| Sputnikmusic
 

(EDIT: Playback must be seen on YouTube due to copyright reasons. It’s worth it!)

It was only a matter of time. The Decemberists’ third single from their new album The King Is Dead features a fantastic video with a finely detailed reenactment of a scene from David Foster Wallace’s mammoth tome Infinite Jest. For those familiar with the book, the legendary tennis academy scene featuring a full game of Eschaton, a sort of thermonuclear war simulation played with tennis lobs, is set to “Calamity Song” (quite the appropriate lyrical choice). Given Colin Meloy’s hyper-literary tendencies, the connection isn’t too surprising, and true fans of the book will have a good time spotting out all the slight references stuffed into each scene. It’s also a damn good looking piece of work.

Now if only the band’s next video somehow recreated “The Entertainment” from the same book, that would be a real treat…





klap
08.24.11
if anyone wants to rip that video for me so i can post it directly i'm all ears

robertsona
08.24.11
i heard about this but for a second i thought from your title that there was like a feud over it haha

also i remember calamity song lyrically makes a direct reference to infinite jest

Sanders
08.24.11
Doesn't play in the UK :(

klap
08.24.11
for those in the UK, try this link: http://www.folkradio.co.uk/2011/08/the-decemberists-calamity-song-video-premiere/

Spare
08.24.11
high quality book, somewhat questionable quality album

astrel
08.24.11
I was just looking into reading Infinite Jest a few days ago. Instead I chose The House of Mirth, and that book rules.

Still a good video, even though I don't get any of the references.

Waior
08.25.11
love the video

obviously i guess


HallucinogeNick
08.25.11
The Office's David Wallace?


joshuatree
08.25.11
favorite author ever
the video is cool i guess especially if you're a fan of the book, it was fun to pick out the details

klap
08.25.11
cam sighting

Spare
08.25.11
jesus christ

br3ad_man
08.26.11
[quote]favorite author ever
the video is cool i guess especially if you're a fan of the book, it was fun to pick out the details[/quote]

Yeah, this. Band is still super-boring though.

Waior
08.26.11
wrong fuck you

joshuatree
08.26.11
yeah i keep wanting to watch this again and again but then i hear the decemberists

ryanmcf10
08.28.11
great video, one of my favorite parts of the book

You need to be logged in to post a comment
Login | Register

STAFF & CONTRIBUTORS // CONTACT US

Bands: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z


Site Copyright 2005-2023 Sputnikmusic.com
All Album Reviews Displayed With Permission of Authors | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy