This Sunday: It's a Burnlab end of summer field trip!

All B'labbers and friends are invited to partake in an adventure to Cedar Point, the "roller coaster capitol of the world". A fun packed afternoon of big metal loopy things, fine amusement park cuisine and excellent people watching awaits!

As we're not very fond of schedules, there is no formal time of departure, but please do contact myself or Bethany if you're planning to go. A group bumper car takeover is a must...

If we all survive Ohio, join us later that Sunday night at the Detroit Eagle to wish dear friend Mike Trombley farewell before he heads off to Philadelphia. Mike will be playing all kinds of disco, postpunk, rock, soul and electro records from his amazing collection, along with Scott Z., Mike Kearns and Josh Dunn. The Eagle is located at 1501 Holden, just off Trumball between W. Grand Blvd. and I-94. It's free, drinks are only $2, and Monday is a holiday. No excuses.

This Friday in Detroit:

Our very own Derek Plaslaiko will be home from NYC and playing records with kindly maniac Ryan Elliott at this month's installment of Vault at Oslo.

Oslo: 1456 Woodward, Detroit | 10pm-late | $5


As previously noted by Doc, Focus Media is hosting Goodnite Comrade: a going away party for the lovable Denis Baldwin, who's moving to Florida for reasons beyond my comprehension. Bethany and I will be playing records along side a cast of characters who's collective genius is matched only by their collective recklessness. God help us.

Focus Media Bunker: 440 E. Lafayette, Detroit | 10pm-later | FREE

New Soviet album due this fall:

Primarily due to masterful song writing and production, Soviet was a refreshing standout among the dozens of electro-pop acts to emerge from Brooklyn around the turn of the millennium. Had he started making music fifteen years earlier, Soviet's Keith Ruggerio could have easily gone toe-to-toe with hypothetical peers on a John Hughes soundtrack album.

After extensive touring, a migration to Los Angeles, and forming the sound design and production company KAR Songs, Ruggerio is currently completing a new Soviet album for Kinetic Media, which released Hong Kong Counterfeit's Counterparts LP earlier this year.

A good night's sleep for the skeletally obsessed [via Josh].

The Covers Project is a growing database of songs covered by other artists.

My dad called. Gas right now is $3.30 in Canton, MI for regular unleaded. Looks like things aren't going to get any better either.

Thankfully, Detroit has one of the world's best pubic transporation systems. We may be the poorest city in the nation, but we've got a subway system unlike any other.

World Changing is also an exceptional blog. There site states, "WorldChanging.com works from a simple premise: that the tools, models and ideas for building a better future lie all around us."

Future Feeder is a blog "feeding technology, design and architecture." Highly recommended for the forward design crew. I could get lost here for quite awhile. Some of the things featured are emergent procedural landscapes, cloning, Lsystems, and sustainable future houses that run on spinach!

Anyone who followed my blog knows that I am a big fan of 1115.org. It's sharp, pointed writing with an unapologetic lean towards the left. From time to time, Matt and Jason stray and write on other subjects. This time around they pontificate on the upcoming battle between iTunes and the major labels.

Someone needs to sign these guys up for a full time job.

Prints of Jon Wozencroft's beautiful photography are currently on sale over at Touch. His photos have graced the covers of such artists Fennesz, Biosphere and Oren Ambarchi. Buy one and be the envy of all your record collecting geek friends.

Continuing on with my microsound tangent, the fine folks at 12k have redesigned their website and have a slew of new releases coming up in the pipeline from Frank Bretschneider and Ralph Steinbrüchel, Christopher Willits, and many others. Their sublabel, Line, also has new releases by Steve Roden and one from label head himself, Richard Chartier.

A collaboration with Ivan Pavlov, their performance of Chessmachine was undoubtedly one of the highlights of Mutek in 2004. This captures their performance from Los Angeles. A mixture of sound and strategy, it proves you can be high fallutin and artsy while still having a sense of humor about it all.


And finally, I'd like to send shout outs to Kevin McHugh and Will Calcutt.

As one of the most forward thinking, innovative people in electronic music, Carsten Nicolai has made me blush like a school girl several times over with his brand of uber-quiet minimalism, sine waves and soft tones. He's also one hell of a visual artist, and Anti-Reflex is a catalog of Nicolai's installations, all colorful and detailed with explanations into his work.

For those unfamiliar with his audio productions, he put out a collaboration disc (their second) with another student of awesome,Ryuichi Sakamoto.Here's an mp3 snippet.


He's pretty neat.

When You Are Your Own Client, Who Are You Going To Make Fun Of At The Bar?

shoegazers and indie rockers united, and what did you get (circa 95)? THE SWIRLIES, one of several underrated post my bloody valentine bands, like kevin shields�s brother�s band ROLLERSKATE SKINNY. both bands mixed beautiful with harsh like no one does anymore...if you like the idea of nice mixed with hardcore listen to track 2 from "shoulder voices". guaranteed customer satisfaction. and track 4...the beatles and my bloody valentine in a fist fight. and last but not least, label TOO PUREs answer to RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE, LONG FIN KILLIE. amazingly intense....

