Tuesday, January 13, 2009
4:3
Oh yeah.
I went there.
Everyone is flocking to widescreen like apes to a monolith, but I kept it square. Who needs clubbing pigs to death with their uncle's thighbones? I'll stick with squatting in the shade of a small desert boulder eating thistles any day. Yeah, that's right, I reject your motherfucking week along with goddamn 16:9 widescreen bull.
I'm keeping it S-Q-U-A-R-E.
Well... more squarish. Yeah, that's right. Technically rectangular. I feel all you haters. I can smell you.
But seriously...
Reception has been good so far for Piano Lessons. Here's to a great 2009.
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
A long last... the dawn
Bag once again with the ill behaviour...
So the Will I Stay video has launched- by far my most "professional" looking videos and, surprise surprise, a lukewarm reception. I really think that if there was ever a time when people fell in love with dazzling images and forgot to pay attention to what was going on in front of them, that time is long over.
Rather, I think people get impatient with things that seem unprofessional, but don't have a clear vision. If there's a clear vision in an unconventional package (Colin says "make the eyes go wow") then you've got something that can grab people. Slipshod, not sloppy, is that new polished.
So- back to the drawing board. The next joint coming out of the Munroe/Sportel camp will be good old fashioned wackiness. Be on the lookout for... well... better not reveal too much.
See the vid here.
So the Will I Stay video has launched- by far my most "professional" looking videos and, surprise surprise, a lukewarm reception. I really think that if there was ever a time when people fell in love with dazzling images and forgot to pay attention to what was going on in front of them, that time is long over.
Rather, I think people get impatient with things that seem unprofessional, but don't have a clear vision. If there's a clear vision in an unconventional package (Colin says "make the eyes go wow") then you've got something that can grab people. Slipshod, not sloppy, is that new polished.
So- back to the drawing board. The next joint coming out of the Munroe/Sportel camp will be good old fashioned wackiness. Be on the lookout for... well... better not reveal too much.
See the vid here.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
HP's 11 Rules For Management
From here:
"Elegant" and "timeless" describe 11 simple rules first presented by Dave Packard at HP's second annual management conference in 1958 in Sonoma, California.
11 Simple Rules
1. Think first of the other fellow. This is THE foundation — the first requisite — for getting along with others. And it is the one truly difficult accomplishment you must make. Gaining this, the rest will be "a breeze."
2. Build up the other person's sense of importance. When we make the other person seem less important, we frustrate one of his deepest urges. Allow him to feel equality or superiority, and we can easily get along with him.
3. Respect the other man's personality rights. Respect as something sacred the other fellow's right to be different from you. No two personalities are ever molded by precisely the same forces.
4. Give sincere appreciation. If we think someone has done a thing well, we should never hesitate to let him know it. WARNING: This does not mean promiscuous use of obvious flattery. Flattery with most intelligent people gets exactly the reaction it deserves — contempt for the egotistical "phony" who stoops to it.
5. Eliminate the negative. Criticism seldom does what its user intends, for it invariably causes resentment. The tiniest bit of disapproval can sometimes cause a resentment which will rankle — to your disadvantage — for years.
6. Avoid openly trying to reform people. Every man knows he is imperfect, but he doesn't want someone else trying to correct his faults. If you want to improve a person, help him to embrace a higher working goal — a standard, an ideal — and he will do his own "making over" far more effectively than you can do it for him.
7. Try to understand the other person. How would you react to similar circumstances? When you begin to see the "whys" of him you can't help but get along better with him.
8. Check first impressions. We are especially prone to dislike some people on first sight because of some vague resemblance (of which we are usually unaware) to someone else whom we have had reason to dislike. Follow Abraham Lincoln's famous self-instruction: "I do not like that man; therefore I shall get to know him better."
9. Take care with the little details. Watch your smile, your tone of voice, how you use your eyes, the way you greet people, the use of nicknames and remembering faces, names and dates. Little things add polish to your skill in dealing with people. Constantly, deliberately think of them until they become a natural part of your personality.
10. Develop genuine interest in people. You cannot successfully apply the foregoing suggestions unless you have a sincere desire to like, respect and be helpful to others. Conversely, you cannot build genuine interest in people until you have experienced the pleasure of working with them in an atmosphere characterized by mutual liking and respect.
11. Keep it up. That's all — just keep it up!
"Elegant" and "timeless" describe 11 simple rules first presented by Dave Packard at HP's second annual management conference in 1958 in Sonoma, California.
11 Simple Rules
1. Think first of the other fellow. This is THE foundation — the first requisite — for getting along with others. And it is the one truly difficult accomplishment you must make. Gaining this, the rest will be "a breeze."
2. Build up the other person's sense of importance. When we make the other person seem less important, we frustrate one of his deepest urges. Allow him to feel equality or superiority, and we can easily get along with him.
3. Respect the other man's personality rights. Respect as something sacred the other fellow's right to be different from you. No two personalities are ever molded by precisely the same forces.
4. Give sincere appreciation. If we think someone has done a thing well, we should never hesitate to let him know it. WARNING: This does not mean promiscuous use of obvious flattery. Flattery with most intelligent people gets exactly the reaction it deserves — contempt for the egotistical "phony" who stoops to it.
5. Eliminate the negative. Criticism seldom does what its user intends, for it invariably causes resentment. The tiniest bit of disapproval can sometimes cause a resentment which will rankle — to your disadvantage — for years.
6. Avoid openly trying to reform people. Every man knows he is imperfect, but he doesn't want someone else trying to correct his faults. If you want to improve a person, help him to embrace a higher working goal — a standard, an ideal — and he will do his own "making over" far more effectively than you can do it for him.
