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RIP: Ronnie James Dio
Further to the Six Degrees post, I've just read that Black Sabbath super-sub Ronnie James Dio has passed away, aged 67. RIP.
17th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Six Degrees of Black Sabbath
Like an automated version of the Six Degrees game you can play counting the clicks between items on IMDB, Six Degrees of Black Sabbath will link two artists together ...though not always in exactly 6 clicks.
I have yet to defeat it.
17th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
John Frusciante vs Omar Rod-Lop
Pay-what-you-like album up from John Frusciante and the Mars Volta's Omar Rodriuez Lopez.
Recorded on 4 track a few years back, it's not always pretty - but can be pretty awesome.
17th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
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Why I Steal Movies... Even Ones I'm In: Peter Serafinowicz On Piracy, Downloads and the death of Hard Copies
v interesting take from peter @serafinowicz on the whole digital v hard copy debate that we know a lot of chimps out there are having at the moment
"In the meantime, I'll be suing myself for pirating my own show. And I'm pretty scared, because I have an amazing lawyer."
#chimp71
#Film
#Music
#Tech
#Websites
15th May 2010 - 2 comments - Add Comment - Tweet
Skate or die: Forties - Amigos
A stellar slice of 90's skateboarding for today's episode of Skate or Die. I've been digging around for this one for ages, so great to finally find it buried away on the defunct Google Video.
Arty pixel-vision, jazzy music and best-of-all hair-raising downhill skating on the streets of San Francisco.
Forties: 'Amigos'.
14th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Jeff Bridges HD
Some interesting stats on the lack of Jeff Bridges movies available in High Definition. Strange, considering his seemingly solid box office appeal and recent Oscar confirmed status.
All this is really just an excuse to pull a couple of quotes from the man when he recently picked up a handful of awards for his movie Crazy Heart.
On The independent Spirit Award: "Now THIS is really gonna tie the room together".
On The Golden Globes: "You're really messing with my under-appreciated status here".
14th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Stormtroopers 365
in case you missed yesterday's Metro, another fun project: Stefan Le Du has been taking pics of his Stormtroopers every day
14th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
@ferris_bueller_? @ferris_bueller_?
in another pointless/brilliant exercise from the online world, someone has tweeted the whole of Ferris Bueller - twitter.com/ferris_bueller_
13th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Unofficial Titus
I like the idea of this unofficial Titus Andronicus compilation - put out by fans, with possibly some vague approval / no protest from the actual band.
Download Feats of Strength here. It rounds up a load of b-sides, rarities and live tracks, incluidng a cover of Weezer's Say It Ain't So.
13th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
LCD & The National on Jools Holland
LCD Soundsystem and The National were among the acts on Jools Holland's live show last night. Watch that on iPlayer here or catch the finished show tomorrow night on BBC 1.
12th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Real Life Flubber?
well, not quite, but Wired have an interesting story on the development of Sugru a kind of mega-silly putty substance "with waterproof, adhesive and heat-resistant qualities, and it sets at room temperature."
12th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Fight!
just in case you missed any of the Boulton meltdowns on Sky News, here's a handy recap
#chimp71
#CurrentAffairs
#Stupido
12th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
iElectribe For iPad
Korg have launched an app version of their analog-synth/sequencer Electribe-R for the iPad. Have to say, this is the first iPad-specific app I've read about that's made me think it could be anything more than a slightly slippy flatscreen
11th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Trailer Park: The People v George Lucas
some earthbound Jedis are not going to let it lie
11th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Hair Lift
Got a lot of hair lying around? Donate it to Matter of Trust's Hair Lift program, which is collecting hair from salons all around the world to help soak up the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
This is no joke. I might shave my biker tash just to chip in.
Via BBC
10th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
The Big Picture: Vietnam 35 Years Later
A typically outstanding collection of pictures up at The Big Picture, documenting the 35th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War.
This one caught my eye. Look how neat those protest signs are!
10th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Will It Shred? iPad
Built To Shred host Jeff King and pro skater Chad Knight test the new iPad 3G
#chimp71
#IPhone
#Skateboarding
#Tech
10th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Promo Promo: The Fall - Bury! PTS 2+4
Nice slow-mo pro-mo up from The Fall's new album - Your Future Our Clutter
7th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Rollins and Danzig Forever
Love the sound of this mini comic - Henry & Glenn Forever, documenting the fictional civil partnership between Glenn Danzig and Henry Rollins. Hall & Oates are their neighbours.
