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Can You Dig It? Music & Politics of Black Action Films: 1968-1975
2009-10-07 23:47:00
In the early 1970s, Black Action Films exploded into the cinema with three extremely successful films – Shaft, Super Fly and Sweet Sweetback's Badasssss Song. The most profound statement of these films was their actual existence – black actors and black directors entering the previously closed Hollywood film industry. 'Can You Dig It?' charts the rise of 'Black Action Films' from 1970-75. As well as featuring a double-CD collection of the stunning music from these films, 'Can You Dig It?' comes with a 100-page booklet, limited-edition mini-film poster cards and stickers. The vinyl is on two monster loud separate double albums. If your a fan of funk music and the blaxploitation genre, theres a good chance you own the majority if not all of the music featured in this collection. However with the buzz around Scott Sanders's homage movie Black Dynamite (Trailer). There should bea rise in interest in the genre and the music which makes ...
More About: Politics , Music

Ana Bagayan - "Critters"
2009-10-07 20:19:00
When 6-year-old Ana Bagayan moved with her family from the Armenian capital of Yerevan to Burbank, California, little could she have known how her formative years would set her up for a certain celebrity in later life. Shunning the usual trappings of female youth for a sketchbook, her Critters series would come to prove that there's nothing like a good frolicking to set you on the path towards artistic renown. Critters, showing at the Roq La Rue Gallery in Seattle this Friday October 9th 2009, is a series of paintings and drawings that exemplify the influence her childhood had on the work which would see her gain reputation in enviable circles of the creatively conscious. With all the big-eyed innocence of a Manga character, but somehow endowed with a sombre knowing, Critters keeps a firm foot on the precipice of implied darkness with the natural ease that can only come from one who has truly felt it.Ana currently resides in Los Angeles with her boyfriend an...

Light Carpet From Imu Design
2009-10-07 18:40:00
Finnish design team, Imu, have struck a chord as self-appointed mediators between the brightest emerging young design talent and the public. One such luminary is Johanna Hyrkas; an all-round creative lady who's also the founding member of Anteeksi design collective. Featured at Imu is this rather fabulous Light Carpet, which "combines a carpet with light and warmth." Made of a combination of thread and light-rope, this durable carpet is high on the usability/comfort factor as the nights draw in. Plumping for the premium version will even furnish you with light show-capable carpet. More images at www.hometone.org Via: CoolBuzz Read More tags: carpet, lighting
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Vintage Lighter Cufflinks
2009-10-06 21:15:00
Make sure your style is nothing less than smokin' with these vintage lighter cufflinks. Made from original and fully-functional lighters dispensed by gumball machines in the days when folk puffed away in ignorant bliss, these custom cufflinks are the hottest accessory for the man about town. However, please ensure that whilst you're craftily dazzling the ladies with your debonaire ways that it is only your sex that's on fire and not your lovely suit as you must remove the links prior to actually lighting up. Currently sold out and unavailable from YOUgNeek at Etsy for $40.00 plus p&p. Via: technabob Read More
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Panasonic's "Wiping Cleaner Fukitorimushi" Is Fukin' We
2009-10-06 20:06:00
It's a beautiful thing when designers take inspiration from nature to craft their products, whether it be the aesthetics of floral perfection or the intricate mechanisms of life itself. However, when Panasonic chose the humble inchworm as their muse for the Fukitorimushi domestic robot, this particular inspiration ensured they definitely cleaned up in the creepy stakes. Incorporating Teijin's nano technology for the non-slip, super-cleany cover, Panasonic created Fukitorimushi to mimic the inchworm's distictive locomotion as a potentially successful method of floor cleaning. Teamed with its flashing sensors which glow red when they come into contact with worrying levels of filth, the robotic pillowcase/inchworm hybrid will work away at it until it achieves a level of cleanliness acceptable to itself. When Fukitorimushi's work is done, it will even find its way back to its home on the charging station. Cute as it is, I can't help but imagine a Screa...
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Hyperstory - "A Happening"
2009-10-06 18:56:00
Music video for Hyperstory (a.k.a. los angeles based musician Scott Blevins)'s  "A Happening". If you like the tune you can download the 192kbps MP3 for free by signing up to their newsletter here.www.hyperstory.com Via: YouTube - thecheesefeed Read More tags: downtempo, pop

