British electronic duo Darkstar release a video eulogy to venues closed by the pandemic.
By Bubba Krishnamurti
“This video represents all the places past and present that are instrumental in why we got to do this.”
Warp Records artists Darkstar have released a poignant memorial to venues lost as a result to the ensuing Covid-19 pandemic. The track ‘Blurred’, from recent album Civic Jams, serves as a place setting for the moving video tribute to shuttered venues.
The video showcases a stream of Google Earth captures of heralded music institutions across the United Kingdom. The UK duo laments the loss of public discourse and shared spaces.
“This video represents all the places past and present that are instrumental in why we got to do this”, they explain. “I think I’ve been going to nightclubs since I was 16, buying records from 15 and tape packs from 14 all housed and cultivated in places either in this video or not too far.”
“It’s a stark reminder at how hard it can be to keep these places going particularly now – so massive props to the people involved in working to keep that dream alive. It can’t be ignored to see just how many of these places fell. It’s hard not to correlate that to the political landscape and how the value of independent music is weighed up by these people even before a pandemic.”
Independent music venues in the UK, USA, and around the globe are at imminent risk of being closed permanently as a result of the pandemic limiting social gatherings. These independent venues are often the ‘incubators’ for the mainstream and are of critical cultural importance.
You can demonstrate your support to grassroots music venues in the UK by supporting the Save Our Venues and to support U.S. venues visit Save Our Stages.
‘Blurred’ is taken from Civic Jams, which is out now.
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