Via Ian C Rogers
7th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Ken Loachtube
YouTube are still creeping towards feature film distribution - and Ken Loach is the latest director to get his catalogue online. Watch Kes, Poor Cow, Cathy Come Home, Riff Raff and more here in their entirety.
7th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Pavement Ist Rad! Tomorrow at The Windmill
Don't miss tomorrow's Pavement Ist Rad gig at Brixton's Windmill, featuring Spanish indie legends Men Called Him Mister.
BBQ at 5.15. Bands covering Pavement all day. Tickets here. Look out for the chimps.
7th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
You Sir are no Barack Obama
when good propoganda goes bad. someone tell Shep. more spoofs here
#chimp71
#CurrentAffairs
#D.U.D.(DumbUpDudes!)
6th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Trailer Park: Crank 2: High Voltage
We've totally missed the boat on this one, as I caught the end of it on TV last night - but thought it was worth a few bytes of your time for a couple of reasons:
1) It's the loopiest concept I have seen in a long time
2) The production is also bonkers, shot entirely with hand-held consumer video cameras - mostly at super-fast shutter speeds of 1/1000 or 1/2000th of a second
Check it out here. The trailer's probably enough for most people.
5th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Promo Promo: Gayngs - Cry
new Jagjaguwar supergroup Gayngs w Justin "Bon Iver" Vernon
5th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Map Of Swing Seats
the Guardian has a map up of all the swing seats in Thursday's election
5th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Trailer Park: The American
Trailer up for the new George Clooney/Anton Corbijn thriller The American. Clooney plays the American.
4th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Skate or die: Ian MacKaye and The Solitary Arts
Great piece up at Fistfulayen regarding the contribution of skateboarding to many people's world view (mine included). The article is in reference to an Ian MacKaye (Minor Threat/Fugazi) interview done for The Skateboard Mag. Interesting, as MacKaye's world view was itself was an inspiration to many skateboarders and pre 'alternative' music US-punk fans (me again).
"I think when skaters walk down the street, they’re looking at it with an entirely different grid in their minds .......To this day I swim to the bottom of swimming pools just to check out the transition."
Via Fistfulayen, via Atiba Jefferson, via The Skateboard Mag
4th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
New Wolf Parade
Wolf Parade have a new album out in June, entitled Expo 86. Sub Pop have the details, including where you can download two of the new tracks - the killer synths of Ghost Pressure (which could possibly lead to a gig writing the next Shakira single) and the slower-burner What Did My Lover Say? (It Always Had to Go This Way).
Looking forward to this one.
4th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Viva Lib Clegg!
the guardian has just come out in favour of the lib dems...
#chimp71
#CurrentAffairs
#D.U.D.(DumbUpDudes!)
30th Apr 2010 - 1 comments - Add Comment - Tweet
ACDC vs Rochester Castle
This kind of Architectural Projection or Augmented Reality Projection is popping up more and more recently, but here's a great example of AC/DC turning it up to 11. Nice to see marketing getting a little more adventurous than just posters-on-buses.
30th Apr 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Cruise Missile To Go
An enterprising Russian company seems to be attempting to solve the age-old problem of how to conveniently move your cruise missiles around without the unwieldy bulk of an aircraft carrier. Their solution is a not-quite-pocket-sized shipping container - catchily titled the 'Club-K'.
It's not too clear how far in development this is, but it's far enough along to warrant the handy graphic simulation that the company have produced (above). No big worry though, Venezuela and Iran are the only countries to have so far professed an interest.
Maybe we need to get Jack Bauer of of retirement already.
30th Apr 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Jobs v Flash (ah-ah)
so hang on Steve, you do or you don't like Flash?
30th Apr 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Airspace Rebooted
Nice little video up at Vimeo tracking the re-start of air travel across Europe - following the monster airport shut down caused by Iceland's Volcano.
#Locochimpo
#CurrentAffairs
#Travel
29th Apr 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Emotional Chimp News
Chimps feel death and mourn in the same way as humans, according to a new report....
