![CAKELIFE [logotype]](data:image/gif;base64,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){kind=small}
SOTM
Cap’n Jazz - “Oh Messy Life”
You either really, really love Cap’n Jazz, or you really, really hate Cap’n Jazz.
I really, really love Cap’n Jazz.
I first discovered them after finding their one and only album (Analphabetapolothology, a double-disc set with basically all their recorded material) in Blackbyrd Myoozik circa 2001. By that time, Cap’n Jazz was very much gone, its members having moved on to more well known projects such as The Promise Ring and Joan of Arc. I always felt very sad that I’d never seen/heard them in the moment. (The were done in 1995.)
Tonight, I was like, “Some dude MUST have set up a rad VHS video camera to capture this crazy band play in their high school gym, and has recently discovered the tape and uploaded it to YouTube.”
The sound quality of the video is of course not great, so here’s an audio-only rip from the album of the same song.
Also highly recommended: “Theme from 90210” and a beautiful “Take On Me” cover.
SOTM
BreakBot - “Baby, I’m Yours” (featuring Irfane) - Siriusmo Remix
This is something I think you might enjoy…
(Also check out the re-remix by Cadence Weapon and Shad on TRON Legacy: The Mixtape.)
SOTM
Yelle - “À cause des garçons (TEPR Remix)”
An oldie but a goodie. I love this video. See also: Tecktonic
Prime pairs
I had another birthday on April 24, marking my 31st year. At age 23, I used to joke that I was “in my prime” (23 being a prime number) and that I wouldn’t “hit my prime” again until I was 29. And now, here I am at 31. (Also prime, in case you hadn’t caught on yet.)
Interestingly, JP and I are two years apart. Those familiar with the mathematics of primes probably also know about prime pairs, or twin primes. (Twin primes seems to be the accepted name, though I’ve always called them prime pairs. See also “Twin Primes” at Wolfram MathWorld.)
So, you guessed it. We’re both “in our prime” and we’re a prime pair. Looking ahead, we hit them at 41-43, 59-61, 71-73 and if we’re lucky 101-103.
Now here’s where it gets awesome: You might know we’re having a baby, due to be born in May (month 5 = prime) and it’s 2011 (prime). I don’t want to jinx it, but if that baby shows up on May 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 19, 23, 29, or 31, it will be one “prime” kid.
Lastly, for bonus points: If you and your partner a lucky enough to be separated by 6 years, sexy primes!
Less cool, if you are lovers four years apart: Cousin Primes.
SOTM
Teen Daze - “Let’s Fall Asleep Together”
One of the more pleasant discoveries of the past few months…
Was a treat to catch him opening at the Toro y Moi show recently, where he played some of his more dancey stuff.
You can get the EPs on the Teen Daze Bandcamp page.
Google Street View: The photographic artist
A collection of really great images captured by the 9-eyed Google Street View camera: 9-eyes.com
I love this kind of thing. Here’s one I found just the other day:
Look at that guy! Just sunning himself in the window like no one’s watching!
Edit: Ooh! The creator has an essay: “The Nine Eyes of Google Street View”
Michael McDonough’s Top Ten Things They Never Taught Me in Design School
Yes, yes, and yes:
Michael McDonough’s Top Ten Things They Never Taught Me in Design School
SOTM
Har Mar Superstar - Tall Boy
The story behind this song is that he tried to sell it to Britney Spears, but her management rejected it. That may have been awesome, but the fact he got to keep it is awesomer:
Featuring Alia Shawkat, Eric Wareheim, and Eva Mendes (?!). I highly recommend the fullscreen 720p HD experience if you click through to the YouTube page.
Probably NSFW, unless you work somewhere awesome.
Who is this man, and where did he come from?
I always feel a little conflicted reading about Bjarke Ingels: “Pyramid Scheme” from New York Magazine
On one hand, his success is amazing and I’m totally envious: how can I not read this. On the other hand, if one really wanted to replicate this kind of success, would I really (a) waste the time reading about it, (b) blog about it, and (c) spend the rest of the evening looking mournfully at my to-do list and its utter mundanity?
Whatever. Check out the video on the last slide of this page. I sleep better after a good cry anyway.
(Can anyone tell me if that’s just Google Earth Pro at the beginning, or did these jerks actually model half of Manhattan?)
