Just because it's a TV commercial, doesn't mean it cannot be beautiful.

There has been a lot of uproar about some of our favorite music being co-opted for use in television commercials. Like the Kaiser Permanente commercial using the super indie Postal Service song Such Great Heights. Yeah, that kind-of exempts The Postal Service from indie status, but who wants to just be indie? Well, besides the hipsters, and isn't that why we hate them? The bigger issue is one of quality I think. The commercial is really well made. Does it make me want to buy Kaiser insurance? No. Does it make Kaiser a fuzzy warm and cuddly corporation? No. But it is a pretty swell looking commercial though.

Anyway,
As reported by BoingBoing.net perviously, 250,000 "super bounce balls" were recently let loose down a giant hill on a San Francisco street. The purpose was to make a commercial hawking a new Sony Television. The result: stunning.

And it's got a super-indie soundtrack.

Biggs: "I'm going in. Cover me, Porkins."
Porkins: "I'm right with you, Red Three."

William Hootkins, the actor who played the beloved and overweight X-wing pilot Jek Porkins, has passed away at the age of 58.

You'll always be right with us Porkins.

Because it does:

"The world is filled with 'bad design.' As professionals we notice it every day and the non-designer sees it as well, but usually never recognizes it as such. We hope that the content on this site helps to change that."

This desktop is from their propoganda section:

desktop @ 1600 pixels wide

The tesseract is a theoretical mathematical object that "predicts" what the most simplest object would look like in the 4th dimension. In our third dimension we would call a tesseract a cube. But when we try to project this 4th dimensional object into our own 3 dimensions, we can only see it's "shadow." And it's shadow is mindbending.

Well there would be many other shapes in the 4th dimension, besides the tesseract. What would they look like? That we can never know, because as humans we do not have the ability to live in the 4th dimension. So anytime we try to imagine what things would look like in the 4th dimension, we are only seeing the "shadows" of those objects. Adrian Ocneanu, professor of mathematics at Penn State, has designed and created a sculpture so we could see the shadow of a new 4th dimensional shape represented in our 3 meager dimensions. (via The Ape)

Two up and coming ATL rappers, Killer Mike, and Bone Crusher have passed through our office in as many days.

And seeing as how I just fought the video game form of Bone Crusher in Def Jam Fight for NY for Xbox, I'd say that's pretty cool.

Die Rauber by Friedrich Schiller @ Push Push Theater

We were asked to do some graphics for PushPush Theater. We decided to do a poster, it's one color, and is intended to be printed "on the cheap" so many can be printed and put up around town.

So yeah, it's a propaganda poster rip off, and I would be remiss if I didn't cite Shepard Fairey as an inspiration. You can't make modern day propaganda posters without stealing a little bit from that guy.

The stencil I posted earlier is intended to be spray painted on top of this poster.

Jeff Dowd of the Seattle Seven, seven unlucky hippies who were arrested for "inciting a riot" in 1970, was in fact the model for The Dude (or El Duderino if you're not into the whole brevity thing) of our most favorite movie The Big Lebowski. (via metafilter)

This is no secret, Dowd is often a special guest of honor at the annual Lebowskifest held in Louisville each year. THIS IS OUR YEAR!

Yesterday was the Decatur Beer Festival, located in scenic, and some would say "historic" downtown Decatur, GA. (though I grew up in New Castle, Delaware. That the historical society keeps looking like it did during the settlement of America, so.. you know it's all relative, IN YOUR FACE Decatur!)

Anyway, We live one stop via MARTA from downtown Decatur, GA. We were volunteering for Adri's work, they are a spirit, wine and beer distributor. Also, since we live so close, there was "no limit" set to the amount of beer we could reasonably drink. Or so we thought....
Ouch!

Since there were a ton of official Decatur Beer Festival Volunteers around in red shirts to work the tables, we didn't have to pour beer, no. Our job wouldn't be as hard as that, but it was a lot more... complicated.

Basically, our job was to watch the taps on the back of the beer truck for "opportunity tappers." See, there are a million people at these things. So to keep things orderly people have to get a beer from the pouring table. Otherwise people would raid the open beer pulls. Or course, this would result in complete chaos. Since everyone was drunk by 2:00pm (It started at 12:00!) you'd get a lot of "negotiators." People who wanted to convince you they should get a quick refill. But you can make to exceptions.

I kept apologizing for having to be the "Cop." But, as I told many a drunken opportunity tapper, the very balance of order and chaos was at stake here. It starts with one pull for one guy, the another guy, then a group of screechy girls, soon everyone from the bratwerst line starts stacking up. My god, think of the insanity. I would tell them, "I'm not prepared to take responsibility for throwing that delicate clockwork that is civilized society out of balance here."

That usually seemed to work.

photo taken by Ryguy, from atop the beer truck.
we kind-of just tossed him up there.

The Lyrics Born show was top-notch.

Though the first opening band was... difficult to listen to. They were a sort of fusion jazz jam band. A lot of pounding on keyboards and squee-sqawking from a saxaphone. And at some point a very uncharasmatic rapper joined them wearing a red hunters cap.

The touring opener was a guy named Pigeon John. He was old school, not just because his beats were a little slower, but also because he was funny. A lot of what I remember fondly about 80's hip hop was a good dose of humor. At one point he even had an argument with god about how the audience was only pretending to laugh at his jokes because we felt sorry for him. Good stuff.

LB, Lyrics Born...
Bear in mind that he comes from an era in time
When you actually had to have lyrics that rhyme.

What can you say that hasn't already been said. This guy puts on an awesome show. Lyrics Born was again backed by a full band. When they started their set they played straight through at least 6 songs before they ever took a break. Even that dirty old man at Zombie Sitcom was impressed, and he's a judgemental jerk, so what does that tell you... oh wait, maybe I'm the judgemental jerk... either way, it was a good show.

We have a cool design project coming up, clunkyrobot.com was asked by PushPush Theater to do some graphcs for their upcoming "movieplay" The Robbers (Die Räuber) by Friedrich Schiller. This movieplay is presented as a part of Paste's Rock and Reel Fest. PushPush also likes to call this a "re-imagining" of the classic Schiller play.

Wha? movieplay? re-imagined? OK...
The play is partially presented as a play, and a movie... a movieplay.
As for re-imagined... would you rather they said "re-mixed?"
yeah me neither.

here is a small preview of a stencil we're doing for that show:

Feel free to download that image and cut your own stencil, if you want a bigger version... grab it here.

I'm glad we're getting to do some work for PushPush, they're good people. Look for the next couple of months to be a whirlwind of activity here at clunkyrobot.com We've got a new animation project for Dad's Garage looming, the ongoing Vespa project, and I'm also looking to put in a new order for more stickers.

Here's to keeping your head above water.

"The time of getting fame for your name alone is over. Artwork that is only about wanting to be famous will never make you famous. Any fame is a by-product of making something that means something. You don't go to a restaurant and order a meal because you want to have a shit."

- Banksy

*WARNING*
Things that should normally live inside a person's stomach are shown in plain view in the following post.
.
.
.
We had a party this past weekend at the space station.

Now...
If you are at a party at my house, and you puke in my office, do me the very great favor of letting me know. Also, I don't know about you, but the last time I threw up... it was a lot. To me, this vomit doesn't even look like 2 cups worth. Although, I would describe this vomit as "beany"

From Biz Markie to Rahzel with a little Fat Boys thrown in. Human Beatboxing is a staple of the hip-hop genre. The documentary Breath Control covers it's history and origin. I first heard it when Doug E. Fresh and Slick Rick released "La Di Da Di" (iTunes link) on the album The Show.

Want some instruction on forming your own break beats and snare hits?.

to all area crew, we gonna make it all happen right here, right now.

The Tom Jones of Underground Hip-Hop, Lyrics Born @ The Drunken Unicorn This Wed. Oct 12th doors open at 9:30pm

Lyrics Born puts on one of the best hip-hop shows you'll see in recent years, he is usually backed by a full band, the Kaleidoscope Crew will be there, will you?

You might remember him from Superman 2, or his popular website.

