Head Like a Kite
Angela Kim
NOVEMBER 22, 2008
- Dave Einmo
- (Joe Sales)
- Enlarge This Image
- Head Like A Kite: "No Ordinary Caveman"
- (Mush Records)
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This weekend, Dave Einmo's band Head Like a Kite is playing at Neumos in Seattle. For the last few years, Dave has been rummaging his parent's home videos and sampling the sounds for his music. The movies play as the band performs. Producer Angela Kim spoke to Einmo about how his collection of home movies have inspired him and his shows.
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Dave Einmo: The sound of the projector - I grew up to that sound. Every Christmas, every birthday, whenever we'd go on vacation we'd come back and watch our home movies. And so, to me that warm sound of the film going through the projector and the wheels turning was soothing and brings back a lot of memories for me.
There's a lot of people that prefer not to share their home movies with other people. They wouldn't want other people to see them. But for me, I made the decision to make them more public for a lot of reasons. For one, the inspiration they have given me in creating these songs. But in addition to that, when people see the visuals live, they react to them, and that's been really exciting for me. There's been a lot of clips in these films of the Statue of Liberty, the Brooklyn Bridge, the Golden Gate Bridge, Disney World - really iconic figures that people recognize and that they respond to.
I think the one that makes me smile the most for me when I hear it is my mom trying to turn off the camera. My mom has had a lot of challenges with technology and she continues to have those challenges. What you're seeing on the screen is my dad sitting on the couch and then suddenly the camera switching to the floor, switching to the ceiling, and switching to the walls, and switching to the dog. It's hilarious just watching this thing shake and finally it goes to black.
My dad was perfect with film. He didn't shake it at all, considering my mom's problems with techonology. No his shot was always straight on and he was always into the panoramic view where he would start on one thing and slowly move to the left. So sometimes my dad would zoom in on me and it's pretty funny to watch that because I would always make these silly awkward faces where I would obviously not want my dad to do that and I would always run or hide. He did this great thing of capturing all these films. Part of it might have been inspired by the fact that he grew up during World War II, and seeing all of the World War II footage coming back when he would go to the movies. Even the way he talks and the way he narrates seems inspired by that era.
The first time my parents saw us was when we were on tour. My dad and my mom knew that we were using films live - we were using their films. For me, it's really a warm feeling to have my family be part of Head Like a Kite live.
We played it one song in San Francisco and there was a couple from Norway that came to see it. And as we were playing the song they were watching it and got excited seeing images from a park from the same city they were from.
My dad filmed the different sculptures in this park in Oslo. And it's classic 70s clothing: big bell bottoms, these outrageous jackets, huge hair, amazing amounts of mustaches. It was impressive to see. I mean it was like Starsky and Hutch in Oslo. It was really cool.
A lot of times, I'm so lost in the music that I forget what's going on behind me visually and I'll see people suddenly start to laugh and I'll think, "What are they laughing at?" And then I realize clearly they're laughing because my sister has fallen off of a float in Disneyland or something. There's a certain group of people that just stare at the screen. They are almost hypmotized by it. And then there's another group of people that are just dancing and going nuts. Just really partying. And to be honest, I really struggle with that because the music live that I like to play is more like the dance party vibe. But I really want to incorporate the films so I really need to figure out a way to keep the films. But at the same time make it so people can cut loose and they don't have to feel hypnotized by it.
It's funny because some of these scenes have become a history of my life and I take it for granted that I've got that documented. And I can watch it so that if I don't remember it the way it happened, I can go back and remind myself what really did happen.
Comments
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From UEyrJHaM, VT, 03/07/2010
HthDqY Excellent article, I will take note. Many thanks for the story!
From UEyrJHaM, VT, 03/07/2010
HthDqY Excellent article, I will take note. Many thanks for the story!
From UEyrJHaM, VT, 03/07/2010
HthDqY Excellent article, I will take note. Many thanks for the story!
03/04/2009
This style of music is very unique compared to the more known music heard on the radio. The instrumental parts in the song, especially in the end, sound very futuristic and very relaxed. Head Like a Kite does an excellent job at creating a song that is different from any type of music played today.
03/04/2009
Head Like A Kite's performances sound interesting because he uses family pictures that are projected behind him while performing. I think this is unique because he says he "grew up to the sound the film makes when running through the projector". It's cool that he can do this and bring back his past memories while he's making new ones as a perofrmer!
11/26/2008
Head Like a Kite is a great band. I've seen them multiple times in Seattle, and twice in LA. Trent Moorman is one of the best drummers and most fun to watch that I've seen. This band integrates many things into a performance that is both musical and ocular.
11/26/2008
Head Like a Kite is a great band. I've seen them multiple times in Seattle, and twice in LA. Trent Moorman is one of the best drummers and most fun to watch that I've seen. This band integrates many things into a performance that is both musical and ocular.
11/26/2008
Head Like a Kite is a great band. I've seen them multiple times in Seattle, and twice in LA. Trent Moorman is one of the best drummers and most fun to watch that I've seen. This band integrates many things into a performance that is both musical and ocular.
From WI, 11/22/2008
I am a huge Head Like A Kite fan. The visual element to their shows enhances the already rich musical experience. The 8mm images projected behind the band are both artistic and relevant. The period of 8 mm film was my youth. Those images may be personal to the artist/band, but are iconic for the rest of us. I believe that the listener from Tacoma may have missed the artistic point.
From Seattle, WA, 11/22/2008
SC, I encourage you to lighten up...enjoy life a little. Give it a try, really...it would do you some good.
From Tacoma, WA, 11/22/2008
This piece staggered me. Could anyone be more self-involved than this fellow? There are very few people I have ever met who have any desire to watch another family's vacation or home movies. Why Mr. Einmo would think that people would enjoy paying for privilege to watch his simply baffles me. The blog and facebook look-at-me world has hit a new low. This is both hilarious and sad.
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