.Nike's music making shoes.

Well, there is always a music-making everything. And now shoes is one of them.

The agency is W+K Tokyo.
Hardware programming is by Tomoaki Yanagisawa (4nchor5 La6) and software and sound programming is by Daito Manabe

See the whole making of here.

*Courtesy of Warren T

.Paperless world - Mag+.

I hate to sound like a sourgrape. But I could have sworn that I've thought of an electronic paper or digital mobile photo album 1st - in 1999. Just like James Cameron have thought that Star Wars should have been his movie to be made, it is sadly never about who had thought of the idea 1st, but who had done it first.

Still, he has now a good vengeance with Avatar, while I'll wait for my next Nirvana.

Very nice R&D and execution by these guys from Bonnier regardless. Sigh.

Mag+ from Bonnier on Vimeo.

Mag+ live with Popular Science+ from Bonnier on Vimeo.

*Courtesy of Andy Loo

.jed's other poem.

I've stumbled upon yet another music video that caught my eye.

I just adore how people weave simplicity into something understatedly handsome. Watching the cursor dancing around in synergy with the song makes me smile, a little.

Jed’s Other Poem (Beautiful Ground) from Stewdio on Vimeo. An unsolicited, then approved, music video for the band Grandaddy and their song of the same name off of the album The Sophtware Slump.

Directed by Stewart Smith - An artist-programmer from New York City, currently operating in London. He operates Stewdio, a consultancy that approaches art and software through the lens of graphic design. Stewart has taught introductory Web design at Yale, Data Visualization (using Processing) at NYU's Interactive Telecommunications Program, and advises organizations exploring new interactive technologies and techniques.

(I just copied his biography. It's easier.)

.cymatics.

We all know that sound is traveling wave, which is an oscillation of pressure transmitted through a solid, liquid or gas, composed of frequencies which are audible. We don't speak of them like we see of them. Coz we don't, right? Apparently not.

Cymatics is a study of visible sound through vibration, typically on a surface on water, plate or a membrane. One of the earliest to notice that an oscillating body displayed regular patterns was Galileo Galilei, whom discovered visible sounds when he was scraping a brass plate with a sharp iron chisel in order to remove some spots from it. Not going too far into the history of cymatics, our urbanite Evan Grant has managed to introduced the idea, more of the existence of visualizing sound in this 5 mins TED presentation.

From snowflakes to amoeba, everything takes a form, shape, or even as data. These aren't new discoveries, just that we spend less time being aware of minute little things that could be discreetly important. Visualizing sound with cymatics, is a primitive art form, yet a beautiful fundamental. You can even DIY cymatics if you are keen to see how Daft Punk's Aerodynamics soundwave would look as opposed to Massive Attack's Teardrop.

Maybe sometimes, we ought to spend some time putting a microscopic mind to the things we often not think much about. Imagine working with them now knowing that you can see them.

.neurosonics audiomedical + beardy man.

Remember UK's beardyman guy who does incredible beatboxing to drum 'n' bass at Google's office 2 years back? Neurosonics Audiomedical Labs fellas has just given him and their techni-gear a face/lift. Holographic one too btw.

Playing live WYSWYG - no post video production.

Neurosonics Live from Chris Cairns on Vimeo.

Neurosonics Audiomedical Labs Inc. from Chris Cairns on Vimeo.

*Courtesy of Xavier T.

Beardyman himself and Nathan Flutebox Lee:

.when i grow up, i want to be a VJ.

A starter kit for amateurs n wannabes like me.

.baaaaalights.

I'm lovin' this. Putting LED lights on sheeps? These light-technicians sure has a way of looking at things. I'm just betting that rain doesn't come down on these poor sheepies. 

.Pacemaker - Music Pacer.

"Something you may find interesting.....see if it's blog-worthy.. =)
I wanna sell my iPod off for this!" - Warren

Thanks W. It is quite a cool on-the-go music gadget for all. Just thinking that if everyone owns one of this at a private party, we can imagine the chaos that everyone wants to be a DJ too. 2ManyDjs aye. 

