was arranged around his speaking voice, aided by local children. Especially in light of Seeger’s passing, the video of Seeger giving his joy to a new generation is quite moving.

    In this short video documentary about the making of “Forever Young,” the album’s contributing producer Martin Lewis and othes explain how they brought together everyone for the recording of the song. The scene near the end of the kids looking at pocket-sized booklets of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as Pete Seeger sings is pretty cool.

    One of the musicians who helped out on the song and who appears in the video is Mark Hudson. If you watched television in the mid-1970s, you might recall him from his variety show with The Hudson Brothers.

    As for Seeger, he was surrounded by song up until he passed away. And even with his singing voice weakened for this last major recording, he made “Forever Young” a powerful performance the way he always made his songs powerful — by getting others to join in his song.

    Leave your two cents in the comments.

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