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New Viggo Book!
22 October 2021 16:02:44Source: Perceval Press.
Found By: Chrissie
Categories: Books & CD's
Perceval Press
© Perceval Press.
Quote:
Eudaimonia
$15.00
Words and images by Viggo Mortensen
This small book contains a single long poem, written during the 2020 pandemic lockdown. It is illustrated with drawings made while listening to U.S. radio broadcasts largely concerned with the socio-political effects of the Trump presidency. Eudaimonia is an abstract Greek noun comprised of the words "eu" (good, well) and "daimon" (spirit). It is generally taken to refer to well-being or to living well. Definitions, a dictionary of Greek philosophical terms attributed to Plato himself, but thought by modern scholars to have been written by his immediate followers in the Academy, provides the following definition of the word eudaimonia: "The good composed of all goods; an ability which suffices for living well; perfection in respect of virtue; resources sufficient for a living creature." I suppose the word can also refer to the peace of mind that can come from accepting the vicissitudes of our bodies and the environments we inhabit, even as we struggle to adapt to and comprehend them. After all, there can hardly be well-being or living well if one refuses to acknowledge the inevitable ravages of nature and its endless ability to regenerate itself.
V.M.
Words and images by Viggo Mortensen
This small book contains a single long poem, written during the 2020 pandemic lockdown. It is illustrated with drawings made while listening to U.S. radio broadcasts largely concerned with the socio-political effects of the Trump presidency. Eudaimonia is an abstract Greek noun comprised of the words "eu" (good, well) and "daimon" (spirit). It is generally taken to refer to well-being or to living well. Definitions, a dictionary of Greek philosophical terms attributed to Plato himself, but thought by modern scholars to have been written by his immediate followers in the Academy, provides the following definition of the word eudaimonia: "The good composed of all goods; an ability which suffices for living well; perfection in respect of virtue; resources sufficient for a living creature." I suppose the word can also refer to the peace of mind that can come from accepting the vicissitudes of our bodies and the environments we inhabit, even as we struggle to adapt to and comprehend them. After all, there can hardly be well-being or living well if one refuses to acknowledge the inevitable ravages of nature and its endless ability to regenerate itself.
V.M.
© Perceval Press.
Iolanthe's Quotable Viggo
1 August 2020 16:17:50 Found By: Iolanthe
At the beginning of July we had a belated review in Flood Magazine of Viggo and Buckethead’s collaboration Pandemoniumfromamerica headed ‘It’s Time to Talk About Viggo Mortensen and Buckethead’s Collaborative Album. Well, I think it’s time to ‘Quotable’ again about their experimental music making. Though not quite my thing (I have tried), I do admire the sheer guts it takes to just have fun, muck about, remove all limits and just see what happens. It’s really creativity at it’s most raw.
[Pandemoniumfromamerica] is endlessly unsettling—it sounds more convincingly apocalyptic than the adaptation of The Road Mortensen would shoot six years later. It doesn’t get much more skin-crawlingly weird than hearing Viggo whisper William Blake’s America a Prophecy over his own atonal piano and aimless harmonica on the title track.
It’s Time to Talk About Viggo Mortensen and Buckethead’s Collaborative Album “Pandemoniumfromamerica”
Flood Magazine
by Mike LeSuer
1 July 2020
Taking lyrical cues from William Blake, Rumi, and Jonathan Swift (whose "Holyhead" gets murky, standout treatment), the album could almost be called the dissonant but similarly adventurous Sgt. Pepper of its age...
On Pandemoniumfromamerica
Holding Court with the King: Viggo Mortensen heralds the return of the renaissance man
By Gregory Weinkauf
East Bay Express
2003
"It is a tribute to the memory of the victims of the 11th September tragedy. I wrote the words, but I also used texts that I love very much… It's totally experimental. The Hobbits agreed to join me and it was a lot of fun, we improvised on the spot, we spent our time exchanging instruments. Elijah played the battery and the piano."
Viggo Mortensen on Pandemoniumfromamerica.
A Year in the Life of Viggo Mortensen
by Sophie Benamon
Studio Magazine
2003
"I did some percussion, and Buckethead had this bag of masks, which we all wore while we were playing," Wood says. "It was wild."
Finding Viggo
By Alex Kuczynski
Vanity Fair magazine
January 2004
Ask Mortensen about his Buckethead connection and he'll calmly inquire "Do you know him? Have you seen him play?" Say that you have... and Mortensen's face will light up, excited that he's not the only one hip to the six-string slaughtering of Buckethead.