Cinespia offers the very Hollywood experience of sitting on a blanket in a cemetery, drinking wine and watching a movie. This is the last week, so grab a merlot.

Hey we're throwing a big stinkin going away party for our friend Denis Baldwin
AAAAAnd You're Invited

September 2nd, 2005 (that's this Friday)
10 PM until Denis falls over dead

Starring:

Our Guest: Denis A. Baldwin (and his gigantic ego)
M.C: Myself, drunk and loud

DJs and other musical types:

- Keith Tucker (Aux88 / Puzzlebox)
- Benji Hayes (Focus Media)
- Darkcube (Detroit Techno Militia)
- Dethlab (Burnlab/GHB)
- Sneak @ Datavibe (.net)
- Stos (Fist Clencher)
- T.Linder (Detroit Techno Militia)

Electro! Chaos! Anarchy! Hair Metal! Makeout Action! Bad 80s Radio Hits! Blood! Booze!

It's free if you love Denis

Location:

The Focus Media Bunker
440 E. Lafayette
Bricktown, Detroit 48226

More Info Here

How Will the World End?

(You find the darndest things while Googling for "giant lobsters"...)

1/2 gallon fake blood + 5 hours of electro + 1 room full of art school kids and assorted freaks = fun.

(Now what do we do for the Halloween party??)

GENERATIVE BLOGGERS WANTED. I'm looking for more contributors to the Generator.x blog I edit about generative strategies and the creative use of code in art and design. If you haven't seen the blog (Mike posted it a while back), have a look: Generator.x.

And to make this a bit more on-topic, check out the wonderful Teaching Turing by David Mellis. You need never be afraid of another finite state Turing Machine ever again.

been listening to old BROADCAST albums after hearing that they have a new one coming. i have decided that, after trying to figure out why i like them so much, they are a perfect mix of the best of STEREOLAB and LOW. weird but true...

a group you have heard sampled by the fugees and de la soul and whose mix of funk, afro, reggae, jazz, and 70s rock should be way better known: CYMANDE,further proof that the 70s were a decade maybe never to be surpassed musically, an idea furthered by the album the digable planets sampled, LONNIE LISTON SMITH's classic album EXPANSIONS. the title track should humble jamiroquai, and any album whose liner notes include the following can�t help but be something special:

"Also many thanks to the Creator for all the beautiful women in the Galaxy. Their inspiration enhanced the creation of this album."

For those who appreciate all things Detroit: "Made in Detroit: A South of 8 Mile Memoir" is out Sept. 13. A taste: here.

probably old news to detroiters, but i recently saw THE ISLAND with ewan mcgregor and scarlette johansson, shot partially in detroit and featuring such ccs photography department favorite locations as the old train station, the theater/car park (also seen in "8 mile"), and I-75 around the rouge plants. oh, the nostalgia of it all....

and speaking about hotties named scarlette, i hate to be such a loser as to mention this but i just met probably the hottest dj i have ever seen last week in barcelona SCARLETT ETTIENE. shes based in nyc, supposedly good, and, well, hot. painfully hot. (curses to my friend debbie for being with her and introducing me to her)

while blabbling ive been listening to the latest COMMON. not as experimental/interesting as his last but a nice return to soul/hip-hop/r&b which he does better. and shit, i just checked his website and hes got an amazing show coming up for los angeles residents:

9/10/2005
Los Angeles, CA / Wiltern Theater
Spin Off Grand Finals w/ Talib Kweli, Madlib & DIPLO

damn.....someone please go if you live there and tell me how it was. what a meeting of some of the best of the best...

This is interesting: The Celebrity Atheist List. From Isaac Asimov and Kurt Vonnegut Jr. to Asia Carrera...

[Given the massive amount of good karma that's come this way the past few months, I'm a little uneasy about even posting this. I guess I'm bumped down to the "ambiguous" list.]

Okay, one more mention...

When did Real Detroit get their website back up?

Thanks to Amy for the very nice mention! [scroll down]

"Ah, amore. From love such beautiful things are created. Presenting Dethlab, the hot new collaboration of creative masterminds Bethany Shorb (Toybreaker/God and His Bitches) and Michael Doyle (Dorkwave/Burnlab). The team plays really good records really badly... and looks good doing it. The two fiends of fancy chocolates and human flesh bring the latest creative offspring Sex and Sedition to Oslo the last Friday of every other month. It kicks off this week with Keith Kemp and Kelly Pink-O joining the mischief on the menu: sleazy electro, post-punk, gnarz-laden techno, theatrics and trainwrecks. Do the math, kiddies... that means there’s a Halloween party in the works. Expect quite the affair from the team that reveres blood as a fashion statement."

Last reminder, I promise.

