EYƎ
Parergon: Japanese Art of the 1980s and 1990s
Presented by Blum & Poe and Black Editions
Blum & Poe, Los Angeles
Saturday, April 6, 2019
EYƎ presents a special performance using a laptop, contact mic, and light sensors. This is related to his DJ style where he compiles simulated recordings (i.e. rocks falling in gorges) and music from a variety of genres (dub, tribal, ambient, hip hop, reggae, etc.) into kinesthetic experience. His album artwork for the Boredoms and more recent drawings and collages are featured in the exhibition.
EYƎ is best known as the founder and leader of acid punk band and shape-shifting ensemble, the Boredoms. The band's music is usually referred to as noise rock or sometimes Japanoise, though their more recent records have been largely based around repetitive minimalism, ambient music, and tribal drumming. Recent "Boadrum" compositions feature dynamic arrangements which range between (but are never limited to) 77 or 88 drummers and percussionists. As well as his music, EYƎ is famous for his mixed-media style of art that utilizes airbrush, marker pen, and collage, amongst other materials. This work has adorned a number of records, including the majority of Boredoms releases and, perhaps more famously, Beck's Midnite Vultures. Similar to the Boredoms' musical direction, EYƎ started incorporating a much more psychedelic, calmer approach into his work, evident on the covers of many of the later Boredoms albums. Drawing as much from Japanese mythology as it does from his musical influence, such as early punk imagery, his work aims to complement the music as well as to provide another dimension to the sound.