OK, next week sees the release of the looooong awaited The Beatles Rock Band. No doubt it’s a coup for the Rock Band franchise in their ongoing (war) with Guitar Hero and from the looks of it, is going to be a pretty special game. One of the reasons the game has been so anticipated is the fantastic quality of the design and creativity that has gone into promoting the release. (more…)
It’s a bit old now, but I thought this was an excellent insight into remix culture, and how governments should work to liberate and not throttle the very creativity that fuels and fascinates on the internet.
Last night was the Mancuso Loft Party Journey Through The Light. The music is always of a guaranteed quality, and still draws new converts at every turn. For those that don’t know about David Mancuso, he is regarded as one of the original forefathers of DJing and of holding the quintessential party. The Loft, which has in various forms been running since 1970. Mancuso comes to London every three months to play the Loft of the Light Bar in Shoreditch. The atmosphere this time was even more friendly and communal, you talk to strangers on the dancefloor like their your best mate because you are sharing something unique, there is no pretense (which in London is a rarity in itself), as the Disco boom grows ever bigger in the domain of East London, I just hope it continues to be an oasis of brilliant music and brilliant people. Here presented for you guys is without doubt the tune of the night. Enjoy!
(If you want to sample what a Mancuso night is all about then the definitive link is here. [Type Mancuso in the search field to access] It’s 8 hours in Tokyo a couple of years ago. AWESOME)
Last year, while in Colette, one of my fave stores in the world my mate picked up this book. I Could Tell You But Then You Would Have to be Destroyed by Me: Emblems from the Pentagon’s Black World. I’d sort of forgotten about it until I stumbled upon this article in the NYT. I’ve gone an ordered my own copy, and you should do the same.
Essentially, all of these patches were worn by top secret divisions within the Pentagon, all part of the ‘Black Budget’ (kept quiet from Federal budget oversight, and dealing most typically with Military research). It feels ironic that if you were part of a top secret division that you would want or need a patch, but I suppose there is an immense amount of bragging that goes with something like this, and the contradiction means that the patches are fascinating. Here are just a few of the fantastic designs that are contained within the book, and some explanations of the iconography behind them… (Photos: Trevor Paglen, captions from the NYT)
The 413th Test Squadron, nicknamed the “Bombcats” and also known as Sundowner and Zipper, organized flight tests of Electronic Warfare systems around the world.
The origins of this patch remain unknown. The red star is in Southwest, which is many secret units’ home, while military intelligence typically uses green vaults.
Minotaur is a still-classified program undertaken by Lockheed Martin’s Advanced Development Programs division, the Skunk Works.
The funniest thing i’ve seen in ages – check the genius of FAILBLOG. Here’s some choice cuts to get you in the mood…
We went here…
and totally rocked it out…
a most excellent party. The best NYE in ages…
