Take3DVD

Maybe you already had a fascination with Saul Bass’ celebrated movie title sequences, or maybe you gained one from yesterday’s post about the current designers he’s inspired. Either way, you can round out your understanding of the man’s artistic sensibility by watching Why Man Creates (part one, part two), the animated film by Bass and his wife/collaborator Elaine which won the 1968 Academy Award for Documentary Short Subject. An eight-part meditation on the nature of creativity, the film mixes animation and live action, using Bass’ advanced repertoire of optical techniques, to look at the issues surrounding how and why humans have, throughout the history of civilization, kept on making things. It begins with early hunters felling a beast and making a cave painting out of it. From that cave rises a tower built out of every major phase of human civilization: the wheel near the bottom, the pyramids somewhat higher up, the literal darkness of the Dark Ages as the camera rises higher still, ultimately capped by a heap of planes, trains, and automobiles. One wonders how Bass might, in an update, have stacked his representation of the internet atop of all this, but the sequence’s datedness costs it none of its virtuosity.

via open culture

Published on Mar 14, 2012 by NASAexplorer
From year to year, the moon never seems to change. Craters and other formations appear to be permanent now, but the moon didn't always look like this. Thanks to NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, we now have a better look at some of the moon's history. Learn more in this video!

This video is public domain and can be downloaded at: http://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/goto?10930

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http://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/iTunes/f0004_index.html

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(Credit: Orfield Laboratories)

via games.yahoo.com

If you've been to a crowded airport, sporting event, or even a kid's birthday party lately, a little peace and quiet might sound like the perfect thing to help you kick back and relax. Just don't let things get too quiet, or you might drive yourself a wee bit insane: the anechoic chamber at Orfield Laboratories in Minnesota can mute 99.99% of all sound, but visiting the silent oasis isn't as calming as you might expect.

Uploaded by TheGuardian on Mar 12, 2012

Ceramic artist Pamela Mei Yee Leung discusses her influences, from Chinese mythology to European folk art. In one of her last interviews before her death in October 2011 after an 11-year battle with cancer, she reflects on how her work has formed a diary of her struggle with the disease.

via www.huffingtonpost.com

Ault, who was 19 at the time and visiting from southern California, attended the launch with his parents, Bernice and Robert, and his friend Bill Graber. He filmed the event with his Chinon Super 8 film camera while Graber snapped photos.

Like many home movies, the film sat untouched in a box in Ault's house for decades. Until last week, it had been 26 years since he had seen the film, which The Huffington Post licensed from Ault.

via www.youtube.com

Uploaded by BBC on Dec 31, 2010
More about this programme: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00x1yny

Materials scientist Dr Mark Miodownik reveals that we are now capable of making fibres that, in theory, should be strong enough to support an elevator that could carry objects from the Earth 36,000 km up to space.

Also read:  A 'space elevator' by 2050?
A Japanese firm would like to take tourists spaceward, to a station connected to a 22,370-mile stretch of cable. Could it happen?

via:  http://theweek.com/article/index/224862/a-space-elevator-by-2050

via www.bbc.co.uk

We often worry about lying awake in the middle of the night - but it could be good for you. A growing body of evidence from both science and history suggests that the eight-hour sleep may be unnatural.

via blogs.wsj.com

I recently gave a lecture, screened on the BBC, about quantum theory, in which I pointed out that “everything is connected to everything else”. This is literally true if quantum theory as currently understood is not augmented by new physics. This means that the subatomic constituents of your body are constantly shifting, albeit absolutely imperceptibly, in response to events happening an arbitrarily large distance away; for the sake of argument, let’s say on the other side of the Universe.

ABOUT

Biography

I LIKE TRAINS are a hidden treasure. Haunting instrumentation and broken, world weary vocals portray a tender depiction of tragedy, past, present and future.

Building the bricks of a productive creative partnership, over the past six years I LIKE TRAINS have perfected their craft. Their sullen heart felt songs wash across you like a sea of wondrous turmoil. I LIKE TRAINS have had their music featured on Hollywood film trailers, adverts and television, including an episode of cult series CSI:Miami. In October of 2007, the band released their debut LP, ‘Elegies To Lessons Learnt’ which contained a captivating collection of tracks documenting a series of historic downfalls and the mistakes we failed to learn from. The band are set to release their eagerly awaited second LP later this year. Whilst articulating the morose truths of life, the band provide a ray of light with their gentle flowing guitars, rich earthy vocals and glimmers of exultant choral euphoria that show hope within despair.

I Like Trains - The Shallows by I LIKE PRESS

A playlist of music tracks with ‘white’ in the title.

A sample of this Chingford based band’s latest album, which is already available in the UK but due to be released in the US 15 Sept 2009.
They are new to me but have great energy and enthusiasm, just the music to start off this weekends bank holiday.
This is what a fan (Rifleshardcore) thinks of this album:

“The Rifles, in one record, have moved themselves from a humble London-based quartet, seemingly happy with their massive cult following, to a band who appear to have finally realised that, quite literally, no-one else does what they do as well as they do it, and they deserve recognition.
And long may that continue.”

To celebrate the 40th anniversary of the legendary 1969 Woodstock Festival here are live recorded highlights from Day 2 compared by J T Bison of The LIVE Jackd Radio Show.

Patrick Watson is a musical mad scientist. He’s an internationally acclaimed singer, composer, songwriter, and producer. Patrick Watson is also the name of this mad genius’ band, fleshed-out like Frankenstein by Robbie Kuster, Mishka Stein, and Simon Angell.

Both the man and his monster have received international acclaim since the September 2006 release of Close to Paradise in Canada. The first-ever release on Secret City Records (based out of the band’s native Montreal), Close to Paradise propelled Patrick Watson quickly into stardom; it went gold in Canada, and won numerous awards, including Canada’s prestigious Polaris Prize. The album saw international release in September 2007, and the band hasn’t looked back, selling over 100,000 copies worldwide. Since then Patrick Watson’s fanbase seems to have grown exponentially, with the live show now commanding huge audiences across the world, from Paris, to Reykjavik, Amsterdam, London, New York, and of course, Montreal, where Watson and most of the band still resides.

Despite the internationally demanding schedule, Watson himself also found time to contribute to Cinematic Orchestra’s 2007 album, Ma Fleur, and to compose scores and songs for a number of films—something he has always had a passion for. It should come as no surprise then, that the band’s music is often described as cinematic and wildly eclectic. In fact, this aspect of their sound can be traced back to Watson’s earliest musical days. While he was honing his angelic voice at age seven singing in local churches on the West Island of Montreal, he also grew up studying classical and jazz piano performance, arrangement, and composition. His first recording project was an experimental suite of music set to a series of photographs by Quebec artist, Brigitte Henry. To this day you can still hear a composer’s ear behind even the band’s most accessible pop songs.

Watson met guitarist Simon Angell in their hometown of Hudson, Quebec while they were barely teenagers, and the two have collaborated ever since—Angell’s soundscapes and noise-influences having developed into the perfect complement to Watson’s colourful melodic compositions and gut-wrenching falsetto. Then, while studying music at Vanier College in the late-nineties, Patrick had met Ukrainian-born Mishka Stein, and Swiss/British Columbia ex-pat Robbie Kuster, who were increasingly invited to fill out his rhythm section when performing live shows (with Angell having long-since become a permanent fixture). Though still Watson’s project, an informal residency at the legendary Café Sarajevo and an eerie live chemistry between the four musicians quickly led to more group writing and a growing word-of-mouth fanbase.

Just Another Ordinary Day was self-released in 2003 as a result, and stands as a kind of snapshot of a band in formation, highlighting the bands penchant for dreamy soundscapes (echoing Sigur Ros, Bjork and Radiohead), with Watson’s voice as the centerpiece. Through 2004 and 2005 buzz on the band’s live shows lead to performances with an impressively diverse group of artists, from Phillip Glass and Steve Reich, to Feist. In the summer of 2006, they even invited on a European tour with the late James Brown, a fitting last leg to the first chapter of their story. Close to Paradise was released immediately after, in September 2006.

Patrick Watson and his bandmates spent most of the latter half of 2008 in Montreal recording the follow-up to Close to Paradise—Wooden Arms, which will be released in spring 2009.
Reference: Patrick Watson website

Here’s a selection of tracks from their 2006 album “Close To Paradise”.

This indie band from Chapel Hill, N.Carolina have recently released their latest album “Not For Everyone Just For You”.
Relatively unknown, North Elementary is a music collective revolving around the songwriter, John Harrison. There are a number of tracks which I particularly liked and would predict that they wont remain on the sidelines for very long.
The album can be heard as a stream on their myspace page or as a preview I have 3 tracks here:

North Elementary - Ones In Love

North Elementary - Golden Tigers

North Elementary - You Have A Heart

Here is my latest “mixtape” of artists compiled on Jango.

Explosions In The Sky

Explosions in the Sky is an American instrumental post-rock band from Texas. The band has garnered popularity beyond the post-rock scene for their cinematic, elaborately developed guitar work, narratively styled instrumentals, what they refer to as “cathartic mini-symphonies,” and their enthusiastic and emotional live shows. They primarily play with three electric guitars and a drum kit, while band member Michael James will at times exchange his electric guitar for a bass guitar.

Welcome Ghosts

Little Black Dress

Little Black Dress is the brainchild of veteran Dallas musicians Toby Pipes and Nolan Thies. The two have collaborated on the writing, engineering and producing of all the cuts that will appear on their upcoming debut album in 2009. Their unique sound might remind you of a deep-cut track from one of your favorite 4 A.D. compilations with influences spanning decades of innovative music - from synth driven sounds of Depeche Mode and Cabaret Voltaire, to the droning but noisy guitars and under-stated vocals of My Bloody Valentine and The Jesus and Mary Chain, to the layered melodic swirling of the Cocteau Twins.
Along with Toby (vocals, guitars) and Nolan (vocals, bass), Little Black Dress is backed by Brent Elrod (guitars), Earl Darling (drums), Cooper Heffley (electric drums/keys) and Taylor Tatsch (guitars).

Robin

American Analog Set

The American Analog Set, also known as The AmAnSet, is an indie rock band from Austin, Texas, USA. The group is led by singer and guitarist Andrew Kenny. Additional members include or have included Lee Gillespie, Mark Smith, Craig McCaffrey, Tom Hoff, Lisa Roschmann and Sean Ripple. Their name derives from their preference for analog rather than digital recording media. Formed in 1995, the group has released six full-length albums the latest one being Set Free, which was released on September 20, 2005 in North America.

In October 2005, rumours began spreading across the internet that the group was on the verge of disbanding. The band quickly refuted such rumours, but added that they may not tour again due to their obligations with other projects.

Immaculate Heart 1

The Uglysuit

Made up of six friends from Oklahoma City ranging in age from 20-23, The Uglysuit brings a different mentality to what they do – remarkably fresh-faced and honest, the band believes in letting loose, fostering a heartfelt atmosphere of hope and love, and works hard to shape what comes naturally. Playing together since their early teen years has given them an almost familial connection which shines through on their beautiful, fully-realized debut album. The Uglysuit’s music is an extended love song to the notion that everything is possible, yet nothing is guaranteed. It’s born of excitement and energy and built on potential and promise. It’s based on the premise that change exists in everything, and where a wide-eyed view of the world doesn’t equal naiveté. It reminds us that we are alive, and that maybe it’s not too late.

Everyone Now Has A Smile

A Classic Education

A Classic Education come from Bologna, Italy. Part Canadian, part Italian. The band has been going for just under a year. Much has happened since. A Classic Education has been invited to play or toured with Arcade Fire, Modest Mouse, Lightspeed Champion, Okkervil River, Hot Club De Paris, Fanfarlo, Jeremy Warmsley. They have played a selection of London’s best club nights such as White Heat, Club Fandango and Twee As Fuck. This past summer the band have been invited to play the Indietracks Festival alongside bands such as Los Campesinos!, The Wave Pictures & The Wedding Present. With their debut "First EP" (distro by Rough Trade), a limited edition 12" that documented the first year as a band, they have been gathering praise and hype from some of the most respected music blogs and websites in the world such as The Torture Garden, Drowned In Sound, Sixeyes, Chromewaves, Music Slut, Song By Toad, Sweeping The Nation, 17 Seconds etc. The band has been busy recording songs with uk musician and producer Jeremy Warmsley (Transgressive Records).

Stay Son

Datarock

Many moons ago, atop one of seven mountains surrounding a picturesque Norwegian countryside, two scruffy-faced individuals-Fredrik Saroea and the man known simply as Ket-Ill-made a pact to alter the face of contemporary music as we know it by single-handedly transforming themselves into what they called the peak of pop evolution. Already home to indie-pop luminaries like the Kings of Convenience, Röyksopp, Annie, Ralph Myerz, and Even Johansen of Magnet, Bergen’s southwest coast would be a fertile proving ground for their exploits, but far be it from Fredrik and Ket-Ill to sit back and let the buzz come to them.* DIY punk rockers by nature, but heavily influenced by the distinctive style and stage presence of groups like Talking Heads and Devo, the boys decided to ditch the thrash guitars in favor of the simple yet versatile Casio MT-64 keyboard and a Roland Groovebox. Toss in matching red track suits, a penchant for Transformers and John Hughes flicks, and two pairs of vintage Porsche wraparound sunglasses and you’ve got a little something called DATAROCK. Their first full-length CD, Datarock Datarock (Nettwerk Music Group; June 12, 2007), takes the feel-good vibe of "Computer Camp Love," turns it up to 11, and blasts a power chord of throwback nostalgia that’ll knock you straight out of your Reebok Pumps. Love letters to Laurie Anderson ("Laurie") and references to Close Encounters of the Third Kind ("Princess") are just the tip of the iceberg. The album’s infectious first single, "Fa Fa Fa," pairs up dance-rock drums with funk-strummed guitars and a chorus that’ll have you jonesing for the nearest copy of Talking Heads’ 77. "Ugly Primadonna," meanwhile, is pure four/four Groovebox robotics and space age Casiotone melodies.†† On "I Will Always Remember You" (featuring Annie), Fredrik does his best Wayne Newton, verbally undressing you with his velvety pipes over a bed of freeze-dried strings before formally "sexing you down" on "Sex Me Up." But more so than any other track on the album, the opening "Bulldozer" perhaps best encapsulates the band’s true modus operandi. Whereas Kraftwerk glorified the Trans-Europe Express and the Tour de France, Datarock prefer to sing the praises of a more proletarian method of transportation: the BMX. Which, according to the Fredrik and Ket-Ill, "is better than sex."

FA-Fa-Fa