Archive for February, 2008

Here’s a shot of the full Bang & Olufsen Beo System from 1974. I posted the Beogram a while back but had yet to find a decent shot of the full system. This one appears to have been resized, so the qulality isn’t the best. If anyone knows of a press archive for 70’s B&O stuff let me know.

When will it end? Apparently never. I think it’s time I just give in and nominate the Canadians as completely owning the mid-late 70’s. The more I look at this sort of design, the more I realize how much it has influenced my own style. It’s funny because I don’t remember really being aware of design when I was younger and I certainly wasn’t fortunate enough to be alive (much less conscious) during the ’76 games. I guess these sorts of things just kind of seep in to your consciousness over the years through random, passing exposure without you completely realizing or understanding it’s impact.

At any rate, I envision my dream space as a large, concrete floored, open room with 3 story ceilings, all white, with these printed massive banner size hanging all along one side.  I think the other side would be wood paneled in a light walnut with a flush installed Bang & Olufsen circa 1976 Beo system right in the center. Sprinkle in a healthy dose of vintage Hermann Miller, some Dieter Rams-designed Braun appliances here and there and things would be starting to look right. Maybe a wax figurine of Jakub in his ATMSPHR promo photo get-up and Jarvis Cocker glasses would be encased in a Perspex cylinder somewhere, perhaps animatronics would be involved, budget permitting.

Thanks to Brian and City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs for hosting the show last night, it was a great time all around and I really enjoyed the space. Thanks to everyone who came out, hope you all had a good time. I didn’t bring my camera this time, but I will try and get some pictures from the night and post them soon.

Chicago is fast becoming one of my favorite cities, it’s always a great time out here and the people are always so warm and accommodating. You guys know how to do bars out here, San Francisco could learn a thing or two. We’re planning a show at Sonotheque so be on the look out for details, should be within the next couple months.

It’s been a while since I’ve heard anyone describe their music as "IDM", but at one point it seemed like anything that wasn’t House, Jungle, Downtempo, or one of the other random electronic genres, was thrown in that catch-all and labeled IDM along with everything else people hadn’t come up with an ultra-specific sub-genre for yet.  In IDM’s heyday the Florida-based label Merck were definitely putting out some of my favorite stuff. Brothomstates sort of rose to the top of that group or artists for me, always enjoyed his more melodic take on the style. This song is the Brothomstates remix from MD’s "Appelsap" album. Sad to say, but this came out in 2000, so I guess I’d have to label it "classic" electronic. Sad because I remember buying this album and listening to it constantly like it was yesterday, but apparently it’s been 8 years.

MD – Brothomstates Remix

Wicker Park is a neighborhood in Chicago something akin to Williamsburg in Brooklyn or Midtown Sacramento. I stayed there the last time I was in Chicago and really enjoyed the area, lot’s of great restaurants, bars and clubs. A great electronic venue, Sonotheque calls Wicker Park home along with my new favorite, Rodan.  We ended up there last night, great atmosphere / people / music.

Please excuse the watermarked image, I found it on google and really liked it. I decided against bringing my camera on this trip just to keep the rig to a manageable size. But I did find some interesting shots of the Wicker Park neighborhood here.

Have start getting ready for tonight, see you all out at the MOMI.

I’m sitting at SFO waiting to take off for Chicago (thanks Kiyoka), brought 3 jackets, hopefully that’s enough. The MOMI show with Jonah Sharp is tomorrow at Millennium Park, but unfortunately it’s sold out. I’m doing a set later that night as well, not sure on the details just yet but will post as they become available.

The image above features Chicago’s Marina Towers which were designed in 1959 by Bauhaus alum Bertrand Goldberg. I created the illustration (sans towers) originally as an album cover for Tha Fruitbat and then later adapted it into poster form which is available at The ISO50 Shop.

Collectively, the Swiss are, of course, de facto print design gods and they’re no slouches in the stamp department. These great examples are from AceJet’s Flickr, would love to have poster versions of all them. Particularly that very top one, simply amazing. If I ever got an envelope with a stamp even half-way resembling that I would frame it and never open it.

This is infinitely rad. It’s like my dream shower / bath on acid in another solar system. When I first saw this I thought it was some 70’s cover, but it’s brand new, came out this year. Nice work whoever did this, anyone know the designer / photographer? It looks to me like a collage of old photos, but not quite sure. I don’t know how they made bathroom tile and some random landscape look so sinister, but way to go, something really dark going on here. The type choice is perfect too; I always try to hate on serif fonts and then I see one used well like in this example and realize I need to use them more often.

Update via James in the comments:

"It was designed by Jeremy Schmidt, the keyboardist for Black Mountain. Here is an excerpt from an article in Exclaim magazine:

Schmidt has a long history in visual art and previously designed covers for Black Mountain singles, as well as those for his own projects. “For Black Mountain, the cover was intrinsic to making the record,” says Schmidt, who through cutting and pasting images, eventually came up with the design of a Rubik’s-type cube embedded into chilly, rust-coloured terrain. “It’s meant to very much look and feel like a classic album cover, in the sense of a gatefold LP. I wanted to make something that was kind of epic but not typically psych looking — something a bit more austere than that, a little more modern, but a little old looking as well. So that’s how I arrived at that geometric alien landscape sort of thing.”

Been seeing Julien Pacaud’s work around a lot lately, It’s hot. Check him out here. Jakub, you drooling over that top one? I can see it on your wall already.

Saw this on FFFFOUND today, really very clever. Loving the vignette on the flag photos and the concept is spot-on. Using the flags as information design in this context is so poignant. Incidentally, I used to be obsessed with flags, had them hanging all over my room as a kid. Guess I’m still a sucker for them.

"Icaro Doria is Brazilian, 25 and has been working for the magazine Grande Reportagem, in Lisbon, Portugal, for the last 3 years. He was the author of the flags campaign "Meet the World" that has been circulating the earth in chain letters via e-mail…"

– Quoted From Brazilian Artists.net