Limited Control

A Companion to the Jim Jarmusch Resource Page

Concerning Concerning the Entrance into Eternity

Jj

A lot of lutenists only play an existing repertoire. It’s pretty rare for them to make their own new music. If they do, it’s often kind of cute and harkening back to some other form appreciated by that sort of old timey… That’s not what Jozef does. He knows the history of the instrument and loves it, but he’s taking it somewhere away from that conservative traditionalism. So that’s sort of a rebel approach, as I see it.

- Don't miss the great interview with Jim Jarmusch and Jozef van Wissem by Cian Traynor over at The Stool Pigeon.

The many lovers left alive

So, any speculations about the newly revealed title of Jim Jarmusch’s upcoming vampire film – Only Lovers Left Alive?

 

As some googling will tell you, it’s not the first time this phrase has been used as a title:

 

–  In 1964, a British novel by Dave Wallis called Only Lovers Left Alive was published. It’s not at all about vampires, but rather a sort of apocalyptic teenage Lord of the Flies:

 

”What happens when the teenagers take over the world? The adults have all committed suicide with Easiway pills, and the cool youngsters have taken over! Free smash, loot, and love as they like, the gangs roar through the streets on their motorcycles in search of disappearing stocks of lipstick, gasoline, and food. Free adult control, the teenagers commit every sin but hypocrisy. Only Lovers Left Alive—’Arresting and terrifying...Will keep you pondering long after you put it down.’"

 

Apparently, Mick Jagger of the Rolling Stones bought the film rights to this novel, but it was never made into a movie. Interestingly, Jim Jarmusch’s teacher and friend, the legendary filmmaker Nick Ray also had plans to make a movie out of the book (see Nicholas Ray: The Glorious Failure of an American Director, page 443).

 

– In 1981, British punk band The Wanderers released a record called Only Lovers Left Alive.

 

– Since then, it has been the title of several songs, by artists such as Jeff Dahl, The (International) Noise Conspiracy, The Soft Set,The Long Blondes, Joe Grushecky, Phast Phreddie & Thee Precisions and States of Matter.

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Anything else? Any thoughts on whether there might be a connection to any of the above?

 

Only Lovers Left Alive

Jim Jarmusch's upcoming "crypto-vampire love story" now has a name: Only Lovers Left Alive. This according to the following piece by The Hollywood Reporter: 


Tilda Swinton, John Hurt Join Jim Jarmusch's Vampire Film 'Only Lovers Left Alive'

6:08 AM PST 1/30/2012 by Scott Roxborough

Tom Hiddleston and Mia Wasikowska also star in the vampire love story, set to shoot in Germany later this year.

COLOGNE, Germany - Tilda Swindon will rejoin her The Limits of Control helmer Jim Jarmusch for the director's new film, a take on the vampire romance genre titled Only Loves Left Alive.

Fellow Oscar-winner John Hurt, most lately of Tinker Tailor Solider Spy, Mia Wasikowska of Albert Nobbs and War Horse actor Tom Hiddleston also star in the horror drama, described as an unusual love story between two vampires who have been in love for centuries.

Jarmusch is producing Only Lovers Left Alive together with Cologne-based Pandora films. The feature has picked up $1.45 million (€1 million) in production financing from state film subsidy body Filmstifftung NRW and will shoot in the NRW region of western Germany later this year.

Fucked Up to release "Year of the Tiger" single featuring Jim Jarmusch

Happy Chinese New Year from your friends in Fucked Up. As part of their ongoing series of releases based on the Chinese Zodiac, the band will release the long-awaited "Year of the Tiger" 12" single on February 7.

"Sorry it took so long - we actually finished recording most of this thing before we even started writing DCTL. We thought that Chinese custom meant that Tiger was two years, like having to repeat grade 6...we were wrong," the band writes over on their blog.

The release contains a 15-minute track that Fucked Up say is "honestly one of the best things we've ever done." The song features renowned indie filmmaker Jim Jarmusch, Austra and Annie-Claude Deschênes of Duchess Says. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of the vinyl will go to the Save the Tiger fund.

Below, watch Fucked Up's episode of the Pitchfork.tv animated series "Frames":

via pitchfork.com

Jozef van Wissem collaboration continued

This summer's collaboration between Jim Jarmusch and Dutch composer and lutenist Jozef van Wissem, resulting in the "The Joy that Never Ends" CD/LP, apparently wasn't a one-off. The two were invited to the radio show New Sounds at WNYC (10/11/2011), where they revealed that they will have a new record out in January or February of 2012, "Concerning the Entrance into Eternity", on Important Records. In the program, which is available for streaming, they talk about their work together and perform three tracks live in the studio. Jim Jarmusch also reveals that van Wissem will do part of the score for his next film. The program also featured a new song by Sqürl, "Some Feedback for Jozef van Wissem", allegedly available as part a 3 EP set.

The photographs below, all taken by Sara Driver, are from jozefvanwissem.com, the record sleeve was posted on van Wissem's Facebook page.


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Josef Van Wissem teams up with Jim Jarmusch, record out today

 

Josef Van Wissem teams up with Jim Jarmusch for craziest filmaker/musician collaboration of the year

by Liz Louche on 06-20-2011

When it comes to filmmaker/musician collaborations, the new LP featuring Dutch minimalist composer/lute player Josef Van Wissem and Stranger than Paradise/Broken Flowers/Coffee & Cigarettes director Jim Jarmusch makes the David Lynch/Danger Mouse/Sparklehorse collabo album Dark Night of the Soul look positively mainstream. For, you see, Van Wissem is no run-of-the-mill, bawdy summer Renaissance Festival, LARPing lute player. No — he is an artist, in the most all-encompassing, artiest sense of the world.

Van Wissem makes Renaissance and Baroque lute jams not just contemporary, but straight-up experimental. His music combines field recordings, electronics, and No Wave influences. He has collaborated with avant-garde luminaries such as James Blackshaw and Keiji Haino, and was even commissioned by London's National Gallery to write a composition based on the Hans Holbein painting "The Ambassadors." Fun fact: he also wrote lute and vocal melodies for the new medieval version of the Sims computer games.

And now, with the release of The Joy that Never Ends, Van Wissem's collabo with Jarmusch (who plays the guitar and amps up the feedback) and vocalist Jeanne Madic, you too can live every day accompanied by the music of Mr. Van Wissem and his lute. JUST LIKE THE MEDIEVAL SIMS!!!! (Except that you're actually sentient and breathing, but you get it.) The new album will be available as a CD or LP on Important Records come June 28. The LP is part of a limited run of 500, and the CD includes a bonus track. Check out "His Is the Ecstasy" here.

The Joy that Never Ends tracklisting:

01. The Joy that Never Ends
02. His is the Ecstasy
03. Concerning the Beautiful Human Form After Death
04. Concerning the Precise Nature of Truth
05. The Hearts of the Daughters Are Returned to their Mothers
06. The Great Joy (CD-only bonus track)

• Jozef Van Wissem: http://www.jozefvanwissem.com
• Important: http://www.importantrecords.com

via tinymixtapes.com