{"id":167,"date":"2009-11-30T14:58:26","date_gmt":"2009-11-30T20:58:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stylusmagazine.ca\/?p=167"},"modified":"2009-11-30T14:58:26","modified_gmt":"2009-11-30T20:58:26","slug":"rob-vilars-story-time-juliana-barwic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ckuw.ca\/stylus\/2009\/11\/30\/rob-vilars-story-time-juliana-barwic\/","title":{"rendered":"Rob Vilar’s Story Time – Julianna Barwick"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Rob Vilar<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"florine_cover\"JULIANNA BARWICK
\nFlorine<\/p>\n

After a brief washroom break, I get back to my refueled Dodge and pay the gas attendant for her service.
\n\u201cWhere you going?\u201d she asks.
\n\u201cI don\u2019t know. Somewhere,\u201d\u00a0 I answer.
\n\u201cGetting away from something?\u201d
\n\u201cMaybe something like that,\u201d I reply as I step into my Dodge Challenger and begin to drive off the lot.
\n\u201cYou come back again,\u201d she says.
\nI return to the highway and re-adjust my rear view mirror. I notice that the procession of cop cars off in the distance has intensified since the last time I checked. I light a cigarette and turn the radio on. My favorite DJ is back on air.
\n\u201cWell, after a much-needed break to relieve this old vein of mine, let\u2019s get back to the narrative at hand. Vilar, you\u2019ve done well until now but these are desert plains you\u2019re approaching, my friend\u2026and the heat which I\u2019m sure you\u2019ve noticed, has gotten hotter. Well, to make things a bit bearable, I\u2019ll play you something off the recent Julianna Barwick EP, Florine. A small number titled \u201cCloudbank.\u201d I hope there is a cloud bank on the horizon for you.\u201d\u00a0 The DJ drops it. Upon hearing the song on the radio, my mind starts to drift to another time and place in the past, somewhere in a Motel 6…<\/p>\n

***
\nShe comes out of the shower and into our room while using up the last of our allotted towels. I lay on the bed, working on a crossword.
\n\u201cWho\u2019s this we\u2019re listening to?\u201d she asks.
\n\u201cJulianna Barwick, a singer out of Brooklyn. Found her on some pay per download site,\u201d I answer.
\n\u201cYou didn\u2019t find her on Pitchfork, as with most things?\u201d she counters.
\n\u201cNo, but eventually they jumped all over her. Which is cool I guess. It\u2019s what you want if you\u2019re making music these days. By the way, I don\u2019t find most of my stuff on Pitchfork.\u201d
\n\u201cI like her. Her material reminds me of Popol Vuh off the Aguirre soundtrack,\u201d she says as she searches for something to wear.
\n\u201cYeah, it does, but even better if you ask me,\u201d I respond, slipping in a look above my crossword paper.
\n\u201cAre you still going to work tonight?\u201d she asks.
\n\u201cYup, you know how it is,\u201d I answer.
\n\u201cOne of these days you got to tell me what you do. You can\u2019t keep up this mystery forever\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

***
\nBack in my car, I notice I\u2019ve successfully shook off the cops while driving myself deep into the desert\u2019s heart\u2026a place for no man. I stop the vehicle, turn the radio up, and take a sit on its hood. The song \u201cBode\u201d comes on and I take in my surroundings. I stare out onto the desert plateau and watch the sun murder the skies red as it plunges into the dusk. The sweeping sustained mantra of the song eases the pain of this measured astrological kill. The DJ comes back on.
\n\u201cI got to hand it to you Vilar, you shook them off good. With my little CB radio here at the station, I can tell you them coppers have no idea where you at. I know you\u2019re hiding somewhere though\u2026 but the question now is\u2026 how long do you stay out there? We\u2019re pulling for you, just keep a warm blanket close by\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

