Crumping you can believe in

Even in dyer economic times, people still have time to burn.

best film intro ever ?

True skaters like to diss this video because "skating speaks for itself" which I agree with, but this is a hell of a video. It is an intro for Lakai's "Fully Flared" skate video.
Co-Directed by Spike Jonez, Music by M83
Enjoy

Best Tennis Match Ever

If you missed Rafael Nadal defeat 5 time Winbledon Champion Roger Federer today to win his first Wimbledon Title then you missed out. It was hands down the best tennis match I have ever seen. While I do not claim to be a tennis expert, I have been watching the sport since I was a child. I have seen all the greats win and lose and I have seen many epic battles but the match today between Nadal and Federer took the cake. These two guys played what I think is longest match in Wimbledon history according to what the commentators were saying. It was literally head to head all the way until the final match point (which was the third of the set) in the 5th. Rafael Nadal collapsed upon victory and then proceeded to climb some walls and jump into the stands to hug his family. It was pretty awesome. As John Mcenroe said "this was the greatest match I have ever seen and if this doesn't generate interest in our fine sport, then I don't know what will".
Here are a few more pics of my guy Nadal!

it's been a month since i've done a post

Indeed time has not been on my side lately, which is odd given my current professional duties. Anways, yesterday was my friend Jeff's birthday. A group of five of us gathered to celebrate with him at once of Chicago's secret masterpiece's, The Paramount Room. I don't know whats up with that tribal logo surrounding the glass of beer but they do have fantastic beer and food. We had interesting discussions, my friend Karl gave Jeff an interesting book that I must now track down. The book is "Wreckers of Civilization" and it's basically the insane story of psycho jazz legends Throbbing Gristle.
These guys also spoke quite a bit about Nurse With Wound who I was unaware of and really don't have the time to explain, but it's worth checking out.
After Jeff made his exit to go watch the Chicago White Sox dominate the Chicago Cubs to make the sweep official, we headed over to another bar for one more beer. There we tried to figure out if we are old or if new music really just sucks. We all agreed that if we are in fact victims of a generation gap that we could accept that. However we also could not find a musical or other artistic movement today that was worth praising.
I then went to work and continued reading Naked Lunch and then I felt filthy and vile but hey, is't that why you read William S. Burroughs in the first place?
Anyways... I woke up this morning, checked wherethehellismatt.com and found his latest video and it made me happy for some odd reason. I'm not sure if I like Matt or hate him because I am jealous of what he gets to do.
For all the people that really think people that live in other parts of the world are so much different than us Americans, I think this is quite possibly the best and most simple example they are indeed very similar to us. If you're not in a better mood after watching this I will pay you $100 dollars (just kidding, I'm not giving you shit!)
Check it out and enjoy your day!

Where the Hell is Matt? (2008) from Matthew Harding on Vimeo.

White People For Peace

Against Me! summed it up with this song. If you don't know Against Me! then you should go buy their music at your local record store (if you can find one) or obtain it on the interweb. Anyways... if you are curious of the lyrics you can find them here!

White People For Peace by: Against Me!

revisit connect four

my guy brian is not very good at connect four, but his heart is in it.

seriously though... this shit gets funnier every time you watch it....



check out his other shorts:
rick jeffers

falseface

superchunk rules!

One of the better things about the 90's was a little band called Superchunk (whose re-union I missed last year at the Metro in Chicago because I was in California, but we won't talk about that right now...or ever again).Superchunk was catchy noise pop at it's finest. they just don't make pop music like this anymore...Yes I am aware that the previous statement makes me sound old! Enjoy some superchunk on me! AGAIN... don't say that I never gave you anything!

SUPERCHUNK - Hyper Enough

SUPERCHUNK - Precision Auto

AND FINALLY
A great live clip of Superchunk playing "waterwings" from the "like a fool" record (their best imo)
man that mac can sure bounce around... goodtimes!

banksy paints the israel/palestine wall

The previous post before this about the banksy record got me fired up on his efforts in painting the Israel/Palestine wall. I think these are all of the paintings from his effort there. The post before this one has some video footage of this whole ordeal....check it!

banksy on wax yall !

The more popular an artist or band gets, it becomes more uncool to like them... say what you want about banksy, but when was the last time you braved bullets in the West Bank to put up art on the Israel/Palestine Border? That's what I thought....
Anyways...the company I am working for at the moment is selling some limited edition Banksy Records. Not sure if he made the tunes (which is a breakbeat record that also includes a mental laughing track lock groove) . It comes in a few different color sleeves (pictured above)... if you feel so inclined you can pick up this sure to be collectors edition vinyl here!