Skulls Wallpaper
2009-10-05 20:24:00
Skulls Wallpaper - Bronze on Oil Slick - is a handmade-to-order piece of the most divine interior loveliness your walls could ever have the pleasure to be adorned with. Deliciously decadent and decidedly dark, this signature paper features deep pile velvet reflective bronze skulls on a smooth iridescent base. £210.00 for a 52cm x 10.05m roll with an ETA of 2-5 weeks on delivery. No bones about it, the best things really do come to those who wait. Available here. Via: Better Living Through Design Read More tags: decor, wallpaper

Major Lazer - "Hold The Line"
2009-10-05 16:25:00
Sporting what could well be the greatest music video since Thriller, producers Diplo and Switch's cartoon alter ego, Jamaican commando Major Lazer, came storming onto the scene this year with the debut album Guns Don't Kill People...Lazers Do on Downtown Records/Mad Decent. The first single released was Hold The Line; a Western-infused dancehall track that makes me yearn for sunshine and bass bins.But if the track itself takes you away to sunnier climes, the video will surely take you back to happier times, playing like a homage to that golden age of kids cartoon merchandising. Indeed, anybody who regularly tuned in way back in the day to watch He-Man hold aloft his mighty sword of a morning will doubtless be similarly enamoured by this supremely spot on reworking of that classic 80's formula. Click here if you would like to be set adrift on memory bliss of mini-consumerism.Click here if you'd like a pop at remixing the mighty Hold The Line.Ma...

Pac-Man Concept Lamp By Anderson Horta
2009-10-05 15:04:00
Brazilian product designer, Anderson Horta, has lovingly recreated the spirit of the 80's with his concept lamp, "80's Ghost." In an affectionate nod to the decade which brings the fondest nostalgia to a generation of a certain age, 80's Ghost is not only an illuminating cultural icon, but a play on childhood fears, too. As Horta says so well himself, "Let's put some light in our memories!!!" Via: UberReview Read More tags: concept, lighting

The Heavy - How You Like Me Now?
2009-10-05 00:46:00
Video for How You Like Me Now? from West Country funksters The Heavy . Featured on their new album The House That Dirt Built which drops tomorrow (5th October). Arctic Monkeys producer Jim Abbiss and members of The Noisettes where involved in the Album, which blends Cinematic elements (Spaghetti Western) with indie rock, soulful vocals and pure heavy funk.www.myspace.com/theheavy73www.thehea vy.co.uk Read More tags: funk, funk rock, indie, music video, psychobilly, punk rock, rock, soul

Valhalla Rising - Images
2009-10-01 00:54:00
A few images from Danish film-maker Nicolas Winding Refn's Valhalla Rising which premièred at The Venice film festival and plays at the London BFI festival in October '09. Mads Mikkelsen (Le Chiffre in Casino Royale) stars as Harald.Refn is best known for the cult Pusher trilogy and more recently directing Bronson.Mute slave Harald escapes his Scottish masters with the help of 10 year old Are, torturing and killing them before joining a band of dispossessed Vikings. They go to sea, determined to return to Scandinavia to fight the spread of Christianity, but for Harald the journey is also a personal one to discover his own origins. Caught in a terrible storm, the group drift for 40 days until, on the verge of death, they find themselves in a freshwater river. The land seems at once strange yet familiar.When they come under attack by unseen assailants, the groups' quest for their homeland takes on a bitter urgency as one-by-one they succumb to the onslaught, dyin...
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Glassbulb Light By OOOMS
2009-09-30 19:41:00
Available in either 110v or 200v, these glass-shaped LED lights by Dutch design studio OOOMS won't leave you in the dark on designer mood lighting. But the light that burns twice as bright won't burn half as long as each will shine for around 30,000 hours (or 10 years in the lesser-known time-to-romance equation.) See things other people wouldn't believe with Glassbulb Light by OOOMS. Via: Designboom Read More tags: lighting, mood lighting

Panoramic Holiday Projector
2009-09-30 15:39:00
There's surely no more chipper a way to show just how excited you feel about annual events than plastering it all over your house, often much to the disgust of your neighbours. But why should you limit the joviality/annoyance merely to Christmas? Well with the Panoramic Holiday Projector you needn't! For a mere $79.95 you can give them all something to talk about on Christmas, Halloween, birthdays, and indeed any event you feel is deserving of that special touch. The outdoor-use projector works up to 35-feet away and comes with 10 multi-seasonal slides. Go on, lower the tone (and possibly house prices) over at Brookstone, it's a world of innovation. Via: Red Ferret Journal Read More

