Interview with USF

bAre CHat with Universal Studios Florida

A Grave With No Name

By me me me

Why must I always be last to know?!

Cheers Huwie!

Time Lapses

Timelapse Reel# 5 from 599 Productions on Vimeo.

I don't agree with the way the guy on the blog I robbed this video off writes, but he knows how to find a good video when he puts his mind to it. Some truly epic stuff here. My favourite part is at 1:19 when you can see what looks like shooting stars one after another cutting across the sky. Also, it has the added bonus of having some palm trees in the shot as well, which provides a nice contrast to all the built up cities in the majority of the film. Really cool. The music kinda makes you feel like the you've just watched a beautiful family film all the way to the end, and now your heart soars as you watch the ships captain go down with the boat as everyone gets up to leave the cinema...or something to that effect...

How To Make A Record

The Vinyl Factory Manufacture from thevinylfactory on Vimeo.

Shockingly beautiful film about how the records we all love got made.

Mystery Solved!

There are many methods for putting a ship in a bottle. The secret of getting the ship in a bottle is the masts. The simplest and most widespread way of inserting a ship into a bottle is turned back masts with a long thread running out of the bottle neck. The mast has a hinge at the bottom, which permits the mast to easily lie back. There are many different types of hinges which could be used. When you pull the thread that is running out of the bottle neck, the mast is raised to a vertical position. It is necessary afterwards to cut this thread.

GOood aLBum Covers

RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAD

This band are flipping mental

UNIVERSAL STUDIOOOOOOOOOOOOOS FLORIDA

R.U.D.E.

tHIS seems to go strangely well with this song...don't you think?

Get me out of this place

Friendship's not dead

These are some of the most heart felt options the rational mind has ever produced:

# You have a major crush on your best friend's sweetie? How do you react?

* You notice what your best friend isn't giving your crush.
Then you make your move when the two of you are alone.
* You lay on the sex appeal when your friend isn't around.
* You try to act as attractive and mysterious as possible around your crush. Hopefully, you'll stand out against your clingy friend.
* You charm them both. You are able to flirt with you friend's sweetie, without anyone suspecting a thing.
* You act extra playful when you are around them, without even really noticing that you're doing it.

NEW BEACH HOUSE TRACK...

...and guess what? It's AMAZING!

PIXELATOR

For some reason, the website won't let me copy the embed code without signing up to it...so, basically, you'll have to click here if you want to see more than just a screen grab of why I bothered to write anything about this guy at all.

It's a pretty cool ongoing visual art performance in collaboration with New York City Metropolitan Transit Authority, Clear Channel Communications, and its selected artists. It turns really boring, basic billboards into something more exciting, but apparently, because of the large cost involved, these boards can only be used occassionally... It's a really cool idea though, and much more stimulating than looking at the shitbag Robert Pattinson's face on every tube wall I walk passed! Just try to ignore the Aphex Twin nightmare in the background

JACUZZI BOYS

SIX-PACK-O-RAD

Photographers I like Vol. 7: Alexander Binder

I'm not even sure I have to say all that much about this guy, as his work is more dramatic than any short paragraph I could ever put together. I was discussing his work with a friend and I came to the conclusion that although a lot of his pictures look like they came out of the black metal guide to enchanted forests, they show a lot of hope at the same time. Really interesting stuff, don't you think?











I also realised when I was just putting this post together that I kind of love pictures of pointed roofs and fairy tale houses...

Photographers I like Vol. 6: Anna Verlet

I haven't written anything on this section of my blog in a while, so I figured that it could do with an updating as I have seen rather a lot of wonderful photographs in the last month or so. This latest photographer, Anna Verlet, is something rather special. Obviously, living in the no-so-popular part of the east end of London, I don't get to see much greenery or nature (other than the odd tramp being chased round the pathetic patch of grass near my flat by a mean-looking, muscular dog), so her kind of photography is always a much needed reminder of pastures prettier.



She takes lots of pictures of scenery, lots of pictures of buildings and lots of pictures of all things North American, which I'm always a fan of. Of course, a lot of the pictures aren't breaking any new ground, but there is a weird focus on shape, which I really like. You can really see this in images like the one below...


I got really excited when I saw her picture of a theatre/cinema earlier, and I am seriously glad that I checked the rest of her work out. Maybe you'll like it too and we can share an oatie?

Theatre Of Eternal Dreams

"On at least one occasion, La Monte's performance consists of not much more than screaming at a plant until it dies"

* * *

Wasn't going to post anything about Ana Kras as she is a bit old news now, but I really like this picture for some reason?

Like a totally awesome new band

Hey there blog fans, it is I your humble scribe, social deviant and incessant rambler. The powers at google momentarily hindered my right to...write, but I am back with more pointless quips and vapid self indulgence. Bow before me tumultuous rogues! Enough.

I found a fun new band! I found a fun new band! Weekend, aside from having a suprizingly terrible selection of photographs to choose from on their Myspace for this song, are really good. They only have one song on their myspace, but there's another better one that you can access via their blog website. They have droning voice and (cue 90s shoegaze reference) the twanging guitars of Guided By Voices, strange drums that sound like a drum machine, although are apparently the work of a drum kit, and are good chums with another good band Young Prisms. I might try getting a few words from them soon, so watch this space...

Teengirl Fantasy

By me.............

WE. BUY. GOLD.

"mUSICALLY mISUNDERSTOOD"

100% the best thing I've seen all year!

Design A Wave are the retarded pop project of London based artist Tom Hirst. The humorous samples kind of remind me of Yellow Magic Orchestra spliced with a healthy dose of modern day Metronomy fun (circa Pip Paine) and a sprinkle of Italo. This video was posted on his MySpace and looks as though everyone there that night was treated to the party of a lifetime! Synchronised dancing that doesn't take itself too seriously is like licking the flavoured wallpaper in the Chocolate Factory - it's fun and everyone wants to do it!

...also, if you don't feel that all this is confusing enough then click here for more odd!

WE. BUY. GOLD.

THEM THANGS

My buddy Alex De Mora alerted me to a fun new blog the other day called THEM THANGS. It's pretty minimal, in the sense that it is just page after page of images, photographs and illustrations that the creator, Justin Blyth, is big into without one scrap of explanation of why. In other words, the person who set this site up has extremely good taste and doesn't need to justify why miscreants such as you and me should look at these images, just simply that they are there if you want to take a gander and, if not, then you know where the "back" button is. I picked out some of the ones from the first page that I particular liked, but there are tonnes more. His choices are pretty macabre, but all are really interesting, and besides - macabre or not - they are only pictures, they can't hurt you, grow up. I'm still making my way through them...

Cheers Joel

Another especially cool band recommendation from the man like Three Cheers. Sex Beet are super loud, brash and I think I can hear some psychobilly influence in amongst the distortion...always a good sign.

Climate Change

Henrik Hakansson, Atmosphere

...is pretty boring for the most part...the polar ice caps, carbon emissions, Al Gore, Blah blah blah...ok it's a pretty important subject and I'm not the kind of guy who insists on revving his Hummer in the middle of the city, but the subject brings very little new to the table nowadays...



Jette Gejl Kristensen, Hyperkinetic Kayak

That is other than being a source of inspiration for creative types the world over. This latest exhibition, which will tie into the United Nations Climate Change Conference, is going to tackle the subject in a more interesting way than the latest news of Leonardo Di Caprio's Smart car is taking place in Copenhagen later this month. RETHINK is being used as a way of providing politicians attending the meeting, as well as the general public, with new perspectives on some of the complex human issues stemming from global climate change. Taking a look at some of the pieces and installations makes me think that it could actually be very beneficial, in the sense that they stir up more interest and emotion than your average colourful spider diagram...



Kerstin Ergenzinger, Study for Longing / Seeing

Why are Nordics so much more inventive than us??

GIRL

Always nice when someone you like likes something you never knew you liked...

Found it!

After I was alerted that that chopper West had made even more of a disgrace of himself, I searched the internet high and low for this video...OK not exactly high and low but you know, a couple of websites which didn't have it. What a tit...

dON'T be scared...It's performance art!

hAST dUO

coupled with of the finest examples of a tagged photograph in all of time!









