VARIOUS ARTISTS - PICK A WINNER DVD/CD (LOAD 050)

OH GOD ANOTHER COMPILATION BY LOAD. THESE HAVE POOR FORM THUS FAR. OPEN HEARTS. OPEN MINDS.

SO BEN MCOSKER GAVE AN INTERVIEW TO PITCHFORK IN AROUND 2002 THAT I THINK IS FAIRLY ILLUMINATING TO THIS RELEASE

I’m really excited, I have all of these great ideas about putting great packages together. After ten years I still feel like Load is documenting a fresh new world. Dayglo, video/dvd, distorted, atonal.

THIS IS THE FIRST ARTICULATION OF THE AESTHETIC OF LOAD, REALLY. IT'S OBVIOUSLY INKEEPING WITH WHAT THEY'VE DONE SINCE THE EARLY DAYS. AND LOAD HAS ALWAYS BEEN ADJACENT TO PERFORMANCE, VISUAL ART, AND PRINT. BUT THIS IS THE FIRST PRODUCT THAT SUGGESTS A CINEMATIC/VIDEO ART FOOTPRINT FOR LOAD.

THE CD REPACKAGES THE SONGS WITHOUT THE VISUALS AND ALONE REPRESENTS THE BEST OF THE 3 COMPILATIONS SO FAR - NOT DIFFICULT YOU MIGHT SAY BUT IT IS SINCERELY SOLID.

BUT IT'S THE VISUALS THAT ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT THING. HERE IS THE INTRODUCTION:

THE SKILLS OF ANIMATORS/VISUAL ARTIST COLLECTIVE PAPERRAD FUEL THIS VEHICLE WITH AN OVERWHELMING ARRAY OF POSTMODERN TECHNICOLOUR SPECTACULAR. IT IS LIKE THE INTERNET OF 1999 IS BEING SICK ON YOUR FACE CONSTANTLY. HARD TO TAKE BUT ALSO NOVEL. I RECOMMEND IT BUT NOT QUITE ENOUGH TO SAY IT IS BRILLIANT.

BEN ALSO GAVE A BRIEF INSIGHT INTO A BUSINESS WORLD WHERE THINGS HAVE DEFINITELY CHANGED:

All Load releases sell well, relatively speaking. I can count on moving at least 2000 CDs and 1000 LPs of anything. Some are repressed-- the Men’s Recovery Project’s 2000 CD Boldies Over Basra, with its topical title, is in its second repress.

TO THINK THERE ARE 3000 COPIES OF NEON HUNK IN HOUSES ALL OVER THE WORLD IS INCREDIBLE. BAD. BUT INCREDIBLE.