7. Try to understand the other person. How would you react to similar circumstances? When you begin to see the "whys" of him you can't help but get along better with him.
8. Check first impressions. We are especially prone to dislike some people on first sight because of some vague resemblance (of which we are usually unaware) to someone else whom we have had reason to dislike. Follow Abraham Lincoln's famous self-instruction: "I do not like that man; therefore I shall get to know him better."
9. Take care with the little details. Watch your smile, your tone of voice, how you use your eyes, the way you greet people, the use of nicknames and remembering faces, names and dates. Little things add polish to your skill in dealing with people. Constantly, deliberately think of them until they become a natural part of your personality.
10. Develop genuine interest in people. You cannot successfully apply the foregoing suggestions unless you have a sincere desire to like, respect and be helpful to others. Conversely, you cannot build genuine interest in people until you have experienced the pleasure of working with them in an atmosphere characterized by mutual liking and respect.
11. Keep it up. That's all — just keep it up!
Sunday, August 17, 2008
MGMT - Time To Pretend
No embedding on this one, so you'll just have to click through. This video is brilliant for so many reasons:
***Link*** MGMT - Time To Pretend
- Ghetto does not equal bad. Why? Because it's appropriate to the content.
- Opens with fire. I love fire.
- Surfing through a tunnel of energy.
- Zebras.
- Burning money. I want so badly to take $25,000 for a music video and just burn $100 bills, one at a time.
Sunday Bleeding Sunday
The criticism for Sunday Bloody Sunday is in:
4/6th of responses: "I hate what you've done with U2's masterpiece."
1/6th of responses: "I like the song, it's interesting."
1/6th of responses: "I like the video."
More people hate the reinterpretation than like it. Why? The web commenting habits of the U2 Canon Secret Police aside, for many the song's meaning is tied too closely to U2's particular delivery, not the broad structures that Colin borrowed. "Not the sort of song to be sung like this," says stugavin on Youtube. Colin didn't make people *feel* the same way U2 did, adding whimsy and irony in the place of tragedy.
A classic ironic song is There's No Business Like Show Business.
starting at 1:44
Everything about these lines is tragic, but the delivery is glorious.
Similarly, Colin's World of Pain talks about how life is a balance between good and bad things, but the song bounces along on its big ol' piano chords.
And,
In the above and Sunday Bloody Sunday, the tune is upbeat, but the lyrics are a bit deeper.
The criticism of Colin's Sunday Bloody Sunday is legitimate. When a powerfully angry anthem turns into a whimsical banjo-driven ditty it's a big left turn. It's indirect, subtle, sly, and people hate being fooled when it comes to their passions. Listen closer, though, and that's not what is happening.
Colin's music is upbeat because he is happy, despite the unfortunate things he sees. So, where U2 adds the righeous anger, Colin Munroe adds the silver lining. It must be like going to a sequel expecting a bunch of huge explosions and thrilling action sequences and instead getting a wonderfully crafted romantic comedy. No matter how good the romantic comedy is, there are going to be a bunch of people who will stand up and walk out, saying, "you ruined the franchise!" It takes a willingness to go that distance to really begin to appreciate how changing a song can add to the meaning inherent in it.
Personally, I hope Colin continues to go further off the beaten track, ignoring the criticisms that plague this particular release. If they don't get it, they're not the right audience.
4/6th of responses: "I hate what you've done with U2's masterpiece."
1/6th of responses: "I like the song, it's interesting."
1/6th of responses: "I like the video."
More people hate the reinterpretation than like it. Why? The web commenting habits of the U2 Canon Secret Police aside, for many the song's meaning is tied too closely to U2's particular delivery, not the broad structures that Colin borrowed. "Not the sort of song to be sung like this," says stugavin on Youtube. Colin didn't make people *feel* the same way U2 did, adding whimsy and irony in the place of tragedy.
Whimsy
noun
playfully quaint
Irony
noun
the expression of one's meaning by language that normally signifies the opposite, typically for humor or effect.
A classic ironic song is There's No Business Like Show Business.
starting at 1:44
'You get word before the show has started,
that your favorite uncle died at dawn.
On top of that your paramour has parted,
you're broken hearted but you go on!
There's no people like show people,
they smile when they are low.
Even with a turkey you know will fold,
you may be stranded out in the cold,
still you wouldn't change it for a sack of gold.
Let's go on with the show!'
Everything about these lines is tragic, but the delivery is glorious.
Similarly, Colin's World of Pain talks about how life is a balance between good and bad things, but the song bounces along on its big ol' piano chords.
And,
In the above and Sunday Bloody Sunday, the tune is upbeat, but the lyrics are a bit deeper.
The criticism of Colin's Sunday Bloody Sunday is legitimate. When a powerfully angry anthem turns into a whimsical banjo-driven ditty it's a big left turn. It's indirect, subtle, sly, and people hate being fooled when it comes to their passions. Listen closer, though, and that's not what is happening.
Colin's music is upbeat because he is happy, despite the unfortunate things he sees. So, where U2 adds the righeous anger, Colin Munroe adds the silver lining. It must be like going to a sequel expecting a bunch of huge explosions and thrilling action sequences and instead getting a wonderfully crafted romantic comedy. No matter how good the romantic comedy is, there are going to be a bunch of people who will stand up and walk out, saying, "you ruined the franchise!" It takes a willingness to go that distance to really begin to appreciate how changing a song can add to the meaning inherent in it.
Personally, I hope Colin continues to go further off the beaten track, ignoring the criticisms that plague this particular release. If they don't get it, they're not the right audience.
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