// Category Archive for: Current Faves

WhedonFest 2010: A “Can’t Stop The Serenity” Weekend Event

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact information:

Cynthia O’Malley, Chair
Cindy@whedonitesunited.com

Joe Jordan, Vice-chair
Joe@whedonitesunited.com

WHEDONFEST 2010: A “CAN’T STOP THE SERENITY” WEEKEND EVENT

Joss Whedon fans reunite in Kentucky to raise money for Can’t Stop the Serenity Charity.

Whedonites United present their second annual Whedonfest, a weekend-long convention, to be held August 6-8 at Barefoot Republic in Scottsville, KY. All proceeds will be donated to charities designated by the Can’t the Stop the Serenity Global organization or Whedonites United.

Joss Whedon fans have repeatedly done the unlikely: turning a failed movie into a long-running and much-loved TV series (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), turning a canceled series into a movie destined to become a cult classic (Serenity), and then turning repeat screenings of that movie into a series of worldwide popular fund-raising events to keep the fandom alive while promoting gender equality (Can’t Stop the Serenity).
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Crudbump, NA$TYJAM$

By Adam McIntyre

The latest effort/persona from Drew (of Toothpaste For Dinner, Married To The Sea, and others): Crudbump.

Bathe in its magnificence. . . wait, did you hook up a subwoofer? I told you to hook up your subwoofer. Pretty sure I did tell you. You’re going to need it.
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Quantizing Your Pulse: The Heart Is A Drum Machine

By Adam McIntyre

“Why music?”

The Heart Is A Drum Machine attempts to answer that question in several ways with testimonials from musicians, actors, scientists, and doctors. Bookending the film are two little pieces with Ann Druyan, producer of the Cosmos television series (starring her husband, the late astrophysicist Carl Sagan) and the human responsible for choosing the music on the Golden Record included during the deep space probe of Voyager. Even if you don’t believe in life on other planets, including this record on Voyager is a gesture of poignant optimism; it’s entirely likely that the record would be damaged or misunderstood in purpose when discovered.
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Eight Bits To Hold You: Oxvylu’s Chiptunes

By Less Lee Moore

If you haven’t yet heard Oxvylu, here is the latest press release which should explain exactly WHY you SHOULD hear Oxvylu!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Oxvylu Recess EP – Free Music Download – April 9, 2010
Oxvylu invites you out to play with an all new RECESS EP release. Remember when RECESS was your favorite time of day, relive that bliss for 16 minutes while listening to “8-bit chiptunes” goodness. Every tune is short, bursting with playful melodies and retro videogaming nostalgia that will keep you listening every day. RECESS can also stand for ‘RECESSION’, but never fear! Download the entire RECESS album in mp3 format at absolutely no charge. Don’t keep this a secret and invite your friends out to play too. Take a break and enjoy your RECESS.

To download the free music, please visit http://www.oxvylu.com/recess
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DEVO Song Study: Press The Red Button If You Feel We Must Repeat

By Matt Keeley

DEVO’s been proven right about everything, and now they’ve joined with Mother LA to focus group the future.

DEVO has long been one of my favorite bands. In fact, my original art collective, TODCRA, was almost killed in the womb when the co-founder and I discovered that DEVO’d been basically saying everything we were saying, but in a much better way and for longer. (But given the Devolutionary Oath, we kept on keeping’ on.) And, luckily, DEVO have also kept on keeping’ on, whereas TODCRA eventually sacrificed itself so Kittysneezes may live.

Finally, after initial studies about color and whether or not people would hold the new song, “Fresh” with their feet, we’ve come to the meat of it: the Song Study!
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Hypernova, Through The Chaos

By Matt Demers

I’m not going to lie: I volunteered to review Hypernova because of their name. I mean, as a nerd, the word “nova” has certain. . . gravitas towards it, be it for the physics reference or one of the few words to pull off the “badass v” consonant.

But I was pleasantly surprised by their new album, Through The Chaos; there were no songs that I vehemently hated on the album. This is a bit of a feat for me, as when I listen to most records there seems to be one or two tracks that stick out like sore thumbs. In the best case, they serve as annoying distractions and at worst, they can derail an entire album. An album that is cohesive as an album (thematically or otherwise) definitely wins points in my mind.
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Tuneage And Telly: When Music & TV Collide!

By Mandy Mullins and Jaime Sparrowhawk

Nothing like syndicated sound and vision on the small screen!

TV careers certainly haven’t killed radio stars; they often spawn them, and vice-versa. Myriad meldings of tune and telly set the scene for pop-preoccupied music mavens Mandy and Jaime, whose latest dispatch promises to be their longest, most eclectic and giddily madcap yet. Do not adjust your sets!

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TITLE?? Q&A With Hiro Hayashi Of POLYSICS

By Matt Keeley

As I mentioned a few weeks ago on the Popshifter Blog, POLYSICS are the best band in the universe.

Their DEVO-inspired, frenetic sound not only made them huge in their native Japan, but also a cult band with ever-increasing presence around the world. After their sold-out concert in Bukodan, which was their last show with Kayo, keyboardist and co-vocalist, their guitarist Hiro Hayashi agreed to do an email interview with Popshifter about his musical influences and the future of POLYSICS.
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William S. Burroughs, A Man Within: Interview With Filmmaker Yony Leyser

Interviewed by Kaye Telle

“Back in 2005, when I was 21 years old, I got my hands on a nice video camera and decided to make a documentary about William S. Burroughs. When I started making a documentary about William S. Burroughs, I had no idea it would turn into THE documentary about him.”
—Filmmaker Yony Leyser

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More Than Shakespeare Slash: Q&A With Author Myrlin Hermes

By Jemiah Jefferson

The Lunatic, the Lover, and the Poet, the new novel by Portland, Oregon author Myrlin A. Hermes, dismantles some of the best-known works of literature in the English language—the plays and sonnets of good ol’ Willie Shakespeare, most particularly Hamlet—and builds from their parts a unique, steamy, bisexual love triangle between three famous characters.
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