The New York Times’ T Magazine often comissions artists to create their own version of the iconic T that is the magazine’s logo. There’s a great collection of the work over at the T Magazine blog featuring some of the standouts. Interesting to see so many fresh takes on the same theme, they should make a coffee table book out of these if they haven’t already. My personal favorite is that first ceramic one; the negative space is so perfect. Unfortunately, whoever did the type layout decided that neon green in the title would somehow work with the vibe. Clearly it didn’t.
I found a number of cool sites as I explored the Cargo network this last weekend. One such site was the portfolio of Chad Hagen. I love how each of his projects unfolds as a series; within every section there are a number of interesting images tied together by similar visual stylings. I enjoyed clicking through the slideshows and determining my favorites of each, some of which are above.
His beautifully designed illustrations look like they could be out of an instruction manual for some amazing (albeit nonexistent) product or device. As his title “Nonsense Infographics” indicates, there is actually no “information” being conveyed per se — but when the graphics look this good, I don’t really care.
I heard Washed Out on the Gorilla vs Bear blog awhile back and have been hunting down tracks ever since. He has the same draw that Panda Bear, Lone, and Bullion had to my ear when I first hear them. I think this song is soo good and different that it might be a new way to figure out if I can be friends with a person solely based on just playing them this song and their reaction, I kid I kid i’d never set up that kind of system to find new friends, who does such a thing.
Lusine and Cassette’s Wont Listen’s remix of Christine both came out today, i’ve been waiting for this Lusine song to come out so I could share it with you all. Cirrus builds like a growing smokey fire, very thick and quickly spreads out over the spectrum of sound while Cool Your Shoes reminds of alumni Ghostly electronic indie rockers Midwest Product with its fast pace synths and movie soundtrack breakdowns.
Michna and I have been djing weekly at Brooklyn Bowl in New York which is a beautiful venue, most of the music I play is stuff that is popular in the mainstream world but once in a while Michna or I get to throw in something we really love, last week I heard Michna play this Hot Chip remix of Gorillaz which sounded soo good on their system, the song picks up nicely and switches thru all different kinds of genres.
Washed Out – Feel It All Around
[audio:feelit.mp3]
Lusine – Cirrus
[audio:cirrus.mp3]
Christine – Cool Your Shoes (Cassettes Won’t Listen Remix)
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The latest playlist is live, just click the cover above to load or click “play” in the Player (top of middle column — RSS readers must visit site). Listen in as Jakub waves goodbye to summer with this gauzy collection of slow burners. Enjoy.
Track Listing: Casino Versus Japan – It’s Very Sunny
Bullion – Caroline, No
Ducktails – Landrunner
Atlas Sound – Walkabout
THE DRUMS – Submarine
The xx – Shelter
Washed Out – Feel It All Around
Dam Funk – Sunset
Fleetwood Mac – Dreams (Mingus Rude edit)
Gold Panda – Quitters Raga
Fever Ray – Triangle Walks
Kings Of Convenience – Mrs Cold
The Radio Dept. – David
The Canyons – Apples and Pears
Bibio – Fire Ant
Burial & Four Tet – Wolf Cub
Manuel Tur – Stay Feat. Larissa Kapp
Adelaide – Bombardiers
Sorcerer – Distort Yourself
Lindsey Buckingham – Trouble
STL – Silent State
Broker/Dealer – To Hear the Fires
Coma – Sum
Cargo is a terrific web publishing platform built with creatives in mind. Like many content management systems (Squarespace, Indexhibit, Joomla etc), Cargo provides a backend that allows you to quickly publish and maintain a website without ever opening Dreamweaver. What distinguishes Cargo is a focus on simple and effective design. Consistent in all Cargo templates is a layout that is clear and simple; allowing the work to speak for itself without a complicated interface getting in the way.
Cargo evolved out of the system that runs the SpaceCollective community. We found it remarkably successful and efficient in creating visual content on the web, placing a strong emphasis on design, layout, image quality and typography. Our goal is to dramatically increase the accessibility and exposure of creative individuals on the Internet, while aspiring to build a networked context that will contribute to the culture as a whole.– Cargo Collective.
Noteworthy Features
– Free hosting with the ability to set up a custom URL. This is awesome. I have also played around with Squarespace, but their hosting costs are a little frightening — especially if you are also paying URL registration on top of that.
– Multiple template designs to build off. Each one starts with a great layout and it’s really easy to apply your own brand. Simple manipulations of color, font, and header images etc quickly distinguish your site from the skeleton template.
– Follow feature, similar to Tumblr or Twitter — allows you to keep tabs on your favorite Cargo pages.
– Developer forum. I had a small issue which I posted to the forum — received a response within 3 hours. Not bad!
– Slideshow and Fullscreen features for viewing images. This is exceptionally easy to incorporate (just a matter of clicking the buttons) and is a really great feature. Works flawlessly and adds an extra touch of unique functionality.
My Experience
I spent the last few days migrating my portfolio to the Cargo system. I had done a lot of the preparation work a while ago, when I put a portfolio up on Behance, so I didn’t have to spend too long sourcing my images and writing description paragraphs. I was thrilled to be moving to a more personalized portfolio space — as much as I love Behance, sometimes it can feel a little too much like a design Myspace.
The set up process was quick, easy, and remarkably enjoyable. All in all I would say it took about 6-8 hours from start to finish. Most of this time was spent designing the look and feel after the content was uploaded. Once I got familiar with the CSS at work, it was just a matter of figuring out exactly how I wanted to look — altering fonts sizes, small layout tweaks, and making sure everything worked properly. I only hit one or two speed bumps, all easily solved by a quick Google search.
I think it’s important to note that I am not a “web guy” by any stretch of the imagination — if I can handle it, this is a good sign for anyone intimidated by the words “CSS” or “target blank”. Having a basic understanding of CSS/HTML helps, especially if you are planning on tweaking the template significantly, but it is not completely necessary. Even with my limited knowledge, I was able to make the adjustments necessary to create a site I am happy with. As mentioned, the important part of a site like this is the work, and I didn’t really feel like I needed to brand the site too extensively.
As of now, Cargo is in the pre-release stage. I am really excited to see how this system evolves as more and more people get involved. I would highly recommend it to anyone debating which CMS to choose. If you would like to apply for an account, use the contact address on the website.
Lo-fi rock is coming strong recently, how long will it hold its place as the spotlight in the young hearts of vinyl loving rockers? well with acts like these i’m hoping forever. My true and very fresh caring for music like this is definitely Ducktails, met him twice this weekend and he was such a nice guy he reminded me of people in the U.P. in Michigan like the U.S. backwoods version of UK’s Bibio but maybe spends alil more time in the garage playing with pedals. I didn’t get to see him perform as Ducktails but he does a good amount of the music in Real Estate who I saw perform at Insound’s 10 yr. anniversary at Brooklyn Bowl with The Drums. Landrunner is very loopy just the way I like it, so honest and uncorrupted by much that is going on right now in indie rock.
Beach FossilsDaydream gets me thinking about how much simpler live could be, the gentle hooky guitar work meets guys that seem to have have it easy. I picture it being made by guys that don’t have many problems and their youth summers we’re or still are filled with trips to cabins, a ton a waterskiing or tubing, and just relaxing in the tall grass by some sand dunes. It’s a nice visual to have when you live on a cement island, makes me want to plan vacations better.
Tallahassee’s Holiday Shores comes to me by Brooklyn’s Twosyllable Records, the label that also put out New Villager’s 7 inch vinyl earlier this year that I love. Holiday Shores has a bit more pep in its step compared to the other songs but still in same vein, alot of catchy vocals and the drumming in a few of their songs accompanied by keys has some real unique parts that make me keep coming back and listening.
Tom Croose our semi resident DJ here on the ISO50 blog turned me onto Real Estate, he told me he loved the “guitar noodling” and the lyrics “Budweiser Sprite, Do you feel alright?”, to me its laid back feel makes me want to bust out the Yo La Tengo’s Summer Sun LP but i’m too busy chillin’ in my kids pool filled with hose water that is being warmed by the sun and I have grass blades stuck all over me that i’m trying to pick off, so lets just keep the Real Estate CD in.
Just a quick reminder that tonight I’ll be playing in Austin at The Parish Room. This will be an all ages show (my first in a while), you can get presale tickets here.
On a side note, looking forward to making it through my first successful set with the new SSD running things.