Review
Manufactured Landscapes
I wasn’t sure I even wanted to write anything about this film. It was very depressing. I guess that’s what it’s like when you come face-to-face with the reality behind the way you live.
Perhaps you’ve heard of Edward Burtynsky. In his own words:
Nature transformed through industry is a predominant theme in my work. ... These images are meant as metaphors to the dilemma of our modern existence; they search for a dialogue between attraction and repulsion, seduction and fear. We are drawn by desire - a chance at good living, yet we are consciously or unconsciously aware that the world is suffering for our success. Our dependence on nature to provide the materials for our consumption and our concern for the health of our planet sets us into an uneasy contradiction. ...
The film essentially follows him to various sites, primarily in China, as he makes the images. He explicitly makes a point of never saying what is captured is good or bad—he’s a documentarian in his own right—but the effect can’t not be intentional: “This is your fault.”
Burtynsky’s work contains no hope. The images, while beautiful, are bleak, and the commentary offers no hint toward what might make things better other than to, I guess, just stop whatever it is you’re doing right now. Perhaps this is, in fact, the most appropriate response. Perhaps other films in the “we’ve broken the planet, it’s time to fix it” genre have all been too naive when they present their last optimistic 20 minutes. (You know: If we just did these few things all together, we could make a difference!)
Should you watch it? Absolutely. Will you enjoy it? No guarantees.
Deepwater Horizon’s Final Hours
A riveting read: “Deepwater Horizon’s Final Hours” from the New York Times.
But frustrating. It’s basically a story of sad failure after sad failure. Why are bonuses awarded for cutting costs and beating schedules on risky jobs like this? Why did the systems fail? Why did no one press the multitude of big red emergency buttons? Why did BP and Transocean ignore the manufacturer’s advice for regular maintenance of the blowout preventer?
My other thought is something like this: the scale and complexity of the things human’s have engineered and constructed is pretty staggering, and it’s amazing that we concoct these contraptions to battle geologic forces simply to extract an thick liquid that basically propels us around in privately occupied chunks of steel and plastic. So. Much. Effort. Isn’t that some kind of failure on its own?
SOTM
Toro Y Moi - “Still Sound”
Absolutely loving this. Amazing in just about every way a song can be amazing. Drums! Bass! Keys! Vocals! Dancing! Yesssssssss!
Lost Generation
Really liked this brief piece from Metropolis: Lost Generation
It really baffles me how the profession managed to fuck itself so hard.
P.S. I appreciated one of the commenters notes about how valuable it is to get interns on the construction site (and doing CA) right away. It’s the only place where you learn how things actually get done so you can finally stop making stupid mistakes on the drawings.
Dive Into HTML5
Mystified by HTML5? If you’re like me, and you gotta know why you’re doing something, not just how to do it, this is the best HTML5 walkthrough I’ve come across: Dive Intro HTML5 by Mark Pilgrim
The whole book is available for free online. It’s funny, educational, and filled with historical tidbits. Pleasure!
The luckiest fish you’ll ever meet
This is from a very old Kottke post. These aquariums are so pretty, even I would live there.
Ironwoman
Astonishing, amazing, gross: Chrissie Wellington interviewed in the Guardian
SOTM
Weight and Measures - “The Love That You Share Is Making Everyone Else Sick”
In case you were wondering (I know you were), I’ve been doing a purge of my iTunes and coming across all sorts of forgotten gems.
One of them: Weights and Measures. I saw these guys in Edmonton at the Likwid Lounge in the early 2000s, opening for North of America. I believe I had seen Kepler not long before and since W&M was two-thirds Kepler members, thought I should check it out. (All three bands were excellent, by the way.)
So, here, a video of them from their final show in Toronto back in 2004:
I know, maybe not your speed, but as user “JWRONG1996” so wisely noted on an associated Tigers video, “More people need to appreciate post rock.”
CONSIDER IT.
SOTM
Lit - “My Own Worst enemy”
Yes! Yes! Yes! Oh, to be 19 again…
Man, the late ‘90s and early ‘00s kinda sucked. We can’t even really enjoy that era ironically these days. Or maybe, yet. We can’t enjoy that era ironically yet.
No Mucus
Not only is this informative, it’s got some pretty entertaining visuals. (Note: Does not apply to boys.)
No mucus!
Janus, God of Doors, opens the year…
For quick reference, in case you need to know why months are named the way they are: Where do the month names come from?