After a four year wait, Guerrilla Monster Films finished "Looking For A Line" Video for the River City Tanlines. Wheat Buckley and H.G. Ray produced a record amount of After Effects work for Mike McCarthy's "super-psycho-drama" starring Alicja Trout and "anti-Alicja" (her cosmic (evil?) twin). The video won BEST LOCAL VIDEO at the Video Music Showcase sponsored by Edward Valibus and the fine folks at LIVE FROM MEMPHIS. This article was written October, 2006. See the Go Memphis link below for a report on the Video Music Showcase.

I've known Tanlines front-girl ALICJA TROUT for maybe 13 years? She played in the CLEARS and we shot an (unfinished) 16mm vid back in ‘97 that still sits upside down on my shelf. As the CLEARS, ALICJA and two male band mates; BRAD and SHELBY were 'high atari' in a look we conjured from mall fitted black tranny plastic and silver wiggage. A romanciful cousin to Eno and cheap beer.

ALICJA made the X-Ray hands for MIKE MAKER in the SORE LOSERS (1997) and music too for the SYMPATHY soundtrack. Moreso, her magnetic sensuality graced my stag loop collection SHINE ON SWEET STARLET (1998) and she played a 'Phayray' in my SUPERSTARLET A.D. (2000) calling herself "Helen Heaven". We worked together at the Pyramid. I even commissioned ALICJA to do a pastel of a Chevy Nova that sits proudly upside down on my floor.

Tanlines Rhythm section TERENCE and BUBBA are the greatest combo in town; their involvement in Guerrilla Monster goes back to ‘97 when their muscle car plowed through the GUITAR WOLF video "BUTO BASE". For the longest time ALICJA and I had been out of touch. Seeing her at clubs was great but we didn’t talk much anymore, and eventually you don't have anything to talk about. This worried me a little.

On the weekend of October 7th and 8th we shot the River City Tanlines video.

I wanted ALICJA to be a persona derived from the feel of her album art: a spray painted riff motif with Memphis billboards and throw in a spider or two. A new wave Alicja without all that 80’s baggage - this goddess of thunder plays anti-matter guitar on the roof tops of Memphis watching her 'mortal self' below, and pitting the two egos against each other in a song called LOOKING FOR A LINE. Are they jealous of each other or merely in love? The line that ALICJA draws in the urban sand is between fantasy and reality; SIGUE SIGUE SPUTNIK doused in BBQ sauce. BUBBA & TERRENCE are now the two male band members clad in black t-shirts and blue jeans.

In ten years the dreamy romance of the CLEARS has become the sun bleached decadence of the TANLINES.

SUSAN ANDERSON was make-up. CORI DIALS served as body-double and makeup for Alicja on day one. MICHAEL DILLON’s trusty jib arm was used (thanks CHERYL!), DANIEL FREEMAN helped out again. TOMMY KHA and DAN BALL snapped pictures, a guy named VINO let us into a key location, JOHN PICKLE shot 'making of' footage and HEAVENLY HOAGIE catered. Thanks also to the SOUTHERN MEAT MARKET! STRINGS & THINGS went out of their way to let us shoot on their roof all day long. A big THANKS to JULIE at STRINGS & THINGS.

(Although we could not finish LOOKING FOR A LINE for the MEMPHICENTRIC showcase, Wheat will edit and composite the video by Thanksgiving. Check back here to see it.)

View Dan Ball Gallery - Hear the song "Looking for a line" - View Tommy Kha Gallery - Go Memphis - rivercitytanlines.com