Here is some footage of Banksy in the West Bank

If you are not familiar with Banksy... He is a famous British Graffiti Artist who primarily works with stencil art. Here are a few glimpses into his work:

more stop motion: human tetris

OK so this video probably does not need to be 2:38 long but it is. I do like to think about these people sitting around for hours most likely to make these videos. The guy who does the "music" is pretty comical as well.

the future of television advertising

The Bullshit Observer has an interesting article on the current state of television advertising. I couldn't agree more... Read the article here.

Q. How do you solve the current housing crisis in the U.S.A.? A: Build Treehouses

This is awesome...A German company called baumraum builds tree houses like these... Don't even act like you don't want one. Seriously... the builders who are getting forced out of business all across American should get crafty and do stuff like this... WHY THE HELL NOT???

does the world need more weezer?

What do tay zonday, kevin federline and miss south carolina have in common?
They are all in the new Weezer video. Yes it sounds like every other song Weezer ever made. I don't hate Weezer, and just like everyone else, I really like their first record (My Name is Jonas is a Jam), but I thought they quite while they were ahead... but nope... I really don't care about this, but they do milk the whole "Mentos in the Soda" thing that we failed miserable at when we did the video for the fizz. (hint.. its in the first video in the films section)

a random conversation

scott: i wonder what it would be like to own a baseball team?

me: yeah i wonder what you would do all day at work.

scott: hope they win.

i approve this ad...looking for a job?

Dentsu in China did these ads for a jobzonen.dk which is a job site like monster or career builder but for Denmark. People are dogging the ads but I think they hit the nail on the head. Being on the job hunt myself... well...lets just say i can relate and most likely my guys sam, fabian and anthony can as well!

if you are offended you most likely have a nice job and make more money than me!

master of profits

for those of you who are not familiar with chicago punk/grind misfits hewhocorrupts, they are a band (well they are a business) and a record label. this is video they did for their song master of profits! this might be the best 1 minute and 44 seconds of your life, enjoy !

viciousness

my guy bob sent me this video a couple weeks back. it's surely inspired by a clock work orange but if you're having a bad day and feeling vicious it's a nice watch! pleasant stuff!

JUSTICE - STRESS

justice stress (official video)
Uploaded by 75_prod

a glimpse of the influence from a clock work orange

you just never know with advertising

OK!
So there you sit pondering whether you should be disturbed by the kid drinking gas, or the underage homo eroticism.... me too pals...me too!...
Let me explain what is going on here. This is a controversial ad for a swiss bus company called Flygbussarna who recently announced a plan to increase the use of rapeseed oil-based biofuel in its fleet, with the goal of being completely fossil-fuel free in three years.

The company launched an ad campaign this week to promote its green-fuel credentials, using posters which show people, including children, drinking from fuel pumps with the Flygbussarna logo.The text of the ads insinuates that the company’s rapeseed-based fuel is safe enough to drink.

Granted these ads are offensive, confusing and can potentially influence children to consume all sorts of poisonous substances (or appendages)... does the controversy shine light on their effort to become fossil-fuel free?
I think it does...but again... it's a question of ethics...
decide for yourself !

welcome to crackie's corner v1.0

welcome to the first installment of crackie's corner. this is where i will feature content suggested by my girl and my favorite crackhead vivian. here she offers up the la pequena amy winehouse. this is one cracked out little person... enjoy!

IF THEY ONLY HAD THIS WHEN I WAS A KID

Remember all those commercials for toys that did all these amazing things and you waited months and months to get your hands on that toy. Then you finally get it and the toy is a hunk of junk, nothing like the commercial and you felt so let down and you just wanted to call out these companies on their lies... WELL... now you can go online and tell the world. EXPO TV is the new rage that allows you to upload a video of a product in action, or just to give a review.

This kind of thing should have happened years ago. I am going to plagiarize the blog where I found this...Expo Tv is consumer reports meets youtube. And they have all kinds of product reviews. The first thing I am posting is a glass of wine spilling when i jump on a Tempur-Pedic bed.

I hope this site spreads like wildfire. I will never be burned by another Fry-Daddy again!

i approve this ad: matchbox cars

This is simple and perfect stuff. This time by Ogilvy & Mather, Frankfurt, Germany. There are a few other takes on this same idea however I am partial to this kid, the look on his face is priceless.

i approve this ad: safe sex done swiss style

Euro RSCG Switzerland did these condoms ads. The top notch art direction brings a fresh face to this idea which has been used time and time again. I am not sure when you will be having sex in the jungle, or a cave but I felt it was appropriate to post them given my Swiss friend Fabian sent me the ad in the previous post which is another condom ad, however this one is not for giant condoms, this is just for the every day couple, no matter if you are straight or gay! (check out the last ad)...oh yea they went there!

i approve this ad: durex extra large

my guy fabian is on fire with sending emails. here is another one he sent me today for durex extra large condoms! it's a classic...

minus the bear, throwing shapes video

besides being an overall great band, the new video from minus the bear is pretty awesome.
check it...

