Going To A Town
Yes it may be cliched to acknowledge it, but having lived for some time now down the barrel of the loaded gun that is New York, it really is difficult to be cynical — as the folk laureate Rufus Wainwright is — about this city. There is an edge to it; a gentle pulse that beats just below the surface, that allows sponteniety and breadth of discovery to flourish. The architecture, the music, the art … it may not be as vibrant and exciting as it was back in the day, but, heck, it still knocks me out every time I set foot amongst the perennial bustle of Manhattan. Now, if only it had a decent beach.
Listen to the Rufus Wainwright song, Do I Disappoint You
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Tagged: New York, New York City
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Considered considerably less than average in height on their home planet, the affectionately dubbed ‘little monsters‘ grew tired of the constant jibes and fled to the nearest inhabitable planet: Earth. There they lived happily ever after, causing havoc as only giant alien monsters can. They currently reside in New York City.
If you live in New York, or find yourself lucky enough to be visiting, and you have any interest in history whatsoever, be sure to visit the Merchant’s House Museum on the Bowery. Walking into the Merchant’s House, you are essentially walking into the home of the Tredwells, circa 1832. A virtual time capsule of life on the upscale Bowery in pre-Civil War New York City (yes, the Bowery was actually a very upscale locale 180 years ago), the house is filled with all the original belongings of the Tredwell family and imbued with their history. It’s one of the most fascinating places you will ever visit.
I was working in New York in the early seventies, walked into a club, and heard this. It’s been in my head ever since. I knew the song because it had been launched in the UK by The Shadows some ten years earlier, but this blew it away. Africa Bambaataa and Kool Herc and others gave me a new direction.
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The project of creative technologist, Casey Pugh, this full length version of the George Lucas masterpiece was created from multiple 15 second segments recreated from the original movie and submitted by thousands of Star Wars fans, which were then spliced together by editor Aaron Valdez to form the final product. Genius, as both a commentary on contemporary pop culture trends (there are references to LEGO, stop motion, memes and the like) and on the power of tapping your audience for quality material.
Filmmaker creates LEGO stop motion to propose to girlfriend
Now, this is one for the ages: back in 2010, Atlanta film-maker Walter Thompson created a jaw-dropping LEGO stop motion to propose to Nealey Dozier, his girlfriend of four years. The video took 22 hours of shooting and some 2,600 pictures to splice together, a small sacrifice to pay for years of happiness together. Right? Right! Oh, and she said yes. Bonus.
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Ok, ok, so we’re all busy these days, but dammit, if we want to eat, drink, and take on everything else that’s bad for us, we got to get active. For the super busy amongst us, our friends at College Humor present this awesome series of Realistic Gym Workout Diagrams. Read more
His drawings are so realistic that, after first thinking it was photography, you then search for a ‘zoom button’ to get the most details you can. Then, slowly, the drawings seem to be moving, they appear to be alive, something is coming, and the story, after a minute, is already all around you. Read more
Oh boy, this is fun. Omaha’s Tilly and the Wall are kitsch-cool-camp-vauderville meets pop-folk-flamenco, with a tap dancer for a drummer and some serious, serious charisma for a calling card.
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We like this blog, Silent Cities. We like seeing images of some of the most noisy and crowded places in the world momentarily bathed in silence. There is something both serene and eerie about these scenes. The images above and below are from London, Sydney and Detroit. Read more
I’ve been waiting for a group like this. These New Puritans are balls in your face, 100 miles an hour, pure attack! A young British group that has most of the UK press in the palm of their skinny pale hands, they hint at a sonic mash of Bloc Party mixed with what White Rose Movement were supposed to be. What more could you want?
Listen to the These New Puritans track, Elvis.
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The people at Nixon have created a simple but funky watch for those carefree days. The Time Teller P features a basic design made up of durable materials, spiced up with some unconventional colours. Read more
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I don’t eat cookies, so good thing Cookie Boy’s cookies are little pieces of art too pretty and cute to eat. Read more
Mathematics? Leave me out. Fashematics? Now you’re talking! This gem of a site is a runway equation that adds up to a whole lot of wonderful.
It’s refreshing to see artists like Joe Kievitt who are contented to explore the beauty in simple forms and asymmetrical patterns. Read more
Danot has created a stunning line of new illustrated tanks and tees, featuring our latest obsession, the Forlorn tanktop. Is it a bird? Or a face? Or all of the above? Dive into this graphic and decide for yourself. While you’re there, check out the other great new Danot pieces in the Lost At E Minor store
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