Marking
its 25th anniversary today is the unforgettable EP from Aphex Twin,
Windowlicker, which was released on March 22nd, 1999. Thanks to a
mind-bending and hilarious video from Chris Cunningham, the song would
become one of Richard D. James' most popular releases, garnering
accolades for the video production and hitting high on the music charts,
even with its daring, unconventional musical arrangements.
The
origin of the title track's name connects to the idea of "window
shopping" for sexual partners. It derives from a French phrase, "faire
du lèche-vitrine", which literally translates to "licking the windows".
The act is portrayed in the video by two dudes attempting to pick up a
couple of ladies on the streets of LA, until they are unceremoniously
swiped aside by Richard D. James cruising into frame in his ludicrously
long white limousine. The music itself reinforces the sexual nature of
the piece through the use of numerous vocal samples, with sounds of
moaning, groaning and other sexually tinged vocalizations intertwined
with the song's erratic, glitching grooves. And those grooves present
the perfect balance of accessibility against James' penchant for
jarring, cutup break-beats, with the arrangements being constructed
using computer editing tools, creating an unsettling juxtaposition of
poly-rhythms, all strung together with melodic phrasing that tempers the
jagged edges enough to engage the listener in the overall experience.
It's a fine tightrope act of edginess without becoming irritating.
The
cover photo and video work by Chris Cunningham all add to the perverse
humour of the song by visualizing the warped fusion of sexuality and
horror. The buxom babes, bouncing about the LA sunshine in showers of
champagne while sporting masks of James' demonically grinning face, are
accented with a centrepiece of monstrous erotica, and all work to leave
the viewer reeling in a confusion of mixed signals. Contrary to
assumptions, the models with James' face were achieved through practical
makeup effects, masks and prosthetics, and not CGI trickery.
The
video was released as a VHS single as well as on a DVD compilation of
Cunningham's video works. I remember watching this repeatedly with
friends after it came out, completely floored by what had been achieved
on the screen. It still stands in my mind as one of the greatest music
video achievements I've ever seen, along with the previous video for
Aphex Twin's Come To Daddy. This sort of material simply outclassed
everybody else at the time. Personally, I consider these works the high
watermark of the medium. Afterwards, I don't think videos really
mattered very much anymore, and even the music video networks like MTV
and Much Music in Canada seemed to abandon their reason for being and
moved on to the world of reality TV after this. It's as if these videos
kinda killed it for everyone else. Like people just said, "Welp, can't
outdo that. Guess we're done here." All I know is that I stopped
caring about the art form after this. I'd seen enough. I don't think I
was blown away by a music video again until I saw Sean Lennon's Ghost
of a Sabre Tooth Tiger (GOASTT) and their Animals video (2014).
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