Monday, March 06, 2006
NEW SATCH ALBUM IN A WEEK
Remember: This is Joe Satriani's world. The rest of us? We just live in it.
Here's something for your ears. Or click here and watch the video if your eyes want something to do while listening.
Remember: This is Joe Satriani's world. The rest of us? We just live in it.
Here's something for your ears. Or click here and watch the video if your eyes want something to do while listening.
Thursday, March 02, 2006
STORY OF WEBCOMICS SHOULD BE TOLD CORRECTLY
The Mailbox may be obsessing over obscurity with this one. To the right, you'll see links to Sluggy Freelance, PVP Online, Penny Arcade and General Protection Fault. Those are online comic strips: They have, to the Mailbox's knowledge, never been doused in the scent of newspaper ink or published in any newspaper. That is a good thing.
Good, not in the sense they have never known "mainstream" comic acceptance, but good in the fact that the creativity of those three strips and numerous others cannot be contained in the print world. Sluggy Freelance in particular--occasionally the art is simply too magnificent and breathtaking to slaughter it with CMYK colors and 212 dpi resolution. (Plus, it's loaded with hilarious gags. One of my favorites are Gwynn's tarot cards... "Oh no!") Further, these strips are serial in nature. Remember when Calvin would fight his bicycle for a week or so? Online strips usually have a stroke of continuity as long as the strip's creation. Great for fans, but tough for attracting newcomers.
Online comics have legitimized themselves enough to warrant the publishing of a history book. Artist T Campbell is taking the project on, but it has upset some members of the online comic industry. Too hastily published. Art used without permission. Critical omissions and inappropriate additions. PVP artist Scott made his point in the comic and with words. Campbell has responded on his blog.
The Mailbox is not taking a side on this debate. Kurtz is one of the trailblazer online comic artists, and Campbell knows enough as well. The Mailbox trusts their knowledge.
The only advice I would give on the publication of this book is to get it right. Online comics are dear to the Mailbox's heart. It's an art form that deserves more exposure than it gets. They hearken back to days when cartoonists were considered artists--anyone who loved Calvin & Hobbes, Peanuts, Bloom County or The Far Side can find plenty to love online. A good history book can champion the whole industry. In fact, it should champion the whole industry.
It's good to see Campbell is taking time with this publication. The Mailbox will probably get copy, and wants to see the industry and its movers and shakers presented for the artists they are.
In the meantime, take a look at some of those online cartoons. Full disclosure: The Mailbox likes 'em all because they're all kinda geeky. But there are so many more out there. One of those strips could become a new daily habit.
The Mailbox may be obsessing over obscurity with this one. To the right, you'll see links to Sluggy Freelance, PVP Online, Penny Arcade and General Protection Fault. Those are online comic strips: They have, to the Mailbox's knowledge, never been doused in the scent of newspaper ink or published in any newspaper. That is a good thing.
Good, not in the sense they have never known "mainstream" comic acceptance, but good in the fact that the creativity of those three strips and numerous others cannot be contained in the print world. Sluggy Freelance in particular--occasionally the art is simply too magnificent and breathtaking to slaughter it with CMYK colors and 212 dpi resolution. (Plus, it's loaded with hilarious gags. One of my favorites are Gwynn's tarot cards... "Oh no!") Further, these strips are serial in nature. Remember when Calvin would fight his bicycle for a week or so? Online strips usually have a stroke of continuity as long as the strip's creation. Great for fans, but tough for attracting newcomers.
Online comics have legitimized themselves enough to warrant the publishing of a history book. Artist T Campbell is taking the project on, but it has upset some members of the online comic industry. Too hastily published. Art used without permission. Critical omissions and inappropriate additions. PVP artist Scott made his point in the comic and with words. Campbell has responded on his blog.
The Mailbox is not taking a side on this debate. Kurtz is one of the trailblazer online comic artists, and Campbell knows enough as well. The Mailbox trusts their knowledge.
The only advice I would give on the publication of this book is to get it right. Online comics are dear to the Mailbox's heart. It's an art form that deserves more exposure than it gets. They hearken back to days when cartoonists were considered artists--anyone who loved Calvin & Hobbes, Peanuts, Bloom County or The Far Side can find plenty to love online. A good history book can champion the whole industry. In fact, it should champion the whole industry.
It's good to see Campbell is taking time with this publication. The Mailbox will probably get copy, and wants to see the industry and its movers and shakers presented for the artists they are.
In the meantime, take a look at some of those online cartoons. Full disclosure: The Mailbox likes 'em all because they're all kinda geeky. But there are so many more out there. One of those strips could become a new daily habit.
Wednesday, March 01, 2006
OFFICIAL MAILBOX "LOST" GRIPE #6
Kate, Claire and Rousseau find the hidden medical facility where Ethan Rom took Claire in season #1. They walk through the tunnel with trepidation, lights are flickering like crazy. Then, Kate says that she's going to find the power to turn on the lights.
Um, what are those flickering things? Strobes from the dance club? Toys bought at Firefall?
Sure enough, later there's a loud pop when the lights come all the way on. This dumbass gripe is all on the producers. Hey, J.J.: Love your show and everything, but lights need power to flicker.