Viggo Mortensen & Buckethead: The man who portrayed Aragorn talks about recording with the king of horror guitar.
By Spence D.
3 March 2004
“I met [Buckethead] like seven or eight years ago when I’d made a recording of...I’d participated in a poetry recording for children and each poet or writer had to invent something about a theme, well, from Greek mythology. I did something about Poseidon and he put it to music. I listened to the music afterward, when the recording was ready and I asked, “Who’s the guitar player?” Then I called him and we began to work [together].”
Viggo Mortensen
"La Ventana" with Viggo and Carme
By - transcribed by Ollie and translated by Ollie, Rio and Zoe
Cadena SER
23 November 2011
'I like to play with music. But I would not define myself as a musician, but as a sound modulator. I love to be with musicians and play, to see what comes out from the mess that we do together.’
Viggo Mortensen
The Painter Hero
By Giulia D'Agnolo Vallan
CIAK
March 2002
One listen to The Other Parade, his rereleased 1998 album with Buckethead, ex-wife Exene Cervenka, and a host of others, reveals total artistic fearlessness (Mortensen plays a motorcycle muffler on every track). Its haunting, post-industrial abstractions make Einstürzende Neubauten sound like 'NSync -- and, if taken in the wrong mood, they may encourage a listener to beat on the disc itself. But there's absolutely no lack of energy and presence.
Holding Court with the King: Viggo Mortensen heralds the return of the renaissance man
By Gregory Weinkauf
East Bay Express
2003
You also composed music for a director who normally eschews scores in his films. How did that come about?
I was surprised that Lisandro wanted to use music in this way, as he had never done that in his first four movies. He said toward the end of the shoot that he wanted something lyrical, perhaps played on guitar, for the sequence under the stars, which is an important transition point in the story. He said he did not care if it was modern or period music, that it should not be recognizable. We did not have much of any money left in the budget for this, as we had just enough to complete the shoot and the editing, so, as one possible, free-of-charge option, I sent him some tracks I had previously composed featuring the great guitar player Buckethead.
Lisandro chose two tracks from a record called Please Tomorrow, recorded in 2004.
Mortensen plays a Danish engineer in Patagonia
By Pam Grady
San Francisco Chronicle
13 May 2015
"I think for him, to work with me, I'm obviously not, you know, a professional musician or a professional music producer or anything like that, so I don't work in a conventional way and I don't have set rules for how we are going to do each take or how long its going to be or what approach we are going to take, so I think it's probably refreshing for Buckethead to just go ahead and play. And be safe, he can be safe in making mistakes, doing whatever. I'm never going to make him do something and I would never use something he didn't like so I think its a safe atmosphere for him to be really creative."
Viggo Mortensen on working with Buckethead
CHUD magazine
By John Makarewicz
2004
Being in the studio with him and just spending a day at work, I walk out of there always feeling a little lighter, all my problems and responsibilities just feel a little less daunting somehow. It's like going for a nice walk in the woods. You just feel a little more able to deal with thing 'cause you know that you've used your time well and gotten something special out of the day. I feel that working in the studio and in particular working with him."
Viggo Mortensen & Buckethead: The man who portrayed Aragorn talks about recording with the king of horror guitar.
By Spence D.
3 March 2004
Listening to Viggo Mortensen and Buckethead's renditions of Viggo's works on This That And The Other is to be brought back to the direct immediacy of art and to be given the opportunity to experience a creation firsthand from its creator.
Review: This That And The Other
By Richard Marcus
blogcritics.org
March 20
2007
“He just inspires me and I feel like I can try different things, too or even suggest stuff… He’s great. I’m so glad that in my life I’ve gotten to know him a little and work with him. He’s one of the most original, genuine, most sincere, and most gifted individuals I’ve met in my life. He’s incredible.”
Viggo Mortensen & Buckethead: The man who portrayed Aragorn talks about recording with the king of horror guitar.
By Spence D.
3 March 2004
You will find all previous Quotables here.
© Viggo-Works/Iolanthe. Images © TDRS Music/unknown.
Coline Won the Signed Viggo Book!!
4 July 2020 20:50:42Categories: Books & CD's
Coline has won the signed copy of RAMAS PARA UN NIDO!
Our heartiest congratulations go out to her for winning!
© viggo-works.com.
Last edited: 29 May 2023 10:36:46