Thursday, December 27, 2007

Text in the City and a Sleeping Husky


Above you see another attempt of mine to master the art of digital painting. It seems like it is just as frustrating as regular painting. Yeah, I can erase but the Corel program I use freezes and hiccups sometimes and I can't always get the fine brush strokes that I want. It makes me want to paint in real time just because I can.
Anyhoo, the New Yorker has a pretty good article about the death of books. click below.

Wednesday, December 26, 2007

Saul Williams Brings The Noise


3 figures by Jet Fisher

RapRok is a style of music not to be confused with RokRap. RokRap includes all of the work of that Biscuit band, much of Korn's output, and any other group of YWS's (Young White Suburbanites) who listened to a little too much MC Hammer in their formative years. The genre generally includes a lot of shouting and the odd nod to rhythm. It doesn't help that much of the lyrics written by these bands have about as much weight as Aaron Carter's paen to Candy. Don't get me wrong, here at The OverDrone we have been known to sing along to some of the stuff ourselves but we reserve our dollars and sense for the truly stellar examples of the medium.
Speaking of which, Saul Williams latest, produced by NIN's Trent Reznor, redefines what is good RapRok. Not since Public Enemy and Anthrax came together has there been such a fusion of crunchy guitars, spoken lyrics and moshable moments. Reznor's production brings out the low pain in Williams words and the bass crunch just makes your ass shake.
At the low, low price of $5 or nothing this album is better than most major label releases this year.

The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust!

Tuesday, December 25, 2007

Santa on the Wacom

This is the first go round here at The OverDrone using the Wacom Bamboo tablet and Corel Paint 3. Just a scribble really but it didn't take long. Expect more and better as the new year dawns. Thanks Santa and my In-Laws and a merry Christmas to all!

Saturday, December 22, 2007

JUMPER

I read this book years ago and now it is being made into a movie. Surprisingly, the new adaptation that Gould wrote specifically for the movie is pretty good. The trailer looks awesome.

Steven Gould: JUMPER

Thursday, December 20, 2007

Brewing Discord



Recently The OverDrone tuned into Craft in America on PBS. Richard Notkin was featured in a section on Ceramics. Notkin makes the argument that what is considered craft can also speak to issues . The piece in the picture above is actually a teapot.
I had seen Notkin's work in stills before but seeing them turning in space on the screen brought a new understanding of his work to me. Many of his teapots appear to be unglazed but on further examination are polished or burnished to create different finishes.
Craft in America Episode II
Richard Notkin

Wednesday, December 19, 2007

Le Demoiselle en 3D

Julian Friedler offers up this take on Picasso's masterpiece in this, the hundredth year of it's existence. Click here to see more.

Le Demoiselle en 3D

Tuesday, December 18, 2007

Kinder und UberKinder

Nerds With Kids makes an excellent point about The Incredibles in this post pasted from a message board. Here at The OverDrone I wrestled with the same issues on viewing the movie with my then six year old daughter.
Nerds With Kids

Monday, December 17, 2007

Chip-Chewa-Chip-Chip, Wiki, Wiki, Wiki Ch'ka Woo (to be said out loud)


Oh, man, look at the woofers on that chair. I bet sitting on that seriously lowers your sperm count. Here it is folks, before the 808, before Grandmaster Flash, there was the musical chair. I only wish they had a reclining model. Nowadays mixers stand at their consoles and twiddle their thumbs, but it was a gentler age back then, why, Funky Drummer hadn't even been conceived yet.


MoLi presents Forgotten Chairs


Sunday, December 16, 2007

Santa you Fat Bastard

Another short post today as I have been playing catch up these last few days. Apologies to anyone who noticed the interruption of services. I'm not even going to post a picture today so you will just have to click on the link to see what I'm slavering over.
Oh, man this thing looks so sweet, if Santa brings me one I am going to draw all over the internet. I've been relatively good this year but the bastard has let me down before. Yeah, I'm talking to you Santa. Remember when I wanted Castle Grayskull and you brought me that cardboard Police Helicopter instead, well now is the time to make it up to me, I've got cookies, please Santa. Please?
Intuos3 Tablet

Friday, December 14, 2007

The Art of Theft

Another game by that bloke wot does the Zero Punctuation. This one is slicker, more stylish and just as free as the last ones.
Despite the lo-res The Art of Theft is an excellent game. You play as Trilby, a recurring character in his work and you get to sneak around and earn upgrades so that you can sneak around even more.
The Art of Theft

Thursday, December 13, 2007

Sons of Heaven

This book is currently being passed around here at The OverDrone. It is a sad day as this looks to be the last of Kage Baker's Company novels. I can't think of another series that I have actually stuck with from beginning to end, usually the plot starts to grind down after the third or fourth installment, but not this time.
IF you haven't read this series yet I'd recommend starting with The Garden of Iden or Sky Coyote and then reading upwards time-wise, This definitely isn't a standalone novel. Baker manages to wrap up the loose ends which dangled so temptingly throughout the series. I'll keep this review short as I'm still mourning the end of a great series but I give it Infinity out of Ten stars.

Tuesday, December 11, 2007

The Slacker You Love to HATE!

The OverDrone presents another review of a book that has been out for some time. Not only that but this is a compilation of material originally published in the nineties. Why did I wait so long to review this? Well, I read Hate through out the nineties, not to mention Bagge's first series, Neat Stuff starring Girly Girl and Chucky Boy, thus I felt no need to purchase this volume immediately. My mistake...
Seeing all of these stories together illustrates Bagge's brilliance. Buddy, the New Jerseyite slackster develops into a real person in these issues. Lisa's later importance is deftly foreshadowed here, although I doubt even Bagge knew it at the time, and George, is it just me or does he seem way more interesting when presented en masse like this? If you don't know what I'm talking about you ought to purchase this fine book from Fantagraphics or you can buy it used from Amazon below.
Buddy Does Seattle


Monday, December 10, 2007

Love Is...

Here at The OverDrone we try not to publish too many bad reviews. There is just not enough time in the day to pan the huge amount of crap out there but today I finished a book that really does need this bad review.
Usually if a book is crap I just put it down. It is so much easier than slogging through bruised purple prose but there is something about the manure created by music journalists that keeps me reading despite my misgivings. I call it the Klosterman Effect, after music journalist Chuck Klosterman. You remember him don't you? He wrote Fargo, Rock City and then some other shite. Fargo was readable, even enjoyable in it's defense of Heavy Metal and the personal stuff was easy enough to dismiss but then in his next book (whose name I will not mention here) I guess he ran out of music to write about and started writing about his personal life. It's not really a life, more like a desperate attempt to fool himself for another day. I imagine many music journalists suffer from this syndrome, I mean how many times can you give a Stevie Winwood or Michael Bolton album a positive review and still look yourself in the face every day?
Anyway, Rob Sheffield's Love Is a Mix Tape is a heartfelt paen to his dear departed wife rendered overly cute by the faux cassette song lists which they apparently made at that time.
At first I thought Sheffield would adhere to the song list prefacing each chapter, using each song as a bridge to a memory but no, instead he rambles on in that way that only music journalists do. Dude, if you were capable of poetic imagery and catchy lyricism you would be in a band, not writing about bands.
Some other problems I have;
  • Nobody listened to Sugar Ray unless they had no choice so stop trying to change history Rob Sheffield.
  • Mourning your wife by watching Audrey Hepburn and Liz Taylor movies is not sweet, it's just gay Rob Sheffield.
  • Finally Rob Sheffield, you should know that you are a better writer than Klosterman and if you can shake off the deleterious effects of writing for Spin (poor, sad bastard) you should give it another go.
To sum up, better than Klosterman but still lite.
Love is a Mix Tape | By Rob Sheffield

Friday, December 7, 2007

Mellowness


Apologies to anyone who has noticed The OverDrone's erratic publishing schedule. What can I say? I'm sorry. Look, just to make it up to you here is another 'TNW, a mellow mix to resolve any feelings of distance between us. Are we OK now? Don't worry about those missing days, they are still there in the blogger submatrix, just listen to the music...
'T Nieuwe Werck: 'T Nieuwe Werck 110 of Roger Valdez

Thursday, December 6, 2007

Bait Car Tramples Civil Liberties.

So, I tuned in to this show on Court TV thinking it was about this car that picked up underage hookers and busted them and then made them appear on TV ala Maury Povitch. Sadly I was mistaken.
Here is how it works. The coppers leave a car running in a high crime neighborhood and then some idiot steals it and then the coppers bust them. If the culprit tries to get away via high speed car chase then the car is shutdown. Jeez, it just makes it too easy for the cops.
The OverDrone is confused as to the legality of this. Isn't this just entrapment? According to the show this has been going on for a decade. I don't know how they would get a conviction with this though. Check it out and see for yourself.
Bait Car on Court TV

Spotting


Yes, yes, I know I'm late with the Feminine Hygiene post this month but hey, don't worry. You can't expect these things to be totally regular. BTW this film was based on a true story.
Girl Talk: Xtreme

Wednesday, December 5, 2007

LOL kidz


A brief film documenting the travails of a stray cat.
NECO

Tuesday, December 4, 2007

Planet Smashing and Jazimundis



Two dazzling mixes this time. One full of jazz and the other full of stars. Here at The Overdrone these mixes have been playing nonstop and can I just say that these are great mixes to play Mario Galaxy to? I only embedded one of them here but hie yourself over to 'TNW and download them both. They are free and a hell of a lot better than anything else out there on the net.
'T Nieuwe Werck 108 of De Broer Van Mozes & The Lost Homeboy2.0

Monday, December 3, 2007

Oscar Wow!

Remember the day you picked up The Ice Shirt and the footnotes made an excellent novel even better? Perhaps you first came across them in the work of Borges or, like me, Terry Pratchett. How about the time you read A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius and the best part of the entire book happened before the first paragraph?
The OverDrone salivates over footnotes in fiction, end notes too, and Junot Diaz's novel The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao is chock full of them.
The story takes place in New Jersey and the Dominican Republic, and while there are pop culture references scattered throughout like medical waste on the Jersey shoreline the footnotes tend toward Dominican history. They act as pauses in the main narrative allowing the reader to take a breath and consider the larger forces at work.
I first read a chapter from the book in the New Yorker, pre-Publication and with an illustration by one of los bros Hernandez. Usually, fiction featured in the New Yorker is tedious and irrelevant, what a refreshing change!
Purchase and Enjoy.
Oscar Wow!