..............;].;-]8[53677][[[[[0\-;\p';p[0'09':}^P*&}:>£!%:}!@£:%}P$::{:&{>^$>}{>}354?:}:L:

Too cool

Ok, I realised recently that this blog is becoming very much a run down of what music I'm into, but I couldn't resist popping this video on. Dominant Legs are getting quite a bit of exposure at the moment, which is so good as they're actually a band that deserve it and I think could even earn a bit of money in the process as the songs they put together have a quite rounded appeal, I think anyway. Their sound is just the catalyst for nostalgia. You know those songs that make you go a little romantic inside, even though they weren't played at any point during the past you are reminded of...basically I'm talking a lot of rubbish now, but I think this music video is one that couldn't be more perfectly suited to the song in question, even though I'm pretty sure the kid hopping over the skipping rope was humming it to his slam dunking buddy at the time...

NO. AGE. RULE.

I went to go see the pioneers of fuzz last night in King's Cross. It was incredible. They are one of those bands that you can't fully appreciate until you seen them live, I don't think, because they are a totally ethereal experience, filled with this intense energy and fun. Anyway, enough from me, this is my favourite video of them playing The Smell's 10th Anniversary - I promise the crowd last night was not so placid!

The Blog Robber

A friend of mine has a really interesting design blog, which basically consists of fun things to do with design that he has heard about and so insists that you must pay attention too. I do get quite annoyed that the newsletters that he has signed up too are far more interesting than the repetitive nonsense that floods into my inbox like a glitch in the matrix, but it does afford me the luxury of allowing him to salvage the best bits!

Anyway, another friend of mine (yes I have two) got me into lazer cut word designs recently, as he is pretty good at rendering his own personal statements in cardboard...so, when I came across these pieces I was set to enjoy them already. Monsieur Cabinet the floor is yours...

The Epitomy of Cool

The Ones We Love

Posted a little something something on the new Under/Current blog yesterday - check it out here...

Bungalow Hate: Interview with Pure Ecstasy

Pure Ecstasy are the blissed out pop project of Texan Nate Grace. Basically, the least pretentious way I could possibly describe his sound is that if a blurred photograph of a forgotten memory made music, this would be it. Combining the shoegazey elements of Further and the heavily distorted vocals of Desolation Wilderness into a snug wrap of thickly stacked sound, Pure Ecstasy are at once a delicate reminder of what getting high used to mean to you and how important Jesus and the Mary Chain continue to be too modern music. I would usually attempt to cut this piece into easy to manageable snippets, but I think the distracted nature of the conversation kinda suits the music in discussion. So here is a chat I had with Nate Grace about road trips, new bands, a sea of blankness and the songs that haunt our minds…

Nate grace: Yo dude

Hey man, you good to chat?

Nate Grace: Yeah

What did you have for lunch?

Nate Grace: I had breakfast at this place by my house,
Bouldin creek. You ever been to Austin?

Nah, I wish. One of the ones I need to check off my American city list

Nate Grace: Eh, I dunno if you need a list. NYC, LA…

Been to NYC. what about Portland, San Fran, Reno??

Nate Grace: haha. Yeah, those too and St Paul, that place is awesome

Where's that?

Nate Grace: Minnesota. St Paul/Minneapolis

I'll put that one on there too

Nate Grace: twin cities. Yeah. Totally chill. Good record stores.

Yeah, I'm looking forward doing all the record stores over when I come to the US next year. My friends and I are planning the great American road trip.

Nate Grace: Shit yeah

Cadillac + tape deck = fun

Nate Grace: Hahaha. Cadillac for real?

Haha that’s the dream.

Nate Grace: Damn. That's the way to go in style

We'll probably end up with a FORD MONDEO!

Nate Grace: Hahaha or a Dodge Stealth

THAT would be badass

Nate Grace: HA, until you broke down in nowheresville

With only a squirrel for company

Nate Grace: Shit. A squirrel and about 300 hicks. Do English dudes use that word? "hick"?