It's ok, coz i'll be snooping around with the projection on my imminent new toy. Soon enough I hope. 

Beware DJs, somethin wicked-er coming your way. >:)

.AntiVJ in Breda.

A short TV report for the whiz kids on Netherlands National TV. On their recent projection mapping project in a Cathedral church in Breda. Imagine how grandeau that could be, having the sounds of echoing organ tingling down your spine.

.please say something.

He triggers all kinds of senses, with this little animation. Using compression artefacts or "datamoshing" - a term he so despises. 

David O'Reilly.

Please Say Something - Full Length from David OReilly on Vimeo.

WE SEE MUSIC #EXYZT - BOOMBOX!

They did it again.

I haven't even gotten over the last project they did and now they are here to give me another attack at the heart. It's brain frying and I am totally disgusted at the people who are there in place of me. 

EXYZT latest projection mapping music/lights/architectural installation - BOOMBOX took place on 4th Oct 2008 without sending me a black envelope sealed with a private invitation to this event. How dare they. I need to be there next time. Take me to France. Please.

 

Watch high-def video here. 

Warning - Not for the faint hearted and weak mind.

On a side note, the last scene looks very much like HBO's glory project - Voyeur done last year. Whatever, they still rock my Grandmother's socks.

HBO Voyeur (If you have no clue about this - you should.)

WE SEE MUSIC #EXYZT - Etienne De Crecy!

Been so fuckin busy that i havent been following up.

Anyway, now that "Human" performance by The Killers at MTV EMA awards (posted below) is not as original as we thought it was, heres the other dudes supposedly behind this awesome projection mapping music visualization, which was done b4 MTV times. 

Albeit their source of inspiration uncovered, I would not discount the fact that MTV production crew still did a great job entertaining at the awards. 

The difference is that Etienne De Crecy's visuals are projected on semi-transparent screens (for added illusion of depth) while The Killer's act was projected on LCD screens.

Tipped by Kentie and Tomas, the brainchild behind this amazing installation (behind the much raved about EMA performance for The Killers by unknown mimic visual artist) is Parisian crew EXYZT who are a team of architects, designers, geniuses technicians etc..

"The show is an hour of visual mapping and projections on a big cube, while de Crecy is playing live electronic music, and triggering the lights and visual sequences, standing in the middle cube, inside the installation. The setup is very effective, they used semi-transparent material to give more depth to the projections, and all the content is perfectly mapped to the structure, and produced with a very specific technique, to give the impression that the cubes are actually in 3D, and to create depth and volume.

In fact there is only one projector, and all the magic comes from the clever setup and the quality of production." 

/source AntiVJ's blog  (Another awesome visual artist collectives - whom i'll get to for their stunning work in next bits.)

Heres some other work by EXYZT. 

Mapping on building:

Mapping on Scaffolding building (i love the track used for this):

And a little quirky one using city lights and beat of life in Tokyo as rythmn to the music. 

I think these people should be made Knights of the Sonic Kingdom.

Coming soon.... AntiVJ.  >:)

WEE SEE MUSIC #The Killers - Human @ EMA AWARDS

THIS is what I call a live visual stage performance. 

WE SEE MUSIC #INTEGRAL/PETSHOPBOYS. Listen to QR codes.

I know this is not fresh from the oven. This music video was released a year ago but since I'm at a topic of "speaking music digitally" much lately, i thought i'd archived it here as part of my online thought-library as well as my research on a probable paper i would be doing. 

We all know how the speed of information convenience our lives and it is screening more daylight to our hope for tomorrowland at the same rate it is baring our remaining privacy. A threat in all-pervading digital surveillance like how George Orwell envisioned indeed. Instant access to net in exchange for an instant access to us.