Friday, August 26: SEX & SEDITION

Dethlab (dj)
and special guests:
Keith Kemp (dj)
Kelly Pink-O (live/dj)

OSLO, 1456 Woodward Ave., Detroit MI
21+ | 10pm | $5


Saturday, August 27: J+J+J & GOUDRON

Goudron (live)
J+J+J (live)
Johnny Sugar Rod (live)
+ members of Dorkwave (dj)

Lager House, 1254 Michigan Ave., Detroit MI
21+ | 9pm | $7

Happy birthday Servito!

Celebrate tonight at OSLO
1456 woodward | detroit mi. | 21+ | 9-3am
sushi. sake. champagne. cigars. cupcakes. dancing.
djs rob theakston | mike servito | todd osborn | james teague | patrick russell

[awesome flyer by Bethany]

The Burnlab-enhanced September issue of URB is on news stands now.

I swear the Parting Shot illustration was done before Sex & Sedition was developed, but I tend to work in overlapping themes...

(here is what the tiny blackletter text says.)

Give us it.

Beautiful work form Trollback + Company.

Miyakodub presents:

Video Turntable: uses a webcam instead of a phonograph needle, transparent discs with color patterns instead of traditional black discs with grooves, and a digital computer vision system instead of analog circuits to decode and produce sound. Multiple transparent discs can be stacked, creating different combinations of colors and thereby sound.

video

[via we make money not art]

T.Raumschmiere's new LP Blitzkrieg Pop has apparently been released three weeks ahead of schedule on iTunes.

Speaking of the godfather of Gnarz, here is a scan of the flyer for the Detroit show on Sept. 24th. I can't freakin' wait. :)

_{Blaze 3, 1963 | Acrylic on board | 37 1/4” x 37 1/4” | Private Collection}

Like Op?

coming up at Cranbrook Art Museum:
BRIDGET RILEY: PAINTINGS AND WORKS ON PAPER, 1963-2005
SEPTEMBER 3 THROUGH OCTOBER 30, 2005

This exhibition encompasses forty years of uncompromising and remarkable innovation, exploring Bridget Riley's characteristic and distinctive optically vibrant work. Her last exhibition in North America was at the Dia Center, New York, in 2000.

Riley's work is celebrated for its ability to engage the viewer's sensations and perceptions, producing visual experiences that are complex and challenging, subtle and arresting. Her paintings employ a simple vocabulary of colors and abstract shapes to generate sensations of movement, light and space. This exhibition traces the development of Riley's work from the early 1960s to the present day.

The Monster Engine

Comic and video game artist, Dave Devries has come out with a multi media book that brings children's drawings to life.
Monsters, Superheroes- and other scritch treasures.
Shows us how the simplest line can convey the most complex expression.
Great idea!

--

Earlier Dave McKean mention Parallel:
Simplicity of "Cages" lines -> depth of the "Dust Cover's" detail.
Brilliance.

Subject: Reinventing Television

Wired interviews Jon Stewart and Ben Karlin of The Daily Show.

---

You said there was an emerging recognition that television was just a delivery system, just a box to be filled with content. "The quality of what you do is not diminished by how far you are up on the dial," you said. "It's all just airtime."

Stewart: I agree. I agree with me.

Inspired by a co-worker, I have subscribed to a trivia thing formusic. The questions are pretty pedestrian, but kinda neat.



Join up if your work life needs a bit of a pick me up.

This year's Decibel Festival lineup is quite impressive, and features a showcase of Kranky and Ghostly artists ambienting the fuck out.

And speaking of Kranky, the label is gearing up for some seriously good mope music just in time for the cold rain of autumn, including releases from Dearborn's Windy and Carl and Windsor's Christopher Bissonnette.

Hooray for the state of Michigan.

Reminder: blood and electro at OSLO this Friday.



[Tongues firmly planted in cheeks, but this is serious business.]

It's either embracing the president's society of ownership platform, or just realizing I really don't need to be spending buckets and buckets of money on a shiny new car when my commute is less than two miles: Burnlab HQ has a fancy new set of wheels in the form of an '89 Saab 900 SPG. It's my third classic 900, and a serious collector's item among Saab geeks (only 841 were imported in 1989... considering probably 800 of those went to New England it's quite a find, all of which in Edwardian Grey with a Garrett H20 turbocharger, special Performance Group suspension, and all the goodies of the era.) The thing is faster and more nimble than most modern cars, despite an odometer reading of twohundredfourteenthousand miles(!) The '04 was an awesome piece of Swedish engineering, but this somehow a lot cooler...

Two new videos from the upcoming album by Ladytron are online. They're moving away from the electroclash past and into a far more satisfying early '90s sound. For fans of Curve (isn't that everyone?)

This new material is being called the discovery of the year. Ever heard of the nanoribbon? Jesus, technology is getting so insane. I recommend that everyone check out the home page of this site as well. It tracks the emergence of a whole new paradigm in our world that I firmly believe is going to overtake the old one in our lifetime. The future is going to be so amazing.

I like the way null.lab thinks. (Of course, I like just about everything that ends in -lab.)

null.lab is an architectural and space design, research and execution group based in Los Angeles. Our mission is to fuse the far reaches of human imagination and emotion into realized space. What "could" be possible is no longer accepted by our ideology of what "should" be possible.

Images of null.lab's interior for Bobco Metals at Archinect.

Previously only famous for the nation's top high school marching band, Jason Von Bondie, and enraged husbands stuffing their dead wives in freezers for years, my hometown of Canton does me proud once again by being home to a cottage industry of low budget horror movies.

And finally today, an autographed photo of Billy Dee Williams.

Stations is a new blag by Lee Isles featuring his travels through the NYC subway metropolis.

The amazing Reilly Brennan sent me this equally astounding article regarding the state of oil and its future. It's a lengthy read, so pull up a chair and a coffee.

Also, Peter Maass (the article's author) is said to be today's guest on Fresh Air. Check your local NPR station for listings.

Flicker Peep Show

Open daily from 10AM to 1:30AM until the 18th of June.
Location: Mediamatic ground floor
Post CS building, Oosterdokskade 5, Amsterdam

This Thursday, if you are in Detroit. No excuses.

WE'RE SMOKING CIGARS
(and eating cupcakes)

a pre-birthday celebration for Mike Servito
(and any fellow virgo....)

DJs:

The Cynic
Rob Theakston
Mike Servito
Todd Osborn
Patrick Russell


OSLO
1456 woodward
detroit mi.
21+/$5
9-3am

sushi. saki. champagne. cigars. cupcakes. dancing.

New Franz Ferdinand single up on URB.com

And this Thursday...

This fall promises not one, but two films to influence a new generation of goth kiddies:





From writer Neil Gaiman, designer/director Dave McKean, and Jim Henson Productions, Mirror Mask hits theaters September 30th.

MirrorMask is the story of Helena, a fifteen-year-old girl working for her family circus, who wishes-quite ironically-that she could run away from the circus and join real life. But such is not to be the case, as she finds herself on a strange journey into the Dark Lands, a fantastic landscape filled with giants, Monkeybirds and dangerous sphinxes. Helena searches for the Mirrormask, an object of enormous power that is her only hope of escaping the Dark Lands, waking the Queen of Light and returning home.

Word has it that McKean spent 18 months in post-production with a crew of only 17 grad students and spent a mere four million dollars making the film. Unbelievable for a Hollywood feature dripping with so much pure eye candy.






Tim Burton's second stop-motion feature length film Corpse Bride arrives Sptember 23rd and stars the voices of [surprise!] Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham-Carter.

Corpse Bride carries on in the dark, romantic tradition of Burton's classic films Edward Scissorhands and The Nightmare Before Christmas. Set in a 19th century European village, this stop-motion, animated feature follows the story of Victor (Depp), a young man who is whisked away to the underworld and wed to a mysterious Corpse Bride (Bonham-Carter), while his real bride, Victoria (Watson), waits bereft in the land of the living. Though life in the Land of the Dead proves to be a lot more colorful than his strict Victorian upbringing, Victor learns that there is nothing in this world, or the next, that can keep him away from his one true love. It's a tale of optimism, romance and a very lively afterlife, told in classic Tim Burton style.

New video for LCD Soundsystem's Tribulations by Doug Wilson. Hot.

No shortage of Burnlab-enabled elektro-weirdness next weekend in Detroit:





Next Friday Ms. Toybreaker and myself will be launching Sex & Sedition at Oslo, with very special guests Keith Kemp and Kelly Pink-O. Where high art meets sleaze and cheese. See dethlab.net for more details.




Then next Saturday night Goudron [a.k.a. Mr. Ron Zakrin, Ersatz Audio] wraps up his tour with J+J+J at the Lager House in Detroit. Super special additions include Johnny Ryan live, and record playing by members of Team Dorkwave.

Because counting backwards makes the time seem to go faster...

I'm apparently easily amused today.

Marking the beginning of the art season and New York Fashion Week, Deitch Projects is excited to announce THE ART PARADE, an artist parade that will take place Saturday evening, September 10, on Grand Street between Crosby and Wooster. Artists, performers and designers are being invited to create floats, placards, spectacles and street performances. In addition to invited artists there will also be an open call for parade projects... [thanks christina]

This guy is awesome.



(higher rez)

So wrong, yet so good.

[thanks Stephanie]

Hometown Heads-up!

