We’ve reached the point in internet video virality where people are now making videos specifically for the attention, not out of any commitment to a particular aesthetic. Memes building off of memes, mashups built off the concepts of mashups themselves, etc.
Such seems to be the case with one DJ Cummerbund (yeah, I get it) who has dedicated quite a bit of time to combining various disparate media to make gargantuan hybrid songs and videos that may tempt the internet’s temperamental virality meter. They are about as pointless but oddly fulfilling as the old internet trick of rickrolling your friends with a link to “Never Gonna Give You Up.”
So far, he’s achieved moderate success in this venture, but I think this time he (or she! though I doubt it) may have hit on a lasting mashup: The newest video combines Bon Iver’s “Holocene” with Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up.” Both songs have amassed cult followings throughout their respective existences, and both of these artists have been in the news lately, especially Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon, who recently released the best album of his career.
None of Bon Iver’s latest songs have quite had the chance to achieve the fan-favorite status that has spun out around “Holocene” in the last five years though. And certainly, there are few songs more iconic than “Never Gonna Give You Up.” Even if you don’t know what a Rick Roll is, you know the song. The way he’s merged it into the wistful, pastoral song from Justin Vernon certainly evokes the same jarring sensation of clicking on a link and having it be Rick Astley, not an entertaining article.
So, good luck to DJ Cummerbund in his quest. For the production values alone, this video is worth watching. Try to block out the weird Shrek costume parts?? Enjoy!
