Jan 26, 2013

Smash TV - "Memorex" (A 50 Minute Odyssey Through The 80's)



Back in 2011, Smash TV's 'Skinemax' blew us away as a lovingly crafted, hour long ode to everything that made cinema in the 80's so memorable. Fast forward to 2013 and we're presented with the second installment of Smash TV's VJ odysseys, dubbed 'Memorex.'

Billed as 'the advertising industry's collective wet dream,' this 50 minute odyssey was sourced from close to 40 hours of 80's commercials extracted from a countless number of worn VHS tapes. Sit back, full screen and enjoy some nostalgia induced catharsis. Smash TV couldn't have put it more eloquently:


'Memorex is a deep exploration of nostalgia and the fading cultural values of an era of excess. It's a re-contextualization of ads - cultural detritus, the lowest of the low - into something altogether more profound, humorous, and at times, even beautiful. Digging up long forgotten memories for a generation who spent their formative years glued to the boob tube, Memorex is a veritable nostalgia nuke for children of the 80s. Endless beach parties, Saturday morning cartoons, claymation everything, sleek cars, sexy babes, toys you forgot existed, station idents, primitive computer animation, all your favorite sugary cereal mascots, and so much more. An ode to the hyper consumerism and sleek veneer of a simpler time.

The audio provides a perfect accompaniment to the warped and weirdly nostalgic footage, like finding your favorite cassette from childhood after it’s been baking in the sun for 25 years. An authentic audio/visual package, Memorex was designed to look and feel like the real deal. The ultimate VHS tape.

Is it a lost cultural relic, melted to the dash of an '83 Nissan Sentra?
Is it a sinister government experiment, designed to brainwash children into becoming consumer slaves?
Is it the pinnacle of blipverts, sent back in time from 20 minutes into the future?
Is it the holy grail of unlabeled VHS tapes, tucked away in the back room of an abandoned Blockbuster?
Is it live, or is it Memorex?
We didn't create your childhood, we just organized it for you. How to brainwash an entire generation. 
OBEY. CONSUME. THIS IS YOUR GOD.'

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