For one day a week, Ian Rowley sits in a cabin at the entrance to a car park in the freezing cold, collecting the fee from the car park’s customers. And he loves it. “It’s now, like, my favourite job!” he beams in his interview with Ehrenreich, for it affords him the time to do exactly what he wants to do, which is make music and go on tour with his girlfriend Brandi Strauss.
Documentary Rhythm of Cruelty is rich and colourful in both its aesthetic and the characters it follows. Ehrenreich provides a personal look at Edmonton’s underground music scene which is cut off from the quotidian workings of the rest of the city. More specifically, Ehrenreich shows how, in choosing to pursue creative exploits, Strauss and Rowley find themselves detached from the world around them, “living in our own bubble.”
However, this detachment has had a positive outcome in providing the pair the space to try and re-write the negative associations Edmonton has. According to Rowley, Edmonton has a stereotype attached to it as a place where people come “just to make money and then fuck off,” describing it as a “second-rate Calgary.” Though fond of their city, Strauss and Rowley aim at combatting this stereotype by rejecting the 9-to-5 life in favour of making music.
It is not just socially and economically that Strauss and Rowley find themselves apart from life in Edmonton however, for they are also somewhat artistically separated from many of the punk bands they often play with: “We’re always the odd-ball on the bill,” says Strauss. For some, their lack of live drums and inclusion, instead, of a drum machine is not in keeping with the punk scene.
Really, however, the duo don’t care that sometimes people don’t ‘get’ them. Indeed, since the death of a close friend, what has driven them in their artistry is the realisation that life is too short to worry about that sort of thing, and, instead, what is important is to do for themselves what they find fulfilling. This has ultimately led them to leave their previous day jobs behind in search of artistic accomplishment. Ehrenreich’s documentary reflects this approach to life, and is a warm portrayal of a couple bravely carving out their own creative path.
Enjoyed this article? Like Huck on Facebook or follow us on Twitter.
Latest on Huck
Autism cannot be cured — stop trying
A questionable study into the ‘reversal’ of autism does nothing but reinforce damaging stereotypes and harm, argues autistic author Jodie Hare.
Written by: Jodie Hare
Bristol Photo Festival returns for second edition
After the success of it’s inaugural run, the festival returns this autumn with exhibitions, education and community programmes exploring a world in constant motion through still image.
Written by: Ben Smoke
Documenting the life of a New York gang leader paralysed by gun violence
New photobook ‘Say Less’ is a complex yet humanising look into a life wrecked by gun violence and organised crime.
Written by: Isaac Muk
The woman who defined 80s Hip Hop photography
A new exhibition brings together Janette Beckman’s visionary and boundary pushing images of an era of cultural change and moral panic.
Written by: Miss Rosen
In photos: the dogs of Dogtown
A new photobook documents Venice Beach’s four legged friends and their colourful cast of owners.
Written by: Isaac Muk
Inside the battle to stop coal
As the legal challenge against Britain’s first deep coal mine in 30 years reaches the High court, we talk to activists at the centre of the fight to stop it.
Written by: Ben Smoke