The full dream is that we're all getting vintage ray bans, tie dye shirts, biker jackets, cadillac and prestine vans. Its gonna be heavy.

Nate Grace: hahaha

Not really man, we don't use hick but I've seen enough films to know the meaning

Nate Grace: Oh ok, what do you say then?

We tend to call them pikeys or inbreds or Norfolk folk

Nate Grace: HAHAHA - why Norfolk folk?

Because people in Norfolk are fucking backward!

Nate Grace: hmmm, I dunno where that is. I have been to London.

It’s in south east England

Nate Grace: but nowhere else in England. Oh ok

Not so far from London. When did you come to London?

Nate Grace: A few years back. Me and some friends did the euro trip like the american one you want to do. Cruised. Drank. Smashed cash.

It's the only way to do it man.

Nate Grace: yeah

You can't cheap out on a road trip!

Nate Grace: For real. It's hard to anyways.

Right dude, so getting into this - How did Pure Ecstasy form?

Nate Grace: Well, I had songs, and got my friends Jace and Austin to play a show with me, and it worked well. So, then we were a band nothing too exciting.

Oh right, so the song writing is mostly down to you then?

Nate Grace: Yeah, it started as a solo thing. We did a west coast tour in July under my name…well, my name + like 20 diff names.

Why did you use 20 different names?

Nate Grace: Just cuz, we were trying to find a name, but i was booking the tour at the same time. So, I just would try out different names. We were booked under like Nate Grace and Puke Scene, Nate Grace and Zolo Blood, Nate Grace and Whatever The Fuck.

I like the last one best

Nate Grace: Hahaha

This actually ties in quite nicely to my next question. I hate asking bands "How did you come up with your name?", so I thought I would ask you if your name was something that you came up with after you'd made your music, as it is something that I would say completely describes your sound - "Pure ecstasy"

Nate Grace: Yeah. Totally after. Jace and Austin came up with it, actually, while they were on tour with their band. They called me up all late one night and were like "dude we got it."

The epiphany of ecstasy?

Nate Grace: Hahaha. Hey quick question, how does this work exactly? Are you gonna take excerpts from this?

I guess so, I always just see how well the chat goes - I'm not what you would call a "professional"

Nate Grace: professional sucks.

Too true

Nate Grace: Just put in the good shit…whatever that ends up being.

So, what would you say are the main influences behind Pure Ecstasy?

Nate Grace: Ha! I knew this one was coming.

Haha, sorry its a fucking cliché, but I like that question sometimes

Nate Grace: Hmmm it's hard for me to say really because we listen to such a wide range of shit. I'd say Darklands by Jesus and Mary Chain, and Fela Kuti, and Townes Van Zandt, and new bands too…my friends bands, Silver Pines, Survive…

I haven't listened to them yet I will have to check them out after we are done

Nate Grace: Yeah, they're rad. Zoned out.

As all good music should be

Nate Grace: Hahaha. Man, see now I feel like I left out like 100 bands

Go on then name 5 more

Nate Grace: Haha…Black Flag…Alton ellis…Jimmy Cliff…Toots…Clash and all new bands

All of them?!

Nate Grace: Haha! Alot of em

Hmmmm, I think there's a lot of tripe though!

Nate Grace: Tripe. I like that. Yeah. A lot of tripe, but i'm not gonna hate. I like the way things are now. I think shit is in a good place, generally.

I do tend to agree - I think that we're in a fairly good place music wise. I think that people are realising the power of pop again - not just shit chart pop - but the ability to write a good pop song and still maintain a certain standard of music.



Nate Grace: Hmmm, I guess it depends on what you consider pop

Do you consider yourself to be pop?

Nate Grace: Yes. My friends seem to think no, but I think yes. I guess i'd say that we are pop but through a filter of all the shit we're into like pop but like ...

?

Nate Grace: Haha like a popsicle that fell in the dirt…and then some fine girl picks it up…but she's got a herpe's blister

Hahahahaha, that's incredible.

Nate Grace: But she chomps that shit anyways

I think that is going to be the headline of the article

Nate Grace: HAHA. Ok, I'll see if I can give you a couple more.

