TOO HOT FOR A.Z.??

Above is the brand new video for the track "Kill A Man With A Joystick In Your Hand" by D'eon. Make sure the volume is on if you don't hear anything -- Vimeo's been buggy lately but the volume control is in the lower right-hand corner of the video box... Altered Zones was supposed to run this video last week but had a last-minute change of heart because she/he/they decided it either:

1) lacked entertainment value

2) trivialized violence

3) was too political yet too ambiguous

4) exploited middle-eastern women who had filmed themselves dancing

5) was "tasteless bad art" relying on "shock value"

6) all of the above

anyways we'll just sidestep those Censored Zones -- here it is for you to decide for yourselves.

But here's some background info about the video just in case your thoughts are more informed by actual thought than the jerk of one's knee:

The subject of this song is REMOTE WARFARE. It also explores the connection between violent videogames and modern forms of warfare. As D'eon said to me after viewing a draft of this video:

"i think you struck a good balance between social commentary and also not being too politically aligned. i also like the shot of the map of india being relabeled pakistan.. hahaha.. but yeah i think you captured what i was trying to get at with the song-- like comparison between war and videogames, and the fact that the generation that grew up on violent videogames are now soldiers etc etc."

It's important to note that neither this song or video have a direct political slant. They both serve more as observations of the current situation and we are neither trying to criticize or glorify the actions of either side. This is a meditation on modern reality, and no effort is being made to distinguish "wrong" from "right". Let's just think instead about "what is". Modern technology-based violence is contrasted with more direct forms of violence and both are contrasted with the biggest wars being fought globally right now every minute of every day - video games. To quote Chocolate Bobka's post from today:

"Single person shooters reign supreme, with millions, perhaps even billions, of youths stuck in front of a flat screen monitor virtually killing friends and foes without thought-- blowing up sanctuaries and humvee's and screaming "fuck yeah!" into an XBox 360 headset, while Mathieu in Finland gets pissed, and in return, blows your fucking head off. The Halo/Call of Duty consciousness has all but embedded itself in our collective realm. It's not just the figment of right-wing Mom's in Kansas worried about their son playing Call of Duty for 19 straight hours without taking a piss break. And, as WikiLeaks pointed out, the brutal violence of video games isn't just from video games. It's a reality, one oft sugarcoated by local news rooms, who shock audiences with lurid tales of violence, before awing them into submission with stories of first graders singing Christmas Carols at old folks homes."