Sunday, December 2, 2007

A History of Violence

Having read Erik Larson's The Devil in the White City, I was expecting Rick Geary's The Beast of Chicago to be an enjoyable read but nothing revelatory. Geary's oh, so innocent line work and the macabre subject matter gave me a delicious case of the creeping dreadfuls.
This is the sixth volume of what is turning out to be Geary's masterwork. Text and images work together in a rhythm which transports the reader into the Victorian milieu.
Here at The OverDrone he is especially well remembered for his work for Kitchen Sink Press in the eighties. Then there's his National Lampoon work. I actually prefer his black and white work but his adaptations of classics like Wuthering Heights and Great Expectations are great for kids. Let's hope he tackles Moby Dick soon, or what about The Gilded Age? Geary may be the only illustrator/writer capable of doing such works justice.

A Treasury of Victorian Murder

Saturday, December 1, 2007

I Hate Third Person!


The OverDrone is no more! Long live The OverDrone!
I have a confession to make folks. Way back in August when I started this lil' blog I was a civil servant, working for city government. My position put me under a lot of scrutiny so I didn't feel comfortable using my real name.
Anyone who has checked my Blogger profile recently will know that I do not operate this blog anonymously anymore, in part because I do not work for the city anymore. I am using the free time I have to write vigorously and hopefully, profitably.
So no need to pretend that I, Jethro "Jet" Fisher am The OverDrone. Nope, not me. The OverDrone is actually an alien artifact discovered by yours truly while digging post holes in my backyard. Digital and SLR cameras simply do not work on it and even while I was sketching the above drawing I could feel my mind being flensed, nanometer by nanometer. To this day I can't remember my wife's birthday.
Anyhoo, once I brought it inside and cleaned it up it seemed like a great idea to get a DSL line with a WiFi signal. Funny that, because we were perfectly happy with dial up before that day. So began the subtle reign of The OverDrone. I began to dream of Kool-Aid colored alien fields and the b and c segments of a mating triangle whose names in English loosely translate to Betty and Veronica. The rest of the family exhibited strange behaviors as well, constructing nests in the corners of their bedrooms made of chewed up paper and Potato Buds.
Clearly we were under the influence of this petrified remnant of an interstellar culture. Buried under the thick Mid Western loam for milennia, deprived of it's advanced media and the psychic embrace of it's stable tripod marriage it went a little insane, even for an alien. It's harmless really, apart from it's addiction to los interwebs and it's insistence that I post regularly. Sometimes it uses my body to prepare and eat a peanut butter, pickle and cheese sandwich but I have gotten used to the taste and apparently they are a great delicacy on it's homeworld.
I can talk now because it is busy playing Super Mario Galaxy in my son's brain. It has told me that platformers are considered the highest art form back in the old country. I just wanted to tell you guys and girls who read this why I am switching from third person to first person in this blog. From now on The OverDrone is an entity separate from Jet Fisher but one that I work for. Now I will say things like "Here at The OverDrone..." or "The OverDrone asked me to..." but no more of that awkward third person. It was really getting on my nerves. I negotiated with the beast and managed to buy my authorial voice for the small price of three Bubble Teas a month. I'm not proud of it but that's how it is.
Oops, it is having a hard time with the boss, I better go. We'll talk later.

Thursday, November 29, 2007

'T Nieuwe Werck: 'T Nieuwe Werck 107 of Tom Waist


Tom Waist returns to 'TNW with another blast-happy bip-boop frenzy. Here at the OverDrone this has been blasting day in and day out. It is a fierce mix, unrelenting in it's dancability. Download and enjoy.
'T Nieuwe Werck 107 of Tom Waist
Tom Waist on My Space

Wednesday, November 28, 2007

My Work at eHow.com

You may have noticed that I have not been posting daily here at The OverDrone. I have been working on something else. I still try to post something each day, I just write them all in a batch every two or three days. If this bothers any one let me know. You may also have noticed that I am speaking in first person. That is explained here. Turns out I'm not a cybernetic organism with compound eyes after all.

The other thing that I have been working on is a batch of articles for the online how to resource eHow. What could I possibly know how to do? You would be surprised gentle reader. Below you will find my first instructional post, How to Make a Zine. You see before the digital desktop publishing revolution there was well, analog desktop publishing. Stay tuned for more links to my instructional articles from eHow.com (plug, plug). In fact go ahead and click now, I'll still be here when you come back, I promise.
How to Make a Zine

Tuesday, November 27, 2007

Super Mario Galaxy is Tops!


This is what The OverDrone is doing instead of posting.
Super Mario Galaxy

Sunday, November 25, 2007

DUNGEON


Just got the book containing this beautiful panel by Trondheim. It reads and looks like a cross between Sergio Aragones and Advanced D&D. The characters have a surprising amount of depth for funny animal stuff and it looks like there will be at least five more books translated into English. Let's hope this series does better than McConey.