Nuit Noire - Trailer
2009-09-30 02:52:00
Trailer for Olivier Smolders Nuit Noire: Oscar, a conservator at the Natural Sciences Museum, passes the days exercising his passion for studying insects; if only there still were days. As long as people can remember, the sun only releases a few pathetic rays for fifteen seconds before noon. The rest of the time, the world is plunged into a night without end, a permanent eclipse. Coming home after work, Oscar finds an African woman in his bed. Suffering from a mysterious and incurable disease, she seems to have come to his place to die. Trapped between desire and repulsion, Oscar gradually abandons his life to terrifying phantoms.The long awaited feature length debut film of talented short filmmaker Olivier Smolders (see also Spiritual Exercises DVD), Nuit Noire (Black Night) is mysterious, ghostly, technically impeccable, and continuously bathed in a magical, surreal light. Read More tags: art house, cinema, cult epics, foreign film, world cinema
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Riverworld (syfy) - Trailer
2009-09-29 14:02:00
Trailer for SyFy's upcoming (2010) adaptation of Philip José Farmer's sci-fi / fantasy classic Riverworld. Robert Hewitt Wolfe has penned the screenplay and Battlestar Galactica's "Helo" (Tahmoh Penikett) who is currently strring in Joss Whedon's series Dollhouse takes the lead role. Peter Wingfield, Laura Vandervoort, and Alessandro Juliani are also in the cast. www.rhitv.com Via: www.quietearth.us Read More tags: sci-fi, syfy, tv
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Mar Azul House By BAK Architects
2009-09-28 19:19:00
If you go down to the woods today you're sure of a big surprise... for nestled in the forest at the beachside resort of Mar Azul, Buenos Aires, lies BAK Architects' Casa Mar Azul; the environmentally low-impact summer house that's anything but. Built in 2004, this striking retreat was created to fulfil a brief, the inherent ethic of which was to design a low-budget home of low impact upon the landscape and to consequently require little maintenance. Reclaimed materials and a great consideration towards light, both natural and synthetic, bore Casa Mar Azul; the realisation of architecture at once blending with and yet punctuating its natural environment.  Photos by Gustavo Sosa Pinilla (see more at www.digsdigs.com)  Via: Modern House Design Read More tags: eco friendly, house, modern house

The Mid-Century Modernist
2009-09-28 18:25:00
The Mid-Century Modernist is dedicated to the Modernist movement, as both a historical milestone and a living, breathing ideal, reflected in much of today’s best design and architecture. Via: The Mid-Century Modernist Read More tags: blog, design, links, midcentury modern, modernism

George A. Romero's Dawn Of The Dead - Blu-Ray Three-Disc Edition
2009-09-28 16:06:00
October 2009 sees the highly anticipated Blu-ray release of George A. Romero's classic zombie movie Dawn of the Dead , presented as a special three-disc edition – exclusive to the UK – that represents the ultimate presentation of the film available anywhere in the world. Released just in time for Halloween, this is undoubtedly the horror movie Blu-ray release of the year.Produced and compiled by Arrow Video with the kind of loving care and attention only the most devoted of zombie aficionados are willing to provide, this must-have three-disc set includes the George A. Romero approved Theatrical Cut of the film in 1080p resolution on Blu-ray, plus the Director's Cut and the Dario Argento Cut on DVD, the latter being made available on DVD as part of this collection for the first time in the UK.Also included is a host of extras that include the rarely seen "Scream Greats" documentary on the career of special effects wizard Tom Savini, audio commentaries b...

Head Full of Snow
2009-09-27 16:41:00
With a title inspired by a classic Rolling Stones lyric Head Full of Snow celebrates the music and styles that came about during the late 1960s and throughout the 70s. You'll find it all here. Psychedelia, progressive rock, pop-psych, acid rock, space-rock as well as classic, folk and more. Via: Head Full of Snow Read More tags: acid rock, folk, pop-psych, progressive rock, psychedelia, space-rock

