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June 22, 2004
Jonestown
Is the The Polyphonic Spree a cult? I have been to their website, checked out their videos, and that question just keeps lingering in my head. I just wonder.
Posted by ahuckle at June 22, 2004 07:42 PM
Comments
my girlfriend got their 2 albums a year or two ago. they were rubber-banded together at a special price. an lp and an ep, i think. we were just talking about how we really liked them and now don't really have any urge to listen to them anymore. they're very flaming lips-y. it's a nice sound. kind of like modest mouse, too.
Posted by: Nate at June 29, 2004 01:43 PM
Yes, but I saw there video, and there is something very strange about them. It disturbs me, it is like a blatant Jesus reference or something.
Posted by: Adam at June 29, 2004 04:32 PM
Here's a bit of an interview to explain it:
AL: Some of the British newspapers compared your band to a Christian cult, or David Koresh and his followers. You don't all live in a commune together?
James: No. The thing is we are nothing like David Koresh and we don't have a commune. In fact, when we are home in Dallas, we are all spread out over town. We lead separate and various lives when we come back that have nothing to do with the band. It's fun though to read a journalist's imagination run wild. I can see that point of view. You have twenty people in robes who play uplifting music. They seem to happy and euphoric. What is going on?
AL: When did you decide to wear white robes?
James: Back in the early days there was video footage that was shown throughout the show. No one did any maniacal dancing back then. People just played instruments. The robes being white just acted as the background video screen. It was a human video screen. It was a stimulating visual and aural attack. That is how it came about.
http://www.freewilliamsburg.com/may_2003/polyphonic.html
They sell those robes for $30 a pop to fans who want to wear them at the shows. It's funny, while the robes are obviously cult-ish and their music is obviously church-like at times, the image is equally appropriate and tongue-in-cheek for their sound.
Mostly, I just wonder how they get paid. 24 members + huge promotion from major label record company = it adds up.
Posted by: Nate at June 30, 2004 09:11 AM
Very interesting! Thanks for the info!
Posted by: Adam at July 1, 2004 05:57 PM
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