Faile—composed of two members, Patrick McNeil and Patrick Miller—exist in an interesting nexus between high and lowbrow, and between the gallery and the street. One moment they might be completing a silkscreen-heavy project for the New York City Ballet, while the next they’re installing a 16-foot-tall fiberglass, steel, and granite sculpture in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. This summer, as part of Summerhall’s programming for the Edinburgh Art Festival, Faile will reprise DeluxxFluxx, a room-filling installation of video games last presented during Miami Basel (and including faux-titles, supposedly from the ’80s, like Wrestling With Faile and Fantasy Island). They’ll also present a series of acrylic, spraypaint, and silkscreen works that jam image and text together into hyperactive, collaged compositions. The exhibition is on view August 1 through September 26. We asked Faile to share some of the songs that inform their eclectic practice.
Patrick McNeil:
“Mess on a Mission” — Liars
“I met band member Angus Andrew living in my old flat when I went to visit a friend in Berlin in 2005 and was introduced to Liars’ music. Ever since then I have followed each new album they have released with a child-like excitement. This song, from their new album Mess, is one of my new favorites filled with all the fast paced highs and lows that take me to another place—where I can make the mess necessary to create art that’s not stiff.”
“The Ego’s Last Stand” — The Flaming Lips
“I was introduced to the Flaming Lips by Miller, and they have a special place in my heart, working late nights in the studio with him. I picked this song because I like the title. Collaborating together for so many years the one thing I have learned is key is to not let ego get in the way. Ego kills everything good inside.”
“Chamber of Reflection” — Mac Demarco
“I just discovered Demarco a few weeks ago and have listened to his album Salad Days several times a day since then. This song takes me to that quiet place in myself to reflect for a few brief minutes of play on the way home (and allows me to be a better dad when I get home). I like the pace and the slight discord of the keyboard synthesizer that rolls through the song. Mac’s voice has a way of chilling me out that cools me to the bone.”
Patrick Miller:
“Play by Play” — Autre Ne Veut
“I don’t know if it’s the synthie, R&B feel, or the fullness of the sound, but this song just overtakes you. Our work tends to be about layering image and color and density. This does the same for me with sound.”
“New Lands (Live)” — Justice
“The live version of this song is always sure to get things going when you’re in the ‘doing’ phase of a show. It’s somewhere between stadium rock and electronic dance party.”
“Everything In Its Right Place” — Radiohead
“Kid A is my all-time favorite album. It came out right after we started Faile and it’s always been an inspiration: to push ahead in one’s creative journey and create something new. If you get a chance to see Radiohead live with Andi Watson doing the lights, it’s truly a mystical experience.”
A version of this article appears in the July/August 2014 issue of Modern Painters magazine.
