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Into The Wormhole with Larissa and Lauren

posted April 6, 2020 #

Announced a brand new podcast over on the We Own This Town network called Into the Wormhole with Larissa and Lauren. It is, as you might have guessed, a Star Trek podcast. The hosts are devoted fans of the series. And by that I mean all of the series - OG Star Trek, Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, Enterprise, Discovery, Picard, all the various movies and probably even the animated series that no one remembers.
The first episode is out and available on all the things - Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Google Play, etc etc.

I don't consider myself a diehard Trek fan but I do tend to prefer it over most other sci-fi series as it does the best job of functioning like true sci-fi should; reflecting actual societal issues within a fictional framework. Larissa and Lauren plan to keep the show fun and light but it won't skimp on the details. I'm excited for what they put out into the world.

And if you're NOT a Trek Fan at all, you should still do yourself a small favor and hit play on that episode to hear the theme song. It's absurdly great.

Quibi Released

posted April 6, 2020 #

If you're not familiar, Quibi is a new streaming service founded by Jeffrey Katzenberg and led by Meg Whitman. The name is a shortened version of "Quick Bites" as the service is filled with original content that is 10-minutes or less. The whole impetus behind the thing is to provide people with entertainment for the In Between Times - waiting for a train, sitting on a bus, in line, etc.

It's been in production for a couple years now with small previews at various trade shows and media events. Today, April 6th, it is officially available. There's a 90-day free trial and beyond that it's $4.99 a month with ads.

The Verge has a great article on the strange timing of the launch - during a pandemic when everyone has nothing but free time, as opposed to needing to fill small gaps. Will this impact the service negatively or will it create an onslaught of usage they wouldn't have had otherwise? Maybe both?

There's plenty to say about the actual content on the platform - Chrissy Tiegan doing a silly courtroom show, Will Forte and Kaitlin Olson in a absurd sitcom, Will Arnett doing.. some Will Arnett thing. I've heard it described as "fake 30 Rock shows come to life." That feels accurate.

This isn't an endorsement or paid ad for the service; I've no idea if it's any good or not yet. In a world of Twitter, TikTok and Instagram videos, leveraging small but produced content makes a lot of sense. I am intrigued.

posted April 4, 2020 #

Me waking up first thing in the morning: Today is gonna be great. I’m not gonna read or think about the news all damn day. Gonna connect with the fam. Write some music. Work on this Bud Powell transcription. Yeah! My subconscious: https://t.co/nuh0qmZTKY

Friday Videos - April 3rd, 2020

posted April 3, 2020 #

Let's not talk about COVID-19 or self-quarantine or any of that. Let's focus on what's important right now. My Apple laptop with a butterfly keyboard is really miserable and types three "L's" for every one time I press the key. It's insane! How did this happen? Is this where we've gotten in the technology space, we're just bad at keyboards now?!

Alright fine, that's not really important (though, I promise, it is annoying). I hope everyone is safe and following orders to stay inside as hard as it is. Scary and sad times out there, please do your best not to contribute to socializing.

Here's some dumb stuff. Thank you /r/youtubehaiku for being a constant source of idiotic content. Oh, and if you have anyone in your life that is not convinced that COVID-19 and The Flu are different, please send them this VOX video; as it does a wonderful job of explaining things with science and not involving anything slightly political; so there's no room for argument. Unless you don't believe in science; which I understand is a problem some have.

Take care. Talk soon.

The Mute Group - AEIOU

posted April 2, 2020 #

Back in July of 2019 (a lifetime ago now it seems), The Mute Group performed a rather unique house show performance - they put together a choir of local talent, got some sax players together and performed "AEIOU" off their debut album, Sinister Hand.

It's a unique and novel performance; particularly now when it feels like gatherings of this size are going to be forbidden for awhile.* Aside from that aspect of it, it's a pretty wonderful gathering of musicians from the yk Records roster.

Megan McCoy - Nightblonde & Tipper Whore
Jill Townsend - Fetching Pails & Nightblonde
Ryan Breegle - Nightblonde, Tipper Whore & host of My Fantasy Funeral
Jay Leo Phillips - Solo work & Apollo Up
Mike Shepherd - Tower Defense & Apollo Up

Pretty sweet lineup if I do say so myself and a very cool performance. There's not many bands on the roster - or in Nashville at all - that could pull this off but The Mute Group does it wonderfully.

Go for the choir, stay for the saxophones and searing guitar solo at the end. * I support social distancing, this isn't meant as a complaint given the alternative

RIP Adam Schesinger

posted April 2, 2020 #

When the news came in on Tuesday that Adam Schlesinger, primary member of Fountains of Wayne and a helluva songwriter, had been hospitalized with COVID-19, I immediately started revisiting the 1996 debut FoW album. It had been years since I listened to it but it lived in heavy rotation when it was released (I was in high school). It was, and still is, the perfect blend of nerdy outsider pop songs mixed with big heavy guitars from time to time. When it came to light that Schlesinger also wrote the main song for That Thing You Do, I was smitten.

I fell out of favor with the band over the years - a combination of "Stacy's Mom" being a bridge too far and just discovering other music - but I never lost a single ounce of affection for that first record or Schlesinger's talent.

Hearing that he passed away on Wednesday was a total gut punch. Lots of people for Tom Hanks and John Prine - sentiments I empathize with - but Schlesinger hits closer to home for me. I'm sure this feeling will become more common over the coming months but this was the first real stinger for me. RIP Schlesinger.

posted April 1, 2020 #

I spent a little time with Adam Schlesinger when we were tracking Teenage Graffiti in NY and he was always so kind despite my persistent, annoying fanboy gushing. The entire Fountains Of Wayne catalog is a clinic in how to write pop music. Rest easy rock n roller

posted April 1, 2020 #

It only took three ghosts to convince Scrooge to share his wealth so surely 4,500 dead Americans will convince billionaires like @JeffBezos to chip in more than .1 percent, right?

posted April 1, 2020 #

Not an April 1 joke! After severe downtime and a catastrophic database failure, Max Goldberg brought internet fixture https://t.co/V5mGAhJGmo back to life, rewritten to work with modern browsers, restoring new site creation and the complete archives. https://t.co/BNmt095Us0 https://t.co/HdtcvvUZMh

Help With COVID-19

posted March 31, 2020 #

The Help with COVID site is a repository of projects aimed at providing relief in one way or another in response to the COVID pandemic.

Projects like Gift Card Bank for donating unused Gift Cards to those in need or HelpLocalBiz for aggregating payments to local businesses are just a few examples of the kind of community organization and outreach being indexed over there.

There is a LOT to sort through but if you've got the time and resources, consider helping out. If you aren't much of a developer, maybe just consider donating where you can. All told, some serious positive vibes coming off this site.

posted March 31, 2020 #

https://t.co/UHcRxc19E9 ????????

posted March 30, 2020 #

Did King Kong really think he was gonna date that lady?

SXSW Shorts 2020

posted March 30, 2020 #

Of course it's unfortunate that SXSW was cancelled for 2020 out of safety for the curbing of the COVID-19 pandemic but there is a mild silver lining in that occurence. Mailchimp and Oscilloscope Laboratories have teamed up to screen all the SXSW 2020 Shorts - for free.

I've always been a fan of any shorts program. I think the format gives a lot of flexibility on style, gives new fillmmakers a chance to flex a bit and pushes creative folks to tell a story in a condensed amount of time. I've never been able to watch the SXSW Shorts before, so this is a great opportunity for them to reach a wider audience.

There's not much to go on from the site - just a title, a director, a genre and a screen grab. If you're looking for a synopsis, you're out of luck. I suggest just hitting Shuffle and letting it ride.

Werner Herzog Has Never Thought A Dog Was Cute

posted March 30, 2020 #

There's something oddly refreshing about the attitude and insights of Werner Herzog during a global pandemic. This NY Times Magazine interview poses many great questions to the director but this little excerpt is my personal favorite:
Your narration, in “Grizzly Man” for example, is famous for your descriptions of nature as impersonal and savage.
The monumental indifference.

How do you derive meaning from life if life is indifferent?
Life is not indifferent. The universe is indifferent. But just trying, itself, is something I should do.
There's plenty more worth reading - particularly the anecdote about rescuing Joaquin Phoenix from a car wreck - but that bit stuck out the most to me.

posted March 28, 2020 #

I Love You But I've Chosen Not To Watch Your Instagram Live
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