BLASST 132: C. Diaz

TRACKLIST

1. Björk - "Big Time Sensuality"

2. Ataque de Caspa - "Viaje a Egipto"

3. PJ Harvey - "Is This Desire?"

4. Cocteau Twins - "Cherry-Coloured Funk"

5. CCFX - "The One To Wait"

SHOW NOTES

We made it! Welcome back to another weekly entry of Blistering Listens and Strange Sounds, thank you so much for listening as always.

Today's guest is the artist, filmmaker, archivist, and dog lover, C. Diaz. C. is an RGV native, but has spent quite some time out in the world pursuing the threads of their creative energy. This journey has led them through the ever-twisting and turning paths of cinema, from live video mixing for bands in Austin to discovering their love of direct animation at Mono No Aware in NYC, and finally to awakening their talents as a colorist at a post-production house in LA -- all the while making films of their own using various media. 

As we discuss in the episode, this journey has ultimately been one of self-discovery for C. Throughout the 2.5 hours of this show we look back at their path through the world of cinema, and talk about how each leg of the journey, each kind and helpful soul along the way, has helped shape them into the artist they are today.

Speaking of the present day, C. has been a great collaborator of mine for nearly two years now. In early 2021, we started working on an idea that would eventually become ENTRE Film Center & Regional Archive, the biggest project either of us has undertaken in a long time. We go in-depth about it in this video:

In the middle of 2021, while ENTRE was still taking shape as a concept, we both worked with fellow artists and friends Natalia Rocafuerte and Josue Ramirez to organize, curate, and host MIRAAA Media Fest, a festival encouraging RGV artists to explore non-traditional storytelling and media through collaboration and experimentation, in late August of that year. You can still watch the stream here (it eventually went virtual due to a surge in COVID cases via the Delta variant).

Beyond being an excellent collaborator, C. has also become a great friend, and I'm really glad I was able to bring them on the show. Below are a few links C. sent over including their website, substack, and other projects and inspirations! Episode is below them.

Věra Chytilová

Mono No Aware

AMIA

Ana Mendieta

Belladonna of Sadness

PST LA/LA

Echo Park Film Center

MIRAAA

This week in experimental

Collapsed Timelines in Felicitous Space

Crossing Over (C's Substack)

Academia.edu

Are.na

C. on IG

Website

BLASST 131: HiMarcus

TRACKLIST

1. Dijon - "Rodeo Clown"
2. Ravyn Lenae - "Skin Tight (feat. Steve Lacy)"
3. Blood Orange - "Dark & Handsome"
4. Vegyn - "So Much Time - So Little Time (ft. John Glacier)”
5. Radiohead - "Weird Fishes/Arpeggi"
6. Kero Kero Bonito - "Time Today"

NOTES 

Something I've observed over the last decade or so is that the roles of "artist" and "marketer" have essentially merged. As a direct result of the advent of social media, most folks trying to lead a successful career as an artist also have to find a way to promote their art. We can go into the details of this phenomenon another time, but perhaps one benevolent byproduct is that this is the perfect environment for auteurs. Artists who wish to carefully craft every aspect of their work have never had it easier, honestly. 

Enter HiMarcus, the nom de plume of Marcus Narro, one such auteur. His can of earworms debut LP, Dirtbag, was released last September to an RGV that frankly did not see it coming. With its polished production, memorable songwriting, and strong stylistic vision, the album - and Marcus himself - wasted no time in making a lasting impression on the music scene. 

On today's episode, we talk about how he got into music, where he pulls inspiration, his album's rollout and everything that went into it, and of course, some of his favorite music as well. Tune in below.