Where he was once simply asking for your undying devotion and eternal servitude, he is now asking for your vote in 2008. (via metafilter)

Kneel Before ZOD:

When I first came to your planet and demanded your homes, property and very lives, I didn't know you were already doing so, willingly, with your own government. I can win no tribute from a bankrupted nation populated by feeble flag-waving plebeians. In 2008 I shall restore your dignity and make you servants worthy of my rule. This new government shall become a tool of my oppression. Instead of hidden agendas and waffling policies, I offer you direct candor and brutal certainty. I only ask for your tribute, your lives, and your vote.

-- General Zod
Your Future President and Eternal Ruler

Maybe you haven't been keeping abreast of this, but in Dover, Pennsylvania there is a court case between the parents of students and the local school board that wants to teach students Intelligent Design.

What is Intelligent Design? It's the latest re-hashing of Creationist Science. Intelligent Design, or ID, says that life on Earth is far too complex to be attributed to evolution. It had to be designed by some sort of intelligence. ID's origins can be traced back to the 1890s. William Paley in his book Natural Theology makes his famous watchmaker analogy:

If we find a watch in a field, it is too complex to have appeared there by natural process so we assume that there must be a watchmaker responsible for its creation. Similarly, the argument goes, life is too complex not to have a creator, God.

In current ID doctrine they never actually say *whispers* God, because their strategy is to use scientific method against itself. Though, in the same breath they elude to the fact that aliens might be responsible for all life on Earth.

Why is this trial important?
It will set a Precedent, that's with a capital P. It's the school board who is attempting to introduce ID into the school curriculum, that's insane! These parents are taking a stand against this assault on common sense. Some parents have begun pulling their children out of schools who are fighting to teach ID as an alternative to Evolution.

You can keep track of the proceedings in PA on The Panda's Thumb weblog. The ACLU has a special section of their website that is also devoted to this case. If you want to get an impartial foreign view on what asses we are making of ourselves here in the U.S. over this, check out this article from the Guardian UK.

This is something that cannot be ignored. When religion is dressed up and taught as an alternative to science in freaking science classes, we have indeed reached the tipping point. The place where we are all going to finally tumble is still up to us. All I know is that if this goes the way of the ID Priors, zombie Carl Sagan will rise from his grave and eat your stupid brain.

I am more than this me that's here.
Sure this is me, but not all of me.
I am here, and, I am beyond this point.
Only to be seen by 3rd graders drawing on graph paper.

This me, the one that you know is a shadowy sketch of me. Projected into this 3rd dimension, fuzzy red shifted, a generation lost. I'm shakey and strained by being here, you've either got this or nothing at all, and the bent lines, the non equating lengths, the blurry awkward squares, these are the costs of seeing me at all.

You will never know, not for a lack of effort, or trying, but this will always be a poor representation of something greater.

Burt Bacharach's newest album At This Time features guest performers like Elvis Costello, Dr. Dre, and Rufus Wainwright.

Apparently, the venerable Mr. Bacharach, King of the Flugelhorn, is not such a fan of President Bush:

"I think Bush is just about the poorest president we've ever had. You'd have to go back before I was born to find a worse one."

But that's probably just because he's been hanging around that beatnik Costello too much. On an interesting note, during the writing/recording of Bacharach and Costello's collaboration Painted From Memory Elvis Costello kept a reproduction of Albrecht Dürer's MELANCHOLIA on his music stand. Albrecht Dürer is best known for his haunting Intaglio etchings. After studying with Leonardo DaVinci himself, Dürer became obsessed with mathematics and it's place within art, often his etchings would have a complicated mathematical object just sitting in the background.

Being both a fan of music and painting Dürer had this to say about them:
"A boy who practices painting too much may be overcome by melancholy. He should learn to play string instruments and thus be distracted to cheer his blood."

What David Byrne of The Talking Heads has to say about Intelligent Design:

"Lots of articles everywhere about Intelligent Design these days — the latest re-working of reality to allow God a place in it. It's a bit of a waste of time, all this discussion, in my opinion. If people insist on taking the Bible literally, at face value, and reforming the evidence on the ground to fit that, then there is no reasoning with them — they've abandoned reason from the beginning."