It's that time again! Friday Videos! I dunno what it is about this week's selections but I'm rather proud of the them. The Internet really delivered in the Weird + Funny department the last seven days. Let's all give ourselves a collective pat on the back.
Pinkle Tank - Get Tankled Promo - I don't know what a Pinkle Tank is and I don't know what "Getting Tankled" is but they both sound highly inappropriate for a kids band. Either way, they've been added to my vocabulary for everyday usage. Thanks Paul.
Ralphisms - granted, this compilation of Ralph Wiggum phrases isn't new to the Interweb (posted back in 2010) but it's one of those videos you should never tire of watching. There's a dog in the vent!
ORCumentary - BLOOD - If someone told me to head to the nearest Hot Topic to see a one-man keyboard sludgecore band perform I wouldn't expect something this great.
Mitt Romney, A Hero In My Mind - Mitt Romney needs original music for the campaign trail, this is one man's contribution. It doesn't get super awesome until he starts singing. Something about it feels familiar.
Adventure Time Tribute - I've never seen a single episode of Adventure Time but I love this style and overall vibe so much I'm sharing it anyway.
Bees in the Mosh Pit - I don't want any explanation why this exists. Just enjoy.
Stipple is proposing a pretty radical undertaking - they want to allow users to add notes, insights, links and credits to images across the web and have them retain that information anywhere they go. Their new introductory video does a great job of spelling out the concept. It seems as if the technology could be embraced by everyone from the casual blogger to the full-tilt online publication. I'm definitely curious to see more and, assuming it wouldn't be invasive to my readership, wouldn't mind trying it out here!
It's no surprise that Google has been setting up ultra-fast Internet in Kansas City but now the service is available to register. So if you live in the KC area, get on it. If you don't live in the area, take a moment to check out the promotional site - the animations and illustrations are great. Plus, the commercial is just perfect.
I'm actually quite curious about the Google Fiber TV that launched as well - the software and hardware that interacts with the new superfast Internet. Hopefully reviews of that will start emerging sooner rather than later!
The service being offered at Card Included seems pretty handy for bands - upload your music, generate a specific number of download codes and start distributing! It's an affordable price per megabyte uploaded and creating the download card for you seems like a total boon for a lot musicians (many of which do not understand CSV files). I'd love to see this get taken to the next level where bands have profile pages for their music previews, or codes could be provided to the service and just generate cards (for use on other platforms like Bandcamp). Regardless, it's a nice one to keep under your hat just in case you need it.
This University Dorm in Cophenhagen is an incredibly gorgeous bit of architectural design. The exterior ring is engaging but the interior is even better - complete with communal courtyard. I'm flabbergasted there are schools this nice!
How to put this? Recently, I watched the trailer for the forthcoming Paul Dano / Zoe Kazan movie Ruby Sparks. I was sufficiently pleased with the results. It looked to be a somewhat melancholy indie romance movie. Then I read this article about how the movie is actually more subversive than the trailer would have you believe - that the female Ruby character exists to break down the archetype of the "Manic Pixie Dream Girl", not push it further it into a desirable place.
Long story short, I was sorta into the movie but after reading that article I'm much more intrigued. Maybe you will be too.
In today's fast paced Internet world there's not a ton of time for long-form reading. At least, not during the regular workday. So, I submit the following to you for potential reading at your future convenience.
Mountain Lion's New File System
Really interesting read on the new logic implemented within OSX 10.8 Mountain Lion to overcome the traditional folder structure that we've all become so used to. I realize this sort of thing rubs PC users the wrong way but Apple continues to move down a path where the interaction with your creation from any device is their aim and this is how they plan to achieve it.
OSX 10.8 Mountain Lion: The Ars Technica Review
I'm not even fully endorsing that you actually read this, I just want you to be aware that there is a 24-page, incredibly in-depth review of the latest iteration of OSX. You may need to do some prep before diving in.
The Summer Mix Series should be providing you with more than enough new music to consume (Seriously, get that Swami Mix.. and that Shoegaze compilation) but I would be remiss in my "Share Cool Finds" duties if I didn't point you to this Mrs. Magician video for The Dead 80's. The song is perfect for your summer up-beat playlists and the video is an incredibly engaging bit of super stylized animation. I dunno how they did it but I am loving it. Be aware of some NSFW language going in - though also be aware it's totally worth it.
Hear the whole record here and thank Chad for the heads up.
I've long been a fan of Frank Kozik and his Labbit creations but I must say that this series of Goon Squad busts really ups the ante. The Pyong Yang Player? The Retro Gipper? The Havana Slammer? I don't even really want these on my desk but I love that they exist. Thought you might enjoy knowing as well.
Did you know that Funny or Die has an iPad magazine called The Occasional? Did you know it features pieces by the likes of Nick Offerman, Jon Glaser, Megan Amram, Bob Odenkirk, Chelsea Peretti, Harris Wittels and a ton more? How am I just now becoming aware of this? I will downloadtoday!
Take some time today to watch Belly from Julia Pott. More info on the piece can be obtained here but I just suggest diving in and enjoying the surreal animation and illustration style. If you need further convincing, watch the trailer.
I'm smitten with the works of Vikram Kushwah. The official site leaves quite a bit to be desired (small photos, awkward navigation, etc) but the limited selection of large images seen here give you a good idea of the kind of creations he's capable of. His latest collaborative undertaking, Memoirs of Lost Time looks quite engaging and I'd love to see the content much much larger.
More here and here. And thanks to Nevver for the heads up.
Fans of Mr. Show / Bob Odenkirk, please take note of Episode 168 of Scott Aukerman's Comedy Bang Bang as it features three new skits from many of the principal members of Mr. Show (namely, Bob and David themselves).
Apparently there was an attempt at starting a new podcast called "Mr. Blow" that would casually re-unite old Mr. Show cast members but the results were, according to Mr. Odenkirk, less than acceptable. Fortunately, these three skits are quite amusing and should be consumed at your earliest convenience.
Little Sticky Legs is an ongoing stream of portraits of individuals claiming to have been abducted by aliens brought to you by Steven Hirsch. The confessionals of each subject describing their experience is bizarre - you have to wonder if they're consciously making these things up or if they truly believe such things happened? Regardless of the truth of the matter, it's fascinating to read through.
The fully funded, Portland, OR. based XOXO Festival just announced an event called XOXO Arcade that will take place on Sept 14th will be free to the public at Union/Pine. It might be easy to shrug this news off as unimportant if you don't plan on being around Oregon during that time but it should be worth noting that Brandon Boyer will be curating the mini-festival and that all of the games being showcased are "unreleased or exhibited only at events." So, read through this list of games and get excited that new stuff is on the horizon and, surely, it will trickle down after Sept 14th.
From Bedrooms to Billions is a documentary that tells the tale of the UK videogame industry starting from 1979 through the mid-90's. Honestly, I know nothing about the UK game industry or how it influenced the US and Japanese markets. I didn't even know there was a UK videogame industry. Which is to say, I really want to see this movie. From the looks of the filmmakers money raising campaign, they're looking for funds to help make the project a reality. However, they already have a full trailer and a number of outtakes - so the film exists in some form already, right? Right?
I dunno the full story but they're raising money and they've got a bunch of cool rewards if you're looking to really chip in. Let's hope it comes to fruition.
Paige steered me towards this Forbes article on The Death of SEO: The Rise of Social, PR, and Real Content and all I can say is Thank God. SEO, as a job descriptor, always struck me as the Used Car Salesman style job of the Internet. Just an awful role to ape the system to make your client seem more relevant than they are. Obviously the change to the Google search results being more socially fueled isn't new news but it's nice to see some of the bigger press outlets reporting on it and flying the flag to signify the death of an industry that was never needed in the first place. The end advice from the article is this:
Invest in real, valuable, relevant content that your audience wants. Make it so compelling people talk about it and share it.
If this is a piece of insight that you're just now coming to realize you've got a lot of work to do. Good luck!
For good or bad, I consider myself a superfan of The AV Club - the music, tv, movie, media review arm of The Onion. So, when I saw that they were sponsoring a short film contest called Parameter, I was intrigued. Granted, I'm not a film maker but I can appreciate a good competition - especially when they come with rules like "If your film features any astronauts, all characters must be astronauts."
It's all a bit silly but go watch the intro video, have a good chuckle and if you've got a short film lying around, go submit it. Why not?
Let's be honest, summer is closer to being over than it is getting started. That's a shame because Will Bryant just released his Summer Koozie Pack. Fortunately, for a mere $12 you can be inspired to really make the most of the remainder of the season and properly break in these delightful bottle coolers. I'm torn between favoring the Party Dog, USA and Live A Little tooth variations but they all come in the same pack so I don't even have to choose. Go nab them.
