Possible Muji ad?

Good thing I don’t have any work to do. Or do I? When you’re unemployed there’s no vacation.

Ah the simplicity and depth of Eastern wisdom. Muji is a Japanese brand that sells a variety of household goods; everything from pens, notebooks and pencils to travel accessories to home furnishings. The only remarkable feature about any of Muji‘s products is their sheer and utter simplicity. No frills, no waste. Plainness and modesty are the design ideals of each product. With each item Muji asks “what would be best from the individual’s point of view.

It’s products are so non-descript that not even so much as a logo adorns any item you pick up at a Muji store. In a world where everything is stylized and customizied to be purposeful, or even just profitable, the simplicity of Muji’s products is a welcome breath of fresh air. It has become almost impossible to buy just a plain notebook, or plain black pen. Travelling? Muji has compact mirrors, travel cases and accessories that are compact and functional. What you buy at Muji doesn’t have to say something about you because of the way it is designed. It just works the way it is supposed to. Notebooks have plain covers, alarm clocks, containers, folders, mirrors, and so on are all made in neutral colors, if they are produced in more than one color at all.

I have spent hours of my life in store aisles hung up on the design of everyday products. Which color notebook should I get? I like how that pen writes but the outside looks stupid. This ____ is a nice size and it has a zipper, but it looks too masculine. Blah blah blah. A Muji store on my corner would end all of those indecisive hours wasted in linoleum aisles under fluorescent light. I especially like their notebooks with the clear plastic cover; I can draw whatever I want on the first page and make my own sweet cover at my leisure, as the inspiration comes.

LINK: www.muji.us

Most of Muji’s stores are in major Asian and European cities. However you can shop online, and if you live in NYC you can shop at Muji’s only North American outposts. I don’t and I’m bitter about it so that information is irrelevant. If that information would be relevant to you, out of spite I say: figure it out for yourself.

A man of Native American descent, usually wearing a plaid shirt, string tie and (hopefully) cowboy boots greets patrons and collects for cover. The doorman’s imposing frame blocks out most of the doorway, making it difficult to know exactly what is through the threshold. Once in, the bar is to your left and straight back is a small-ish stage and a decent-sized dance floor. An elevated seating area flanks the sides of the venue for those who wish to sit on ancient vinyl-covered cushions while drinking PBR on draft rather than grooving. This option is accompanied by service from a cocktail waitress who might be older than your mother.

I handed over a few dollars, walked into Nietzsche’s and was entertained by Dali’s Ghost.

The sound was earthy, medieval, organic. This is rock music for druids. It seemed as though the band could have been wearing monk’s garb.

Their sound is strong, and well-cultivated. Their songs are mystic chants written for the drums, two guitars and a bass. On numbers like Shark Hunter there was an occasional fanfare of the trumpet, which added an acidic element of pomp and class. The horns had more of a jazzy, latin-influenced presence. Despite a somewhat trippy style, overall their sound is strong and polished. There is something refined about the music. It’s apparent that this ensemble has practiced together a lot, and put a significant amount of thought into the lyrics. It was difficult to make out some of the verses, but a lyrics sheet would undoubtedly reveal some poetry, probably on the abstract side.

Dali’s ghost communicates a pensive, positive joy that runs deep, a happiness, a knowing that comes from experiencing or finally understanding something powerful. This is especially true on Sands of India. There’s nothing synthesized about this band’s sound. It sounds like it could have come from the depths of a magical forest a long, long time ago.

I would most closely compare Dali’s Ghost to the following bands: Radiohead, Sigur Ros, and Phish. These are three bands that have had a significant impact on music, and comparing them to a local band creates a comparison of misleading vividness.
Just to give you an idea of what my frame of reference is…Not to trivialize but, if I had to REALLY break it down.

Radiohead: Music for computers, aliens, and the contemporary suffering human.

Sigur Ros: Music for birds and whales. In Iceland.

Phish: Music for people.

Dali’s Ghost: Music for druids and mystics.

Although these guys are just a local band who plays local bars and local festivals they are practiced musicians and thoughtful lyricists. They have a long way to go before becoming great, but they’re already pretty good which is more than current up-and-comers could say a year or so before things really started to happen for them.

I enjoyed Dali’s ghost imore than a generous handful of the tracks featured on Nylon’s and Urban Outfitters’ recent playlists. Those playlists certainly had some obvious gems by St. Vincent, Phoenix, Deerhunter, Grizzly Bear plus others like The Plasticines, Polly Scattergood, Alberta Cross and Of Montreal. Still, over half of the tracks did not quite leave an impression.

