For the past five years, Oryan Peterson-Jones has turned his love of music and film into something more cerebral with (Recurring) Dreams (3737 SE Madison St.; 9 pm Friday, Sept. 5). It’s a musical exploration of Akira Kurosawa’s 1990 film Dreams, which comprises eight gorgeous vignettes inspired by the director’s nocturnal visions. As Dreams plays on a large screen in Peterson-Jones’ front yard, eight bands, one for each of the film’s segments, play original accompanying music.
Unlike with Filmusik—in which an orchestra, voice-over artists and a sound-effects crew take the stage in full view of the audience—(Recurring) Dreams hides its performers behind the screen. This allows viewers to be fully immersed in Kurosawa’s entrancing images: a mythical wedding procession through a forest, living dolls, ghostly spirits of World War II, a snowed-out mountain path and, oddly, Martin Scorsese as Vincent van Gogh.
The musicians—who
include Peterson-Jones’ own project Die Geister Beschwören, avant-garde
cacophonists Electro-Kraken, psychedelic folksters Harem, and
garage-rockers Beat Totem—are tasked with interpreting each sequence.
“They can do whatever they want,” Peterson-Jones says. “They can play
their own songs. They can write new things, or improvise or make sounds.
It’s completely up in the air.”
In the past, this has
meant ample surprises from performers like Aan, Hosannas and Like a
Villain. Last year, country group Ed and the Red Reds played an
electronica set, surprising those familiar with the band’s roots in
Americana.
Peterson-Jones
has a degree in ethnomusicology and a minor in film. His brainchild
represents the mating of these passions into something surreal,
beautiful and unexpected, allowing his favorite film to become new with
each iteration. “This film is just so perfect, with its imagery and
plot,” he says. “Each year, I’ve seen groups pull off something in a way
I never thought of. I’ve been so inspired...”
Andy Kryza- Willamette Week
"For the third consecutive year, a handful of excellent local musicians—with the psychedelic/hypnotic Datura Blues and the delicate/orchestral Ocean Floor leading the charge—will gather in this (likely quite crowded) Southeast Portland backyard to watch and soundtrack Akira Kurosawa's sprawling, lovely 1990 film Dreams. Best of all, viewers can still follow the plot, because the film will be subtitled..."
Willamette Week
"Akira Kurosawa’s hallucinogenic masterpiece gets a live score from eight experimental musicians—including Skyler Norwood’s new Pontianak project, K Records’ Ruby Fray and Bud Wilson of Aan—while playing on an outdoor screen..."
Willamette Week
"If RACC, which sponsored Floating Oceans to the tune of $5,100, believes Gideon to be the sole champion of his crafts, the org will be delighted to discover Good Night Billygoat’s extremely refined home-made stop-motion and accompanying soundtracks, Like A Villain’s adept live looping, and Ash Black Bufflo’s brilliantly intricate soundscapes in future seasons. Even Oryan Peterson-Jones’ (Datura Blues) home-hosted summer screenings of Kurasowa’s Dreams synced to live music have brought a similar rush. Our city is flush with multidisciplinary maestros..."
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