Design Fest 05
Toronto New Media Festival
October 8, 2005

--

DesignFest '05 Speakers"

Alexandru Costin
"Building Usable Intranets"

Brandon Flowers
"Japanese Girls on Casual Gaming"

Gustavo Machado
"Job Seeking Resources For New Media Professionals"

Jason Chesebrough
"Workflow & Integration in Studio MX 2004"

Jim Babbage
"Creative Masking in Fireworks"

Joseph Lowery
"The Money Train: All Aboard for eCommerce"

Joyce Evans
"Roundtripping with Fireworks, Dreamweaver & Flash"

Julian Dolce
"Extending The IDE"

Kevin Airgid
"Web Designers Success Guide"

LordAlex Leon
"Best Practices with Macromedia Flex 1.5"

Martin Arvisais
"Best Practices with Macromedia Flex 1.5"

Phillip Kerman
"Flash Video: The Whole Story"

Tara Cleveland
"Using Web Standards with Macromedia Contribute"

Tom Green
"Topic TBA"

Wonderful.

The aptly-named life straw is an invention that could become one of the greatest life-savers in history. It is a 25 cm long, 29 mm diameter, plastic pipe filter and purchased singly, costs around US2.00.

[via engadget]

env bike

The beauty of env's design is intended to focus on emission-free technology.

lovers of star wars and future/sci-fi design: check out, again, the work of former car design collegue DANIEL SIMON. he has more talent in his middle finger than, well...he has finally quit his job as a car designer and hopefully will be a visionary for, probably whatever the fuck he chooses.

and by the way, all the work he did for the website was done as a hobby in his free time...

re-reading another classic: joseph conrads HEART OF DARKNESS. besides being the basis of APOCALYPSE NOW its also a work by an author acclaimed as one of the english languages best writers despite being ukranian and speaking english as his third language. not bad.

and oh, an alert to berlin burnlabbers: you have a new detroit boy among you - JASON CLARK - of PAXAHAU fame. MARIUS!!! i emailed jason about you and he is keen to meet up. email him. jaos@paxahau.com

Some weekly reading: Model D.

Dorkwave and the damage done: 79 more photos from this past Saturday's Les Infants Terribles. [courtesy of Sneak]

ADULT. will release their new LP Gimmie Trouble October 11th on Thrill Jockey, and will kick offf their largest tour to date in Toronto on October 19th.

"Everything more weird."

Fuck yeah.

Photos from the L.I.T. Summer Finale
[courtesy of Ms. Toybreaker]

Square Root Records' excellent debut compilation Catalog is now available in finer Detroit area record stores, such as Record Time. [Big thanks to Trevor from Spectral Mornings for the press copy.]

Nitrocorpz presents The Designers Mixtape [via Protein OS]

Cool idea - similar to Core77's Designers Playlist project a few years back.

Art Schools and Gambling:

Steven Holl has won the Albert Place Casino design competition, and his new School of Art and Art History building for the University of Iowa is delayed, but nearing completion.

[via Archinect]

Huge thanks to Dan Selzer for gracing Detroit with his brilliance and everyone who came out and danced like crazy people at the Les Infants Summer Finale last night. Apparenlty there were over 700 people throught the door, which is more than double the Interpol party last October(!) SO much fun.

If you missed it, or can't get enough of Dan, he'll be playing again tonight at the Detroit Eagle with Scott Zacharias and our good friend Mike Trombley. [1501 Holden, off Trumball, between W. Grand Blvd. and I-94]

Documentation soon.

The Maxalot Gallery in Barcelona is really amazing. There's some incredible work on their site.

mike, love the photos of you, wait...and...in broad daylight?...amazing...luv it(said with "snatch"-style souf lundun accent)

another plug for my favorite barcelona-based graphic design team INOCUODESIGN who just finished the cd for dj vadims new project ONE SELF (which sounds nice, a flow like ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT with newer beats). INOCUODESIGN will also be responsible for the forthcoming AEROC cd packaging from what i understand.

tonight.

be there.

you won't regret it.

you will regret it if you're not.

we promise.



Les Infants Terribles Summer Finale
Saturday, August 13

DJs TEAM DORKWAVE & special guest DAN SELZER

BAUHAUS 2005 CONCERT SCHEDULE

(insert bat sounds here.) Detroit: 11.19.05.

Back from 48 hours of excellent art, architecture, food and music in Boston. My better half has a few pics from the new ICA Boston, and of course, the Chemlab show we were so honored to be invited to play at.

You might think not performing live for seven years would make one a bit rusty, but Jared Louche and the current incarnation of the band was on full-power start to finish, tight as the tolerances on a Mercedes Benz, and the set list was dead perfect, ending with Summer of Hate, and an encore that included a cover of Science Fiction Double Feature from Rocky Horror. We were also thoroughly impressed by Scrap EDX a.k.a. Joshua Colella, whose machine music is refreshingly infectious, based on rich layers of mechanical sounds, stripped down, relentless rhythms, and solid compositions, more akin to Terrence Fixmer and early Probe releases than the all too common practice of trying to sound hard by playing breakbeats at ungodly BPMs.

Huge thanks to Bobby and Ellen for the generous hospitality, and to Jared for just being so awesome. For all the Boston kids who requested a set list, we'll post it on the Dethlab site soon.

