Wednesday, September 26, 2007
FtTP - Feist + Mika
Rianna has saved the day by sending me a blog post idea. Sometimes I just can't get into the mood to post something here - last night was just such a night - and it helps when I get a suggestion. I would have posted this Frankensteining the Talent Pool combo last night, but wanted to get Rianna's permission to do so first. So, here goes:
FtTP: Feist + Mika
I've discussed Mika here before. Lovely, upbeat music, he's got. I heard Feist through a commercial first and wondered who was performing. My husband looked it up and told me the name, which I promptly forgot. Then Rianna reminded me through her email last night. Feist, which sounds like it could be the name of a group, appears to be the name of a female performer. She has an ethereal sound, happy with a smidge of melancholy. Check out her 1, 2, 3, 4 on YouTube. This is the song from the commercial. I'll tell you, she and Mika could certainly have a fashion-sharing party. They both appear to enjoy dancing, too.
Thanks, Rianna!
FtTP: Feist + Mika
I've discussed Mika here before. Lovely, upbeat music, he's got. I heard Feist through a commercial first and wondered who was performing. My husband looked it up and told me the name, which I promptly forgot. Then Rianna reminded me through her email last night. Feist, which sounds like it could be the name of a group, appears to be the name of a female performer. She has an ethereal sound, happy with a smidge of melancholy. Check out her 1, 2, 3, 4 on YouTube. This is the song from the commercial. I'll tell you, she and Mika could certainly have a fashion-sharing party. They both appear to enjoy dancing, too.
Thanks, Rianna!
Labels: blog, feist, frankensteining the talent pool, FtTP, husband, mika, music, rianna, youtube
Friday, August 31, 2007
FtTP - Blue Man Group + Dave Matthews
Here's a Frankensteining the Talent Pool combination that never even dawned on me. I was poking around on YouTube and found a video of the song "Sing Along" by Blue Man Group and Dave Matthews. Super cool. The combo really works.
Labels: blue man group, dave matthews, frankensteining the talent pool, FtTP, youtube
Monday, June 25, 2007
That's Soooo 2000
I've got my new issue of Wired magazine, working my way through it cover-to-cover. That doesn't mean I'm necessarily reading every little thing, but I like to work front-to-back so I don't miss something. The cover image/article is of Transformers - as in the "more than meets the eye" type. I didn't get into these as a kid, so haven't read the article yet. My son went right to it, though - first thing read. I was more interested in the the mapping article "The Whole Earth, Cataloged: How Google Maps is changing the way we see the world" by Evan Ratliff and "Dispatches From the Hyperlocal Future" by Bruce Sterling.
Wired is relentlessly future-seeking, which makes me breathless and frustrated. Can't keep up! Can't . . . keeeeeep. . . up! Part of what makes me feel this way is how Wired's articles talk about what happened a mere seven years ago as if it was ancient history. For example, did you know that the Captcha (those squiggly letters/numbers that you have to type in periodically when doing web work in order to foil spambots) was invented by Luis von Ahn in 2000? Luis von Ahn has moved on to figuring out how to teach computers how to recognize beauty. (See the article "The Human Advantage" by Clive Thompson.) Seems like the Captcha has been around a while, but seven years is nothing in human history. Of course, this notion of three, five, seven years ago being ancient history is not Wired's fault. It's the nature of technology that is warping our sense of time. Wired simply reflects that. (What does irritate me about Wired is its habit of amplifying how incredibly backwards people are if they don't keep up or don't know what every abbreviation means. Where is their online glossary when you need one?)
What astounds me is that human creativity in general has ramped up to that same dizzying speed as technology. Think about how many books are produced per year now as opposed to in the 1800s. The classics from the 1800s are classics because they didn't have as much competition. We have thousands of Ansel Adams, what with digital photography, millions of publishers with blogging (although a good share of those aren't worth the 0's and 1's they're written with), and how many gazillions of movie producers with YouTube. There is simply no way the human mind - a single human mind - can track everything. We simply have to do our best and forget the rest.
Wired is relentlessly future-seeking, which makes me breathless and frustrated. Can't keep up! Can't . . . keeeeeep. . . up! Part of what makes me feel this way is how Wired's articles talk about what happened a mere seven years ago as if it was ancient history. For example, did you know that the Captcha (those squiggly letters/numbers that you have to type in periodically when doing web work in order to foil spambots) was invented by Luis von Ahn in 2000? Luis von Ahn has moved on to figuring out how to teach computers how to recognize beauty. (See the article "The Human Advantage" by Clive Thompson.) Seems like the Captcha has been around a while, but seven years is nothing in human history. Of course, this notion of three, five, seven years ago being ancient history is not Wired's fault. It's the nature of technology that is warping our sense of time. Wired simply reflects that. (What does irritate me about Wired is its habit of amplifying how incredibly backwards people are if they don't keep up or don't know what every abbreviation means. Where is their online glossary when you need one?)
What astounds me is that human creativity in general has ramped up to that same dizzying speed as technology. Think about how many books are produced per year now as opposed to in the 1800s. The classics from the 1800s are classics because they didn't have as much competition. We have thousands of Ansel Adams, what with digital photography, millions of publishers with blogging (although a good share of those aren't worth the 0's and 1's they're written with), and how many gazillions of movie producers with YouTube. There is simply no way the human mind - a single human mind - can track everything. We simply have to do our best and forget the rest.
Labels: ansel adams, books, captchas, creativity, frustration, google, history, luis von ahn, maps, photography, technology, time, wired magazine, youtube
Sunday, June 03, 2007
Roy Zimmerman
My husband was looking for references to "Dick Cheney" on YouTube and ran across musician/comedian Roy Zimmerman. The guy's a riot. Now, if you are a conservative with a taste for the current White House administration, you probably won't appreciate Roy's stuff. Don't say I didn't give you fair warning.
Along with the "Dick Cheney" song, check out "Ted Haggard Is Completely Heterosexual."
Along with the "Dick Cheney" song, check out "Ted Haggard Is Completely Heterosexual."
Labels: comedian, conservatives, dick cheney, husband, musician, roy zimmerman, ted haggard, white house, youtube
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Amazing Instrument
Eldest Son found a video of this incredible musical instrument on YouTube. It's called Fantastica Instrumentacao and it has me wondering whether it's real, or some incredible manipulation of camera work and spot-on sound track. If it's real, who'd a thunk you could get this much control out of rubber balls?
Labels: happy rubber balls, instrument, music, son, video, youtube
Friday, May 11, 2007
Concert
Go away for a day and come back with loads to talk about. The hubby and I went to a concert in Minneapolis last night. It was at The Cedar Cultural Center - The Cedar for short. The headliner was Andy McKee, with Antoine Dufour and Jeff Schmidt also playing sets. Andy and Antoine play guitar in a complicated picking and percussive style. Jeff does the same thing with bass, if you can believe it. He plays a five-string right-handed guitar with his left hand. Fabulous, and he was quite chatty, too.
The CandyRat record label sponsored the concert. While Andy and Antoine are both on the label, Jeff isn't, but he did tell us how CandyRat got its name. When the label's owner was looking for a name, he had one in mind and went online to register it as a domain name. The name he wanted was taken, but the domain name registration site gave him a list of random alternatives. CandyRat was one of them, et voila! A record label was born.
Watching Antoine, I swore he had six fingers on his strumming hand - not really - he's just that good. I especially like his song "Toi et Moi," which he wrote for his wife. Andy, whose videos have reached number one status on YouTube in the last half-year or so, played his arrangement of Toto's song "Africa." This was an eighties song, in case you missed it. Very cool rendition. He told us that he just had a chance to meet Toto after they had seen his video of the song on YouTube.
This was a phenomenal concert from another standpoint: the audience. The Cedar is an intimate little place. Seating consists of folding chairs on an open, gym-like floor, with a low stage up front. We sat in the third row. Everyone was extraordinarily respectful of the musicians. There were no lyrics to any of the songs, just pure, complicated music, and that's what we were all there for - not to scream, or be seen, or to jabber on our cell phones telling people about the cool concert we were attending. Even Jeff noticed our demeanor and he said we were too quiet! That's when some audience members started lobbing him questions, which he obligingly answered. And, get this, the whole experience was ours for only $15 per ticket, plus the gas money it took us to drive to the Cities. What a bargain.
The CandyRat record label sponsored the concert. While Andy and Antoine are both on the label, Jeff isn't, but he did tell us how CandyRat got its name. When the label's owner was looking for a name, he had one in mind and went online to register it as a domain name. The name he wanted was taken, but the domain name registration site gave him a list of random alternatives. CandyRat was one of them, et voila! A record label was born.
Watching Antoine, I swore he had six fingers on his strumming hand - not really - he's just that good. I especially like his song "Toi et Moi," which he wrote for his wife. Andy, whose videos have reached number one status on YouTube in the last half-year or so, played his arrangement of Toto's song "Africa." This was an eighties song, in case you missed it. Very cool rendition. He told us that he just had a chance to meet Toto after they had seen his video of the song on YouTube.
This was a phenomenal concert from another standpoint: the audience. The Cedar is an intimate little place. Seating consists of folding chairs on an open, gym-like floor, with a low stage up front. We sat in the third row. Everyone was extraordinarily respectful of the musicians. There were no lyrics to any of the songs, just pure, complicated music, and that's what we were all there for - not to scream, or be seen, or to jabber on our cell phones telling people about the cool concert we were attending. Even Jeff noticed our demeanor and he said we were too quiet! That's when some audience members started lobbing him questions, which he obligingly answered. And, get this, the whole experience was ours for only $15 per ticket, plus the gas money it took us to drive to the Cities. What a bargain.
Labels: africa, andy mckee, antoine dufour, audience, bass, candyrat, guitar, husband, jeff schmidt, minneapolis, minnesota, music, the cedar, youtube
Sunday, April 22, 2007
Major Tom
Last night, we were watching TV (the movie "Dodgeball," if you must know), and my husband was on the computer. I'm not sure what led to this, but he started singing, "Four . . . three . . . two . . . one," and then something else that I didn't quite catch, but I it pushed a memory button for me and I said, "What was that? Sing it again." The hubby did one better - he pulled the song up on YouTube. He was singing "Major Tom" by Peter Schilling. I loved this song as a young adult, but if you had put a gun to my head and said, "Name the singer," I would never have come up with Peter Schilling in a million years. The video was familiar, though.
Our kids wondered about this song and the Major Tom story. For those who don't know, Major Tom was a character in at least two songs by David Bowie - "Space Oddity" and "Ashes to Ashes". Major Tom is an astronaut who leaves his space craft and floats into space. Listeners are left to wonder what happens to him and what has to be going through his mind as he realizes he's a goner. (I'm admittedly not an expert on Bowie's music, so if Major Tom showed up in any of his other songs, let me know.)
In my opinion, Peter Schilling's Major Tom song is more melodic than Bowie's songs, although Bowie's leave me feeling infinitely more unsettled, which I think was the point. If Schilling had written his song in today's copyright climate, Bowie's music industry representatives would have slapped him with a cease-and-desist order or sued him. Thankfully, Bowie didn't get his undies in a twist and one of his characters led to further creative exploration. Does anyone know whether Major Tom has shown up in anyone else's creative work?
The only other song I can think of with this strange astronaut imagery is Peter Mayer's "Astronaut Dreams." (Sorry, I can't find a recording of this for you to listen to online.)
Our kids wondered about this song and the Major Tom story. For those who don't know, Major Tom was a character in at least two songs by David Bowie - "Space Oddity" and "Ashes to Ashes". Major Tom is an astronaut who leaves his space craft and floats into space. Listeners are left to wonder what happens to him and what has to be going through his mind as he realizes he's a goner. (I'm admittedly not an expert on Bowie's music, so if Major Tom showed up in any of his other songs, let me know.)
In my opinion, Peter Schilling's Major Tom song is more melodic than Bowie's songs, although Bowie's leave me feeling infinitely more unsettled, which I think was the point. If Schilling had written his song in today's copyright climate, Bowie's music industry representatives would have slapped him with a cease-and-desist order or sued him. Thankfully, Bowie didn't get his undies in a twist and one of his characters led to further creative exploration. Does anyone know whether Major Tom has shown up in anyone else's creative work?
The only other song I can think of with this strange astronaut imagery is Peter Mayer's "Astronaut Dreams." (Sorry, I can't find a recording of this for you to listen to online.)
Labels: astronaut, computer, copyright, creativity, david bowie, family, husband, major tom, music, peter mayer, peter schilling, songs, youtube
Friday, December 08, 2006
FtTP - Mike Mangini + Carter Beauford
Really brilliant drummers make me want to get a trap set. I'm well acquainted with Carter Beauford's work, having listened long and hard to the Dave Matthew's Band. My husband recently (okay, yesterday) introduced me to the drumming of Mike Mangini, who has recorded with guitarist Steve Vai. You know that song, "Dueling Banjos" from the movie Deliverance? I'd like to see Carter Beauford and Mike Mangini perform dueling drums. How killer would that be?
By the way, the name links hook up to drum solos by each guy on YouTube.
By the way, the name links hook up to drum solos by each guy on YouTube.
Labels: carter beauford, dave matthews band, drummers, dueling banjos, frankensteining the talent pool, FtTP, husband, mike mangini, steve vai, youtube
Monday, November 20, 2006
FtTP - TV + The Internet
I'm still making my way through the latest Wired Magazine and read an article on YouTube last night, plus one on the creation of lonelygirl15.
As the internet grows more and more social, I'm thinking that maybe these little personal screens we sit in front of are not big enough. Here's what happens in my house: "Mom, come here. Look at this video on YouTube." ... "Mom, come see these cute iPod covers online." ... "Mom, check out this game I'm playing. I've wracked up X number of gold pieces. Now I can buy that cloaking device I want." ... "Honey, check out what I wrote for StoryChat. Here's where the thread starts." I've seen as many as five kids huddled around the fifteen-inch screen I'm currently sitting at.
Juxtapose this with the current trend in personal home theaters wherein the homeowner has a screen large enough to be viewed across a football field. And the techie pundits claim television is dying? I think it's on the verge of a rebirth, but its genetics will come from the internet, pulling directly from success stories such as YouTube and lonelygirl15.
My internet provider and cable company are one in the same. How big a leap would it be to broadcast the internet on TV? My brother used to have WebTV, so it's been done before. Why not have a switching device on the TV that allows it to broadcast either cable or the internet? Why not create easy-to-hold controlling devices - cheap enough for everyone in the family to have - so that watching the internet & selecting a variety of sites can become an even bigger social phenomenon? Imagine the group collaborations, or perhaps the shopping parties, people can have if we wed the internet to a bigger screen.
Someone somewhere is surely already working on this . . . .
As the internet grows more and more social, I'm thinking that maybe these little personal screens we sit in front of are not big enough. Here's what happens in my house: "Mom, come here. Look at this video on YouTube." ... "Mom, come see these cute iPod covers online." ... "Mom, check out this game I'm playing. I've wracked up X number of gold pieces. Now I can buy that cloaking device I want." ... "Honey, check out what I wrote for StoryChat. Here's where the thread starts." I've seen as many as five kids huddled around the fifteen-inch screen I'm currently sitting at.
Juxtapose this with the current trend in personal home theaters wherein the homeowner has a screen large enough to be viewed across a football field. And the techie pundits claim television is dying? I think it's on the verge of a rebirth, but its genetics will come from the internet, pulling directly from success stories such as YouTube and lonelygirl15.
My internet provider and cable company are one in the same. How big a leap would it be to broadcast the internet on TV? My brother used to have WebTV, so it's been done before. Why not have a switching device on the TV that allows it to broadcast either cable or the internet? Why not create easy-to-hold controlling devices - cheap enough for everyone in the family to have - so that watching the internet & selecting a variety of sites can become an even bigger social phenomenon? Imagine the group collaborations, or perhaps the shopping parties, people can have if we wed the internet to a bigger screen.
Someone somewhere is surely already working on this . . . .
Labels: FtTP, husband, internet, kids, technology, tv, wired, youtube
Sunday, October 01, 2006
FtTP - Moby + Blue Man Group
Maybe it's just the bald head, but I can picture Moby painting himself blue and working with Blue Man Group. The music might have something to do with it, too.
October 2, 2006 - Update
Well, folks, this one's been done. Moby and Blue Man Group performed together at the 2001 Grammy Awards. There is an interview with Moby and the Blue dudes on YouTube. The Blue dudes aren't saying anything, but check out what they do toward the end of the clip.
Obviously, someone else thought all those bald heads should go together. I only wish that Moby would have taken a dip in the blue paint, too.
You know, maybe I should call my blog "Always late to the party and inappropriately dressed." That, or I should learn to do a search on my Frankensteining the Talent Pool ideas before I post them. Live and learn.
October 2, 2006 - Update
Well, folks, this one's been done. Moby and Blue Man Group performed together at the 2001 Grammy Awards. There is an interview with Moby and the Blue dudes on YouTube. The Blue dudes aren't saying anything, but check out what they do toward the end of the clip.
Obviously, someone else thought all those bald heads should go together. I only wish that Moby would have taken a dip in the blue paint, too.
You know, maybe I should call my blog "Always late to the party and inappropriately dressed." That, or I should learn to do a search on my Frankensteining the Talent Pool ideas before I post them. Live and learn.
Labels: blue man group, frankensteining the talent pool, FtTP, grammy awards, moby, youtube
Hurray for Repetition!
That Resentment post of mine sure shows my cranky side. Gosh, I hate missing out on important information. But, I'm also a cup-half-full kind of gal, so here's the up side. Even though I resent not having gotten most of the tech memos sent out, at least I don't stay in the dark forever. If the information is important enough for me to know, eventually I'll catch on, or it'll catch me. The key to this is REPETITION.
I love that human beings keep repeating stuff to each other, be it the latest gossip, the newest toy, the coolest YouTube video, the most critical healthcare report. There's so much information whirling around our heads that it's impossible to track it all. Hearing something once, unless it's REALLY important, is not likely to stick with us. I watched the Numa Numa video a couple of times yesterday. Do I remember the song today? Nope. Gotta listen again.
When I really want to understand something, I go out of my way to enhance the repetition. For example, I listen to the music of Dave Matthews Band over and over again (ad nauseum, if you ask my family), so that I can cement it in my head and comprehend its nuances. As a creative person, the understanding gained from this form of repetition assists me in splicing together my own creative products. A side benefit to this particular repetition of songs is that it allows me to turn my brain into an iPod. Instant download if there's no exterior music source to listen to.
Repetition = Eventually being in the know.
Repetiton = Enhancement of creativity.
Repetition = Exercise for our neural synapses.
Repetition = Memory booster.
Hurray for Repetition!
I love that human beings keep repeating stuff to each other, be it the latest gossip, the newest toy, the coolest YouTube video, the most critical healthcare report. There's so much information whirling around our heads that it's impossible to track it all. Hearing something once, unless it's REALLY important, is not likely to stick with us. I watched the Numa Numa video a couple of times yesterday. Do I remember the song today? Nope. Gotta listen again.
When I really want to understand something, I go out of my way to enhance the repetition. For example, I listen to the music of Dave Matthews Band over and over again (ad nauseum, if you ask my family), so that I can cement it in my head and comprehend its nuances. As a creative person, the understanding gained from this form of repetition assists me in splicing together my own creative products. A side benefit to this particular repetition of songs is that it allows me to turn my brain into an iPod. Instant download if there's no exterior music source to listen to.
Repetition = Eventually being in the know.
Repetiton = Enhancement of creativity.
Repetition = Exercise for our neural synapses.
Repetition = Memory booster.
Hurray for Repetition!
Labels: creative, dave matthews band, music, repetition, resentment, splice, youtube
Saturday, September 30, 2006
Music from Overseas
My kids and their friends (who else?) introduced me to these videos on YouTube today. One is from the Romanian group O-Zone with their song Dragostea Din Tei , also called Numa Numa. Have a listen and you'll know why it's called that. Very catchy. (The video link I've selected is a karaoke version, so you can see the words. If you can translate O-Zone's website, more power to you. My Romanian language skills are woefully lacking.)
The other is Ievan Polkka for Alex. Ievan Polkka translates to Eva's Polka and is a traditional Finnish story song. The singers in the video are remarkable. Happy listening!
The other is Ievan Polkka for Alex. Ievan Polkka translates to Eva's Polka and is a traditional Finnish story song. The singers in the video are remarkable. Happy listening!
Monday, September 25, 2006
FtTP - Ultravox + Madonna
Ultravox was one of my favorite bands in high school. I've also been quite fond of Madonna through her various incarnations. (It's fun to see what she'll come up with next.) However, I never would've thought to put the two together. Thankfully, someone else did. I was searching for Ultravox on YouTube yesterday and found this dandy video: Madonna vs. Ultravox-Love in Vienna. It's a fascinating splice of Madonna's Substitute for Love and Ultravox's Vienna. It was posted by the avatar Avestan. I can only assume that Avestan is the one with the creative mash-up skills. Very cool.
Labels: frankensteining the talent pool, FtTP, madonna, ultravox, youtube
Saturday, September 16, 2006
FtTP - Stratospheric Guitar Heroes
My husband was watching Steve Vai videos on YouTube last night. The camera operator sure knew to get close-ups of Steve's guitar playing. He is a virtuoso. There are others, of course. Stanley Jordan, Ottmar Liebert, Leo Kottke. What if these guys all got together for a concert? Would the result be garbage or a masterpiece?
Labels: frankensteining the talent pool, FtTP, guitar, leo kottke, ottmar liebert, stanley jordan, steve vai, youtube
