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Subject: MELLODRAMA: THE MELLOTRON MOVIE Coming to DVD January 2010

From: Paul Watson <progrocker@xtra.co.nz>
Date: 2009-12-11

 
I no way endorse or have any business interests in this. Someone on a progrock list let us know this was becoming avail in Jan, and thought I would pass on.
 
Paul ;-)Nz
 
 
MELLODRAMA: THE MELLOTRON MOVIE Coming to DVD January 2010

THE STORY OF THE FIRST “SAMPLING” INSTRUMENTS, THE CHAMBERLIN AND THE
MELLOTRON, FEATURING INTERVIEWS WITH MEMBERS OF THE MOODY BLUES, THE
BEACH BOYS, GENESIS, KING CRIMSON, CHEAP TRICK, BLACK SABBATH, THE
ZOMBIES, LATIN PLAYBOYS, YES, MAROON 5, OPETH AND MANY MORE

“Surprisingly fascinating.” –Philadelphia Weekly

“A study in the unpredictability of innovation.” – Rhizome

“An insider’s view on the history of the Chamberlin and the Mellotron,
which isn’t always pretty.” – Echoes

“The Mellotron stays cool.” – Brian Wilson

“This is where sampling started.” – Jon Brion

Bazillion Points Publishing is delighted to announce the long-awaited
DVD release of the acclaimed and unusual music documentary,
Mellodrama: The Mellotron Movie, by Dianna Dilworth, coming January
2010 in NTSC Region 0 format packed with bonus features in a deluxe
Digipak.

Mellodrama explores the five-decades-long rise and fall of the
Chamberlin and its better-known successor the Mellotron—the first
musical keyboards to play the prerecorded sounds of other instruments.
Essentially the first sampler, its haunting sound has changed the
production and texture of popular music, from the Beatles’ “Strawberry
Fields Forever” and the Moody Blues’ “Nights in White Satin,” to
Radiohead’s OK Computer and Kanye West’s “Gold Digger.”

Featuring Mike Pinder of the Moody Blues, Ian McDonald of King
Crimson, Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys, famed L.A. producer Jon
Brion, Rick Nielsen of Cheap Trick, singer-songwriter Michael Penn,
author Brian Kehew, (Recording the Beatles), as well as members of
Opeth, Bigelf, Maroon 5, and former employees of the Mellotron and
Chamberlin companies. While the musicians tell their tales, the
engineers and experts deliver the gear porn by taking you inside the
captivating contraption.

Mellodrama screened at over a dozen festivals throughout the world in
2009, including the CMJ Film Festival in New York, Buenos Aires Film
Festival, Documenta Madrid, Portobello Film Festival in London,
Atlantic Film Festival in Canada, Big Sky Documentary Film Festival,
Indie Memphis, Tucson Film and Music Festival, and was specially
programmed by Stephen O’Malley of Sunn O))) at the Lausanne
Underground Film Festival in Switzerland.

“While everybody knows the sound of the instruments, most people have
never heard of the Mellotron or the Chamberlin,” says director Dianna
Dilworth. “I hope Mellodrama will change that.”

Mellodrama: The Mellotron Movie DVD includes the 80 minute film, 30
minutes of DVD extras, and an 8-page booklet containing an essay by
Mike Pinder of the Moody Blues and several illustrated machine
timelines. Preorders are now available at this location:
http://www.mellodramadvd.com

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION AND INTERVIEWS CONTACT BAZILLION POINTS:

US (718) 383-7122, bazillion@bazillionpoints.com

http://www.bazillionpoints.com