Everywhen is showcasing artists, dreamers, visionaries and creative people who love to create magic and bring it to the playa. Alex Domingo is the creative mastermind behind Time Bandit and we sat down with him and got to know him a little better. Check out what he had to say below.
EW: What’s the concept behind Time Bandit?
AD: Time Bandit is an intergalactic, steampunk, bounty-hunting, space-time warping, pursuit vehicle. Once it tracks down fugitive targets, it can subdue and hold them with an abundance of house and deep house music.
EW: Anything to do with the Terry Gilliam film? What distinguishes Time Bandit from other mutant art vehicles on playa?
AD: Until you mentioned it, I was unaware of the movie, "Time Bandits". I might have poached the name from the Alaskan crab boat with the same name. I think the theme, copper paint and riveted appearance make it a little unique on the playa. I don't know, if I could make another art car because this one was an accident and I don't have any fabrication skills. My inspiration was an empty 5 gallon office water bottle. lol I had just finished building a cheapo fat tire bike for the burn when I glanced over at the bottle. I thought, laid on its side, it resembled a rocket engine. I glued some old plumbing parts on it, added some sheet metal screws (steamer ship riveted effect), painted it copper and added a large clock. I used a bungee cord to attach it to the bike's rear bike rack and took it to the desert. The whole thing was meant to be a joke, but the reception it received was crazy fun. It was so much fun, I knew I had to do something else with the theme. After a couple of different versions, it wound up as it is today.
EW: How many years have you been working on it? What is the base vehicle underneath, and where did that come from? What is your proudest achievement with this car?
AD: I started the car build in 2015 and worked all year on it, sometimes up to 10 hours per day. Time Bandit is built upon a 4 seater utv. I purchased the base vehicle new because I'd seen all my friends' issues building and operating old golf cart based art cars. I needed something something beefy and under warranty because the Black Desert was my super bowl and there wasn't enough time for a breakdown. Also, I needed a party machine that could haul up to six people. I created the theme out of junk from my kitchen, backyard, garage and the local hardware store. I'm like a little kid staring at something, imagining it is something it isn't. A quick rundown of the car includes garbage cans, soda bottles, sewage pipe, milk crates, pie tins, dryer vent hoses, wood stove parts, a bbq rotisserie, veggie steamer, ceiling vent covers, flower pots, shoe racks, towel racks, screen door handles, soda cup lids, and a vintage 1990 super soaker. I'm bumping tunes with a hi-res music player playing through six 1,000 watt self powered, professional dj speakers that are mounted up high on the roll age. When I'm not working on Time Bandit during the off season, I spend a lot of time cherry picking the dj music stores for next summer's playlists. The led lights and propane poofers make the car a lot of fun at night. I'm using old school LEDs instead of all the new tech. The chasing lights on top are meant to represent the car coming out of a wormhole or cosmic dust cloud. Time Bandit is my baby. It's turned into a never ending, fun, hobby that I've invested perhaps 1,500+ hours of time.
EW: Do you have a standout memory related to Time Bandit on the Black Rock Desert playa?
AD: Oh, I've had so much fun and great memories from surrounding the car, but the big one......having two of the El Pulpo crew come up to me on burn night (2019) and compliment my car and hand me some Pulpo swag. El Pulpo was the poster car for BM for many years. lol.
EW: Thank you Alex! We'll see you at the Everywhen event this summer!