In Pet Shop Boy's revolutionary Integral campaign, the song "Integral" is about the invasion of our civil liberties by the government, video produced and tailor-made by UK-based The Rumpus Room. The video utilizes a commonly used QR codes (barcodes for mobile phone) as the leading visuals to more hidden messages which viewers can pause and scan them to decode their curiosity. There were about a 100 of them embedded in this beautifully art-directed music video, by my much loved and respected Tomas Roope of Tomato and partner of The Rumpus Room. Who is AWESOME at doing audio-visual usually with mind-spinning graphics embedded with subliminal messages within.

In his eight years heading up Tomato Interactive, he worked on projects with Ron Arad, Sony, TV Ashai, Underworld, V&A, Massive Attack, Levi's, Guinness and MTV, to name a few.

More to a music video, Rumpus Room associated with civil-rights activists to create specific online content to amplify their voice through the internet. Like Chemical Bros' "Midnight Madness" which I've posted earlier, mass-collaboration between artists and fans are much practiced in this new era of mixed-ownership. They too, provided raw materials for free download and encouraged Pet Shop Boy fans to participate, and create their own version of Integral music video.

They are 2 versions to this. One is the black and white QR code versions while the 2nd one is set out to be more televisual. It was created by printing out the black and white version and then shooting it stop frame in relevant and resonant locations. Sweet.

Without further much ado. 

The B/W QR code version:

RGB televisual version.

If you've done nothing wrong
You've got nothing to fear
If you've something to hide
You shouldn't even be here

Long live us
The persuaded we
Integral
Collectively
To the whole project
It's brand new
Conceived solely
To protect you

One world
One reason
Unchanging
One season

If you've done nothing wrong
You've got nothing to fear
If you've something to hide
You shouldn't even be here
You've had your chance
Now we've got the mandate
If you've changed your mind
I'm afraid it's too late
We're concerned
You're a threat
You're not integral
To the project

Sterile
Immaculate
Rational
Perfect

Everyone has
Their own number
In the system that
We operate under
We're moving to
A situation
Where your lives exist
As information
One world
One life
One chance
One reason
All under
One sky
Unchanging
One season

If you've done nothing wrong
You've got nothing to fear
If you've something to hide
You shouldn't even be here
You've had your chance
Now we've got the mandate
If you've changed your mind
I'm afraid it's too late
We're concerned
You're a threat
You're not integral
To the project

Sterile
Immaculate
Rational
Perfect

And if you are keen on knowing the brains behind this, heres the 

Making Of Integral.

.i see you.

Privacy in the digital age.

.spectrum.

Words and Thoughts in RGB from Eduardo Morais on Vimeo.

.minor---report.

Found an old report I did back in school years ago. Did a mini research on my since-then acute interest topic on interaction design, new media and what's not. It's nothing new now, but it's interesting to revisit some then-new old perspective.

Here's portions.

Interactive Design - The New Voice.

"To design is much more than simply to assemble, to order, or even to edit; it is to add value and meaning, to illuminate, to simplify, to clarify, to modify, to dignify, to dramatise, to persuade and perhaps, to amuse." 

From the old era and breakthrough of movable type and seeing the birth of worldʼs 1st artificial human mind - the computer, we human consistently try to revolutionize the different means and medium to aid us in projecting our submerged visions and sounds packed discreetly in our mind.

How can we further surprise ourselves each time? I wonder. Could there be a peak of every trend and then loses itself like a deflating balloon? The thought lingers. "Why we didn't think of that?" - Just makes me wonder why ideas are infinitely emerging. Just like why is there always a great new song. Wouldnʼt human run out of tunes?

It goes back to Adam and Eve, they break away from conformity not because they are different, they do because they dare to be.

To design is no longer about putting up a show and waiting for applause. Itʼs more. We want to provoke, to pause, to evoke, to challenge, to question, to tease, to ask for dis/agreement from the people we speak to, in all prospective senses. We want response. We want interaction. We want an exchange.

