Issue 90 / July 2018

Asian Dub Foundation: La Haine live Soundtrack
Bam!Bam!Bam! @ Invisible Wind Factory – 25/05
Here are the young men with weights on their shoulders. How a film crams 20 terror-filled hours
into a more easily digestible 98 minutes; how a film depicts the urban terror of young lives blighted
by police brutality and the mistrust of immigrants. And so it goes…
Now rightly seen as a masterpiece of its genre, Matthieu Kassovitz’s film La Haine (Hatred) is a
complex, monochrome feast which details the lives of three friends (Saïd, an Arab, Hubert, an African
and Vinz, a Jewish skinhead) over the course of one day following a riot in the banlieue, a huge,
sprawling estate where they all live. The film is steeped in endemic racism from end to end.
Their friend Abdel has been beaten by the police and lies in a coma in hospital. The estate is in
tatters and the CRS (riot police) are patrolling the area for miscreants. During the course of the film
the three attempt to go about their day-to-day business as best as they can, thwarted at every twist
and turn by the forces of oppression.
What it shows best is the utter mundanity of life for young men with very few options in their
life. Their shallow lives consist of very little other than rolling joints and avoiding the police and their
harsh method of dealing with the local youth. From Paris to Port Said, in all the world’s conurbations,
for young men divested of a future and with no real footing in the present, the song remains the
same. This could be anywhere where young people congregate and call their home. I grew up on a
council estate that, while predominantly white, offered young men the exact same option: absolutely
fuck all. These young men have nothing but each other.
The day gets worse at every available opportunity and, although the narrative constantly talks
of better times and a misplaced idea of what the future will be, a dark, dystopian pall hangs over
everything. These young ‘uns have nothing, not even an immediate future and the desperation of it all –
twinned with a gallows humour that things will get better – underpins almost every moment of dialogue.
The tension and the danger are expressed via Pierre Aim’s supreme cinematography. Utilising
that most French of techniques, cinema vérité, the camera never stops moving. Whether it be
Hubert’s smouldering gym, torched in the riot, or the very real anger that occupies Vinz’ furious
face, it’s all captured in a dark, grainy, ever flowing monochrome. No colour, just dark and shade
illuminating the screen, it appears to accentuate everything and gives it a realness that Technicolor
may have overlooked. This is the element that has separated it from all other films of its genre in
the last two decades. Whereas a lot of its contemporaries were stylised and of the moment, La
Haine has kept that element of unease, an authenticity in both language and image that puts it on a
different plane.
One of its greatest successes on the film’s release in 1995 was its soundtrack, which along with
a smattering of American RnB and Bob Marley, contained a selection of French hip hop that, for most
people in the English speaking world, was a revelation. The bombastic nature of the beats and words
only added to the tension in the film. Tonight, at the Invisible Wind Factory, those fine purveyors of
ethno-psychedelia, ASIAN DUB FOUNDATION, are providing their own live soundtrack. The live
soundtrack has become a phenomenon in recent years: all manner of films from Star Wars to Tron
to DW Griffiths’ Birth Of A Nation have been given the treatment with varying degrees of success.
Some are played by a 90-piece orchestra, some by your local dead cool band, hoping to create a
new environment. Here, where the soundtrack is absolutely essential to the overall experience of
the film, the ante is raised considerably. ADF rise to the occasion. The opening sequence works
incredibly well, the new soundtrack adding to the tension and unease and complementing the action
in gritty detail. It gives certain parts of the film a whole new dimension and offers a new view of the
experience. I find myself, right from the off, becoming totally engrossed in the imagery above the
band. At times – and I’m not sure whether this is a good or a bad thing – the band seem to disappear
completely and hold back imposing their trip on the images. It’s a fantastic experience, marred only
by a few moments when the live track imposes its trip on the movie and creates a sound clash where
the dialogue becomes muddied.
On the whole, though, I like it a lot. If only for reminding me what a truly wondrous spectacle La
Haine really is; the thrill of watching the film for the first time comes flooding back to me immediately.
It’s one of those niche films that will still be getting talked about in another 20 years’ time, as it
contains a realism that few of its contemporaries have and that will always spark with youth of all
generations and denominations. Giving already established, popular films new soundtracks will grow
and grow, to varying degrees of success. But in the right hands, the right film can be re-introduced
to you by your friendly neighbourhood leftfield pop band and make an enormous splash. It’s only a
matter of time before the ‘game-changer’ in the genre comes along.
Bernard Connor / @bernieworld
ROUND UP
A selection of the best of the rest from another
busy month of live action on Merseyside.
Blossoms (Jamie Sherwood)
At Invisible Wind Factory, Jennifer Rose is on hand to see Stockport-based indie rock
behemoths BLOSSOMS storm on stage like veterans, despite only being five years and
two albums into their career. Frontman Tom Ogden cajoles the crowd throughout, from the
five-piece’s opening number There’s A Reason Why (I Never Returned Your Calls) – the
opening track from their second album, Cool Like You – right through to the night’s sweaty
denouement.
Blossoms’ newest songs, such as Unfaithful and Between The Eyes, stand up well
alongside their more well known material, and show why their latest synth pop-inflected
album should be on everyone’s summer playlist. The rendition of Love Talk is one of many
microphone-in-crowd moments, and there are points of intimacy scattered throughout the
high-octane moments, in particular when Ogden takes centre stage on his own for the
acoustic My Favourite Room.
There’s minimal chat from Ogden throughout, preferring to let the positive vibes flow on
a night that he later assures us is “one of the best”. This is even despite a few rowdy sorts
trying to spoil the atmosphere. It’s difficult to be disappointed at a Blossoms show, however,
as it’s always a showcase of infectious energy when they’re on form. And they’re on form
tonight.
Max Baker recalls some post-midnight revelations from another successful BALTIC
WEEKENDER, as revellers bask in the sun and clamour to see some of the biggest names in
house and techno. The Baltic Triangle has become a pocket of activity for the clubbing scene
in recent years, and the popularity shows in the length of the queues outside main venues
Constellations and 24 Kitchen Street.
As Saturday night turns into Sunday morning, the Constellations crowd ends up in the
loved-up embrace of KRYSTAL KLEAR. As someone with a soft spot for any hint of retro
synth action, this was always going to be the highlight of the weekend, even with all the
heavy hitters on show. Klear’s nod to late 80s house comes across well in the club’s interior,
keeping energy levels high – even for those who’ve been going since mid-afternoon. Everyone
from the Discogs trawlers to the end-of-exam merrymakers keep their engines going and
show a collective appreciation late into the night. A true godfather of house and one half of
Masters At Work, KENNY DOPE justifies his status at the top of the bill with a track selection
that remains true to his 90s New York roots, while delivering a crisp, contemporary feel.
This is only Baltic Weekender’s second year, but through a combination of great bookings
in great locations, the festival is already establishing itself as a flagship event in the North
West’s bustling dance scene.
Full reviews of all these shows can be found now at bidolito.co.uk.
La Haine
Baltic Weekender (Daniel de la Bastide / @dannydelabastide)
REVIEWS 41