Absurdist dance artist/composer Dan Deacon is wrapping up a DVD with collaborator/visual artist Jimmy Joe Roche, and in their concoction of buzzing, ’80s-flavored psychedelia, the two have employed one serious secret weapon: Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Roche worked with Deacon on the video for “Crystal Cat,” the second track on full-length album Spiderman of the Rings, which was released in May on Carpark Records. Both are members of Baltimore-based art collective Wham City.
In Ultimate Reality, the forty-minute DVD for which Deacon penned a soundtrack, the Governator’s hulking, previously steroid-infused physique can been seen tromping through neon, psychedelic images that are often mirrored or kaleidoscopic. Snippets of Schwarzenegger from Conan, Terminator 2, and Total Recall accompany the electronic score, which includes a pair of drummers for hard-hitting purposes.
Deacon, whom ALARM reviewed in concert last month, will continue to perform in Europe during August and tour the U.S. throughout September and into October.
Nearly seven minutes of Ultimate Reality and link to high-quality clip:
Dan Deacon tour dates:
Europe
August 10 – Manchester, UK @ Barge party
August 11 – Bristol, UK @ Thekla
August 13 – Norwich, UK @ Norwich Arts Centre
August 14 – Paris, FR @ Fleche D’or
August 16 – London, UK @ Barden’s Boudoir
August 17 – Dublin, IE @ Crawdaddy
August 18 – Cork, IE @ Liquid Lounge
August 19 – Galway, IE @ Roisin Dubh
August 22 – Tampere, FI @ Klubi
August 23 – Helsinki, FI @ Redrum
August 24 – London, UK @ MacBeth
August 25 – Nottingham, UK @ Stealth
August 27 – Edinburgh, UK @ Cabaret Voltaire
August 28 – London, UK @ Corsica Studios
North America
August 31 – Baltimore, MD @ A Magic Cloud Place Zone
September 2 – Brooklyn, NY @ New York, New York Scavenger Hunt
September 6 – Seattle, WA @ The Vera Project
September 7 – Portland, OR @ Holocene
September 8 – Chicago, IL @ Hideout Block Party
September 12 – Toronto, ON @ Phoenix
September 13 – Montreal, QC @ La TuLipe
September 14 – Boston, MA @ Avalon Ballroom
September 15 – New York, NY @ Webster Hall
September 17 – Philadelphia, PA @ Starlite
September 18 – Baltimore, MD @ 2640 Space
September 19 – Washington, DC @ Black Cat
September 20 – Charlottesville, VA @ Satellite Ballroom
September 21 – Asheville, NC @ Orange Peel
September 22 – Atlanta, GA @ MJQ Concourse
September 23 – Hattiesburg, MS @ Thirsty Hippo
September 24 – Houston, TX @ Walters on Washington
September 25 – Austin, TX @ The Mohawk
September 27 – San Diego, CA @ Epicentre
September 28 – Los Angeles, CA @ Echoplex (TWO SHOWS)
September 29 – San Francisco, CA @ The Fillmore Auditorium
October 4 – Oberlin, OH @ Dionysus Disco
October 5 – Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue
October 6 – Iowa City, IA @ The Picador
October 11 – Saint Louis, MO @ The Billiken Club
October 12 – Grinnell, IA @ Gardner Lounge- Grinnel
October 19 – Bennington, VT @ Bennington College
October 20 – Alfred, NY @ Alfred University Knight Club
Photo credit: Uli Loskot