Via BBC News
29th Apr 2010 - 1 comments - Add Comment - Tweet
Jeff Tweedy Solo Show Alert
After foolishly missing Jeff Tweedy's last solo appearance in London in favour of a Bob Dylan show (review here), we are at last able to make amends.
Tickets on pre-sale right now for the Wilco main-man's solo show at Islington's Union Chapel on June 30th. See you down the front.
29th Apr 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Promo Promo: Titus Andronicus - A More Perfect Union
Promo up for one of Titus Andronicus' most Springsteen-channeling songs - A More Perfect Union. As noted in the YouTube comments "The lead singer looks like one of those 3 villans from Superman 2".
28th Apr 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Douglas Trumbull Speaks
2001 FX pioneer Douglas Trumbull on returning to work with Terence Malick for Tree Of Life
28th Apr 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Promo Promo: M.I.A. - Born Free
another full-on long-form pop video, this one's directed by Romain Gavras (son of Costa Gavras) bit more serious than Lady GaGa's
28th Apr 2010 - 1 comments - Add Comment - Tweet
Shepard Fairey: Make My May Day
Nice piece over on World Famous Design Junkies w Shepard Fairey painting a new May Day mural.
Bonus fact: he's got a new print available in Habitat.
27th Apr 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Spotify 0.4.3
It's still a long way off even a 1.0 release, but Spotify is getting a major upgrade today - bringing a load more iTunes-like functionality.
Major features include the ability to import and play the music on already on your computer, share your playlists and likes publicly, integration with Facebook for playlist sharing and starring of tracks and an auto-playlist from those tracks.
All the details here.
Of course, all this is moot if iTunes turn around with a similar offering - quite likely since their purchase of the US equivalent of Spotify, Lala.
27th Apr 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
East London Line Re-opens
Every hipster chimp's dream day has arrived. With the re-opening of the East london Line today, partying in Hoxton and New Cross on the same night is an easy reality.
The updated line will run 7am until 8pm from New Cross Gate to Dalston Junction - until the official re-opening on May 23rd when it will run full hours, 12 times an hour. The final route will run all the way down to Croydon, for that essential IKEA trip.
Surprisingly enough, this opening is well ahead of the original 'late 2010' schedule. Thanks Ken!
Via BBC
27th Apr 2010 - 1 comments - Add Comment - Tweet
My Pen! And other Kids in the Hall Highlights
Stumbled across a gold mine of Kids in the Hall highlights on YouTube, including My Pen! (above) and The Ham of Truth (below).
Their new show Kids In The Hall: Death Comes To Town has screening in the United States of Canada already. Not sure if/when it will show up in the UK.
Here's more old clips... Wait. No habla english?
26th Apr 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Don't Talk To Aliens
"Don't talk to aliens" is Stephen Hawking's advice in a piece over at The Times.
"If aliens ever visit us, I think the outcome would be much as when Christopher Columbus first landed in America, which didn’t turn out very well for the Native Americans".
26th Apr 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Is Time Travel Possible?
the science of going back to the future - I like the sound of the "cosmic microwave background"
26th Apr 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Trailer Park: The Expendables
none-more testosterone-fuelled trailer for The Expendables action blow-out - Stallone, Lundgren, Rourke, Li, Statham etc with bonus Willis and Schwarzenegger!
23rd Apr 2010 - 1 comments - Add Comment - Tweet
Get your own Space Shuttle
With retirement approaching, NASA is looking for homes for it's 3 remaining Space Shuttles. Contenders include that big aircraft carrier that was in I Am Legend, the Johnson Space Center in Houston (a family favourite) and 'Plant 42' where they were built.
Get your proposal into NASA as soon as possible.
23rd Apr 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
Band of Horses: Evening Kitchen
Band of Horses channeling their inner-Fleet Foxes on this exclusive clip for the BBC Later website. They were on Jools Holland Live last night, and will be on the main show this Friday ....hopefully with ampilfiers and only one singer.
22nd Apr 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet
RIP Malcolm McLaren: Minute Of Mayhem
in celebration of Malcolm McLaren, his family are calling for everyone to play their favourite tunes loud for a "minute of mayhem" at 12pm today
22nd Apr 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet