Yearly Archives for 2010

Chambo's Internet Activity Pages for February 5, 2010

On the Liberation of Spores

• MYCELIUM ON THE RUN, EATIN: The Spore Liberation Front is here to show us how the study of mushrooms can help us all have more meaningful lives, aid in subverting “capitalist economic structures”, and prepare us for the coming “mycelial revolution” in human existence. The SLF makes amazing films (see the above embedded video) and ‘zines, such as the first issue of Radical Mycology, available for download here, or you can buy a hard copy at Little Black Cart. [MycoRant]

• MUSHROOM-FRIENDLY MUSIC, PART 1: We always look forward to year-end/decade-end lists from niche publications like The Wire and When You Awake, as they’re usually full of way-out tunes that have slipped beneath our radar. One such genre-specific list that’s most definitely worth checking out comes from the techno nerds at Resident Advisor, in the form of their Top 100 Albums of the ’00s. It’s not all good — we would advise you to avoid anything that includes the term “nu-jazz”, for example — but the RA dudes get lots of credit for putting us on to the organic techno melodies of Trentemøller’s The Last Resort, the cavernous dub of Rhythm & Sound and reminding us to dig out Drexciya’s various Detroit-born dystopian “aqua-funk” menageries. [Resident Advisor]

• MUSHROOM-FRIENDLY MUSIC, PART 2: We know everybody’s already been checking Greg Davis’ amazing Crystal Vibrations blog for the freshest in retro-New Age jammers, but did you know Davis just started another blog to help everybody keep up with the most lifted of Indian ragas? It’s called Raga Vibrations, of course. We recommend starting with Brij Bhushan Kabra’s Indian Slide Guitar, and going from there. [Raga Vibrations]

• SNOWY SKY ISLANDS: The Davis Mountains of Far West Texas are a kind of ecosystem known as a “sky island,” a term that only hints at the beautiful escape they offer from the high desert grasslands that surround their rocky heights. Hike up to a good vantage point and the concept becomes all the more apparent, as one stands in a foot of snow amidst tree branches sagging with clusters of ice, looking out over arid plains thousands of feet below, dry and dusty under the same sunshine. We’ve been paying visits to our friends at the Davis Mountains Preserve, and documenting any number of lichens and bryophytes encrusted in snow and ice. More photos at Chambo’s photography blog, Into the Green.

Today's ramble

From today’s Arthur feed on Twitter…

SAD: Jay Reatard cause of death: cocaine toxicity, alcohol

FINALLY: huckster creep James A. ‘Harmonic Wealth’ Ray indicted for October 2009 Sedona sweatlodge deaths

AC/DC new singer tells Bono, Geldhof to stop telling their fans to do charity (understandable sentiment). He sez, “I don’t tell everybody they should give money—they can’t afford it.” Of course, one of the reasons they can’t afford it is… they’re stuck working in the sick Walmart system that AC/DC goes out of their way to profit from.

Now it’s Giant Robot Magazine that is ailing–asking $60k to stay afloat—donate info: http://www.giantrobot.com/donate

Harper’s is also ailing—”readership down 35k, newsstand sales plummeting” but still funded by the MacArthurs. (Wow: according to that NYT article, Harper’s has 18 people on full-time editorial staff. That’s an awful lot.)

Global Monoculture Update: “One of the world’s oldest languages has come to an end”

Erik Davis tipped us to “The Magical Basis of Corporate Personhood” by author Dale Pendell

New reverbnatorial rock n roll: EAT SKULL

eatskull

Quality blown-out garage rock (with all-important tuneage!) from EAT SKULL of Portland, Oregon—this via their new seven-inch out since January from the gentlefolk of (them again) Woodsist. Enjoyeth:

Stream: [audio:http://www.arthurmag.com/magpie/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/eat-skull-dont-leave-me-on-the-speaker.mp3%5D

Download: “Dont Leave Me On the Speaker” – Eat Skull (mp3)

The soul of Rick Veitch

From the blog of genius Vermont cartoonist/dreamworker Rick Veitch…

“Over the last couple weeks I’ve found myself in a number on conversations with different people about the nature of the soul. The soul is one of those subjects that everyone has an opinion of but nobody really knows what the darn thing is or even if it really exists. Interestingly, I had a dream the other night in which I saw my soul! It was basically a globe with lots of geometric shapes attached that was constantly changing at a rapid rate. I’ve made a quick little black and white animation that kind of gets it across. In the dream there was an ever-changing riot of pattern and color on each of the geometric shapes. Maybe at some point I’ll do a color version of this to make it complete….”

veitchsoul

More Veitch on Arthur:

A conversation with dreamworker/cartoonist RICK VEITCH, with an introduction by Alan Moore

Arthur Radio Voyage #3: Live set by The Holy Experiment

This past weekend Newtown Radio shut down in order to prepare for its big move into a more spacious studio (with improved recording facilities) within the same warehouse in Bushwick, Brooklyn. Since we weren’t able to broadcast live, Hairy Painter and I decided to set up a makeshift recording studio in my living room. We invited musician Brooke Gillespie of The Holy Experiment (who also happens to be my neighbor) to join us there as our very first guest to do a live session. We are now happy to share this performance with you, in all its warmth and beauty…

Stream: [audio:http://www.arthurmag.com/magpie/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/THE-HOLY-EXPERIMENT-LIVE-ON-ARTHUR-RADIO-1-31-20101.mp3%5D

Download: The Holy Experiment live on Arthur Radio 1-31-2010

"Digital Nation": RUSHKOFF on Frontline (PBS) tonight 9pm/online

From PBS:

Within a single generation, digital media and the World Wide Web have transformed virtually every aspect of modern culture, from the way we learn and work to the ways in which we socialize and even conduct war. But is the technology moving faster than we can adapt to it? And is our 24/7 wired world causing us to lose as much as we’ve gained?

In Digital Nation: Life on the Virtual Frontier, FRONTLINE presents an in-depth exploration of what it means to be human in a 21st-century digital world. Continuing a line of investigation she began with the 2008 FRONTLINE report Growing Up Online, award-winning producer Rachel Dretzin embarks on a journey to understand the implications of living in a world consumed by technology and the impact that this constant connectivity may have on future generations. “I’m amazed at the things my kids are able to do online, but I’m also a little bit panicked when I realize that no one seems to know where all this technology is taking us, or its long-term effects,” says Dretzin.

Joining Dretzin on this journey is commentator Douglas Rushkoff, a leading thinker and writer on the digital revolution — and one-time evangelist for technology’s positive impact. “In the early days of the Internet, it was easy for me to reassure people about what it would mean to bring digital technology into their lives,” says Rushkoff, who has authored 10 books on media, technology and culture. “Now I want to know whether or not we are tinkering with something more essential than we realize.”

Read more at PBS site