RANT: SORRY CLEAR CHANNEL, PANDORA IS THE NEW RADIO

Bob Pittman spells out why Pandora is not Radio

While I can agree that a good DJ with the power to choose his own playlist is great, it's rarely if ever done these days. The last time I heard a DJ with playlist power it was on an independent "public" station (e.g. WFMU, WXPN, WBJB, WRSU, WSOU) not those that Mr. Pittman represents.

Clear Channel and national playlists killed radio with their fast-food-restaurant approach to radio programming and sent the music listeners away to the internet. If someone wants to hear the same tired and over-played 10 songs every hour then they should continue to listen to the corporate radio drivel that Mr. Pittman and Clear Channel represent. Services like Pandora while not perfect at least allow for discovery of new (or new to me) music, where corporate radio really doesn’t. So maybe Mr. Pittman should be saying Pandora is not CURRENT radio, it’s what radio used to be when it was good.

THE GREAT GATSBY IN 8-BIT

My newest time waster and addiction, The Great Gatsby as a pseudo Nintendo Entertainment System game. If you thought snapping a whip in Castlevania was cool, imagine throwing a fedora in 1920's era New York. I wonder if F. Scott Fitzgerald would sit and get drunk while playing this.

Play it here.

PREPARING FOR THE APOCOLYPSE WITH CLASS: BELT

I've been going through a "I should be prepared for a unexpected event" fad as of late. Maybe it's from the impending doom of the American Dollar crashing, reading too many Every Day Carry blogs, or maybe it's the new AMC show The Walking Dead that's got me all freaked out. The problem with "being prepared" is walking around like a dork wearing tactical gear with too many pockets. I've also tried to minimize carrying my bookbag around. So when I see things that can allow me to be prepared, but defy the tactical gear look I'll post it here. Here's product Number 1, the 686 Original Snow Toolbelt. It has a built in bottle opener in the buckle, 2 prongs in the buckle made up of a flathead screwdriver and a phillipshead screwdriver, a belt loop with 3 wrenches (8mm, 10mm, and 11mm). Available in Punk Rock studded belt (Rocker Stud Snow Toolbelt) and Work friendly (Original Snow Toolbelt) versions. Get it for $40 at 686.

(Source: Cool Materials)

RANT: STEVE JOBS IS AN ASSHOLE/FUCK APPLE

I've been in the market for a new mobile phone and have been checking out the Android OS phones, but rumor has it that the iPhone in coming to Verizon (January 2011). I like the specs on the iPhone and that there are so many companies making 3rd party accessories (meaning more choice, cheaper prices), but I can't stand Apple's "walled garden" aka dictatorship mentality.


I find it pretty ironic that some the most lefty "free thinking" people I know have such an allegiance to Apple products, namely the iPhone. The company is against the freedom of speech and ideas. They must approve whatever program/app that is available in the app store, and only those apps approved can be put on the iPhone because they lock down their device (unless you choose to Jailbreak it). Apple has a policy against adult content applications. That is unless you're Playboy. For some reason an independent producer/app maker can't make an adult app, but if you're Playboy you'll be accepted by the app store. Fucking bullshit.


I don't need a new daddy Mr. Jobs. I'm an adult and will make my decision on what I would like to surround my life with, what I want to view, and what I want to put on my portable media products. Jobs even went on the record stating that "we do believe we have a moral responsibility to keep porn off the iPhone". Who the fuck do you think you are? It's not that I have some need to have porn on my phone, but I don't like someone telling me I can't do something, especially with a product that I buy. Apple also blocked a cartoonist's app due to a political cartoon because Apple said applications that ridicule public figures are not allowed. What the fuck? Fight the oppressor of information. Support Free Speech.


STEVE JOBS IS AN ASSHOLE. FUCK APPLE.


JAILBREAK YOUR IPHONE (OR BUY ANDROID?)

WHO CARES: THE DUANE PETERS STORY

A documentary (from 2005) with a shitload of skateboarding and a decent soundtrack. Tells the story Mr. Duane Peters, old school skateboard legend and punk rocker. This movie made me pine for my time as a member of the 4-wheel, 7-ply-maple militia. There's some pretty killer pool sessions that made me want to get a pool built and learn how to skate all over again...

The official(?) trailer:

THIS IS ENGLAND '86

This is England '86 is a sequel of sorts to the movie This is England, except instead of being a feature film, this one is made for TV as a 4 part mini-series. Currently airing on Channel 4 in the U.K., but will be available on DVD on October 11, 2010.

From the Channel 4 site:

It's 1986 - the year Chris de Burgh is at number one, Top Gun is filling the cinemas, VHS is trumping Betamax, the World Cup is raging in Mexico and over 3.4 million Brits are unemployed.

As Shaun (Thomas Turgoose) sits his last school exam, the realisation dawns that adulthood beckons and in mid-80s England he's going to have to find his own way in the world. Luckily life has dealt a surprise hand to his friends too and no one is quite where they thought they would be. Woody, Lol, Smell, Gadget, Milky - they are all looking for love, a laugh, a job and something that resembles a future.

This Is England '86 is a brand new drama coming to Channel 4 this September. It revisits the gang from the hit film This Is England three years on.

"When I finished This Is England I had a wealth of material and unused ideas that I felt very keen to take further audiences seemed to really respond to the characters we created and out of my long standing relationship with Film4 and Channel 4 the idea for a television serial developed. Not only did I want to take the story of the gang broader and deeper, I also saw in the experiences of the young in 1986 many resonances to now recession, lack of jobs, sense of the world at a turning point. Whereas the film told part of the story, the TV serial will tell the rest." - Shane Meadows, Director

DRINK RECIPE: 2 TONE (A Cultured Hooligan Exclusive)

The 2 Tone, a Cultured Hooligan exclusive. This is a quick and easy drink recipe that I created* when I had Guinness and Red Stripe in the fridge. Based on the classic Black and Tan.

What you'll need:

1 can of Guinness Draught (these also come in bottles now, but I prefer the can)

1 bottle of Red Stripe

1 Pint Glass

1 Spoon

Directions:

1. Grab the pint glass and hold it at about a 45 degree angle.

2. Pour the Red Stripe along the side of the glass about half way up.

3. Put the pint glass on the table, grab the spoon and hold it with back of the spoon facing up over the opening of the glass. Makes it easier if you have a black and tan spoon, but not necessary.

4. Slowly pour the Guinness over the spoon. Do it slowly and you'll see the Guinnes laying on top of the Red Stripe.

5. Let the Guinness settle, drink up, and enjoy.

6. When done repeat steps 1-5 with the remaining beer.

*No, I'm not so delusional that I think I was the first to come up with this. As I was doing this a quick Google search came up with the name Black and Red, but the 2 Tone is such a better name.