See Hear 111 - Theory of Obscurity: A Film About The Residents

Musicians, artists, actors and authors (and any other creatives I haven’t nominated) have long taken pseudonyms. Maybe a more exciting name will sell an image, maybe it’s to have some semblance of privacy, maybe it’s to separate themselves from their past, …any number of reasons. Avant garde art collective The Residents took things beyond name change – they maintained complete anonymity.

Welcome to episode 111 of See Hear Podcast.

The Residents are a band, multimedia artists, theatrical performers….and anonymous. Long time fans claim to be aware of their identities, but putting that aside, the band subscribed to the Theory of Obscurity that maintains that better art is created when the artist is anonymous and free of audience expectations. The band has always performed with masks and not given names….not even pseudonyms.

They’ve been creating music for over 50 years, and have released multitudes of albums – original compositions and deconstructions of 20th century standards from the likes of The Rolling Stones, James Brown and George Gershwin. Trying to define what they do beyond the catch-all tag of “avant- garde” is ridiculous. For some, it can be music that is difficult or challenging….and for others, it can be a breath of fresh air.

For this episode of See Hear, Tim and Maurice discuss the 2015 film “Theory of Obscurity: A Film About The Residents” directed by Don Hardy, its themes, the music of the Residents, and whether there’s something actually to the theory or if it’s bunk.

The film is easily available on Kanopy, Youtube and Tubi. You can tune into our conversation before or after watching it, but either way, grab your top hat and cane, then tune in. We have our eye on you.

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