Topic: Was watching the Look Around You DVD and saw the pilot Calcium was made in 2000!

[ajsmith2]

Look, I know it's a banal ' thing made in year it was made in' observation, and it's an inevitable fact that time continues lineally but still, the fact it's now as old (20 years and counting) as the era it was evoking kinda blew ma wee mind.

[Brundle-Fly]

Write that down.

[Retinend]

Look Around you was more than ten years before the "Scarfolk" stuff came around and provoked discussions of what made the 70s/early 80s such a creepy time to grow up in.

[Phil_A]

It is pretty incredible that LAY predates the entire Hauntology fad of more recent times and it yet it embodies it perfectly.

As much as I like the second series the half-hour format never worked as well, did it? It's frustrating on the DVD commentary when they talk about how they could've kept on doing 10 minute episodes forever if they'd been allowed to.

[the]

I find all the later 'ooh wan'it creepy?' stuff very one-dimensional, self-indulgent and nowhere near as funny or clever as it acts. Look Around You was properly funny and is far better than any of its derivatives. Had the arse torn out of it now.

[ajsmith2]

Look Around you was more than ten years before the "Scarfolk" stuff came around and provoked discussions of what made the 70s/early 80s such a creepy time to grow up in.

It's mad how ahead of the curve they were when you see the pilot was that early. (I know the main first series was 2002, but aside from the theme tune it's all there fully formed in the pilot). I guess some late 90s music like Broadcast and Boards Of Canada preceded them in exploring similar areas albeit less specifically, but they've gotta be the first (and lets face it by far the best) to do that theme in comedy. Later things like Scarfolk (and indeed LAY series 2) for me too often succumbed to the temptation  to overegg the mood by chucking too much edgy/broader 'woops this guys a paedo, this guy shat himself that's pretty JARRING eh?' stuff into the mix. The fact that LAY series 1 is so restrained and pretty much family friendly is one of it's strengths.

[ajsmith2]

It is pretty incredible that LAY predates the entire Hauntology fad of more recent times and it yet it embodies it perfectly.

As much as I like the second series the half-hour format never worked as well, did it? It's frustrating on the DVD commentary when they talk about how they could've kept on doing 10 minute episodes forever if they'd been allowed to.

Dammit, really? That would've been amazing if they'd made tons more, I think with the format and brevity they could have done a lot more without it getting old, maybe a full years worth, 52 shows. Then they could have repeated them as daytime TV fillers to the low level bemusement and unsettling of unsuspecting channel hoppers. I always assumed the second series format was an artistically motivated attempt by the creators to take the concept somewhere new, not something that was imposed on them. (presumably to make the show more accessible?) Damn.

[the]

     


^{Well that was 15 minutes well spent}

[Cuellar]

Yeah can't wait for my generation's hauntological 90s nostalgia wanking

[ajsmith2]

Yeah can't wait for my generation's hauntological 90s nostalgia wanking

Isn't that kind of what Vaporwave is? Definitely same ballpark anyway.

[Retinend]

Isn't that kind of what Vaporwave is? Definitely same ballpark anyway.

Good point. There's even a genre of it specifically based on the Simpsons, as I'm sure you know.

[Petey Pate]

The first series of Look Around You is a near-perfect example of parody. I can't think of many other comedies which nail the tone and style of the source material yet are still consistently funny. The only other example which comes to mind is Mel Brooks' Young Frankenstein.

The second series has its moments but is definitely a big drop off in quality.

[markburgle]

Yeah, few things have made me laugh like Look Around You, the observation was so spot-on and specific. It was almost that kind of profound laughter you can get on psychedelics, where you feel as if you've been shown the inherent absurdity of something foundational that you always took for granted. The tone of the narration, the odd music, the washed-out colours, it was all spot-on.

[idunnosomename]

The second series has its moments

[Phil_A]

Dammit, really? That would've been amazing if they'd made tons more, I think with the format and brevity they could have done a lot more without it getting old, maybe a full years worth, 52 shows. Then they could have repeated them as daytime TV fillers to the low level bemusement and unsettling of unsuspecting channel hoppers. I always assumed the second series format was an artistically motivated attempt by the creators to take the concept somewhere new, not something that was imposed on them. (presumably to make the show more accessible?) Damn.

