real touches of beauty and brilliance

A year or two ago I stumbled upon the breathtaking oeuvre of Italian modernist film-director Michelangelo Antonioni, starting with the fabulously puzzled 'Professione: reporte'. The movie at itself was an unexpected revelation in meanings of abstract storytelling in a very unique visual signature, and really inspired me in my future work. But what really grabbed my attention was the young architecture student backpacking through Spain, played by the petite and dusky french actress Maria Schneider. I immediately became intrigued by her spontaneous beauty, especially 'cause I never heard of her before, or better yet, never heard of her again. In the same year she played the part of a young parisian love interest of the middle-agged Marlon Brando in the wonderful masterpiece 'Last tango in Paris', from Bernardo Bertolucci. But after that, all became quiet. After a little 'google-research' i came across the news that she completely vanished out of mid 70's hollywood-prestige. This 'vanishing' apparently intrigued and inspired Tom Barman, frontman of Belgian's best-known musical export since Jacques Brel, as well to write the magnificently sentimental song called 'the vanishing of Maria Schneider'. The song is taken from the album 'vantage point', a confident slightly awkward record with some real touches of beauty and brilliance in it, that will definitely make it to my album of the year poll. In this particular song Barman sings the lyrics with a glorious crooner voice, assisted by the wounded tenor vocals of Elbow's Guy Garvey. dEUS once again exemplifies their incredible storytelling credentials in this epic slow-burning love song, and prove that there are a lot more ways to define this over-consumed subject in a new and refreshing way.



"And no one knows what you've become
You elegantly put us on
Forever and a day
Inside your fingers
My heart's the trigger
You pull with ease
It's my destiny"

Watch Tom Barman performing The Vanishing of Maria Schneider on VPRO's Café De Liefde: