December 2, 2008 | Art | by Gerry Mak 
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New York and Zurich-based artist Urs Fischer’s entropic sculptures and installations blows apart people’s expectations of what to expect at a gallery. Last year’s installation, You, at Gavin Brown was a 38-foot-by-30-foot crater dug into the gallery floor. His huge, ambitious works seem frantic and impulsive despite the immense planning and meticulous execution they often require. His mockery of physics, and the enormous scale and shock-and-awe quality of his work suggest the god-like potency of an artist, at least within a gallery space. Read more
December 2, 2008 | Eco | by Gerry Mak |
Design company BrandImage has just come out with their line of paper water bottles made out of renewable resources. The bottles themselves are recyclable, and while not as reusable as a plastic bottle, can still be reused a few times. These are cool designs, even if they still pander to our on-the-go, single-serving, throw-away culture. Their environmental friendliness is also dubious, considering most people will still choose to throw these things in the trash rather than taking the time to find a recycling bin.
December 2, 2008 | Events | 
by Gerry Mak |
Very few band reunions get me excited, but I’ve consistently loved Faith No More since I was 13. I loved their pre-Mike Patton era, I loved King for a Day, and I even loved their track with Boo Yah Tribe on the Judgment Night soundtrack. Kerrang recently hinted that a FNM reformation is in the works for ‘09, and though bassist Billy Gould has emphatically denied the rumors, the general consensus is that the reunion is on.
December 2, 2008 | Music | by Gerry Mak |
I almost forgot — metal is really about being drunk, pissed, offensive, and satanic. I have Bestial Mockery to thank for this. Their no-frills black thrash is barebones and snarling without being too dead-pan serious. These guys from Sweden are clearly having a blast worshiping the Dark One in the tradition of old-school bands like Venom, early Bathory, and Sodom. Nothing too original here, but it’s fun as hell.
December 2, 2008 | Websites | by Gerry Mak |
Interior design website, Apartment Therapy, just posted some amazing pictures of ’70s rock stars in their parents’ homes. My favorite is of David Crosby and his dad [below]. The two look so completely opposite of each other that it’s hard to believe that it’s Crosby’s real dad. They also look like they’re barely concealing the contempt they have for each other. Crosby’s father was an Academy-Award-winning cinematographer who shot Tabu and High Noon, amongst other well-known films. Read more
December 2, 2008 | Video | 
by Gerry Mak |
There have been a lot of mash-ups of the unintentionally suggestive Icelandic children’s show Lazy Town. This one is creepy, but also kind of amazing.
December 2, 2008 | Places | by Zolton |
Our friends over at SNAP!, Montreal’s only free and independent arts and lifestyle magazine have just released their fourth issue in which they look back and celebrate the faded beauty of past eras, grandmas and grandpas, Polaroids, antique finds, old wisdom and vintage style. Yeeha! They also remember the best of 2008 in Montreal arts, with a variety of writers and photographers giving their take on their favourite cultural discoveries.
December 1, 2008 | Photography | by Zolton |
Australian photographer, Sean Fennessy, was named by Art and Australia Magazine in 2006 as one of the ‘country’s best artists aged under 25′. These photos are from a larger series on Shanghai called Over the Rainbow. Read more
December 1, 2008 | Trends | by Francis Andrews |
There’s ethnic tat, and there’s ethnic tat. On your first round-the-world trip, you’ll buy up the standard drapes, masks, bongs, drums, and so on. You’ll come back the proud bearer of rare and previously unseen items, before realising the exact same products are being sold in your local fairtrade shop. So on your next trip you’ll branch out a bit, and scoop up some lotions and spices you’re sure the organic market in town doesn’t sell. But it’s only when you mature to a higher level of foresight and gall that you’ll chance upon the pinnacle of ethnic tat: the Chairman Mao watch. On the last check it was still only available in China (or via mail order, but who wants that?), and therefore guarantees a genuine look of surprise and admiration upon unpacking your bags, for you must have traversed the mystical heights of the Himalayas and dodged the all-seeing eyes of the Communist Party to bring something of the other world back with you.
December 1, 2008 | Products | by Zolton |
Now this is fun! Produced in Australia, Limedrop Duffel Bags come in five colourways: Black, Yellow and Blue, PVC Lycra, Mirrorball Black and Metallic Silver and can be worn as backpacks or shoulder bags.
December 1, 2008 | Illustration | by Zolton |
Argentenian illustrator Veronica Blejman creates subtle, one dimensional artworks that are striking in their originality. Of her inspiration, she says: ‘I’m very self-referential. Also, I like seeing others. I’m professional at being nosey and gossiping. Sometimes I’m in a bar, and without intentions I start to hear a conversation that inspires me to make illustrations. It’s like I make some moments eternal. Movies also inspire me, as well as books, music, old magazines, or staying with my friends and chatting. I always have something of that in my work’.
December 1, 2008 | Fashion | by Michelle Wilding |
Cuffs are pretty glam right now and I’m particularly feeling those by Leethal Fashion Accessories. They also have a huge range of stylish jewellery such as bangles, rings, brooches, and earrings, all for less than $50.
November 28, 2008 | Design | by Zac |
Newcastle is now my home town and I’m enjoying meeting some of the interesting people living here. Working under the name of Illumination Ink, Heath Killen has a strong and refined style. His diverse portfolio includes everything from album art to corporate IDs and typography. In addition to his commercial work at Illumination Ink, he’s recently been producing a series of surreal Australian landscapes, some of which are on display at Flickr. Read more
November 26, 2008 | Film | by Xavier Toby |
Back at a time when the Australian film industry rivalled Iceland’s for inactivity, the first Australian films to hit American and British drive-ins featured some weird plots indeed. Split into three parts, covering sex, slasher and smash and crash, Not Quite Hollywood focuses on Australian exploitation films. It is argued that without these films, Australia might not have a film industry at all. Read more
November 20, 2008 | Architecture | by Snell |
Dutch uber-firm OMA, headed by Rem Koolhaas, has created this concept in Mexico City to symbolize the coming two hundred years of Mexico’s independence. There are many layers of symbolism in this building, from Mayan pyramids to which part of the building controls the park and which part controls the city, to the fact that the bulge of the building is below the centre height, and that it all happens on a relatively small footprint. Most of all, in this building there is a barely contained energy that seems near to release and it may be that this is what Torre Bicentenario represents.
Glenn Brown utilizes the tactile and visceral nature of paint to create neo-classical and surreal works that reference the great renaissance masters as well as more recent artists such as Dali and Duchamp. Read more
Grinning Cat is a beautiful electronic album from prodigious Japanese producer, Susumu Yokota. It borrows liberally from the melodic melancholy of classical music and features subtle drum loops throughout. We interviewed him about the artwork that he creates for each release. Read more
It’s been a while since we last checked in with one of our favourite illustrators, New York based Tomer Hanuka. His work is like the first rays of morning light on the fifth day of a week long vacation — easy on the eye but brimming with nervous anticipation.
Once upon a time there was a real connoisseur of jeans, Hidehiko Yamane, as expert and demanding as only certain Japanese ‘otaku’ can be. Read more
I love Copenhagen’s Meyers Deli. I don’t know if it’s the giant plates of organic food or the super cool and warm environment. Read more
Lasse Gjertsen is the future of cut and paste music. He’s just arrived ten years too early and with a really bad haircut.
DJ Spooky — That Subliminal Kid — is just about the deepest crate digger around, trawling the barrels of long-lost record stores for choice vinyl to spin in his wickedly dubby sets. He gave us the inside word last week on his eight favourite songs right now via our sister website, My Secret Playlist. This is what he had to say about Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry’s Panic in Babylon: ‘If there’s anything that the twenty-first century has told us, it’s that dub is the real original hip-hop. Lee Scratch even had to make it clear in 1965 by adding “Scratch” to his middle name. Take that, Grandmaster Flash!’ Read the rest of DJ Spooky’s Secret Playlist.
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Kristin Baker’s paintings strike the eye like massive Hollywood blockbusters, but have the elegance of delicate watercolors. Read more
Christine Callahan’s colourful photography
There is magic in these photographs by New York photographer, Christine Callahan. The vibrant colors and the beauty in the everyday give me the feeling that everything is going to be just fine. Read more
Download the new Michna album, Magic Monday
The media world is firmly embedded in the twenty-first century digital revolution, so we thought we better keep up with the times. Read more
Lightspeed Champion performs The Kids unhinged
We met Lightspeed Champion (Londoner and former Test Icicles member Dev Hynes) backstage at Oxford Arts Factory at precisely 4.15pm. Read more
Alison Malone on her Daughters of Job photos
A couple of weeks back we featured the work of New York-based photographer Alison Malone, who went into the secretive environment of the Job’s Daughters to photograph the girls who are direct blood relatives of the Master Masons. This is the second part of that interview. Read more
We have a stack of CDs and DVDs to give away to a lucky new subscriber who signs up to receive our free weekly email publication between now and New Year’s Day. There’s 50 new CDs in the pile, along with a handful of DVDs. So sign up now and leave a message here telling us what album you hope will be in the pile!
This beautiful ultrachrome print on Hahnemuhle rag paper, measuring nine by twelve inches and in a limited edition of just 100, is available for purchase through the Lost At E Minor store. Read more
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