Oh, one last note: our biggest score of the trip was a roll of skull tape from the Marc Jacobs store for a mere five bucks. Everything is going to be covered in black tape with fashionable little skulls on it! Yay skulls!!!

For most of us, the joy of flipping through stacks of vinyl records or CDs met its demise at the hands of the digital music revolution. Luckily, for OS X Tiger users, there's a superb new way of browsing your music collection with CoverFlow. It's the next best thing to flipping thru a crate, without all the dust.

Hotspot Bloom is a wearable wifi hotspot detector. The idea for Hotspot Bloom began as a portable sculpture for open parks around Manhattan, as there was little physical demarcation for open wi-fi networks.

I love you, don't you love me too. Its okay to fall down when you're dizzy.
don't be dizzy. you have to look busy, you're not alone you're not alone.



This is the first realisation of a device with Resonant Neuron Synthesis, called the "Resonator Neuronium". The Resonator Neuronium has 6 analog resonant neurons. The net parameters can be programmed by the lefthand structure in form of a hexagon by use of knobs, buttons and LEDs.

Resonator Neuronium

all hail the protein feed

There was a great show on NPR two days ago on the cultural impact of the atom bomb in post war Japan. They focus a lot on the work of the ever genius Takashi Murakami.

Check It Out, its a good listen

A List Apart

Its weird that... they have a feed via RSS 1.0, and they have a feed via RSS 2.0, but they have yet to upgrade to feed via INTRAVENOUS TUBE DIRECTLY INTO MY CIRCULATORY SYSTEM TO NOURISH MY BODYS NEED FOR WEB STANDARDS FOR FRONT-ENDERS.

which would be sweet


cSs : hXc

sk1 posting about mouse on mars (who were my favorites of sonar 2005) made me revisit my favorite album NIUN NIGGUNG. tracks 4 and 7 still kill me.

and a discovery i just made: a dash of red wine with a healthy helping of beer is not half bad. amazing what may lie ahead. the possibilities are endless.

just rereading what is now officially one of my favorite books, MONEY by martin amis. his 80´s social commentary fits beautifully between the 70´s commentary of john updike and the 90´s commentary of chuck palahniuk. one line i´ve just read, speaking about problems in modern cities: "I came of age in the 60´s, when there were chances, when it was all there waiting. Now they seep out of school - to what? To nothing, to fuck-all. The young () - they´ve come up with an appropriate response to this, which is: nothing. Which is nothing, which is fuck-all. The dole-queue starts at the exit to the playground."

(p.s: for a reason which i cannot figure out, all of my apostrophies come out weird due to, i guess, my spanish keyboard.. doh!)

sarah, your chickens scare me.

mike, terrorism does not suit you :)

Chris: Yup- so fake site design styles are amazing-
Also check out the mail order chickens site.

It's funny.

Interesting new selective hearing devices- Great concept that has no doubt gone through all of our minds as we attempt to exchange ideas, in a crowded bar- over the sound of others doing the same.

Will probably take out the type of noises I most enjoy as I walk down the street.
(Appreciating my 12k day)

-

"Social noise has tripled since the 1980s and most people struggle on a regular basis to have conversations in noisy places," said Neil Thomas, RNID's Head of Product Development. "These products demonstrate a massive potential for everyone to control and enhance their hearing."

The exhibit features personal hearing devices, such as aids that enhance conversational speech or filter out ambient noise in a crowded bar.

-

Next step: Leave the ambient noise in- Cut the mindless rants of the people around you...

Smile and nod.

The fact that this happened at the exact moment our flight to Boston left Detroit Metropolitan Airport is strictly coincidental. I swear.

(Greetings from Boston, by the way!)

while going thru banksy links i came across this webpage forBILLY HARVEY, leave the critque up to you musically but nice site

sarah(sk1)! thanks for the banksy post...jayzus that dude is a visionary with a ton of balls. should make fellow graffiti artists, political activists, and, well, anyone with a heart and brain give an incredible amount of respect. with that he has changed the rules of the game. we need more people like that.

NYC:

Semi-Permanent 05

9 and 10 September 2005
Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center

Semi-Permanent New York is a design event run by the crew at Design is Kinky, and The Happy Corp Global with the support of presenting partners Diesel.

Speakers:

Charlie White
Chuck Anderson
Diller Scofidio + Renfro
Fafi
Insertsilence
Joshua Davis
Lobo
Paul Pope
The Orphanage
Threadless / Skinnycorp
Visionaire
Speaker 12 TBC

Opening night party
---
Thursday 8th September - 9pm
Venue -TBC
Sponsored by the KDU & OverAmerica.
- Featuring the Royal Magazine issue launch.

Closing night party
---
Saturday 10th September - 9pm
Hosted by Vice Magazine.

Here he comes to save the day!

For the circuit bender types:

Get LoFi

Circuit bending blog/resource that includes:

Tips, images, audio, and video.
The lowdown on new instruments, Glitch art, Minimalist ideas, electronic music, etc.

