#lasbiftecs

[jorgeclardiary]

«Focus» (A Spotify Playlist) 

Focus—a sense of grounding through a sea of emotions. Click HERE to listen.

This playlist, which I’ve been working on since mid-February, is apropos for the recent lunar eclipse on the full moon in Capricorn. It starts with “Teclista Telequinético” by Astrud, a testament to reality responding to the mind as a reflection: Pienso que estáis bailando (“I think you are dancing”). 

The psyche is like a computer hard drive which generates reality, and so we have “Computer Sourire” for good measure...dynamic technopop from Italian electronic wunderkind Alexander Robotnick. The next two tracks, by Niagara and Glass Tiger, taken directly from the playlist of Karl Lagerfeld’s last Chanel resort show, complemented his vision shortly before passing and denote a reliance on the senses for pleasure. 

This reverie leads to “Useless Information” by Chris and Cosey, preparing the ears for a segment of four protest-disco songs. The first, “HDA (Historia del arte)” by Las Biftecs, sends up the male-dominated history of art, with a mention of Cecilia Giménez, the restorer of Ecce Homo in Borja, Spain, planting a pino, which could be a turd or pine cone—symbol of the pineal gland—within the narrative. Pet Shop Boys do an assessment of the superficiality and anonymous emotions dispensed “On Social Media”. Madonna delivers her perhaps best-ever production on “God Control”, with sobering lyrics on the state of gun-law affairs over Mirwais disco delirium. ABBA shows they’ve been doing it since the ice age with their wry social commentary “On and On and On,” complete with vocoderized vocals light years ahead of their time. 

The conflicted lyrics of these four numbers hover somewhere between pithy observation and outré humor. As a child, I never paid attention to the lyrics of songs. I’ve always been more interested in melody and sonic texture. There is plenty of that here to keep the focus on wellness, while the lyrics express their point of view. 

Long versions of both the glorious Fun Boy Three and Bananarama collaboration “Really Saying Something” and Cristina’s sardonic cover of “Drive My Car” precede the LP version of Blondie’s “Rapture”—which I love with its offhanded sax solo perfectly complementing Debbie’s sublime rap—and Gino Soccio’s delirious “I Wanna Take You There (Now)” concluding the set.

On the cover photo, I am wearing a vintage Uniqlo “Weapons of Mass Creation” tee, vintage Forenza bandanna, Sabine Be frames, and a Polaroid Big Shot camera, the same one Andy used for taking portraits in preparing his silkscreens.

Photo by Goor Studio