DUNGEON

VBS.TV OK


So, back in October The OverDrone watched some footage of Richard Prince on VBS.TV and declared it god. One month later and VBS is chock full of content. Above is the art of Laurel Nakadate. She reperverts the perverts she meets in a manner that is both uncomfortable and funny.
VBS does have some boring ass stuff. An eight part series on NASCAR? A nine part Ultimate Fighting series? Not for me. Luckily I don't have to watch them but if you watch UFC and NASCAR and you like to see what those New York artists are up to and you like to watch dainty hipsters fling themselves into unsafe situations then you will like VBS.TV.
VBS.TV

Friday, November 23, 2007

Synthetic Feces

Interview with Wim Delvoye, creator of the Cloaca, a machine which produces excrement from food without the aid of the human digestive system.
lacanian ink 19

Thursday, November 22, 2007

The Sunrise Lands

The OverDrone has just finished this book. The fourth set in an apocalyptic world where physics has gone awry. This is the first in a set of four and The OverDrone could not set it down. Despite it being Thanksgiving The OverDrone found himself being swept far away from the turkey and stuffing. Nobody does the mil-spec alternate worlds stuff like SM Stirling.
The Sunrise Lands

Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Marc Palm's Junk Drawer

30 paintings of fantastical creatures in 30 days. At first The OverDrone was put off by the plain backgrounds but seeing them all together like this the blankness creates a shared dreaming, a floating world.
Marc Palm's Junk Drawer

DaDaDaDaDaDaDaDaDaDaDaDaDaDaDaDaDaDaDa

While looking around the website hosting Wim Delvoye's zit-poppin' masterpiece The OverDrone found this long documentary on DaDa. Dada was a movement which highlighted the absurd, shocking the art world off of it's academic rails.
Deutschland DaDa

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

U B U W E B - Film & Video: Wim Delvoye


Short post today due to family being over for the holidays. The OverDrone spent the day at the Field Museum. As always the totem poles totally impressed.
Wim Delvoye produces a similar sense of wonder albeit at a lesser magnitude in his short film Sybille II. Beauty is not always thirty feet tall and made of wood. The OverDrone has found no way to embed this so click here and push play.
Wim Delvoye

Monday, November 19, 2007

Ivan "Sad Bastard" Brunetti Loves Misery and Comedy

The OverDrone can remember the first time he read an Ivan Brunetti book. The year was 1995 and The OverDrone was living above a Polish bakery on the South side of Chicago.
Chicago was a hotbed of comic book activity at the time. Chris Ware, Daniel Clowes and the aforementioned Mr Brunetti were all living there and comics hadn't been so hot since the debut of Love and Rockets.
Once a month The OverDrone would break into his change jar and make the trip North to Quimby's. The hardest part was always choosing what to buy from the zines, the oddball magazines and the beautiful, glorious, non-superhero comics.
Anyways, The OverDrone happened to purchase Schizo #1 on one of those trips. Reading it that night The OverDrone knew he was in the presence of genius. The very next day The OverDrone returned to Quimby's to purchase the second issue and was not disappointed.
The misery, the grime and the horrible banality of modern life are contained in the three issues of Schizo. Why did Ivan Brunetti stop there? Judging by the contents of the three extant issues it is a wonder that he did not stop before he even began.
Misery Loves Comedy, a beautifully bound hardback, collects the three issues of Schizo. Each issue is a pustulous pit of despair and the three together are an acne scarred face crying tears of vodka and salt.
Ivan Brunetti

Saturday, November 17, 2007

Jeroen Kleingeld


The OverDrone knows you have been worried sick about him. Where has he been this last week? Good question.
The holidays have come early for The OverDrone, his parents are coming in today and the house had to be cleaned, add to that a recent commision to create ten articles for eHow(more on that later) and something had to give.
The OverDrone apologizes for his absence and offers you this gem from 'TNW as an apology. No need to apologize for the sweet sounds from this mix though.
Jeroen Kleingeld

Monday, November 12, 2007

The OverDrone: Me Talk Simply One Day: Part4

The OverDrone has grown tired of this topic. It stops here! two readability levels at once, presented to you as the grand finale. Tomorrow there will be a review of Ivan Brunetti's book Misery Loves Comedy just to lighten things up around here.

cash advance
Post Grad is another area where the blogs are thin on the ground.
Game Politics is a blog which follows the intersection between gaming and the law. A must read for the political gamer.
Virtual Worlds News' scope is narrower, keeping up with interactive environments and their evolution.
cash advance
Well, it has been a long post but we have reached the Genius level. The OverDrone does not know what defines Genius but it is not a good thing when it comes to readability, or is it?
Coming in first (in readers) at the genius level is the ubiquitous Boing Boing. Not what The OverDrone expected as it is joined by such niche blogs as The Victorian Peeper(a blog documenting Victorian England's people and history), the NSFW PonyXpress (great name for a softcore art pics blog) and The OverDrone himself. Yes that's right The OverDrone is only readable by a genius. If you have read this far then you deserve the moniker. It is just you, me and the entire readership of Boing Boing so reach your hand behind your head and pat yourself on the back or invent a hyperdimensional device to do it for you. You earned it!
Of course it is entirely possible that there are levels well above Genius, Advanced Alien Life Form and Intergalactic Hive Mind are two that come to mind but The OverDrone has not read those blogs yet. If you come across any please post it in the comments. Actually, whatever your blog's readability , why don't you post it in the comments.

The OverDrone: Me Talk Simply One Day: Part 1

Sunday, November 11, 2007

Me Talk Simply One Day: Part 4

Yes yes, The OverDrone knows how tedious this long series has become. The title link today at least links to something else. Two more posts and we we will reach the end. Be strong!
(Also there are some major commitments on The OverDrone's time currently, including the installation of a new shower; Fresh Posts Soon)
cash advance
While searching for undergrad level blogs The OverDrone found Bakkouz, what is interesting is that in the comments are directions for spoofing this readability test that The OverDrone has been posting on. Three comments down Za3tar claims, "It just checks the contents of ONLY one page ... So, to fix your rating, just post one highly technical page, and you are all set :-)." The OverDrone has not had time to check this claim out but if this is so than The OverDrone has just wasted four days on a faulty metric.
Just a Girl in Short Shorts is written by a lesbian, libertarian, grade school teacher though The OverDrone so hates to categorize. It deals with women's issues and politics at an undergraduate level.
We Make Money Not Art is a collective whose members are spread out across the blogosphere. If you like bleeding edge culture you would do well to visit them, that is, if you read at an undergraduate level.
Blog Readability Test
Bakkouz

Saturday, November 10, 2007

Me Talk Simply One Day: Part 3

Welcome to The OverDrone's special investigation on blog readability. This was once one long post but because of Blogger's fascist maximum character limit it has been split up into a six part series on readability. Will your blog be featured? Maybe. Probably not actually, I only used three or four examples per level but you can get in on the fun by posting your readability in the comments.
cash advance
High school is often compared to poking yourself in the eye with a sharp stick every day for four years. Let's hope High Schooler's find some relief with these three blogs. The Encyclopedia Britannica is written at a High School reading level. The works of Edgar Rice Burroughs are also recommended for High Schoolers.
'T Niuewe Werck, 'T Niuewe Werck, 'T Niuewe Werck, The OverDrone is always going on about 'T Niuewe Werck. If you haven't been to the site you are missing some of the dopest, kickingest, most awesome music you have ever heard and all of it is readable by a High Schooler (High Schoolers love free music).
WonderMark, the twisted creation of The Comic Strip Doctor is a decoupage comic which is always absurd (High Schoolers love the absurd).
Another surprise classification is 3 Quarks Daily, an erudite and well thought out lit-crit blog which The OverDrone would have pegged as College level (High Schoolers love literary criticism).
New on the leaderboard since yesterday is Archie's Archive, an Australian view of general culture.
The Blog Readability Test

Friday, November 9, 2007

Me Talk Simply One Day: Part 2

Welcome to The OverDrone's special investigation on blog readability. This was once one long post but because of Blogger's fascist maximum character limit it has been split up into a six part series on readability. Will your blog be featured? Maybe. Probably not actually, I only used three or four examples per level but you can get in on the fun by posting your readability in the comments.
cash advance
This is the level which the average American reads at. It is the level which traditional media writes at. Sitting in this ideal spot are three blogs with three different purposes. The OverDrone plugged in John Chow's site just because he is all over the blogosphere. Although it hurts to promote him more than he already has himself you can see his appeal. He has made his blog accessible to the widest possible audience like the sleek jungle cat of a marketer that he is. SuperPunch is a blog containing interesting art, graphic design and cool projects found on the internet. It too is readable by an eighth grader. NoodlePie is an food blog which is international in scope. The OverDrone was surprised by it's ranking as it deals with complicated subjects.
Does a blog's readability make a difference? Why don't you post your blog's reading level in the comments.
The Blog Readability Test
Trackback

Thursday, November 8, 2007

Me Talk Simply One Day: Part 1

The OverDrone came across this very slick readability test and ran his own site through it. According to Wikipedia the average American reads at an eighth grade level so ideally, to garner the largest audience, writing should be readable by a Junior High schooler.
Unfortunately The OverDrone scored above that, limiting my market share. The OverDrone has entered url's from other sites so as to place myself and the others. The results are below beginnning with the Elementary School level.
cash advance
Although The OverDrone entered many url's he was unable to find one which scored below this so this seems to be the lower limit. If anyone knows of a site which reads at a pre-school or Kindergarten level please post it in the comments.
The popular site I CAN HAS CHEEZBURGER? is readable by 1st through 5th graders. As is LOLTheist, which may offend some due to it's religious content. SpaceSick is a blog which contains original art, music and a new cartoon. It too is readable by Elementary schoolers.
Thus ends part one of The OverDrone's blog readability special investigation.

P.S. Whatever your blog's readability , why don't you post it in the comments.
The Blog Readability Test

Wednesday, November 7, 2007

Top 5 'T Nieuwe Werck

The OverDrone was looking through his music today and realized that a large percentage of his music was from 'T Nieuwe Werck. So here are The OverDrone's top five mixtapes from 'TNK.

1.Wannabe-star
The OverDrone has played this one to shreds. There is a seamless integration of song after song. Each one building upon the last until the mix ends, far too soon. Replay Value: 10
2.TNK All Stars
At only one thousand seconds this is the shortest of the mixtapes at 'TNK but it is an intense blend of electronic and analogue music. The slow-motion explosion at the end when Da Doo-Ron-Ron-Ron goes head to head with a Daft Punk track sums up what 'T Nieuwe Werck is all about: New musical experiences created from existing music. Replay Value:8
3.Cold Sweat
All reggae, soul piercing vocals and massive bass, this mix sticks to the brain. Replay Value: 9
4.Tom Waist
This pumping electro mix definitely delivers. Replay value: 8
5.Typsy Gypsy
Balkan beat and Klezmer Klassics mixed into a frenetic stew. Replay Value: 7

'T Nieuwe Werck
Wannabe-star
Cold Sweat
Tom Waist
Typsy Gypsy

Tuesday, November 6, 2007

Chupacabra Not A Chupacabra

Sadly, the chupacabra found in Texas was not a chupacabra.
Tests end Texan goat-sucker stir

Monday, November 5, 2007

One Hundred Demons by Lynda Barry

Five years ago a book by Linda Barry was published called 100 Demons. In it, she exorcises some of her own demons through a painting exercise of the same name (example to the right). Throughout the book she uses Sumi brushes and an inkstone.
This choice seems to have struck a harmonic chord in her because the freneticism and mad patterns which ran between the words of Ernie Pook have sublimed into a delicate froth of brushwork. She has that Zen knack of seeing the strokes on the paper while seeing the image they make as well. Add to that the collages which make up the title page to each demon. Folded paper animals, glitter, doodles on legal paper, all working together to make a glorious whole.
The stories making up each demon feel as if they are taken from life but, as she asks in the Introduction, "Is it autobiography if parts of it are not true? Is it fiction if parts of it are?"
Does it matter? Not in this case. Fiction or not, it is hard not to be carried back to childhood through these stories.
The OverDrone remembers looking forward to "Ernie Pook" in the nineties. The OverDrone puzzled through the dreamlike web of words and images just to see how Marlys was doing that week. In 100 Demons, Lynda Barry covers some of the same ground without ever repeating her self.
One Hundred Demons by Lynda Barry

Excited to read this fabulous book? click below to purchase it and kick a little sumfin sumfin to your humble reviewer.

Sunday, November 4, 2007

SuperDuperAss Music at The ill-ec-tro-nic

The ill-ec-tro-nic is an aggregator of electronic music. Mp3's presented there are for consideration only.
The ill-ec-tro-nic

Friday, November 2, 2007

Customer Segmentation Profiling


Find out how accurately they have profiled your neighborhood. Excerpts from The OverDrone's neighborhood:
Lifestyle Traits
  • Eat fast food No
  • Do needlepoint No
  • Baby Talk magazine ?
  • King of the Hill in syndication Nyet
  • Suzuki Verona WTF?

  • Market Segmentation

    10 Questions: The Overdrone

    Some time ago The OverDrone sent the answers to ten questions to Blogsweluv. Now all of that hard work has paid off.
    BlogsWeLuv featuring The Overdrone

    Thursday, November 1, 2007

    Bicycle Lawnmowing


    The OverDrone thought it was a dream, that such a thing could exist only in his head. The dream has been realized, more than once.
    Bicycle Lawnmowing (TreeHugger)

    Wednesday, October 31, 2007

    Radio Freefall by Matthew Jarpe

    Radio Freefall is the rocksteady first novel by Mathew Jarpe. Once again it alls upon rock and roll to save the world, this time from an evil net security tyrant. This is a rollicking good read and even though The OverDrone knew how it would end he postponed posting to get to the satisfying end. Buy it and read it.
    Radio Freefall by Matthew Jarpe

    Tuesday, October 30, 2007

    YouTube - Unicorns ARE real!


    The OverDrone apologizes for the lateness of this post. It was meant to go out yesterday but The OverDrone was finishing a book for review. Blogger is not cooperating with my HTML and THe OverDrone cannot post it currently.
    Instead look at this chilling tale about the power of belief. If you have not been following this unicorn saga you wil not know that the production values have gone up two hundred percent compared to the last one. Enjoy.
    YouTube - Unicorns ARE real!

    Monday, October 29, 2007

    Detrocboi's Detrocgurls - a photoset on Flickr


    The OverDrone first came across Detrocboi's work in the softcore/art photo blog ponyXpress, but the delicious lines and naive subject matter drew The OverDrone back to the Flickr stream from whence it came.
    According to his Flickr profile Detrocboi is male but he clearly cares about the rights of woman, depicting them as he does embedded in various machines and stuffed animals. Their disembodied heads oversee cities and weather. Are they more than they were before? Where are their bodies?
    In the end, or the beginning of the set (I can't tell) the heads float in spirals of entrails, their faces twisted in anger. This enslavement/empowerment motif runs through most of the photoset. This series is a wry take on the roles of women in society but the line work and coloring is that of the flash that hangs on most tattoo shop walls and on the backs and ankles of many young women.

    Detrocboi's Detrocgurls

    Sunday, October 28, 2007

    100th 'T Nieuwe Werck


    'TNieuwe Werck celebrate their 100th release with this mega mash up! Styles colliding with styles, creating new sound experiences, Bucking Frilliant!
    Play it, download it, tell your friends. Enjoy.
    'T Nieuwe Werck: 'T Nieuwe Werck 100 of TNW All Stars!

    Saturday, October 27, 2007

    LolCat Builder


    Build your own LolCat with this lolcat builder. (Sorry about the brevity, The OverDrone had a Halloween party to throw)
    LolCat Builder

    Friday, October 26, 2007

    dot art


    The OverDrone has cast his nets into los interwebs and come back with these works from "an artist who blogs about his own interests". Dotartdude hails from Louisiana and produces serene paintings of dots superimposed over various geometries.
    Dotartdude also keeps a video journal in which the following is kept.


    dot art
    Walk It Out

    Thursday, October 25, 2007

    In ur Bibelz, Creatin' ur Urfs

    Oh hai. In teh beginnin Ceiling Cat maded the skiez An da Urf, but he no eated it.
    Da Urfs no had shapez An haded dark face, An Ceiling Cat rode invisible bike over teh waterz.

    So beginz teh graetist storeez evur tolded ...
    Teh OvurDronz, ahem, The OverDrone has never worried much about Ceiling Cat but this new translation is striking. It is high time the missionaries brought Cheezus to teh cats. The OverDrone has three of them himself and they are a godless lot.
    When you have finished ur worshipnz compete with other readers of The OverDrone by guessing the lolcat pictured here. U can winz a free drawinz! Guess now!

    Thanks to Apophenia who featured this holy book in her blog. There is often interesting and relevant stuff there about social networking, and lolcats.

    via Apophenia

    Teh Bibel

    lolcat contest

    Wednesday, October 24, 2007

    Drones, Drones and more Drones


    The OverDrone has compiled a grouping of drone stories for your pleasure.

    The drone above was built by two Iranian students and is capable of taking pictures and launching grenades. Where are the American student drones? (insert joke here)
    Iranian Students Build Drone in 2 Months
    The Register details the crash of a Predator B by the American border patrol. (right)
    Erratic fleshies sabotage, wreck innocent flying robot

    Ikahna means "intelligent" in Choctaw. This drone will assist firefighters.(left)
    NPRDrone

    This is the waveform of a spooky drone from freesound.
    freesound drone pack

    One month ago The OverDrone reached across the Atlantic to a group of mop-topped kids in a band called overdrone. The OverDrone's attempt to join their fan club and get a keychain or a badge met with failure. According to their guest book they are at university now. Will The OverDrone ever hear from these punk grungers?
    overdrone, the band

    Thus ends the Drone Watch for October the 23rd


    Tuesday, October 23, 2007

    The OverDrone: New Cat Contest! Redux

    (This was posted originally on September 26th. As of yet no one has correctly guessed the lolcat from which this image originated. If you do then you will receive a framed drawing of this lolcat. Done by hand by The OverDrone. hurry up and comment so that The OverDrone can post another cat.)
    Welcome(BACK) to the second OverDrone contest. Above is a sketch of an lol cat. the first commenter to correctly identify the image from the two cat picturing websites below will win a sketch of the above mentioned cat. Yes, you could be the winner of a swell drawing, done by hand in The OverDrone's workshop/front porch.
    To find out who won the last contest click below.
    The OverDrone: Contest Time!
    The OverDrone: lol Contest Winner!
    The cat sites are here.
    lol cats
    I Can Haz Cheezburger?
    The OverDrone: New Cat Contest!

    Prehistory Repeats Itself

    The OverDrone invites you to compare these two images. to the left you will see a depiction of an antler man from the Lascaux caves, to the right an antler man who has been running besides the Tour de France.The modern antler man carries a flag with the Earth on it. The OverDrone could not find video of the Antler man as of today but if anyone finds any, post it in the comments.



    NutmegNine: Antler Man
    Lascaux

    Monday, October 22, 2007

    DeKooning mash-ups

    The OverDrone often checks artblog for the images and the considered writing. Earlier this month artblog linked to a show called art talk! (exclamation theirs) on VBS.TV. VBS is the internet broadcasting launch by Vice Magazine, which must have just opened because there isn't much content yet.
    If you can get over the annoying "Just like TV!" interface the content is pretty good. The Richard Prince piece above, Thurston Moore's counterculture library, a cartoon, some other stuff.
    The OverDrone has followed Prince's work for some time but this is the first time The OverDrone has felt like he must see Prince's work in person. The DeKooning mash-ups he shows us are breathtaking, literally delicious.
    Watch it from the beginning below.

    artblog
    VBS.TV Richard Prince

    Sunday, October 21, 2007

    Remarketing Animal Cruelty: Running Of The Nudes

    The Naked Truth: the race is cruel(?) Spanish speakers do not be confused. Although this banner is being held in Pamplona the text is actually Italian.
    The OverDrone was doing his daily google search for post-modern neo-feminist,conservative, libertarian punk, Catholic, lesbian blogs when he saw a banner ad across the bottom of a page.
    Forsaking their blood soaked past, PETA has come up with a brilliant first act leading up to the running of the bulls in Pamplona, Spain.
    Every year what looks to be hundreds of young fit people gather to protest the seven hundred year old human/bovine interface.Neither PETA nor the bulls mind the goring of drunken tourists. It is the bullfighting which PETA object to. Far more eyecatching then a splash of blood on a mink coat, this four year old tradition was begun to show Pamplona that "that it doesn't need to torture animals for tourism."
    Who will this deter from running with the bulls? The OverDrone is sure that many people just tack an extra few days to the beginning of their bull running vacation. A couple of days spent watching naked protestors would get anyone's blood pumping for a bull run.
    Now imagine being chased by the protestors down those same streets. It might go something like the video below.



