Performance Provocateurs KLF, Keep Their 23 Year Promise – IOTW Report

Performance Provocateurs KLF, Keep Their 23 Year Promise

 

They were on top of the Brit Pop world 25 years ago when in 1994 they burned a million UK pounds and vowed to disappear for 23 years. As promised performers Bill Drummond and Jimmy Cauty resurfaced at midnight last night (23 years to the a day after the money bonfire) for a book signing in Liverpool.

More guerilla performance artist than actual musicians, Drummond’s and Cauty’s KLF  (also known as The Justified Ancients of Mu Mu, The JAMS and The Time Lords) strode through the British pop scene a quarter century ago with solid grooves and a sarcastic commentary on the hollow pretentiousness of it all.

I’ve watched a few of their videos and suggest these as a representative sample.

Here’s Tammy Wynette in Justified and Ancient Watch

If you’re a big Dr. Who fan, you’re going to love this Watch

A heavy weight jam, Last Train to Transcentral Watch

More on KLF resurfacing and their controversial history Here

 

 

 

14 Comments on Performance Provocateurs KLF, Keep Their 23 Year Promise

  1. It’s “The KLF.” Don’t forget the “The.”

    Anyhoo. One hit wonder in my book, that’s 3 A.M. Starts at 1:07 because the one hit wonder band botched the first 1:07 of their one hit wonder.

  2. Didn’t watch any of this and never heard of these guys. Performance artists huh? Where’d they get a million pounds to burn? Somebody surprise me and tell me it wasn’t a grant from the NEA.

  3. the KLF were one of the earliest proponents of sampling- and were shut down by ABBA of all groups for it. they also wrote a manual for how to construct a hit pop song- which several groups have used to have hit pop songs- including Tubthuming by Chumbawamba. they were extremely influential upon a number of british house and techno artists who blew up the dance charts in the 90s. they’re not so much ‘performance art’ as taking the piss out of the music industry- something they had a lot of behind the scenes experience in managing major groups (like echo and the bunnymen)and working for record companies before their own musical endeavors. Chill Out is a great ambient album and the White Room is one of the best albums to come out of the the 90s electronic dance scene. Jimmy Cauty is married to the female percussionist from the Thompson Twins.

  4. Doctorin’ the TARDIS is one of my all-time favorite songs! KLF, tho’, they’re odd to the point of Dadaism. I could get into their music, but never into their “performance art”.

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