--

side: The name toybreaker rules.

This is old news for many... For the few who haven't yet seen/heard: Gotta prop Banksy again.

I was a mad scavenger hunt kid- I love this guy.

Just returned (dusty and slightly disoriented) from Benicassim (FIB).

Highlights:

Saturday:

Day turns night with the goosebump-cue voice of Erlend Oye- Kings of Convenience were lovely... and a nice ballad balance for the sleazy-tech night to come.

Xiu Xiu moved nicely from subtle to stacked- a nice lead-in to Mouse on Mars. Great to see them again. I admit I enjoy their earlier sound quite a bit more.

Areal label showcase feat. Ada, Basteroid, Metope, Frank Martiniq- Sweaty, packed and SLICK! I love this label.

Shelbono/Sid leROCK- Rocking in style with a mic in one hand- and a bottle of whisky in the other. His cover of the Violent Femmes' "Add it up" was outstanding.

Keep an eye out for Sid's Lado labelmate, Lawrence. Unexpected sounds sprouting up out of each other. The kind of stuff you sketch out in your head. (note: no hallucinogens were used during this observation).

Sunday:

Pan_Sonic. They were great. Felt like a marionette.

Tigersushi's Panico were a definite highlight- Great presence on stage. The guitarist was crafty- definitely not just playing guitar. I appreciate when people cue feedback- no walls.

Ran around the DFA stage.

Proper blow out -> Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. Fantastic. I won't say more- the delete key is sore. Hope I retain the whole set.

Airbagcraftworks has beautifully constructed bags that are large enough to fit a laptop, mixer, and rca cables called the nerdbag.... Oh and they also sell this.

need more be said?

Les Infants Terribles Summer Finale
Saturday, August 13

DJs TEAM DORKWAVE & special guest DAN SELZER

NYC's "Best DJ's DJ", founder of Acute Records, and Alldisco/Beat Club resident, Dan is like a walking encyclopedia of electronic dance music from the early days of NYC ELECTRO, NO WAVE, POST PUNK, and ITALO, on up through the present day.

"Only Dan knows how a synthesizer really feels."

Dorkwave is pleased to bring him to Detroit for the very first time.

Corktown Tavern, 1716 Michigan Ave., Detroit MI
18+ | 10pm - ? | FREE!

i, reporting for burnlab, was lucky enough to be part of a recent meeting of great music-making minds: at CHRISTIAN SMITH´s apartment, christian, myself and JOHN SELWAY were blessed with the wisdom imparted by VINCENZO courtesy of his introduction to us of a higher source of knowledge:

HAPPY TREE FRIENDS.

I believe Rob is making reference to New York City's favorite DJ, who 'we hear' will be making his first ever Detroit appearance next Saturday.

More details later today.

I still maintain Detroit is not ready for what's coming to them.



(and I'm not talking about the previous post, either.)

From obscure, blood soaked side project to what promises to be Detroit's hottest new night in less than a month's time... but what else could be expected when you put together two of the city's most hyper-productive artists and shameless self-promoters? ;)

Dethlab presents Sex & Sedition, starting Friday, August 26th at Oslo. An evening of dark, sexy, stylish music and theatrics that will push the envelope of both creativity and everything you've been told is right and good in the world.

Sex & Sedition takes place the last Friday of every other month, alternating with Clark Warner's brilliant new Alpha night.

Not that the name and philosophy behind this project really needs to be explained to Burnlab readers, but here is a great article from the Metropolitan Museum of Art that sums up our point of reference quite nicely.

Punk was trash culture gone avant-garde and/or the avant-garde gone trash, and just as Dada had tried to destroy the institution of art, so the punks seemed bent on destroying the very institution of fashion.

What does this mean in the context of the post-everything 21st century? Find out August 26th.


+ don't forget: Dethlab will be in Boston next Wednesday, playing records and twisting knobs at the first live Chemlab performance in seven years. See Angeldustrial for more info.

White Label Detroit: hot.

[thanks Jimmy]

Primary Space, in collaboration with Detroit's own 7TEEN, is proud to present a four artist show featuring the street and graffiti influenced work of 7TEEN, LABRONA, OTHER, and THESIS. "from Four Zero One" will feature painting and installation work by all four artists beginning Saturday, August 6 and continuing through Saturday, August 27.

| 2750 Yemans St. | Hamtramck | Opening Reception Sat. Aug. 6, 6pm-10pm |

The URB Insider

A couple months late on this one. Sorry. Maybe you haven't seen Daft Punk's video for Technologic? Creppy little robot! eeeee-eeeee!!

This made my day.

...and this one is for Servito.

Silly Pink Bunnies: the work of Jeremy Fish



Also see the Wooster Collective Special Edition of Jeremy's work, I'm With Stupid.

Because skulls are cool.

