My cable television package includes a certain number of free-on-demand offerings, mostly in the form of D-list movies, TV shows, and music videos. I won't lie and say that I never take advantage of it -- I'm grateful for any chance to watch BBC shows like Top Gear and Dr. Who, and I'll also admit that Caprica is starting to sink its hooks into me. But in the Hulu-like realm of on-demand cable, such quality content is definitely the exception to the freebies, not the rule.
There is an entire area of the music video section that is programmed by a network called Havoc. At risk of implying some pathetic need for pedestrian punk/metal videos in my life (or worse, anything having to do with "extreme" sports), I will admit to sometimes perusing Havoc's offerings in order to keep in touch with what I suspect are the interests of typical, suburban skateboard enthusiasts. (I discovered a Slipknot song which I have grown rather fond of in this manner, so never let it be said that curiosity doesn't come without social consequence.)
Yesterday, however, I was floored by the Havoc roster's beguiling inclusion of Boards of Canada's "Dayvan Cowboy" music video. The Scottish purveyors of warm electronics had recently arrived back in my listening pile anyway, thanks to their music's soothing influence upon my infant daughter. On those occasions which all new parents are familiar with -- the ones when baby becomes utterly unhinged and cries hysterically for no apparent reason, Boards of Canada is a godsend, especially when the lullaby arsenal has been exhausted and the bouncy chair's batteries drained. Nothing settles our screaming bundle of terror into a much-needed slumber like "Dayvan Cowboy" does, though truth be told, sometimes my wife and I also pass out for a few hours when under its influence... which in my mind only further punctuates the band's many talents.
The dizzying heights and vistas seen in this video also reminded me of that amazing (and weirdly under-reported) story about the guy who achieved near-space photography for a few hundred bucks worth of equipment and posted the results on his Flickr page. I find this one to be particularly head-spinning, even without a hipster-doofus soundtrack.
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