Yet another puzzle from Inception

Like most moviegoers after Inception, I left the theatre with a lot of questions about the movie. Last week, we were presented with yet another.  Inception‘s soundtrack is comprised of two elements: composer Hans Zimmer’s largely ambient, stringy score, and “Non, je ne regrette rien” – the classic chanson sung by Edith Piaf, which Leo [...]

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Outclassing the Mad Men

Over the last few days, the internet has ooed and aahed over a viral marketing campaign from Old Spice.  In just two days, a production team and a charming actor named Isaiah Mustafa created 183 short videos; instead of paying for TV airtime, Old Spice simply uploaded them to YouTube.  It was the kind of [...]

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Does the Guggenheim Need YouTube?

It was only a matter of time, wasn’t it? Until one of the art world’s most renowned institutions began trafficking in amateur YouTube videos… That’s the turn New York’s Guggenheim Museum is making. Instead of enlisting high-art hot shots, the museum will look to the masses for their fall schedule. Internet nobodys are currently submitting their video [...]

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I Am Sitting in a Video Room

In 1969, experimental composer Alvin Lucier designed a simple project with a not-so-simple intention.   He sat in a room and made a short recording of his voice, which he then played back into the same room and re-recorded.  Lucier then re-recorded the re-recording, and repeated this process over and over again, making copies of copies [...]

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Masterpiece Theater: Laptop Edition

We all know that the Internet has its drawbacks. (Why do I know that Sandra Bullock’s husband cheated on her?  Why does a certain relatives think I enjoy videos of kittens?)  But its power to aggregate—pulling material from across time and around the world—can still knock your socks off.  I stumbled across an example this [...]

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OK Go Out-Goldbergs Rube Goldberg

Finally, a YouTube time-suck guaranteed to delight you with repeated viewings.  If, by the end, your jaw is not scraping the floor, you will be sporting an ear-to-ear smile of gee-whiz amazement. The band OK Go made viral video history back in 2006 with their goofy treadmill choreography. For one of their new tunes, “This [...]

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Kidding Around

Last week, singer-songwriter Zee Avi brought her ukulele by the studio. From what we’ve been hearing from listeners, she has a bunch of new fans since the broadcast – including me. Hearing her play the uke took me back. I can picture the one we had lying around our house and I remember how my [...]

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YouTune – Bill Flanagan’s “Evening’s Empire”

Ready to unleash your inner rock star? We want you to help bring a fictional rock band to life. This week, Kurt talked with author and MTV big wig Bill Flanagan. His new novel Evening’s Empire tells the rollicking story of The Ravons, an imaginary British rock band from the sixties. In the book Flanagan [...]

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Busted!

Indie-pop’s next big hit could be in Manglish. That’s the blend of Malay and English singer-songwriter Zee Avi favors for her song “Kantoi.” The YouTube sensation visited Studio 360 recently and she performed the song live for us. [YOUTUBE=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eF32xfehHPE] Zee Avi explained that “Kantoi” means “busted.” And the song is all about love gone bad.  [...]

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