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Music

The Making-Of Peaches' "MUD" [Video]

What does it take to become Peaches? Mud, glorious mud.

When electronic musician and performance artist Peaches released her fifth studio album I Feel Cream in 2009, she vowed to make a video for every song on the album. Twenty-two months later, she’s just about to accomplish this goal, by finalizing the video for the remaining track, “Mud.” The full-version isn’t quite ready yet, but this highly-stylized behind-the-scenes promo, shot by artist and director Jasmin Tarasin, gives us a glimpse of what it takes to become Peaches.

We’re used to seeing her in full-blown makeup and costume, but here’s a rare glimpse of the outlandish diva getting her mohawk teased and fixed with long, blond extensions, and pallets of face paint applied to her eyes and forehead. As for her costume, we see peaks of a leotard covered in flesh-colored balloons topped with shaved Barbie heads, which kind of reminds us of Lady Gaga’s bizarre Kermit the Frog ensemble.

In any case, Peaches always puts on a good show, whether it’s with provoking lyrics, strange costumes, or laser instruments… not to mention her wide-ranging vocal talent. Her various work and collaborators show her ability to completely transform as an artist, transfixing audiences both on her own like in Peaches Christ Superstar, or as a player in multi-artist collaborations, seen most recently in Ivory Tower.

It’s no wonder than that her entrancing performance style prompted Jasmin Tarasin to include Peaches in Live, a video study on the art of performing this past January. All the artists involved, including Rufus Wainwright, Jim James (My Morning Jacket), and Juliette Lewis (among others), were asked to perform their favorite songs against a white wall with minimal accompaniment, and the resulting videos were then projected alongside each other in a unique multi-channel installation. Tarasin described the piece as: “the ultimate gig.” Stills from Peaches’ video can be seen above.

If there’s anything we’re continually learning from Peaches, it’s that she does what she wants, and she always seems to pull it off. Boundaries be damned.