As a handful of scruffy guys, admittedly Dali’s Ghost doesn’t fit the overall aesthetic and attitude of Nylon and Urban Outfitters, which is fine, but they deserve to gain some exposure nonetheless. There are potent traces of jam-band influence in their sound, and they have really taken that genre to a new place without going the electronic route and incorporating synthesizers etc. like some Disco Biscuits tracks, or Lotus. All of that being said, check out their Myspace page.

I like everything about this. The middle guy’s sweater, the dancing, THE EFFECTS, the song, the skimpy tinfoil costumes. All great. It’s a song with feel-good lyrics, some nice guitar riffs and a catchy beat accompanied by absurdity and a visual delicacy of special effects.  It’s great. I’m gonna say it again: it’s great.

This video was part of The New Director’s Showcase put on by Saatchi & Saatchi last week at Cannes. There were some other pretty awesome live performances in the showcase, and other videos but I didn’t watch them. The thing about live performances is that they are better than recorded stuff, but to get it, you really need to have been there. And you know what? I wasn’t there.

Cannes. Most people think of the Cannes film festival held every year during the second week of May in that beautiful town on the French Riviera where films from all over the world are judged and awarded. Directors, movie stars and rich people gather to party and praise one another. The results are given and independent film watchers in America add new titles to their netflix queues. Then, two weeks later, the advertising industry descends upon Cannes and anyone not in advertising probably doesn’t even know this. I mean haven’t we made ourselves pretty clear about how we feel about TV ads with DVR? Yes we have. The ads shown now are not nearly as serious or deep as any of the films show two weeks earlier, but all of these selections represent a lot of hard work and creative thinking done for two reasons: to win business and truly make a difference for the client, or for creative people to win an award and make a name for themselves. The latter is not as honorable, but all the same it’s cool stuff and it’s really too bad that the only people who know about it are advertising people. I know we all hate ads, but these ideas are more than 30 second clips that break up your favorite tv show, or a full page ad between articles. There are a lot of ideas that make a difference for people, and add color to the world.

Still, it’s always seemed weird that the advertising sort of does a copycat on the film industry with the Cannes Festivals. Like, shouldn’t ad people come up with their own thing? It’s weirdly pretentious because I don’t think anyone perceives people in the advertising industry to be on the same level as actors, actresses, writers, and directors.

Someday I’m going to write about seeing this local band called Dali’s Ghost play a show at this bar called Nietzche’s. That day is not today, and it probably isn’t tomorrow. Although it might be.

Well, the next thing I know it’s 12:59pm the following afternoon, there’s drool hanging out of my mouth and I’m in the middle of a dream where I’m Parker Posey in Dazed and Confused. I’m screaming “AIR RAID” at the top of my hateful lungs to a bunch of girls lying on the ground covered in condiments. All of a sudden the fear of God strikes me when this unbelievably loud ringing comes out of nowhere. It’s unbearable. I crouch down, cover my head and start to think that maybe I should stop being such an evil bitch, but before I’m 100 percent convinced that’s a good idea, I wake up and realize that it was just the phone ringing.

My eyes are not quite yet open so I paw for the phone and hope that my morning voice isn’t too scary. Magically, I open my mouth to say hello and it sounds like songbirds! At first I’m surprised. I must still be dreaming. Then I remember how a person as perfect and awesome as myself doesn’t suffer from the banal affliction of “morning voice”.

The person on the other end of the line greets me politely and introduces himself as Matt from the Creative Circus. I think to myself “I guess they don’t waste any time”. Matt fuels my desire to become the world’s greatest copywriter. He is leading me to believe that I will be able to do this without having to order a hit on Skyler Dobin, which is good because paying the assassin AND tuition would force me to come up with a side hustle while at the Circus. Matt advises against that. I mean, I’m there to focus on building a portfolio. He’s right. Anyways, I hang up the phone and gears are whizzing in my head. I walk over to the refrigerator, start to think about what kind of sandwich to make, while wondering if they’re still going to send me some brochures.

People have paid money for t-shirts that were not quite as funny as this.

Twitter has come up with another awesome site maintenance image/message (right)! They should start printing these on t-shirts. It’s not anywhere near as awesome as the pigeon one (see below), but hey! People have forked over money to get a lot less. It doesn’t bother me at all that I can’t update my status, or see the funny things that Michael Ian Black is posting when I am greeted with something like this. Today has been a good day. Anyways, on a more logistical note…I’ve said it before, and clearly I need to say it again: Twitter should probably figure out how to handle a greater capacity. I’m not sure how long the vast armies of internet warriors can be assuaged by such images.

