‘Katachi’: A Mesmerizing Animation of 2,000 Plastic Silhouettes

02 Feb 2013 Leave a comment

by Ed Cyphers in General Posts Tags:

(reprinted from The Atlantik)

Shugo Tokumaru’s music seems deceptively simple, at first. “He creates toy-box indie pop with his vast collection of noise makers and a computer,” Pitchfork’s Joe Tangari explains in a review for Tokumaru’s latest album, In Focus? “[He] can pile instruments all over each other in a way that makes no sense on paper and then make it come off as the most natural thing in the world.” Two Polish artists, Katarzyna Kijek and Przemyslaw Adamski, seem to approach stop-motion animation the same way. For this music video for “Katachi,” which means “shape” in Japanese, they layered thousands of PVC cutouts to create dynamic, 3-D sculptures.

If Your Dance Moves are Better than These People…

01 Feb 2013 3 Comments

by Ed Cyphers in General Posts, On a Lighter Note Tags:

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Come to Bossa Nova This Friday and Saturday!

Friday_Saturday_DJ_Web

Songs You May Have Missed #316

01 Feb 2013 Leave a comment

by Ed Cyphers in Best of the Blog, Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ,

magic pie

Magic Pie: “Full Circle Poetry” (2005)

Reason number one to either love or hate prog rock: songs that don’t even get to the chorus for seven minutes. As much as I appreciate epic ambition, concept albums and the like, it’s a rare 14-minute song that I really enjoy. This is one.

These Norwegian proggers aren’t cutting edge innovators of the genre. Rather they tend to construct their epics from pieces nicked from classic-era bands such as Yes, Kansas and Gentle Giant.

Which is okay by me. Hardcore progressive rock fans are notoriously immoderate in their criticisms of derivative bands, concepts and sounds–as if the genre should reinvent itself every time a band releases an album. Sometimes it should be enough to simply appreciate an artist rearranging the existing pieces into something agreeable. The vocals, the musicianship and the song craft here are exemplary. It’s okay with me that I hear echoes of more original bands from a past era. In fact, it’s kind of comforting. Most of the time I don’t require music to challenge me, only to please me.

What a concept.

K-Tel Record Selector Commercial

31 Jan 2013 Leave a comment

by Ed Cyphers in General Posts, On a Lighter Note Tags:

 

…and some hilarious comments from YouTube viewers:

  • That’s great if you only have about 10 records. I hear this new invention called shelves works pretty well too…
  • I got one of these too as a gift but I hardly used it. It didn’t handle double albums well, and the slot that held each sleeve stressed the edge of the record and warped the vinyl. The records also did not rest completely upright but leaned against each other, causing further warping. The thing was a big heap ‘o fail.
  • Do you get the impression that problems were a little simpler back then?
  • Rec-ORD!
  • He lost me on “space age”.
  • That sure is a terrible collection of LPs.
  • Hahaha, I have like all of those records!
  • If you look closely, you can see the lead in the paint on the walls and the asbestos particles in the air. haha XD
  • This belongs in the hall of shame right next to the DVD REWINDER.
  • “Space-Age Design” I believe refers to the fact that it was design by NASA (obviously for the Apollo missions) to keep the astronaut’s record albums from floating all over the space capsule in zero-gravity, risking lives and damaging equipment.
  • “I sure hope I can impress Janey with my groovy HI-Fi, if i can only stop dumping my albums on the floor like a dork”
  • the ‘space age’ was in the early ’60’s. what the hell was wrong with standing your albums against a wall on the shage carpeting? I would’nt trust this idiot near a turntable.
  • This is the original “digital” selector, using any digit you care to use.

There are no less than three Tijuana Brass albums in his collection.

I’m tempted to say he’s a dork for this. But I have twelve.

Beyoncé Practices Singing Until Her Feet Bleed, Turns National Anthem Into Self-Serving Stunt

31 Jan 2013 9 Comments

by Ed Cyphers in Best of the Blog, General Posts Tags: ,

super bowlRolling Stone reports:

Beyoncé Sings National Anthem Live at Super Bowl Press Conference

‘Any questions?’ pop star says with a laugh

Beyoncé opened a Super Bowl press  conference on Thursday afternoon in New Orleans with a rousing rendition of the  national anthem – and this time it was definitely live. After a rapturous round  of applause by the media in attendance, the singer took questions about her upcoming Super Bowl gig as well as her controversial  lip-syncing of “The Star-Spangled Banner” at President Obama’s second inauguration last week.

“I am a perfectionist. One thing about me, I practice until my feet bleed, and I did not have time to rehearse with the orchestra,” Beyoncé said. “It was a live television show and a very, very important, emotional show for me – one of  my proudest moments. Due to the weather, due to the delay, due to no proper sound check, I did not feel comfortable taking a risk. It was about my president and the inauguration, and I did not want to take away from that. I decided to go  with a pre-recorded track, which is very common in the music industry. And I am  very proud of my performance.”

Beyoncé added that  she will be “absolutely singing live” at her Super Bowl performance this coming Sunday. “I am well rehearsed. I will absolutely be singing live. This is what I was born to do.” 

It’s bad enough that our National Anthem is turned into an episode of The Voice on a regular basis–merely seen as a chance for singers to showcase their abilities of song embellishment. But here it was actually used merely to make a point–to give the media the finger in reaction to criticism the singer received for her previous lip-synched performance.

I guess the song really isn’t as sacred as I grew up believing. Because contrary to its lyrics, which suggest it’s a song about pride in the brave, indomitable American spirit, it’s usually rendered with all the faux agony and ecstasy of a breakup song or Marvin Gaye seduction anthem.

If we do need a new National Anthem, as some suggest, it’s because we need to start from scratch. We’ve added too many superfluous spangles to the current one.

Yes, I have a question, Beyoncé: What’s up with rehearsal causing bleeding feet? Does that happen when you sing with too much sole?

Songs You May Have Missed #315

31 Jan 2013 4 Comments

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ,

rosanne

Rosanne Cash: “Beautiful Pain” (2003)

A typical Rosanne Cash album can be counted on to contain a mix of her insightful, personal originals and well-chosen material from other writers that sounds as though she could have written it.

“Beautiful Pain”, penned by Craig Northey and featuring backing vocals from Sheryl Crow, leads off her excellent Rules of Travel album and perfectly sets the tone for her first release in roughly seven years, which is a typically soul-baring rumination on the nature of long-term committed love.

Rosanne’s husband John Leventhal produced the album with meticulous sonic detail. Given that he’s known to be a huge Beatles fan, I can’t help wondering if that accounts for the drum sounds in the instrumental break, which seem to mimic the sound Ringo got by slackening his drum heads for a deeper “thump”.

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