So you've got a tape out on Leftist Nautical Antiques - how did that happen?

Nate Grace: i think that alex read a review of our seven daze tape on cassette gods and then he emailed me about doin a tape we had just recorded FUTURE NOSTALGIA and I was planning out putting it out on 7in. Alex said he'd do the tape version. So that was that.

Cool, but you've decided to put Easy out on Light Lodge right?

Nate Grace: Yeah, Light Lodge is a new label. A friend of ours has just started up. Real good dudes. They're going to be putting out our crew of friends mostly…right now anyways.

Amazing, Light Lodge is sort if the perfect label to put your sound out on as well!

Nate Grace: Ha! Yeah I think so too. Their records are gonna look clean too

What with like sharp graphics you mean?

Nate Grace: Yeah. Artwork. Packaging. All that.

I'm just listening to Easy, what is that song about?

Nate Grace: ha! What do you think it's about?

Hmmm I wouldn't like to say

Nate Grace: me either.

Haha best answer…How many gigs have you played with this definite name in place now?

Nate Grace: Shit. Not many, maybe 6? 8?

How does the live thing work now, because you mentioned that you play with your two friends, but then on your myspace it says "+Friends" - is it quite a transitional line up at the moment?

Nate Grace: well i say + friends because I want to tour, but Jace and Austin are in a band already, and our schedules conflict sometimes. Like on that west coast tour my friend Christa played bass, but the recording line up will always be me, Jace and Austin.

What are your favourite sort of shows to play?

Nate Grace: House shows. I don't like venues really. If I could I would never play a venue.

Why?

Nate Grace: Because it's hard to get good vibes going. I feel like I'm fighting against like a sea blankness…not a sea, but it's just hard to get things going for real. I'm into music being played like a picture is being painted…like everyone is involved. I can't really get into it unless i feel like people are receptive to it

Yeah, that makes sense.

Nate Grace: i don't think I'm saying really what I'm trying to get at but, basically, house venues are chiller. I like chillness.

I think your music perfectly reflects that. So anyway what records are you getting into at the moment? Or are you about the older stuff currently?

Nate Grace: I like Julian Lynch's record. I want to get the new best coast 7in. I REALLY like this band DROPOUT! That no one has heard of…Oh, I like IRON AGE's new record.

I haven't either...Best Coast are one of the best bands of this year though!

Nate Grace: Yeah dude. She's got her shit on lock.

Right shit question time - What song goes round in your head more than any other/what tune do you find yourself humming throughout your life? You tell me yours, and I'll tell you mine…

Nate Grace: haha! Probably smokey robinson "Way Over There"

See that's a cool one. Mine is, and no I'm not into broadway musicals, Frank Sinatra "New York, New York", but not even the song just the fucking tune over and over and over.

Nate Grace: yeah!

It's my cross to bare dude

Nate Grace: I could get that one stuck

Right man, lastly, what are your plans for the coming year/next few months?

Nate Grace: Shit…write a trillion songs…QUIT MY JOB…tour the earth

Right on

The sad fact is that this sums up my life at the moment

Too Disgusting, Even For Me

When I was 15/16 I had really bad acne. I remember my dad use to tell me it wasn't too bad, and empathise by saying that his was far worse when he was my age...he later told me that my acne was really bad, and that they had just told me those things to help me through the pizza years. I swear I spent half my life looking at my red speckled chin in the mirror willing away my puss-filled friends and pushing and prodding them around gradually making things much worse. I found, though, if you forgot about the fact that you were probably etching scars into the face that you would have to wear for the rest of your days, that the whole thing became quite satisfying and when you did find a spot that yielded you a particularly large load, it kind of made the pain of digging your nails into your skin a worthwhile experience.

However, even with all those years of enjoying watching the yellow mucus fly, I did not enjoy this little film one bit. I'm not a particularly squimish person, but I found myself swallowing down the urge to spew all over my keyboard for almost the entirety of the four and half minutes...though still strangely compelled to keep watching. This is disgusting.

This is awesome

Never wanted a deal more...

crack. fox.