Pigeons = rats with wings. If there is one truth in the world, this has to be it.

In other recent news, I’m going to see Passion Pit on Wednesday! Finally, since they bailed as Ra Ra Riot’s opener at The Westcott back in March. That would have really bummed me out if Ra Ra Riot hadn’t been one of the best shows I’d seen since Excuse Me Gunmen in my kitchen the night before. YES! I think tickets are only like $12 which, because I am so unbelievably broke, is out of my price range but if I dig through the couch cushions and the car seats for long enough I can definitely come up with the chunk of change.

Passion Pit

New topic

Over the past few months I’ve read some stuff about Passion Pit. The lead singer, Michael Angelakos wrote the first songs for his girlfriend and they’re based out of Boston. Fact. Enough said. I never gave it a second thought, but just today I was reminded that Angelakos was in a band with one of my friend’s ex-boyfriends who I definitely saw perform a few times during highschool. I don’t really know this kid and these are events that took place like five years ago. Since then parts of my memory have atrophied (although I would like to believe that other parts of my brain have expanded) so I’m not surprised that I never figured this out until someone told me. I hope it’s not weird that I’m writing about this, but whatever! I dig Passion Pit’s music and I’m not trying to say I was anyone’s best friend.

I was so fortunate as to obtain a copy of their newest album “Manners”, which I have been enjoying thoroughly. Their single “Sleepyhead” and also “I’ve Got Your Number” from debut album Chunk of Change has had me super-pumped to see them live since January, and Cuddle Fuddle never fails to make me feel like I’m walking on air. The Reeling off of “Manners” has been a popular single, but I also like Moth’s Wings. Can’t seem to upload music without paying for a space upgrade(dah!)…so check it out for yourself and, you know, buy the album.

Girlfriend, no one is going to want to sit next to you in your beer-soaked gown at the 5-hour long ceremony tomorrow morning.

Who is this girl? I wonder if this chick has found a job yet? What did she major in? I’m gonna guess metalsmithing or printmaking. She really was squeezing every last drop out of college, partying the night before graduation in cap and gown, and clearly pretty out of it. Hope she didn’t get mad that I cut her in line for the bathroom. I told her though, “move it or lose it, sister”.

I probably wouldn’t be writing about vanBrug if I had not seen the photos at the end of his portfolio. He’s done some really beautiful portraits, and what I think is his best work are the shots taken of cities like Amsterdam, NYC, Florence, and Venice. There are a series images from each city, and what I particularly like is how the images are grouped together. van Brug has done this in a spectacular way, and has created a whole that is greater than the sum if its parts, which is not to say that each individual photo can’t speak for itself. van Brug’s photos truly capture the essence of each different city he photographed. He has managed to do this by using iconic symbols from each city in a subtle way. In the photos of Venice vanBrug skips the gondolas, but rather shows a clothesline hanging across a canal. In Amsterdam you see two people kissing in front of a store window lit up in red.

All images and background information: Rinze van Brug Photography.

Giant Bird

The White Whale

Question of the day: which picture do you like best? Both of these images pop up when there are too many people on Twitter. How do you want that message delivered to you? With an oversized orange peep sitting on telephone wires OR a white whale with a blissful expression that is being gently carried away by a flock of small orange birds. Today you get to choose. One criteria you may want to rate these two images on is this: which conveys the idea of “over capacity” the best?

Cast your vote here in this poll box thing. It’ll be fun.

Think that they both suck? Any new suggestions would be welcomed both by myself and Twitter. I think that would be decent fodder for future posts.

Now let’s focus the spotlight on Twitter for a second and give them some publicity that is not related to the Twitter reality-TV idea (???really?) that was floating around a few weeks ago, or monetization. Twitter – hats off to you for the most clever error messages. When something goes wrong, rather than dumping me down a dead-end exit off the information superhighway, you gently reassure me with absurd cartoons.

Also, feeling weak today? Getting the fear? Finding it difficult not to succumb to your cravings? Just in case, here are a few more reasons not to eat fast food.

Excessive scrunchie glorification. And high-cut one piece swimsuit.

Looking back at the scrunchie’s first rise to popularity in the late eighties, things were going fairly well. Bringing back inconsequential trends from that era is not going to solve our problems! If anything, the excessive, materialistic attitude we developed around that time is part of the reason why there are no jobs and  why capitalism in this country as we knew it is now royally fucked! Scrunchie it is YOUR fault that I have no job, money, or car so FUCK YOU! You never properly restrained my hair anyways. I always had to use a hairtie too.