MINUS THE BEAR - THROWING SHAPES

the coolest 50 year old alive

nick cave is a bad ass, plain and simple. from his days with the birthday party, to the bad seeds days, the recent grinderman project, he is back with the bad seeds. if i can afford it i'm going to see them at the riveria her in chicago. this is not some old guy going through the motions for a paycheck...tis the real deal... you can only wish that you will be this cool at 50 years old...

GRINDERMAN LIVE ON THE TV


NICK CAVE AND THE BIRTHDAY PARTY LIVE
my guess is 1982

the real simpsons

my guy fabian sent me this. it's pretty awesome. it's speaks for itself. what i like about it most is that you can really see what talented actors each one of cast memebers are. meet the simpsons!

again, stop motion sickness

my obsession with stop motion continues...
my guy bob in new york posted this sick video on his blog.
i can't say enough about how cool this video is, just give it a watch... the part where he eats the paper on the wall is straight off the wall...total sickness.
upon completion of viewing the video you should read the rest of bobs blog. he has quite a lot to say. you can also pay him to make good work for you. browse his work here.

this is how austria does ps3

tbwa in austria has released this ad for the ps3. ladies and gentleman, meet the penis thumb. is it good? is it bad? is it tasteless? does it even make sense? who knows, but it's causing quite the stir. check it.
does this just mean that x-box 350 and wii are kicking playstations ass?

Audi R8 and Ironman VS. David Lynch

As you may have noticed unless you are totally oblivious or you live in a cave, product placement in movies is commonplace these days. If you saw Cloverfield and didn't notice him using his NOKIA phone to make calls, or the refreshing AQUAFINA that the guy drank in the subway tunnel or the SEPHORA sign the one guy/girl leans against for a good minute then I don't know what to tell you. Anyways...the car companies are cashing in. The New Audi R8 (which has the engine in the back and you can get a clear backside to reveal the engine) is all over the Ironman movie, which apparently kicks ass, and Mercedes is in bed with New Line Cinema to have their new S-Class Sedan in all the promo ads as well as the movie. Samantha will also be driving around in her Mercedes GLK-350 compact SUV. Check it...then watch the third video to see how David Lynch Feels about the whole thing!

IRONMAN PROMO w/ the AUDI R8

KIM CATTRALL GETTING IN HER MERCEDES GLK-350 FILMING SEX AND THE CITY

DAVID LYNCH BEING AWESOME

Bobby Lee is funny

my guy paul sent me this clip. it's totally ridiculous... enjoy!

black tooth paste

my guy mat sent me this. it's clever yes, but is it racist? i dunno... you decide....

falseface

more brillz from my guy brian petsos who wrote and directed this that you should go to next week if you live in new york. You might recall him as rick jeffers
this time brian is joined by will forte. enjoy

i approve these ads: Vancouver Aquarium

Taxi in Canada did these ads. Do they make you hungry?

my guy and personal blog guru sam sent me this link. IFC and Nerve have put together this list of sketches. just like any "greatest of all time" compilations you will inevitably have some sort of beef with the list... like the ucb- ass pennies skit being at # 49 but hey... no one is perfect...this is sort of a long term strategy!

a few good creative men

this made me laugh

original design gangster

graphic designers, this one's for you!
if your not a graphic designer or at least have a little knowledge of the discipline then you will not get this...
as lame as this is it made me chuckle like a schoolgirl... ok well... school boy.

if you are in new york on thursday may 15th you should probably attend this

my guy's brian petsos and max lubahn have put together a show that will premier at the ucb theatre on thursday may 15th. if you are in the area go check it as both guys are stellar individuals. brian moon lights as rick jeffers and max is just an all around good dude.

brian says: it is kind of bloody, and it promises to be kind of funny...at least. if you like cowboys and indians, love and marriage, blood and beer, and good old-fashioned brotherhood, then we've got the show for you.

premiere performance thursday, may 15th at 6:30 PM.
ucb theatre, 307 w. 26th street, new york city, new york, 10001

CLICK BELOW TO MAKE A RESERVATION NOW!
http://spillmedia.com/pie

new rage: free music...nine in nails gives you their latest

say what you will about where nine inch nails has gone musically over the years, i for one could live without much of their output since the downward spiral but at least trent has his head in the right spot. granted giving your new record away is the rage these days like radiohead did with inrainbows...nine inch nails take the idea where it should be...and that is by giving you multiple high quality formats to choose from and give you no option to contribute a single dollar whereas radiohead gave you an option to donate an amount of your choice (i gave $2.00 out of sheer guilt as i felt the concept was pretty awesome) and then gave you the album at a bit rate of 160. nine inch nails offer their newest in a variety of formats including high-quality MP3, FLAC or M4A lossless at CD quality and even higher-than-CD quality 24/96 WAVE. your link will include all options - all free. all downloads include a PDF with artwork and credits.
you go trent !

get your free copy of nine inch nails - the slip here

update: got the record via email and it isn't very good... trent reznor lost his musical edge a long time ago in my opinion, however he still fights the good fight... even if he did steal a pigface song... thanks for the free tunes trent!
a side note: the cover got me excited that this would be the right turn musically i was hoping nin would take... oh well !
anyways... here is nin playing the stolen song when nin was truly great!

Nine Inch Nails - Suck_Live_1989_Pretty Hate Machine Tour

bad ass kid does bad ass stuff

my guy mat showed me this today...if i was 10 years old i wouldn't mess with this kid.

new rage: getting rick rolled

i got rick rolled... straight up. whoever thought of that is a genius.

if you don't know what it's all about... it's worth checking out, but you really need to watch the entire clip to get it... watch this clip from Serra vs. St. Pierre which was written about in great detail previously on my blog.

pointless facts...pavement meets jerri blank

it's always odd when you think of something or someone and then you run into them or it or whatever... you know what i mean....
so i haven't listened to pavement in a little while so today i busted out slanted and enchanted and then followed it up with a little wowee zowee. while trying to sleep i was watching a strangers with candy episode and i notice a familiar face... i was pretty sure it was mark iblod, the bass player from pavement... i fast forward to the credits... bingo... there he is.... MARK IBOLD.
granted this is not the strangest thing in the world, it was just bizarre seeing that i had listened to two pavement records today.
mark plays a band member in jerri blank's brother derricks band member.

now you go ahead and enjoy you some strangers with candy and some pavement! You're welcome!
serioulsy... don't mention it... i mean it.

STRANGERS WITH CANDY
Stephen Colbert montage as Chuck Noblet

PAVEMENT live at READING FESTIVAL circa 1992
off key singing and maximum slack attitude in full effect yall

BONUS PAVEMENT - PERFUME V live at READING FESTIVAL circa 1992

looking for a job makes you miss awesome things

i've been so consumed as of late in looking for employment that i missed tim and eric live at the empty bottle. two shows... i found one clip from the show.


"i like parties, i like fun, i want to live in a hamburger bun"

if you don't know tim and eric, they made tom goes to the mayor and currently do tim and eric awesome show, great job as well as host a live talk show on superdelux. they make some of the weirdest and amazing stuff out there now.

United Visual Artists : Yan Shu Commission

UVA was commissioned to create an instillation in a new terminal at london's heathrow airport. The commission is designed to bring attention to china design now.

The idea of the instillation is to promote the sharing of experiences in different cultures.
Browse the UVA site for on this, some cool videos and slide show photos of the instillation as well as a lot of other work they have done. Just about all of it is amazing. Here is some of the work they did in 2004 for Massive Attack.

UVA and MASSIVE ATTACK

i approve this ad...the happiness factory

I do not approve this on the basis of how they are making working in a factory look fun, although that is a tough thing to do and they seemed to have accomplished that. I approve this based on the quality of the work and how tight the concept is. You can see the continuity through out the entire work and it really is a flawless site.

AKQA in new york and coca-cola have an interesting take on employee morale. They created the happiness factory which is in essence a micro-site to change perception of what it means to be an employee for coca-cola. They launched this on a global scale in 40 languages.

The idea was to have employees and potential employees interact with the company and give the impression of a fun and hilarious atmosphere at the coca-cola factory.

the site starts with an animated movie that would make pixar proud.

it then leads you to the site where you can pick various characters who act as employees, you punch them in and they go to work which turns out to be interactive video games that you play. Again the graphics are top notch.

looptopia

This weekend Chicago will host looptopia which is a festival to take place in the chicago's loop and will go from early friday evening till sunrise. The festival concludes with a sunrise celebration in millennium park. Not sure what this sunrise celebration includes but hey, it's a sunrise celebration in the park. I haven't had the chance to look to indepth at what is going on at the fest but i'm sure you could find something interesting strolling through.

UPDATE: I heard it was a total bust. If the city is going to do something that is cool in theory what stops them from hiring competent people to organize it?