The places where we work, the homes where we live and the cities where we consume - can no longer be understood as framed and fixed territories, but is rather to be seen as living organisms consisting of both digital information and physical space in close and dynamic coexistence.

Talk about new media. Look around you. What have you discovered? What have you realized that it have change since the days u last noticed. From ordinary movie posters to the moving poster television. What I have personally once visualized would happen, have happened. I remember when around 8 years ago, I look at those ʻflippingʼ movie posters and thought to myself, “Wouldnʼt it be fantastic if they could just have a big TV screen to feature those movies every now and then instead of having the trouble to constantly change the posters?” Well, somebody did it first.

Incorporating digital technology into the art practice changes and broadens the field of art. New forms of art are emerging; for example, interactive digital installation art. Interactive installation art is a hybrid art form, inspired by fields as diverse as installation art, theatre, music, computer programming, biology and engineering. New forms of collaboration, new types of artists and consequently new forms of artistic expressions are emerging. 

The space of art is changing while interactive spatial arts are establishing new and different relationships with the art consumer. Letʼs just name a renowned UK creative collective - Tomato, the visual contortionists and senses stimulators. Some of their works and clients are Busaba, a famous restaurant in London. They created a series of interactive menus, of which the ultra-bright screens light up the exterior, displaying the menu which is one continuous loop of text and graphics. The buttons are based on doorbells to provide familiar interface. 

Then for their client Selfridges, 22 window installation for the Tokyo Life season were created in London. The scheme included robot jellyfish, neon kanji poetry as well as interactive windows filled with giant characters that inflate as passers-by approached the window. 

Music visual installations have always been the ultimate eye candy for party goers that would further stimulate their clubbing sensation and moods. Tomato was commissioned for visual direction for Electraglide in Tokyo and Osaka in November 2003. This was the largest dance event held in Japan. (See below) They were responsible for installations within the chillout area and for six hours if sound reactive visual performance on the dance floor. 

Another is an Interactive Video Grid project that uses an infra-red light and camera in clubs so people could take a snapshot of themselves and see it projected in a grid on the wall. Their latest project features “cube”, a series of installations exploring how three dimensional light reacts to sound and movement. The cube is filled with a semi-translucent liquid and the light reacts to sound and movement. Exhibited in Japan and Singapore.

Unfortunately, experimentation is not something that many clients are keen to pay for. And the fine art world is extremely conservative and has lost touch with this element of playing around with new forms. We develop a sense for things. It is closer to an artistic investigation than to the development of ʻstyleʼ that can be applied to products or procedures, which is common in the more industry driven design world. If you donʼt need to know what you will find during your work, then the work becomes more experimental and experiential.

“A successful piece of installation has to have the sensibilities of lots different disciplines,” says Tomas Roope, one of the directors of Tomato. “No single discipline covers the idea of the visual, temporal, accoustic, spatial and tactile that goes into the creation of a successful piece of interactive work.” When approached in this way, interaction design becomes a much broader paradigm, one that can translate into other creative areas. 

Thus, even if the interactive element is minimal, the rewards the project gains would be in high appreciation level from the audience and their curiosity to pause and investigate it further. Though, their interests are in the crossover of physical computing with interactivity, as well as in the migration of real-time, multi-user experiences from the gaming world into more complex situations and experiences. One thing is certain: nothing is certain. “Now that the novelty factor is wearing off, the interesting aspects will flourish- I hope,” comments Joel Baumann, who is another director of Tomato.

With such heritage of visual communication to draw from, it is easy for both artists and designers to fall into a groove that others have made. The future of interaction is a broad, barely touched canvas waiting to be scribbled upon."

References

IDN : Interaction and Experimental Design

Haque Design + Research > ww.haque.co.uk

Tomato Creatives > www.tomato.co.uk

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Yea, that was the old thoughts. Let me tell you new ones some time later.