17 Reasons: 2005

Friday, August 05, 2005

Me...on BBC?

Last week Geoff e-mailed me a link to a segment that aired on Go Digital, "the weekly BBC World Service programme that looks at how technology is changing our lives." Host Gareth Mitchell reported on podcasting, a new media hybrid of "broadcasting" and .mp3 technology (hence the "iPod" reference) that some believe will revolutionize the way audio information is created and distributed. This has yet to be proven, but it's fun anyhow.

Nerd that I am, I wrote Gareth to comment on the show, and included a shamelessly self-promotional plug for my own podcast project. Amazingly, Gareth actually followed the link, listened to the podcast, and asked if he could air my write-in and a clip!

Wow. This is the most "press" I've recieved since winning that Hemingway Days short story competition a decade ago!

Well, Gareth works quick, and the show aired this morning. You can download and/or listen to it here. The whole episode is great, but if you don't have time you can move the controller to the 14:00 spot, which is where I make my guest appearance. That's a little past halfway, for those of you who don't have a timecode bar.

Unfortunately, the clip I sent to Gareth does not have the musical backing, which I feel really enhances the speech recordings. I thought Four Tet and Kid Loco would understand-- Gareth's legal advisors didn't.

P.S. Don't miss the recently posted tunes by Óskar Arnórsson's legends of Icelandic hip-hop, "The Sweaty Janitors". As James so astutely put it this morning-- these songs are "F A N - F U C K I N G - T A S T IC!"

Friday, July 22, 2005

SFMOMA Podcast now up and ready to download!

WELL.

After pulling a couple of all nighters, enduring the entire obliteration of my laptop's hard drive, and struggling to learn Cool Edit Pro, I finally have the first 10 entries of my SFMOMA Podcast ready for you, the listener, to download to your iPods and .mp3 players. But, I have a lot more than 10 recordings and plan on adding extra podcast tracks for you to download in the future. Please check back periodically to see if there is new content!

To listen to a streaming version, just visit http://www.archive.org/details/17ReasonsPodcast.

AVAILABLE TRACKS:

Robert Gober, Untitled, 1992 *pics*
Joseph Cornell, Untitled (Pink Palace), 1946-48 *pics*
Yves Klein, IKB74, 1958 *pics*
Adrian Piper, Art for the Art World Surface Pattern, 1976/1987 *pics*

Andy Warhol, Red Liz, 1962 *pics*
Sol LeWitt, Wall Drawing #232: the location of a square, 1975 *pics*

Wangechi Mutu, Misguided Little Unforgivable Hierarchies, 2005 *pics*

Robert Rauschenberg v. Robert Ryman, The White Paintings *pics* v. Untitled [E] *pics*

Robert Irwin, Untitled, 1968
Mies van der Rohe, Barcelona Chair, 1929

**WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?!**

GOOD QUESTION! This is a podcast about the SFMOMA collection, concieved of and edited by me, Ms. S. W. Pau, as an alternative audio experience to accompany you on your next Museum visit. The voices in these recordings belong to friends who have little or no formal art historical background (or least a heckuva lot less than your average curator or NY Times art critic). Armed with a lo-budget, lo-fi, rather janky mobile recording "studio"-- iPod, iTalk attachment and lavalier mic -- this small army of art lovers wandered through the SFMOMA galleries, capturing their uncensored reactions in digital form. I've edited down the content (some were 20 minutes long) and added musical accompaniment, but other than that, these are their unadulterated comments.

UM, OKAY. THAT'S COOL, I GUESS. NOW WHAT DO I DO WITH IT?

1. Download the .mp3s below and drop them onto you iPod or other .mp3 player.
2. Visit the SFMOMA galleries. Listen. Look. Enjoy.
3. Think about the art you are viewing, even as you listening to the thoughts and impressions of other visitors.
4. Pass it on to friends and family. Send comments to: 17reasons@gmail.com, or post them on my blog!

Tuesday, July 19, 2005

Icelandic Researchers Name "The Mint" America's No. 1 Den of Sin, Salvation

Last Sunday, after walking with 25,000 others at the San Francisco AIDS Walk, someone came up with a brilliant plan to celebrate 'Lil Nik's rare San Francisco appearance with 6 1/2 hours of drinking in the foggy back yard of Zeitgeist. In all, I counted 5 pitchers of Steelhead Pale Ale, a number of spilled Chimays, and untold Jameson shots among the casualties. Bonobo Jones replayed his beer-lap-drenching fiasco about 20 times (at James' teary-eyed request) and we all debated the merits of Ben Davis (the "Harley Davidson of coarse clothing" according to the website) v. Dickies work pants. No end in sight for this one, but so far the Dickies seem to be rallying more support.

Things I learned on Sunday:

Óskar (our new Icelandic friend and official San Francisco tour guide) was once in a hip-hop band called "The Sweaty Janitors". They rubbed corn oil under their arm pits to simulate the unmistakable yellow stink that we in the U.S. refer to as "B.O."
Other things learned about Óskar. Height: Same now as he was when he was 13. Must be all that hákarl he ate as a youngster on the frozen tundra. Favorite NBA Player: Carl Malone-- "Because he played dirty without anybody catching him". Best celebrity face impersonation: Owen Wilson (the effect is only complete with the help of JBDub's spot-on Owen Wilson voice impersonation.
For several weeks in the late 1990s, John Barretto (hereafter: "Big Daddy Kane" ) was sighted traversing the verdant grounds of Cal Poly's campus with the assistance of his grandfather's jaunty cane (hereafter: "kane"). This bold display of gangsta-lean all at once inspired both the ire and the backhanded admiration of Cal Poly's underclassmen.
In a battle between monkeys with knives v. a mace encrusted with glass shards, the mace will probably win.
Unless your name starts with an Ó or you once walked with a cane, drinking for 6 1/2 hours does not a great singer make. The proof is below: