What's your soundtrack to the end of the world?
:: doomsday transformers tape by DG Jones
These days, the word “tragedy” is seems to be thrown around quite a bit. Not without reason. Celebrities from The A List to The D List are dropping like flies. The economy is in the crapper. The polar ice caps are still melting. And people continue to like the Jonas Brothers. But when you're living an age of anxiety, it’s important to remember that the simple things continue to matter. So I decided to follow the advice of philosopher and bubble-wearer extraordinaire Lady Gaga and “just dance.”
To dance, however, I need an awesome soundtrack. Enter art director/graphic designer Justin Thomas Kay. His blog, the "Soundtrack to the End of the World" not only makes me want to dance, but it also makes you wonder what songs would soothe the soul when the mushroom clouds erupt. I decided to find out.
SP: What inspired you to create the "Soundtrack to the End of the World" blog?
JTK: I know the name seems somewhat profound, but honestly, it was a 3-second joke between me and my buddy Steve that materialized in about 10 minutes into a Web site. We just wanted to make a forum for people to group together and curate their own playlists for other people to enjoy. It mainly involves a lot of close friends of ours. The name itself was born out of a joke when me and Steve lived together and we built the ultimate guilty pleasure playlist that eventually just evolved into my actual musical taste. The master playlist, with the editorial assistance of our then roommate Adam, was dubbed the same name as the blog.
SP: If the world were to end tomorrow, how would you spend the last 24 hours of your existence?
JTK: Like any true anarcho-primitavist, I would laugh through the final hours of our dying monarchy and wait for mother earth to once again be reborn under her own control. Just kidding. I’d listen to Sabbath turned up to 11 for 24 hours straight. Specifically, the 1975 set from Asbury Park.
SP: Do you think we could actually destroy the world, or do you believe that peace is possible?
JTK: I think it's a real possibility that we can and will destroy ourselves. As a human race, we have managed to forget the few millions of years that have existed pre-modern times. World peace is inconsequential when humans can’t even be truly at peace with what they want out of their own lives. Sure, Twitter and Facebook and all that jazz is sweet, but aside from our bullshit narcissistic self-image, we all want to leave somethhing behind as a greater society. What is the legacy that our culture is leaving behind? I am embarrassed for what we are heading towards for all of us, and even more embarrassed for our inevitable crash. In the words of Botch, “We are the Romans.”
SP: Are you a spiritual or religious? How do your beliefs influence your art?
JTK: I don’t believe in a higher power or a religion in any way. Religion is a blanket humankind covers itself with to excuse our mistakes as protected by a “larger being.” Humans are incapable of realizing that we just f*ck up and pay the price. My belief system doesn’t specifically translate to my actual design work, but it translates to the kind of work I try to do and my overall approach. I’m also a hypocrite and can think of a million ways my beliefs contradict my work.
SP: So what's on your soundtrack to the end of the world?
JTK: Here goes:
1. Black Sabbath, "Killing Yourself to Live"
2. Creation is Crucifixion, "The Iconography of John Henry"
3. Dorothy Ashby, "Soul Harping"
4. Adorable, "A to Fade in"
5. Azoto, "Any Time or Place"
6. Wolves in the Throne Room, "AhrimanicTrance"
7. Neil Halstead, "Elevenses"
8. Thom Yorke, "Harrowdown Hill"
9. Shora, "Siphrodias"
10. Melvins, "Hag me"
11. Tim Hecker, "Whitecaps of White Noise 1"
12. The Flirtations, "Nothing but a Heartache"
13. Ludovico Einaudi, "Oltremare"
What would be your soundtrack to the end of the world?
:: end-of-the-world dance by Lindsay McComb
