(PR) Tim Delaughter, founder and frontman of 20-plus-member symphonic rock band The Polyphonic Spree, has composed and performed all the music for the new DVD art project WEE SEE, available now at weeseeworld.com and select retailers. DeLaughter's score accompanies images by New York visual artist ROLYN BARTHELMAN. WEE SEE was originally conceived as sensory stimulation for young babies, with its basic shapes and patterns tailored to the developing senses of newborns. But while fulfilling this original mission, DeLaughter says it evolved into much more. "It's been amazing to see people's reactions to it," he says. "Adults are as engaged as any baby we've shown it to. It's clearly something that will appeal to a much broader audience than we originally anticipated. It's an incredibly inviting experience that will play as well in a museum or a party as it will in a living room."
One of the greatest challenges and triumphs of WEE SEE is that it uses television in a way that goes against what the medium typically delivers. Spastic editing and abrasive audio dominates not only adult programming but children's videos as well. Capitalizing on the medium's unique capabilities, yet remaining cautious of its potential pitfalls, Barthelman crafted an entirely new experience.
"When I created WEE SEE, I found inspiration everywhere," says Barthelman. "At home it was the pureness of my daughter's imagination and her absolute insistence that anything was possible. Outside it was the shapes and patterns that presented themselves in just about every surface I passed. I think this is how the artwork can have such incredible simplicity while also feeling remarkably familiar. It puts you immediately at ease and reflects the very world that we're intending to introduce."
WEE SEE's initial offerings include two DVDs:
- collection one (running time approx. 30 min. + Flashcards)
The first collection contains 14 graphic black-and-white animations built from basic shapes to delight both child and parent. With great sensitivity to the delicate nature of its audience, WEE SEE's animations move methodically slow, each piece stopping multiple times over the course of a continually evolving animation.
- collection two (running time approx. 30 min. + Flashcards)
The graphic world of WEE SEE returns with more imaginative black-and-white animations. Stars, hearts, and flowers join the basic geometric designs that are the foundation of the first collection. Shapes come together to build a single pattern that then deconstructs. Melodies become more expansive as viewers are transported by another completely original score.
The pieces start and end out of white, shuffling in order each time they are played, making each viewing a new experience.
Additionally, both collections include "Flashcard Mode" -- a silent slideshow of static artwork from the collection, enabling parents to decide when to introduce movement and music.
In other Polyphonic Spree news, DeLaughter and his wife/coleader/songwriting partner, JULIE DOYLE, are in the early stages of writing songs for their fourth album, which they expect to release on their own GOOD RECORDS label. Says Doyle, "We've probably written a lot of the new album just by 'living' -- now we've gotta figure out the best way to translate it in a musical fashion." No release date/time period has been chosen at this time.
