The question has been raised by Jason....what's on my mind? Heck if I know.
But I can one-up that: what's on my iPod? The next ten songs are generated at random off my server....And as an added bonus, I'm embedding video clips of the songs or something quite similar....Play along at home!
1. Neil Young, "Let's Impeach the President"--No kidding, this was the first song that came up. Hmmm: I'll give you one guess who I didn't vote for in '04. This was the "single" off of LIVING WITH WAR....I haven't heard the new/old live disc that came out this summer. I grew up w/ Neil Young records from as young as I could grasp my dad's vinyl copy of FOUR WAY STREET.
2. Sara Tavares, "Balancê"--This is a track I came across when I was DJing world music at a community radio station in Bloomington, IN. Tavares is of Cape Verdean descent, but born and based out of Portugal. Gorgeous voice--gorgeous melody.
3. Madeline Peyroux, "Was I?"--My wife is a huge fan of Peyroux, and I'm a convert....We missed her live twice in the last year, and we won't make the same mistake three times in a row. Peyroux does a killer Patsy Cline cover on this disc (DREAMLAND).
4. Lô Borges, "Equitorial"--This is a track from one of the first world music collections I ever had, the David Byrne-compiled BELEZA TROPICAL: BRAZIL CLASSICS 1.
5. Andrius Mamontovas, "Pauksčiai"--What do you know...this is the guy whose videos I have YouTubed on the bottom of my blog....I got a chance to interview him a few times for my various projects, and also saw him live several times off of this 2000 album whose title translates as EVERY WINDOW LOOKS TO THE SKY. Here's another track from that album, recorded live @ Lithuanian TV:
6. Mahala Raï Banda, "Iest Sexy"--Brilliant track that arrived on the sampler with the British world music magazine SONGLINES a few years back. Roma brass with a Justin Timberlake-esque swagger. Infectuous. The clip I found seems to be staring down Borat without blinking...
7. REM, "Electrolite"--REM and U2 were the bands I grew up with through high school, college, and beyond....Saw them on the DOCUMENT tour in 1987 or 1988, which was--wait for it--my freshman year at Gustavus. Yep. Do the math. I was previously unaware they had redone "Shiny Happy People" w/ the Muppets. Who knew?
8. Maria Bethânia, "Sonho Meu"--What's this?! Yet another track off of BELEZA TROPICAL?! Do you ever wonder if your electronics are trying to tell you something? Here's something a little more contemporary from Brazil:
9. Lush, "Scarlet"--Back when you all were pondering the pros and cons of kindergarden (!), we were agog over a four-piece out of England who sounded dreamy and loud as all get out. Search for "shoegazing" on Wikipedia for kicks. How did they come up with those harmonies? This is a track from one of their early EPs....Sadly, the band went defunct when the drummer killed himself. Here's another single from this period called "Sweetness and Light."
10. Os Mutantes, "Bat Macumba"--OK, three Brazilian songs from 10 at random?! I think not. This is from the import compilation TROPICALIA--A BRAZILIAN REVOLUTION IN SOUND. Os Mutantes translates as "The Mutants," if I remember right, and you can hear how they're messing about in the studio big time. Late 60s / early 70s? But the clip is from a more recent tour...
So that's newest latest here at the Ingvoldstad household. Hope there's something there you like!
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Sunday, June 17, 2007
Got podcasts?
Something I've started to use this spring has been podcasts....once I realized how painfully easy it was, I was in....The biggest problem is that it's like subscribing to more magazines and / or newspapers than I can keep up with...Every now and then you just have to write off good intentions and hit the DELETE button liberally.
So I'm curious to know: do you all podcast? Audio or video? Which do you particularly like, and why?
Because THREE (3) is a nice round number, here are three of my faves, to get the ball rolling.....
1) DIGITAL PLANET (BBC [British Broadcasting Service])--When I lived in Europe, I had a shortwave radio receiver, and fell in love w/ listening to the BBC. Now, of course, you can access all their various streams on the Web (a good thing, seeing as they've stopped shortwave service to North America), yet having to coordinate times to catch particular shows can be tricky. Podcasting has become my BBC radio TIVO....although not everything I'd like is available (o why won't they podcast EUROPE TODAY?) Still, I do get several streams, including a news digest and a commentary magazine. DIGITAL PLANET is notable for its weekly foray into new ways technology is being applied and implemented....I remember J wondering how much further cell phones could be pushed last week in class--and I think we all wonder that about any number of technologies...DIGITAL PLANET is something of a mind-stretcher that has opened me up to a wider range of technological potentials (and pitfalls too, but mostly potentials....it maintains a positive spin on tech world).....more info at http://www.bbc.co.uk , or search in iTunes.
2) THIS AMERICAN LIFE (NPR [National Public Radio] / WBEZ-CHICAGO)--Part of the Sunday Family Ritual in Bloomie was reading the Sunday papers in bed, listening to WEEKEND EDITION until 10, then THIS AMERICAN LIFE for the next hour after that. Ira Glass is brilliant--we got to see him on a tour preparing to try to move the show to Showtime as well....But as a radio guy, he's tops. The show excels at throwing you curveballs, truly "making the familiar strange." We're going to use a comic book he put together on how to do a radio show for my COMM 399 "Radio Studies" course this fall....more info at http://www.npr.org , or search in iTunes.
3) THE CURRENT SONG OF THE DAY (MPR [Minnesota Public Radio])--They blip me a new song for free every weekday that their hipster station is breaking. Invariably songs are piling up, but when I dig through I find some real jems amidst the so-so tracks....Also like the idea of them promoting local (MN) artist about once a week....(Wouldn't you like to get blipped new local Mass Music weekly? Being a recent transplant, I know I would, anyway....Dropkick who?).....Best track since subscribing: The Stooges' "My Idea of Fun"! More at http://minnesota.publicradio.org or on iTunes....
Come to think of it, all these podcasts originate from non-commercial public radio. That fits my listening pattern otherwise these past few years.....
So how about it? What kinds of podcasts do you all enjoy?
So I'm curious to know: do you all podcast? Audio or video? Which do you particularly like, and why?
Because THREE (3) is a nice round number, here are three of my faves, to get the ball rolling.....
1) DIGITAL PLANET (BBC [British Broadcasting Service])--When I lived in Europe, I had a shortwave radio receiver, and fell in love w/ listening to the BBC. Now, of course, you can access all their various streams on the Web (a good thing, seeing as they've stopped shortwave service to North America), yet having to coordinate times to catch particular shows can be tricky. Podcasting has become my BBC radio TIVO....although not everything I'd like is available (o why won't they podcast EUROPE TODAY?) Still, I do get several streams, including a news digest and a commentary magazine. DIGITAL PLANET is notable for its weekly foray into new ways technology is being applied and implemented....I remember J wondering how much further cell phones could be pushed last week in class--and I think we all wonder that about any number of technologies...DIGITAL PLANET is something of a mind-stretcher that has opened me up to a wider range of technological potentials (and pitfalls too, but mostly potentials....it maintains a positive spin on tech world).....more info at http://www.bbc.co.uk , or search in iTunes.
2) THIS AMERICAN LIFE (NPR [National Public Radio] / WBEZ-CHICAGO)--Part of the Sunday Family Ritual in Bloomie was reading the Sunday papers in bed, listening to WEEKEND EDITION until 10, then THIS AMERICAN LIFE for the next hour after that. Ira Glass is brilliant--we got to see him on a tour preparing to try to move the show to Showtime as well....But as a radio guy, he's tops. The show excels at throwing you curveballs, truly "making the familiar strange." We're going to use a comic book he put together on how to do a radio show for my COMM 399 "Radio Studies" course this fall....more info at http://www.npr.org , or search in iTunes.
3) THE CURRENT SONG OF THE DAY (MPR [Minnesota Public Radio])--They blip me a new song for free every weekday that their hipster station is breaking. Invariably songs are piling up, but when I dig through I find some real jems amidst the so-so tracks....Also like the idea of them promoting local (MN) artist about once a week....(Wouldn't you like to get blipped new local Mass Music weekly? Being a recent transplant, I know I would, anyway....Dropkick who?).....Best track since subscribing: The Stooges' "My Idea of Fun"! More at http://minnesota.publicradio.org or on iTunes....
Come to think of it, all these podcasts originate from non-commercial public radio. That fits my listening pattern otherwise these past few years.....
So how about it? What kinds of podcasts do you all enjoy?
Monday, June 4, 2007
Making Media Now....
...That's the name of the conference I was able to attend this last Friday at BU (thanks to my departmental travel grant). It was a one-day gathering of local media producers, with a particular emphasis on going digital. Highlights:
CAMERA SEMINAR--John Rule of Rule Broadcast Systems showed a series of High Definition (HD) cameras now out on the market for sale and/or rental. HD has become industry standard, and while high-end cameras are going for $25k and up, they're available for rental (which is usually the way productions go). My curiousity was piqued by the Panasonic P2, which was referred to as a "21st Century Bolex" (look it up)....A P2 is still a hefty investment for the department, but I Have A Dream....
DEMYSTIFYING DIGITAL FORMATS--720p vs 1080i vs 1080p....HD vs SD (Standard Definition! Who knew?)......The panel was moderated by Ed Krasnow from Massasoit, who was excellent....Conferences like this are ways for folks like us to finally meet one another, even if it seems crazy that we have to go to Boston (or points further) to do it....
PUTTING IT ALL INTO PERSPECTIVE--David Tames spoke as we finished our box lunches (mmmm, roast beef) on how he saw digital convergence finally locking into place. It felt like he gave us homework assignments, but in a good way. Need to check out blip.tv and joost (pronounced JUICED, I think some Estonians put that together if I am not mistaken)....Also, in addition to the aformentioned Henry Jenkins book CONVERGENCE CULTURE, he also recommended THE WEALTH OF NETWORKS (2006), THE LONG TAIL (2006), and THE FUTURE OF WEB VIDEO (2006)....
PRODUCING AND DELIVERING SHORT VIDEO ON THE WEB--David Tames of kino-eye.com and the lunch talk moderated this panel that was 2/3rds industry, 1/3rd academia. Mike Hudack from blip.tv and Joe Hurd from VideoEgg both discussed their video platform business models...Both are worth a look if you're interested in video blogging or seeing what folks are putting up as far as non-TV "TV shows" on the web....Anna von Someren from MIT had the most provocative take of the three, from my perspective. In discussing web aesthetics, she shifts away from things like cinematography and editing, emphasizing instead the importance of the end-user, emphasizing the importance of "context-based content," participation, and dynamism....To me, von Someren seemed to gesture towards our 220 discussion of multi-platform narrative from last week.
MAKING CONTENT INTERACTIVE--Michelle Haslell is a web consultant and co-founder of NYC-based Missing Pixel. Go to their site www.missingpixel.net to get a sense of the businesses connecting traditional and new media. To produce and maintain a low-end site, they're getting $1-15k; for mid-range, $25-60k; and high-end stuff nets $80-150k. The work flow necessary to make any interactive site worth its bandwidth is eye-opening....
Conferences like this are important for the mental stimulation, for the networking, for the product exposure, and for the teaching resources I'm able to bring back home. My advice: keep an eye out for opportunities to attend such conferences this next year....Heck, think about PRESENTING at one of these conferences! A good place to start is the BSC Undergraduate Research Symposium, held every semester....why not you?
CAMERA SEMINAR--John Rule of Rule Broadcast Systems showed a series of High Definition (HD) cameras now out on the market for sale and/or rental. HD has become industry standard, and while high-end cameras are going for $25k and up, they're available for rental (which is usually the way productions go). My curiousity was piqued by the Panasonic P2, which was referred to as a "21st Century Bolex" (look it up)....A P2 is still a hefty investment for the department, but I Have A Dream....
DEMYSTIFYING DIGITAL FORMATS--720p vs 1080i vs 1080p....HD vs SD (Standard Definition! Who knew?)......The panel was moderated by Ed Krasnow from Massasoit, who was excellent....Conferences like this are ways for folks like us to finally meet one another, even if it seems crazy that we have to go to Boston (or points further) to do it....
PUTTING IT ALL INTO PERSPECTIVE--David Tames spoke as we finished our box lunches (mmmm, roast beef) on how he saw digital convergence finally locking into place. It felt like he gave us homework assignments, but in a good way. Need to check out blip.tv and joost (pronounced JUICED, I think some Estonians put that together if I am not mistaken)....Also, in addition to the aformentioned Henry Jenkins book CONVERGENCE CULTURE, he also recommended THE WEALTH OF NETWORKS (2006), THE LONG TAIL (2006), and THE FUTURE OF WEB VIDEO (2006)....
PRODUCING AND DELIVERING SHORT VIDEO ON THE WEB--David Tames of kino-eye.com and the lunch talk moderated this panel that was 2/3rds industry, 1/3rd academia. Mike Hudack from blip.tv and Joe Hurd from VideoEgg both discussed their video platform business models...Both are worth a look if you're interested in video blogging or seeing what folks are putting up as far as non-TV "TV shows" on the web....Anna von Someren from MIT had the most provocative take of the three, from my perspective. In discussing web aesthetics, she shifts away from things like cinematography and editing, emphasizing instead the importance of the end-user, emphasizing the importance of "context-based content," participation, and dynamism....To me, von Someren seemed to gesture towards our 220 discussion of multi-platform narrative from last week.
MAKING CONTENT INTERACTIVE--Michelle Haslell is a web consultant and co-founder of NYC-based Missing Pixel. Go to their site www.missingpixel.net to get a sense of the businesses connecting traditional and new media. To produce and maintain a low-end site, they're getting $1-15k; for mid-range, $25-60k; and high-end stuff nets $80-150k. The work flow necessary to make any interactive site worth its bandwidth is eye-opening....
Conferences like this are important for the mental stimulation, for the networking, for the product exposure, and for the teaching resources I'm able to bring back home. My advice: keep an eye out for opportunities to attend such conferences this next year....Heck, think about PRESENTING at one of these conferences! A good place to start is the BSC Undergraduate Research Symposium, held every semester....why not you?
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