The Bronson Maneuver - A Short Film By Mike McCain
2009-09-26 15:35:00
The Bronson Maneuver is a retro 60's Spy inspired short created as an entry for "CGChallenge XXIV - Secret Agent" at cgsociety.org.The short features the work of:Ryan Sluman - Puppet & Animation - ryansluman.comJoon Kim - Concepts & Storyboards - chickenwithbroccoli.blogspot.comDanny Dahlquist - Cleanup, SFX & Original MusicMike McCain - Environments & Effects - mikebot.net There's also a rather cool little trailer for the short.If you like this you should check out  Stephane Coedel's A Kiss From Tokyo" Theatrical trailer Via: Mike McCain (Vimeo) Read More tags: animation, cgi, retro, short film, spy
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Cube Form The Creative Pet
2009-09-23 00:09:00
Created by designer Leslie Buker. "Cube " is a modular system, made from sheets of cardboard that can be fixed together with built in tabs and slots to create cube-shaped blocks. When these blocks are put together, they can make tunnels and towers and any shaped structure that cats can crawl through, jump on, shred and chew. It's a 100% recyclable alternative to the wood and carpet "cat condos" that many cat owners have. Owners construct their own, so it can be designed to fit into any space.www.thecreativepet.com Via: Cube Form The Creative Pet Read More tags: cat, cats, pet furniture, pets, recyclable

Revolving Video Podcast Episode 19: I Know Who Kicked My Ass In High School
2009-09-22 23:07:00
Episode 18 of North East England's premier movie podcast. This episode the boys review Lindsay Lohan in I Know Who Killed Me.Movie News: ‘The Expendables’ trailer + release date change, Nic Cage drops out of ‘Green Hornet’, Patrick Swayze RIP, Harrison Ford talks Indy 5, Yet another ‘Night Of The Living Dead’ remake. For full show notes and to comment / leave feedback visit the Revolving Video blog or email them revolvingvideo [at] hotmail.co.uk. Also remember to subscribe to the feed and vote for the guys at Podcast Alley. You can also follow Chris from Revolving Video on Twitter @snoog and Jamie @JamieJohnston7 Subscribe via iTunesDownload the show or listen to it below: Via: Revolving Video Podcast Read More tags: podcast, revolving video
More About: Episode , School

Dwell Development's "Beacon Hill" Is Guiding Light On Eco-Fr
2009-09-21 18:39:00
A recently completed project in the Beacon Hill area of Seattle, Washington, is just the proof that those looking for stunning, eco-friendly family residences ought to Dwell on it. Design/construct firm Dwell Development is a Seattle-specific business whose eye-catching aesthetics and proven 'green' credentials can be accredited, in part at least, to their strict adherence of their work ethic. Think 'quality rather than quantity' and you'll have Dwell's self-styled philosophy in a nutshell. Their commitment to superiority within sustainability is, though, not merely resting upon the residential unit alone, but with an eye to its immediate environment and the potential for the evolution of community. The Beacon Hill development is comprised of four free-standing and individually unique family homes whose generous proportions and striking finishes belie Dwell's accute attention to eco-friendly detail. Each of these residential uni...
More About: Light

Solomon Kane - Trailer
2009-09-19 19:23:00
First trailer for writer / director Michael J. Bassett's adaption of Robert E. Howard's Solomon Kane. James Purefoy stars as the puritan avenge,r alonside a cast that includes Rachel Hurd-Wood, Max von Sydow and Pete Postlethwaite.Kanes's past is only vaguely hinted at in the original tales, but Bassets script gives Kane an origin story: When the story opens Kane is a mercenary of Queen Elizabeth I fighting in Africa, but after an encounter with a demon, The Reaper, he realizes he must seek redemption or have his soul damned to Hell. He returns to England and lives a life of peace, converting to puritanism, but soon the doings of an evil sorcerer upset his plans and he must take up arms again.The trailer comes courtesy of IGN.I recommend grabbing a copy of Del Rey's "The Savage Tales of Solomon Kane" which collects the original Kane works if you have not read any of the Kane stories before. Via: michael j bassett’s blog Read More ...
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District 13: Ultimatum - Trailer
2009-09-17 18:35:00
UK trailer for Patrick Alessandrin's District 13: Ultimatum. The sequel to the rather fun "District 13" once again stars Cyril Raffaelli (Live Free Or Die Hard) and David Belle (Babylon A.D.) and is produced by Luc Besson.It's 2013, three years after the events of the first movie, and it appears that despite government promises nothing has changed in District 13, the racially charged ghetto notorious for its gangs, drug dealers and killers. A consortium of corrupt cops and government officials is conspiring to cause civil unrest within D13 with a view to finding an excuse to raze the area and cash in on its redevelopment. When a local kid accidentally uncovers the plot, the district's resident idealist Leito (David Belle) and elite law-enforcer Damien Tomaso (Cyril Raffaelli) are reunited in a bid to bring peace to the troubled neighbourhood and to expose the conspiracy before a proposed air-strike can destroy the area Leito calls home.District 13: Ultimatum...
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Camper Kart By Kevin Cyr
2009-09-15 18:12:00
Artist, designer and all-round appreciater of the shabbier beauties of this world, Kevin Cyr brings us Camper Kart - "an experiment in autonomy." Investigating "habitats and housing; recycling and ecology; exploration and mobility" such as it is, Camper Kart is quite the artistic project of cultural relevance. Not only is this collapsible camper a unique autonomous mobile abode, the thoughtful Mr. Cyr has included in his design a consideration towards reading material and the alleviation of phobic distress. Much like Murray Siple's Carts of Darkness, Cyr's work explores our relationship with that which we discard within our society of wastefulness, and that faction of life for whom an icon of consumption becomes the emblem of ostracism. And just like Siple's documentary, Camper Kart could well become this year's sleeper hit. Camper Kart, you are so beautiful...to me.  Read More