Yeah, the half four format was definitely was imposed on them by the channel - Jane Root yet again. I believe her actual quote was - "I don't commission ten minute shows,"

The other episodes ideas they mentioned sounded great as well, one was going to be "Gold", another was "Man". "What...is a man? A man...is a MAN."

[Jumblegraws]

The bit where the guy connects up a phone to the brain and then writes out a receipt (or whatever it is) and stares at the camera whilst the scientist countersigns it has a sort of ASMR quality to it for me. That’s all I have to add.

[JamesTC]

I hate that bonus feature.

[The Mollusk]

I guess some late 90s music like Broadcast and Boards Of Canada preceded them in exploring similar areas albeit less specifically

Serafinowicz has always cited BoC as a huge influence, which of course comes through in the music he made for Look Around You under the Gelg pseudonym. I mentioned  this on here quite recently, but it's always worth repeating: the mix he made for Solid Steel to celebrate the release of BoC's long-awaited "Tomorrow's Harvest" (itself almost 10 years old now!) is really amazing. I got into loads of great artists through that mix, the track "The Dream" by John Tejeda is particularly stunning.

Linky

[Led Souptin]

Serafinowicz has always cited BoC as a huge influence, which of course comes through in the music he made for Look Around You under the Gelg pseudonym. I mentioned  this on here quite recently, but it's always worth repeating: the mix he made for Solid Steel to celebrate the release of BoC's long-awaited "Tomorrow's Harvest" (itself almost 10 years old now!) is really amazing. I got into loads of great artists through that mix, the track "The Dream" by John Tejeda is particularly stunning.

Linky

WOW thanks for this. BOC x Serafinowicz is so far up my street

[Bazooka]

The first series and The Room(Tommy.W) were two pieces I would trick people with in the 2000's. You can ''get people'' with the Calcium episode up until the ghost bit. Some friends would double take in their brain, but were more or less completely taken in by it all, sound design in particular should have won them a Grammy.

[amateur]

The other episodes ideas they mentioned sounded great as well, one was going to be "Gold", another was "Man". "What...is a man? A man...is a MAN."

The wonderful Birds Of Britain DVD extra is another perfectly pitched example. Nails the tone completely.

dirty bird

[idunnosomename]

wish we had the episode on Reggae

[Jumblegraws]

The first series and The Room(Tommy.W) were two pieces I would trick people with in the 2000's. You can ''get people'' with the Calcium episode up until the ghost bit. Some friends would double take in their brain, but were more or less completely taken in by it all, sound design in particular should have won them a Grammy.

I managed to string my sisters along with the maths episode, right up to the claim that “maths” is an acronym. When I asked how the “highest number” bit didn’t give the game away (they did react with an incredulous “WHAT?!?” tbf) they said they rationalised it as being some esoteric, obsolete practical understanding of a “highest number”.

[Huxleys Babkins]

The wonderful Birds Of Britain DVD extra is another perfectly pitched example. Nails the tone completely.

dirty bird

I often use the deadpan "And there's a pair of tits" when out walking to much amusement. Mostly my own, but that's the important thing isn't it? Fuck everyone else.

In a similar vein;

Markets of Britain
Building a Human
INTERMISSION
Commercial for KFC

[neveragain]

The first series and The Room(Tommy.W) were two pieces I would trick people with in the 2000's. You can ''get people'' with the Calcium episode up until the ghost bit. Some friends would double take in their brain, but were more or less completely taken in by it all, sound design in particular should have won them a Grammy.

How would you trick people with The Room?

[Ballad of Ballard Berkley]

How would you trick people with The Room?

Tell them beforehand that it's a really good film starring Dustin Hoffman?

[Cuellar]

Isn't that kind of what Vaporwave is? Definitely same ballpark anyway.

Yeah valid.

[Ballad of Ballard Berkley]

sound design in particular should have won them a Grammy.

Serafinowicz's BBC2* announcer is yet another great example of their attention to sound design. He's slightly too close to the microphone, so you can hear his breathing and the slight smacking of his lips. Continuity announcements always sounded just like that: a friendly yet authoritative man reading from a script in a cupboard.

* As it was styled in those days.

[petrilTanaka]

[tag]Alcium... Calcium[/tag]

[Pink Gregory]

Similarly, when I first watched series 2, I thought "She's doing a pitch-perfect parody of Josie D'Arby."