The Mailbox's production gripe was more than made up for with a really kick-ass episode, though. Props to Hurley for keeping after Libby. And the Locke-Jack war is coming.
Kate, Claire and Rousseau find the hidden medical facility where Ethan Rom took Claire in season #1. They walk through the tunnel with trepidation, lights are flickering like crazy. Then, Kate says that she's going to find the power to turn on the lights.
Um, what are those flickering things? Strobes from the dance club? Toys bought at Firefall?
Sure enough, later there's a loud pop when the lights come all the way on. This dumbass gripe is all on the producers. Hey, J.J.: Love your show and everything, but lights need power to flicker.
The Mailbox's production gripe was more than made up for with a really kick-ass episode, though. Props to Hurley for keeping after Libby. And the Locke-Jack war is coming.
BUSY, BUSY
The Mailbox knows that a blog is a labor of love. Kinda like a baby that must be fed over and over again. I know it's been a while, sheesh. But then that Chatter guy tags me when I'm not lookin', like a week ago. Sheesh...that guy apologizes for a "paucity of posts" if he does only two posts an hour instead of four. Frickin' brown-noser. And he's got a kick-ass TV show and two other blogs as an excuse.
Dammit. No fair.
Anyway, sorry about the delay on posting. Lot going on lately: Redesigns at the paper, special sections and I've also been working on a little somethin-somethin I might let y'all read pretty soon. For now, here's my contribution to that "High Fidelity" meme going around:
1. Four Jobs I’ve Had
• McDonald's Playplace manager (caretaker of the human hamster cage)
• Barnes & Noble newsstand manager
• Newspaper editor
• Magazine assistant editor
2. Four movies I could watch over and over
• Serenity
• Star Wars
• Napoleon Dynamite
• Contact
3. Four places I’ve lived
• New Orleans
• Haslett, N.J.
• Springfield, Mo.
• Panama City, Fla.
4. Four TV shows I love
• The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
• Lost
• Firefly
• Saints football games
5. Four places I’ve vacationed
• New Orleans
• Boston
• Mexico Beach, Fla.
• Puerto Rico
6. Four of my favorite dishes
• Yakisoba noodles
• Big ass hamburgers (specifically, MoJoeburgers)
• Sushi
• New York style pizza
7. Four sites I visit daily
• Sluggy Freelance: sluggy.com
• Wired News: wired.com
• Dream Theater's message board
• The page where I can look at my bank account
8. Four places I’d rather be right now
• New Orleans
• Boston
• Mexico Beach
• on an eclipse cruise
9. Four books I love
• Neal Stephenson's "Cryptonomicon"
• Robert Heinlein's "Stranger in a Strange Land"
• Carl Sagan's "The Demon-Haunted World"
• Michael Shermer's "Why People Believe Weird Things"
10. Four video games I could play over and over
• All the Descent series
• All the Tomb Raider series
• All the Sonic the Hedgehog games
• Star Wars: Battlefront (y'all thought I was gonna list something old school like Frogger, didncha?)
The Mailbox knows that a blog is a labor of love. Kinda like a baby that must be fed over and over again. I know it's been a while, sheesh. But then that Chatter guy tags me when I'm not lookin', like a week ago. Sheesh...that guy apologizes for a "paucity of posts" if he does only two posts an hour instead of four. Frickin' brown-noser. And he's got a kick-ass TV show and two other blogs as an excuse.
Dammit. No fair.
Anyway, sorry about the delay on posting. Lot going on lately: Redesigns at the paper, special sections and I've also been working on a little somethin-somethin I might let y'all read pretty soon. For now, here's my contribution to that "High Fidelity" meme going around:
1. Four Jobs I’ve Had
• McDonald's Playplace manager (caretaker of the human hamster cage)
• Barnes & Noble newsstand manager
• Newspaper editor
• Magazine assistant editor
2. Four movies I could watch over and over
• Serenity
• Star Wars
• Napoleon Dynamite
• Contact
3. Four places I’ve lived
• New Orleans
• Haslett, N.J.
• Springfield, Mo.
• Panama City, Fla.
4. Four TV shows I love
• The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
• Lost
• Firefly
• Saints football games
5. Four places I’ve vacationed
• New Orleans
• Boston
• Mexico Beach, Fla.
• Puerto Rico
6. Four of my favorite dishes
• Yakisoba noodles
• Big ass hamburgers (specifically, MoJoeburgers)
• Sushi
• New York style pizza
7. Four sites I visit daily
• Sluggy Freelance: sluggy.com
• Wired News: wired.com
• Dream Theater's message board
• The page where I can look at my bank account
8. Four places I’d rather be right now
• New Orleans
• Boston
• Mexico Beach
• on an eclipse cruise
9. Four books I love
• Neal Stephenson's "Cryptonomicon"
• Robert Heinlein's "Stranger in a Strange Land"
• Carl Sagan's "The Demon-Haunted World"
• Michael Shermer's "Why People Believe Weird Things"
10. Four video games I could play over and over
• All the Descent series
• All the Tomb Raider series
• All the Sonic the Hedgehog games
• Star Wars: Battlefront (y'all thought I was gonna list something old school like Frogger, didncha?)
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