30th Century Man

I was hanging out with friends the other night and discussing Scott Walker and the sadly non-US released documentary "30th Century Man" that many of us have been eagerly awaiting. I should say, if it has been released or screened in the US, I'm unaware of it. The film was completed over a year ago now and has been screened in the UK and Germany. I'm not sure if there is a licensing issue, a lack of a market, or some other complication but I know many people who are urning to see this. If you don't know, Scott Walker was a 60's teen idol and member of The Walker Brothers whose most prominent hit "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore" topped the UK charts. Its reported that at this point in 1966, their popularity exceeded The Beatles in the UK and Europe. The Walker Brothers quickly disbanded and Scott went on to make a number of solo albums drawing material and influence from composer Jacques Brel, a French Kurt Weill type figure who wrote show tune type songs on similarly Brechtian themes. This lip synced video for Walker's version of the Brel song "Jackie" is one of my favorites. As his success as a solo musician began to grow, Walker suddenly bowed out of the public spotlight, opting for a more normal existence away from entertainment industry.

Since then, he has sporadically released albums of an increasingly experimental nature including the highly acclaimed 2006 release "The Drift." Low on standard song structure and high on compositional and sonic variance, "The Drift" employs all manner of creating sound: from microphones placed in giant pine boxes which are then struck with various objects to the punching of sides of beef. The first video below is the official UK trail for "30th Century Man" and the video after it contains scenes including interviews and in the studio footage from the recording of "The Drift." If anyone has any info on the availability of the film please let me know.