Post-apocalyptic landfills, moving truck deathbeds, and bikini-clad carwashers make for some of the most memorable scenes in the Dirty Projector’s short film debut, "Hi Custodian, which was produced by Pitchfork.tv. And fear not; despite your sneaking suspicions, Pitchfork + Dirty Projectors does not equal hopeless pretension. Instead, we get the best bits of Swing Lo Magellan set to a sometimes visually arresting, sometimes enjoyably goofy 20-minute music video.It’s about death, sure, and it’s set to the backdrop of some sort of environmental catastrophe—Hazmat suits, wastelands, general foreboding fill the film’s early minutes. And the tune ‘Just from Chevron,’ included here, is about as straightforward as frontman Dave Longstreth gets, lyrically. The “dirtiest few” and the oil companies and everybody driving everywhere; something’s got to give.And what they give us in the meantime aren’t worth it. In the film, Longstreth even makes a venture into the suburbs, where he’s hosed down by those carwashers before being whisked away by a band of rustic religious leaders. And there’s plenty of Longstreth’s affinity for sherpa chic. Back to the land, boys and girls. Modernity will bore you first, kill you later.
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