For those of us on the bunk side of the pond, the time is upon us to begin making plans to attend this years Ars Electronica Festival. I'm way too lazy to tell you about it myself, so I'm gunna Ctrl+V it.

Since 1979, Ars Electronica has been dedicated to the critical discussion of and reflection upon media culture. With its focal point situated at the intersection of art, technology and society, it is above all the endeavor to nurture up-close-and-personal encounters involving artists, designers, philosophers, sociologists, engineers and scientists from all over the world that endow the Festival with its very special character.
This is not solely a matter of the computer as an artistic medium but, above all, of testing how new ideas that are emerging from artistic practice can be applied to science and society in an effort to influence the way in which new technologies are developed, designed and utilized.

- Gerfried Stocker, Christine Schöpf (Directors Ars Electronica)


I really want to go, but I probably wont. Ironic I'm afraid to leave Detroit? Yeah. But if you do go, I've electronically made my propaganda more visible than a 7 mile prostitute, so keep an eye out for it.

The Pentagon's new crowd control ray gun under question. Surprise.

The Active Denial System weapon, classified as "less lethal" by the Pentagon, fires a 95GHz microwave beam at rioters to cause heating and intolerable pain in less than five seconds.

Apparenlty rioters should be aware to remove glasses, contact lenses and any metal near their bodies to avoid permanent damage.

High res. full screen QTVR of Peter Eisenman's Holocaust Memorial in Berlin.

[via Archinect]

Walter Wasacz (who wrote the now infamous Losing Your Mind in Berlin and Revenge of the Dorks for the Metro Times) just forwarded this [not-so-flattering] photo of Solvent and I from the Detroit TasteFest a few weeks back. We sort of look like we're about to go do some serious investigative reporting or something...

(Thanks Walter, and happy birthday!)


Also, I just finished an illustratuion for the back page of next month's URB Magazine. Think Neubuaten meets World's End run through the Dethlab filter. You'll have to wait to see the whole thing, but I'm really happy with it, so here's a little teaser:

On Techno, Bernstein, Breaking & Entering, Cacao and Dinosaurs:

This past weekend's adventures began with a stop by the aforementioned skate culture exhibit at Detroit by Deisgn and Clark Warner's most excellent new semi-regular Minus night at OSLO on Friday, at which Jesse Siminski a.k.a. Heartthrob played an absolutely brilliant live set.



Saturday evening team Dethlab met up with Mr. Ozias at Campus Martius for an outdoor showing of the classic 1961 film version of West Side Story. (Of course, we came prepared with a picnic of fine cheeses, baguette, fresh plums, red wine and proper stemware for the occasion. If not already blatantly apparent, we do nothing half-assed.) The film is rich with quotes we're alredy scheming to sample for use in upcoming Dorkwave events, especially the dancehall scene featuring John Astin.



After the film, we took a little scouting trip by the abandoned Albert Kahn designed National Theater, which we had considered for a little urban exploration/photo shoot later in the evening. The National has been the subject of quite a bit of activity this past week - to the point where there would be way too much B involved in B&E for our fancy. Unfortunate for us, but I'm glad to see this historic site seems to be getting some much needed attention. (I just hope its being readied for renovation and not demolition, which I wouldn't put past the current city government...) We conceded to a scouting trip, via Saab, of Detroit's much more desolate far west side. Some excellent potential exploration spots you may very well read about here in the coming months.

Sunday was all about dinosaurs and chocolate. Our first stop was the University of Michigan Exhibit Museum of Natural History, which boasts a superb collection of fossils, taxidermy, and 1950s era exhibits, including wonderful dioramas and the sort of hand-placed dimensional text you only find in science museums that have yet to be subject to the tragedy of modernization.

From there it was off to the foodie Mecca known as Zingerman's to procure the finest in cheese, deli sandwiches, and chocolate. We were momentarily disappointed that they did not cary Vosges' Creole Bar I've been raving about, but we did discover the narcotic delight of 100% pure cacao. It's amazing this is legal. Scientific studies have yet to find hard evidence of chocolate causing real biochemical effects, which I say is bullshit. One little nib of this epicurean heaven pumped so much serotonin and endorphins into my system that my face actually went numb, and Bethany was subject to mild visual hallucinations and the condition known as "perma-giggle". (It probably didn't help the cause of objectivity by washing down pure cacao with the most potent espresso this side of Columbia.)





All cracked-out on caffeine and chocolate, we headed west on Michigan Ave. to Irish Hills, to check out some of the roadside attractions burned into my childhood memories. The most significant of these, the Prehistoric Forest has been closed down for several years now. The multitude of No Trespassing signs and flimsy barriers only made it that much more desirable, so of course we walked right in and got up close and personal with the most fantastically bad paper-mache prehistoric creatures to never roam the earth. As surreal as this place was as a child, multiply that by 100 to picture it in its derelict state today. Piles of broken down dinos, mastodon heads, and animatronic pterodactyls aren't something one runs across everyday.

More dino pics here.