Gaia Phone Concept By Ahmad Bittar
2009-09-14 20:40:00
Industrial designer Ahmad Bittar has come up with an interesting, if slightly worrying, handset concept that combines (or should that be exploits?) our increasingly emotional bond with our technology. Behold Gaia Phone , the emo phone of the (possibly not too distant) future that's like a party in your hand, if indeed you have enough friends for a party. The all-singing, all-dancing Gaia Phone comes alive with all the excitement of a well-adjusted puppy when in receipt of updates or contact from loved ones, friends or family. Of course, if you keep your friends close but your enemies closer, Gaia will keep you informed via the glow that keeps you in the know. Yes, the more contact you have with a person, the brighter the light, which will probably compound the misery of a break-up as that light will, quite literally, go out of your life. And so, sort of an ironic product for Generation Geek, as hermitic life sets in and the wide circle of friends sl...

H
2009-09-14 18:02:00
Someone is killing women, most of whom have the connection of unwanted pregnancies. The vicious nature of the crimes and the choice of victims matches the M.O. of notorious Korean serial killer, 26 year old Shin-Hyun. The problem is Shin-Hyun has already handed himself in and admitted to 6 killings prier to this recent spate. Hard-bitten female Detective Kim Mi Yun, played by Yum Jung-ah (A Tale of Two Sisters, Three... Extremes,) and her new partner Detective Kang Tae Hyun race against time to solve the murders and put a stop to the horrific killings. Jong-hyuk Lee’s debut feature film H is one of those twisty serial killer flicks with an obvious nod to David Fincher’s ever popular Seven. A team of detectives follow a twisty trail as they track down what appears to be one or maybe more copycat serial killers that are using the exact modus operandi as deadly lady killer and all-round twisted young psychopath, Shin Hyun (Cho Seung-woo). New boy Kang Tae, teams up with the...

Nirvana Bathtub By Bathroom Tomorrow
2009-09-14 17:52:00
In a galaxy far, far away...a luminous cleanliness was reached... Those partial to a relaxing soak in the tub can surely strive for nothing more than Nirvana . The good folk at Bathroom Tomorrow are promoting a state less stinky and more thinky with this gloriously translucent LED bathtub, complete with in-built touch controls and auto-fill functions. With its galaxy of light to unwind the mind from the ties that bind, Nirvana is the tub to help you reach enlightenment. Divine! Via: Trendir Read More tags: bath, bathroom

Ip Man - Trailer
2009-09-11 19:08:00
Trailer for Ip Man which isdirected by Wilson Yip (Flash Point; Dragon Tiger Gate; SPL) and starring Donnie Yen (An Empress And The Warriors) in the title role. The film co-stars the legendary Simon Yam. The award-winning wartime period action-drama Ip Man brings to the screen the fascinating life of the celebrated Chinese martial artist who famously became martial arts master to Bruce Lee and was the first person to teach the close range combat techniques of Wing Chun openly.Ip Man is released in the UK by Showbox Entertainment on 26th October 2009 Read More tags: donnie yen, hong kong, kung-fu, martial arts, simon yam
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