***
\nBack at the Motel 6, I watch her spread the blanket back on the bed. \u201cYou know there\u2019s people who get paid to do that sort of thing,\u201d I tell her.
\n\u201cNo matter. Just a frequent habit,\u201d she says. \u201cI\u2019m really digging this Julianna Barwick more and more. What\u2019s this song playing now?\u201d
\n\u201cIt\u2019s called \u2018Choose.\u2019\u201d
\n\u201cYou know who else she sounds like? She reminds me of Enya.\u201d
\n\u201cYeah\u2014like a hipper version of Enya. Some people may find that comparison repulsing, some maybe not. It\u2019s hard to know nowadays.\u201d I finish off the last of the crossword. A short pause lies between us.
\n\u201cDo you really have to go?\u201d she asks.
\n\u201cYeah, I got to go meet someone. I told you,\u201d I answer.
\n\u201cWhen are you gonna let me know?\u201d
\n\u201cI\u2019ll tell you about my job some time.\u201d
\n\u201cNo. That\u2019s not what I mean,\u201d she says, as she slowly draws the curtains down and turns to face me.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Back in the desert, night has struck and coldness starts to take hold. The opening piano refrain of \u201cAnjos\u201d plays on the radio while I lay down and gaze at the stars for a moment. The DJ returns and chimes in over the song.
\n\u201cHey, Vilar, haven\u2019t heard from you in a while. I hope you\u2019re keeping those scorpions company. Word has it they don\u2019t offer lifetime subscriptions in the place you at, so you best be getting back into the game now. You can beat the police, you can beat the road, and you can even beat the clock\u2026but you can\u2019t beat the desert.\u201d
\n\u201cGo to hell,\u201d I respond as I roll off the hood of the Dodge, kick the remaining dirt from my boots, and get back in the driver\u2019s seat. I start the engine and peel it forward to the road. With \u201cAnjos\u201d still playing on the radio, I look for the angel in the sky\u2019s constellations to help find my way back. I start to coast into a vision of last night\u2019s encounter\u2026<\/p>\n

***
\nI meet my contact Rodrigo by the river\u2019s end.
\n\u201cEh, Roberto! Tudo bem?\u201d Rodrigo addresses me.
\n\u201cTudo bem. Que pasa?\u201d We exchange our special handshake.
\n\u201cWell, the boss has got a special job for you,\u201d Rodrigo says as he hands me an unmarked envelope. \u201cTake a look. Looks like someone saw something they shouldn\u2019t have, which can be messy for us. It\u2019s a shit job but you know how it is, right? You got 24 hours.\u201d I stand there, staring into the photograph for a while. Rodrigo says as he snaps me out of it. \u201cHey man? You OK? You know her?\u201d
\n\u201cNo, it\u2019 s cool.\u201d I slip the photograph into my pocket. \u201cI got it covered. Can I borrow your Dodge?\u201d<\/p>\n

***
\nThe roar of the law enforcement\u2019s helicopter shakes me out of my stupor as I race towards the morning sun. The ranks of the land vehicles have swelled tenfold since my last cigarette pack and I still have a carton to go. The radio is on and my DJ is still with me.
\n\u201cYes! Yes! Yes! You go, Big V! You out-race those blue Nazis! You don\u2019t give up and let them catch you! No way, Jose, no way, you go for the prize, man, you go for it! Ha ha ha ha\u2026all right, this is too much fun. I think we got to drop one more for the soul mobile before I go in for a break. So here\u2019s a hymn for you, bro, called \u2018Sunlight, Heaven\u2019 by Ms. Barwick. Drive forth and let that camino del sol be your guide. Radio on and godspeed.\u201d
\nWith the song fueling my ride and the police closing in on me, I can see clear as the new day set forth, the path laid ahead. And as sure as I am aware of that incoming road block set up at mile\u2019s end, I am certain now of what words can be said from one to another while under the veil of darkness in a small room near the edge of night. Without hesitation and without doubt. The true speed of will.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Rob Vilar JULIANNA BARWICK Florine After a brief washroom break, I get back to my refueled Dodge and pay the gas attendant for her service. \u201cWhere you going?\u201d she asks. \u201cI don\u2019t know. Somewhere,\u201d\u00a0 I answer. \u201cGetting away from something?\u201d \u201cMaybe something like that,\u201d I reply as I step into my Dodge Challenger and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[804],"class_list":["post-167","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-columns","tag-rob-vilars-story-time"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ckuw.ca\/stylus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/167","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ckuw.ca\/stylus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ckuw.ca\/stylus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ckuw.ca\/stylus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ckuw.ca\/stylus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=167"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ckuw.ca\/stylus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/167\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ckuw.ca\/stylus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=167"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ckuw.ca\/stylus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=167"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ckuw.ca\/stylus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=167"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}