Boxing With Robyn

This average (and two-minutes-too-long) remix by Ocelot of Robyn’s pseudo-hit from 2005 gets a new video that really packs a whallop midway through – some interesting camera work, some hopefully contractually obligated participants, one pink boxing glove, and some ungodly fast shutter clicks later, we have a music video that mostly has me wondering about what professional boxers must be enduring over their professional careers.

Saul Williams: The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of Niggy Tartust

Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor just posted the following on his blog:

Big news today!

As many of you know, I’ve been working closely with Saul Williams on his new record. We’ve spent many hours together in hotel rooms, busses, backstages and studios around the world working on something we knew was great. This is the most involved I’ve been with any project outside NIN since Antichrist Superstar, and I’ve been impatiently waiting for the chance for you to hear it.

Well… guess what?
The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust! has arrived!
After my own recent dealings with record labels we decided to release it directly to you. Head over to www.niggytardust.com for all the details. Register now and you can download the record November 1st.
Working on this project was a real pleasure. Saul was interested in breaking boundaries / crossing genres / defying expectations and we learned a great deal from one another in the process. When asked about the sound of the record, I’ve had to resort to “… I really don’t know HOW to describe it.” That’s a good thing more than ever these days.

A word on the way we’ve chosen to release this.
There are obvious similarities in how Radiohead just released their new record and the way we’ve chosen to. After thinking about this way too much, I feel we’ve improved upon their idea in a few profound ways that benefit you, the consumer. You obviously will be the judge of this in the end. One thing that IS very different in our situation is that Saul’s not the household name (yet!) that Radiohead is, and that means we need your support on this more than ever. If you like what you hear, spread the word.

I hope you enjoy the music,

TR

For Nine Inch Nails / Saul Williams / Hip Hop fans alike (not to mention music fans), this is GREAT, long-awaited news.

Make the logo bigger!

Hello WISCONSIN!
Let’s rock it out with Burn Back singing “Make the logo bigger”

Why Can’t Every Site Be Lateral?

 

Sometimes I despair of social networking sites. They have a promise of interesting connections and influences and then fall a bit short of the dream. Much like any kind of technology I guess. I’m thinking that Virb is not going to live up to it’s designer promise. The pages dedicated to Art, Photography and other creative output have not arrived, despite months of promises. I’m sure they’re busy and music is the easiest way into this business, but c’mon! Most of the people I chat with on the site are designers of some sort and how awesome would a chart of top illustrators on Virb be? Anyways, every now and then I’m surprised by someone that wants to be friendly and what they’re attached to.

The other day a guy called Franks contacts me on Virb. And it turns out he is the Head of Design (and a damn good drawer) at a company called Lateral, based in London. They’re an interactive type of agency who’ve done boat loads of work on Nintendo DS and Levis. While their portfolio is impressive, it’s their website that caught my attention. It’s a damn clever piece of information design. Slick, simple and fast. The expandable blocks provide excellent bite size pieces of information and the colour work is fun and intuitive. I think it’s built in Ajax.

It’s a lesson in how a single page can be an entire information architecture.

Lateral 

Zune Is Ass Backwards

I feel guilty beating up on the Zune, but Microsoft just makes it so easy.

(via Fake Steve Jobs)

See also: Crazy Balmer Zune Dance or Zune Becomes Slang for Wannabe. Ouch.

Paper Miniature Recording Equipment

I love papercraft, and I love old analogue equipment, so when you put the two together you can’t lose. The artist, danmcp, creates limited editions that he sells via email.

Radiohead’s OK Computer Turns X

Stereogum.com has released OKX: a tribute to OK Computer:

To celebrate the 10th anniversary of Radiohead’s OK Computer we’ve asked some of our favorite musicians to participate in a song-by-song covers compilation. Indicative of the album’s continued importance, each invitee jumped at the chance; the results are personal, intense, tellingly various. Slow down, dig in, enjoy. But note: we did this all legal and everything, so we can’t keep these up forever…get ’em before someone else does. Ambition makes you look pretty.

I find this album interesting. It’s a bit hit and miss, but it’s worth downloading it before it goes away (it won’t be up forever). Right now I like Marissa Nadler singing “No Surprises”, and David Bazan covering “Let Down”. But I’ve only listened through once so far.

I was really looking forward to how someone would do “Fitter Happier”, the depressed Stephen Hawkingesque poem, but I’m sad to say Samson Dalonoga’s rendition is worth an instant deletion.

The Twilight Sad’s “Climbing Up The Walls” and John Vanderslice’s “Karma Police” are also worth pushing through your head.

Other featured artists include Doveman, Slaraffenland, Mobius Band, Vampire Weekend, Cold War Kids, My Brightest Diamond, and Flash Hawk Parlor Ensemble. Kudos to stereogum for putting this all together.

5″ LP CDs

I want some of these pre-printed blank CDs from 5inch. Talk about sprucing up your mix ‘tape’ collections.

Really Fake Plastic Trees

Described by headphonesex as sounding like “Stephen Hawking f***ing a Commodore 64″, mr_hopkinson’s computer sings [v.2.0] just arrived in the mail from eBay in the UK. I am especially fond of the Fake Plastic Trees cover, which manages to sound lonely and sad, even though it is sung by a fake plastic voice.

Now normally I hate it when you can’t get instant gratification and download an album immediately. But there is also something archaic and fun about actually getting things in the mail. What these guys didn’t capitalize on was putting some extra cool stuff in the package. There could have been mr_hopkinson’s computer stickers. Or a tiny catalogue of other obscure music, with secret links to streaming versions. There could have been a fanclub, iron-ons, where to get t-shirts, a tram ticket stub from the UK, a hand-written note with a smiley face, a napkin, a paperclip… anything! There was a paper CD sleeve, with a hand-glued label on it. And a bad postcard-sized advertisement for art on ebay.

This is the second album I have purchased through snail-mail (the first being Fort Awesome by The Mathletes), and I love them. They are physical items virtually nobody else has and that makes me feel (oxymoron alert:) geeky and cool. The music is odd, but it’s something I might slip into a mix-tape, or play at a party, and keep people guessing.

Laser Phonograph