    Running Of The Nudes
    Just a Girl in Short Shorts

    Saturday, October 20, 2007

    Zero Punctuation


    It isn't often that The OverDrone laughs out loud at a video game review. Yahtsee Croshaw is a British born, Australian living, freeware game maker who also reviews games on his website fullyramblomatic.com. He produced two short video reviews on YouTube which led to his current gig at The Escapist. If you are like The OverDrone you will watch this video and then quickly link to his other works.
    Last night The OverDrone downloaded one of his adventure games and had a wonderful time. Let me repeat that. The OverDrone had a wonderful time playing an adventure game, an adventure game.
    The Escapist : Zero Punctuation: Halo 3
    fullyramblomatic.com
    The Escapist
    his YouTube Reviews
    His Adventure games

    Friday, October 19, 2007

    Sexy/Gross


    The OverDrone suggests that you watch the video first, Simian Mobile Disco's Hustler. The track is a blippy tribute to the lifestyle of the hustler. Near pornographic images of young ladies (and maybe a young man as well, The OverDrone cannot tell) then some pictures of food and then food porn. As soon as the breakbeat kicks in things get weird.
    And, for your juxtaposition,

    Which one made you sicker?
    Further viewing of Simian Mobile Disco's YouTube queue reveals them to be consummate knob twiddlers. They crouch over their little boxes and occasionally glance at the crowd. Poor wee shy little twiddlers.
    Just to cleanse your mind of that last video, here is another image The OverDrone found on ponyXpress a NSFW collection of erotic and thought provoking images. Well mostly, there is also a lot of T and A.

    via ponyXpress(NSFW Awesome pics though)
    Simian Mobile Disco's MySpace (I friended them!)

    Thursday, October 18, 2007

    Before Latex, the Canister Model


    Slate's Sex issue has an amusing picture show on vibrators through the ages. Also what the sexperts have not yet discovered.
    Your grandmother's vibrator
    via
    Don't Ask the Sexperts

    Tuesday, October 16, 2007

    DroneWatch


    While perusing potential crossing sites for a foray into the Sonoran desert The OverDrone came across this, the LowDrone. The LowDrone navigates between countries using four chrome plated turbines. Below you will find excerpts from a timeline chronicling the events that led to the intersection of the lowrider and and the Drone.
    • 1898--The first drone, a kite rigged to take photographs, is invented during the Spanish-American War.
    • 1940’s - The Lowrider is invented by pachucos,or devious Mexican-American youths, who put sandbags in the trunkof their cars to lower the back.
    • 1957 - Lowriders are outlawed by the Governor of California.In response, pachucos add hydraulic pumps to their Lowriders, allowing the car to raise or drop with a flip of a switch.
    • 2002 - 2004 - Anti-immigrant vigilantes fly a drone over the U.S./Mexico Border to hunt for primarily Mexican immigrants. The U.S. Border Patrol follows the vigilante's lead. Around the same time, the Los Angeles Police Department plans to fly drones to keep an eye on pachucos and other urban residents.
    • 2005 — The LowDrone, the world’s first aerial lowrider armed with video surveillance capabilities, is invented. The LowDrone is currently stationed at one of the most surveilled spaces on the planet – the U.S./Mexico border between Tijuana and southern California.

    LowDrone.com

    Monday, October 15, 2007

    Modular Motoring

    The lil' guy is called the "PIXY" and he fits right in the "SSC(Suzuki Sharing Coach) " doesn't the ookums wookums lil' PIXY. Thassa good PIXY. Oh, lil' PIXY wants a treat? Yes it does 'cuz its such a cute lil' car isn't it? What's that lil' PIXY? you fit in a sports car unit (SSF) and a boat (SSJ)? AWWWWW!
    To view more Japan related things go to Pink Tentacle.

    Dreamy concept cars at Pink Tentacle

    Sunday, October 14, 2007

    No, it can't be... ALVIN!

    The OverDrone came upon this while strolling through the virtual aisles of Nerds With Kids. Alvin, Simon and Theodore are to be animated by a computer. Yes, those feisty chipmunks who broke into show biz way back in 1958 will be given the same treatment as Garfield. I won't waste the memory needed to store the poster just click on the link below and weep, weep for us all!
    Nerds With Kids

    Saturday, October 13, 2007

    Friday, October 12, 2007

    Our Prison Without Bars


    A Film by Alfonso Cuarón and Naomi Klein, directed by Jonás Cuarón. This is a very well produced piece of agit-prop. Watch, Think, Comment.
    The Shock Doctrine Short Film | Naomi Klein

    Thursday, October 11, 2007

    Feminine Hygiene Feature

    Von Taylor: Ovulation, oil on Canvas

    Well, it is about that time again, the witching week, when The OverDrone pays attention to the cycles of the moon. Although the OverDrone has never experienced the albuminous flux himself, the Menstruation Sisters have distilled their entire periods into a song which only lasts for one minute and fifty-seven seconds.It is a rough gruel of noises and rhythms and well worth a listen. Download Sister Sucker here from White Denim.

    Passive-aggressive notes investigates the stress of multiple females using a single bathroom. The OverDrone is glad that his only concern in a public restroom is not peeing on his shoes.

    The Diva cup has been covered in these pages before, but this merits attention. Pointless Drivel features them in a recent post, best of all there is an incredibly long comment section regarding the Diva cup. Users of the cup weigh in about halfway down.
    Highlights include:

    • You know who uses diva cups? You ready for this shit? Bitches who PAINT with their own menstrual blood. That’s who uses diva cups.
    • I don’t think anything that big will fit up in my vagina, and even if it did…how are you supposed to get the damn thing out without spilling the liquid inside. Also, who the hell puts this thing in the dishwasher.
    • I’d hate to see someone walking down the sidewalk when that s.o.b. comes flying out after a long day.
    • My vagina once ate a condom, so there’s no way I’m putting a whole plastic cup in there. I might never get it back.

    Pointless Drivel
    Tampons in the work place
    Von Taylor
    Menstruation Sisters, Sister Sucker