Tekkon Kinkreet
January 04, 2008
Let me start by saying that I don’t take anime too seriously. I enjoy it for what it is and, for me, Tekkon Kinkreet pushes all the right buttons.
Anime (and animation in general) is successful in my opinion when you can be convinced that what you’re seeing is ‘real’; when I say real by the way I mean in the physical, tangible sense not in a factual sense. The characters are very real. Great care has been taken to make things accurate and the environments are meticulous. Tekkon Kinkreet is visually stunning, the musical score by Plaid is astonishingly good and the story is genuinely profound. But let’s be honest, if you’re not at all interested in animation as a medium then it’s not going to matter how good a story or plot is, you’re probably not going to enjoy it. It would be a bit like going to see a Die Hard film because you’re really into poetry - yeah, “yippy ki ya” to you too.
They Might Be Giants
December 30, 2007
Eli Manning and the Giants came out swinging for the fences
Granted the Patriots went 16-0 but Tom Coughlin’s Giants played it like they could win it. With a final score of 38-35 they bloody well almost did. Go Giants!
Bladerunner
December 20, 2007
Music Round-up 2007
December 13, 2007
It’s almost the end of the year and before I look ahead to 2008 I thought I would have a retrospective look at what ‘floated my music boat’ in 2007.
Burial: Untrue
An utterly amazing album from the elusive Burial. Dark and evocative. For me, it’s a hyperdub rendition of the urban, grimy, often dirty, sometimes scary but always beautiful place that is London. Genius!
Battles: Mirrored
Experimental, electronic, ear-bleeding math-rock! Brilliant! Saw them at Koko’s in October. They’re even better live!
Holy Fuck: LP
Not dissimilar to Battles but a lot more edgy, dark and dirty (thinking Echo Sam here) is the lo-fi improvisational electronic band Holy fuck. One to watch in 2008 I think.
Grizzly Bear: Yellow House
Beautiful indie rock from Daniel Rossen, Ed Drost, Chris Taylor and Christopher Bear (what a great name!). Serious song-writing talent. Yellow House is also my favourite album cover of the year.
Thurston Moore: Trees Outside The Academy
Theatrical weirdo or song-writing genius, say what you like about the prolific Mr Moore, he makes great music. A diversion perhaps from his experimental noisecapades he delivers a classic pop album with really good ‘real songs’.
Screaming Tea Party: Death Egg
I stumbled across the Screaming Tea Party playing a set at the Pump House Gallery in Battersea Park earlier in the year. Sonic Youth-esque, hazy lo-fi, melodic underground indie rock. Bloody brilliant and supercool they are too!
The National: Boxer
Beautifully crafted, resonant, poetic. I’ll never tire of this album. If I had to order this list this would be very high up the top.
The Octopus Project: Hello, Avalanche
Disparate and exclectic, changing styles at the flick of a hat from disco-punk, laptop pop to drum and bass and fuck knows what really. They may very well require multiple listens to fully appreciate but appreciate I do!
Simian Mobile Disco: Attack Decay Sustain Release
One to play loud in the office on a Friday afternoon. A great party album! “I’m a hustler baby, that’s what my daddy’s made me… if I had the money to go to a record store I would...”. Indeed.
The Cinematic Orchestra: Ma Fleur
Good old sentimental, instrumental somewhat gentrified tunes to listen to on a Sunday morning under a duvet!
![Bombay Bicycle Club: How We Are [EP]](http://peeklondon.com/images/uploads/bombaybicycleclub_thumb.jpg)
Bombay Bicycle Club: How We Are [EP]
If, by some magical but unlikely accident, Marc Bolan found himself fronting Pavement, the outcome would very likely sound like Bombay Bicycle Club. I like everything about this band except for the unfortunate name.
The new Poke Website
December 12, 2007
I‘m a coder at Poke. We have a brand new website. It looks good, it’s easy to use, useful, honest and relevant. Proud to be a Poker!
Notting Still
December 10, 2007
During the busy, festive season in London two photographer friends and I have decided to put on an exhibition of brand new works. The show is entitled ‘Notting Still’ (clearly we’re not taking ourselves too seriously). So far, I’ve met lots of very interesting people, I’ve had some fantastic feedback and I can honestly say it’s been a great success. It’s bloody hard work and there were times when I didn’t think I was going to make it but it has been worth it.
Alex Schneideman
December 07, 2007
Pictures are more interesting if the way you envisage them is challenged
Quote & Photo { Alex Schneideman }
Cockney’s Pie & Mash Shop
December 05, 2007
On the corner of Portobello Road and Golborne Road. One of my favorite lunch spots in London. Two pies, one mash with lots of liquor. It really doesn’t get any better! The pies are baked on the premises, they aren’t loaded full of artificial flavours and you get all this for £2.50. Sometimes the old ways are the best ways. Thanks Ruth!
Photo { Paul & Jo’s }
Brian Ulrich: Mr. T
November 30, 2007
Work for the 5%
November 29, 2007
I‘m a realist and 95% of the work I do is tedious. You have to find ways to stay motivated and excited and the incentive is that 5% that isn’t. It’s a little cynical I know. I think I’m at about 82% today. Back to work then…
Robin Howie
November 28, 2007
Many urban areas only have substitute public places which are in fact privately owned.
Quote & Photo { Robin Howie: A Dialogue with Public Space }
A run of bad luck
November 21, 2007
I‘ve had a run of pretty bad luck with my photography lately. I got 6 rolls/scans back from my pro-lab (who are usually excellent by the way) today and there’s almost no colour in them at all! It makes for a nice effect but it’s hardly what you’d expect from an xpro. Still, this little dude is my favourite photo ever! I’m going to blow him up BIG and frame him and put him on my wall to remind me of this time.
Charles Weever Cushman
November 21, 2007
Charles Weever Cushman, amateur photographer and Indiana University alumnus, bequeathed approximately 14,500 Kodachrome color slides to his alma mater. The photographs in this collection bridge a thirty-two year span from 1938 to 1969, during which time he extensively documented the United States as well as other countries.
Beautiful stuff! Hugely inspirational.
Pixelsurgeon is dead
November 21, 2007
Well, it’s a sad day. Sad in that it marks the end of the long running Pixelsurgeon. Best of luck to Jason and Sam, and the many contributors, and thank you. Pixelsurgeon was an inspiration to me. It represented everything that was sexy about the digital industry at the time. It was my motivation in the very early days. It was fresh and exciting and I remember thinking “I’ll have some of that!”
Go-Karting
November 19, 2007
Spent my Sunday go-karting at Daytona Sandown Park. Organised by my very good friend Nigel. It’s a fantastic outdoor track and there were 21 of us on it! Needless to say it was chaos. Of note though, was that on that track with all of us was none other than Phil Prew. Who’s Phil Prew? He’s Lewis Hamilton’s race engineer! He came second and not one of us mentioned the Chinese Grand Prix tire gamble!
I came sixth if you care, with a fastest lap of 00:52:11.
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