As so much content migrates to the web, we can’t help but think that something must get lost in translation. Without being overly nostalgic for what some may claim is a dying medium, we still have love for the typefaces, a nice paper stock, the way images and copy are laid out on the page. But can this be replicated online? Will it ever?
Recently, PSFK sat down with Francesco Cavalli of Leftloft, a noted Italian design firm known for having a foot solidly planted in both camps – physical and digital. The talk ranged from the importance of infographics to the [...]

With cycling’s recent surge in popularity as a commuting alternative, it was only a matter of time before the clothing caught up. We spoke with Abe Burmeister, co-founder of Outlier, on the line’s inspiration, futuristic textiles and good ideas for public transport in 2009.
Describe the inspiration behind the line. Was it born out of necessity?
Absolutely. I just couldn’t find the clothes I needed when I wanted to ride my bike on the daily. I was destroying all my jeans, and I couldn’t ride to business meetings out of fear of getting caught in the rain or ripping up my nice [...]

We’ve always appreciated London’s fabric, not only for their innovative musical lineups and overall curation, but also for the rigorous attention to detail the staff puts into the entire experience. This past weekend, the team behind fabric launched a new, highly-anticipated London venue called matter. We spoke with Cameron Leslie, fabric’s Managing Director and a key architect of the new venue (along with owner Keith Reilly) to discuss the overall vision, creative collaboration with Pentagram, and their obsessive quest for perfect sound.
Explain the rationale and vision behind matter.
Our intention was to build a music venue – it might seem like [...]

Back in March 2007, we wrote about our initial experience with Clear, the security clearance program geared towards frequent travelers rolling out across several US airports.
The premise is simple: users submit to a basic TSA background screening, and after paying the annual fee, they receive a card that allows them to use special “fast” lanes at participating airports.
In the earliest stages, there were some growing pains related to the enrollment and vetting process, as well as the actual airport experience.
In the past year or so, we’ve used the service several times and can report that things have improved considerably.
Over the [...]

Our friends at Coolhunting have an excellent interview with Ghostly’s Sam Valenti, where he describes the label’s recent collaboration with Adult Swim: a 19-song compilation available for free download. And, in a playful example of brand synergy, a few Ghostly mascots — BoyCatBird — make their animated debut on Adult Swim. Following is an excerpt of the interview, available in its entirety here:
CH: As an indie label owner, you’ve obviously taken some unique steps towards enhancing your brand. Ghostly is one of the only companies taking a lifestyle approach to the music label. What guides your [...]

Service cuts on domestic U.S. airlines are all too familiar. In 2005, US Airways cut pretzel packets to the tune of $1 million in annual savings, and American Airlines cut $30 million out of their costs by eliminating free food in economy. Many others followed suit. It’s gotten so bad that Continental actually bases an entire advertising campaign about how they actually feed customers and haven’t taken away pillows. Now, as the cost of jet fuel has skyrocketed approximately 60-70 percent in the past year, BusinessWeek reports that some airlines are trying to combat the load on each flight. This [...]

Today, online music hub Pitchfork Media announced the upcoming launch of their new music-oriented online TV channel, Pitchfork.tv, set to go live on April 7.  Pitchfork has already established itself as a respected source for independent music news, reporting and commentary across several genres, and now they’re branching out with some compelling video content — on their terms.
As stated by Pitchfork:
As a visual extension of the music coverage Pitchfork has provided for more than a decade, and a means of updating and advancing the music television format, the online channel will bring you closer to the artists you love, through [...]

We’ve noticed a lot of chatter in the clued-in dance music community about the continued rise of UK bassline house. In essence, the sound is not unlike late 90’s two-step, with 4/4 beats, poppy, sped-up vocals and copious amounts of wobbly digital bass.
Just as a lot of female dancers fled the late 90’s drum and bass scene when it got self indulgent, excessively dark and testosterone-addled, some are now calling the pop side of the bassline sound a reaction to the recent, sometimes overly masculine dub-step and grime scenes.
English critic Simon Reynolds, author of Generation Ecstasy, sums it up nicely:
…Meanwhile, [...]

Last weekend’s Financial Times examined the global trend of temporary, pop-up spaces for galleries and retailers. The writer credits the first example to Rei Kawakubo of fashion label Comme des Garçons:
…she set up a temporary retail outlet in a disused, dilapidated building in an unlikely neighbourhood of Berlin. The space was cleaned up – just enough – and equipped with rails of clothes, some design objects and a cash register. It was an instant success. Customers who found it felt they were in on something edgy, secret and slightly illicit: something that was hardly a business at all.
Other retailers have [...]

It often takes years for the academic world to catch up to the breakneck pace of technology. But a new study from Center and American University’s Washington College of Law recently examined the issue of copyright and creativity and came to some interesting – and surely controversial – conclusions.
The report, entitled “Recut, Reframe, Recycle: Quoting Copyrighted Material in User-Generated Video,” finds:
…many uses of copyrighted material in today’s online videos are eligible for fair use consideration. The study points to a wide variety of practices—satire, parody, negative and positive commentary, discussion-triggers, illustration, diaries, archiving and of course, pastiche or collage (remixes [...]

We’re swinging through Copenhagen late next week, and staying through the weekend. Know of anything great going  on? Fancy a coffee? Email colin *at* psfk.com 

Twitter, Facebook’s status updates and newsfeeds, Tumblr, and a variety of other sites are creating a soft, ambient haze of social activity akin to leaving the television on in the background.
Though sometimes pithy, pointless or irreverent, these updates and short dispatches fill in the gaps about what you know about your friends, colleagues, and acquaintances. In fact, you get to know them in a different way. This, combined with the voyeuristic effect of it all, has undoubtedly created a new social dynamic. How will people’s “passive activity” be turned into valuable data? Who’s doing it?

Pali Research analyst Richard Greenfield cut his rating on the Warner Music stock to Sell from Neutral.
His reasoning?
“No matter how many people the RIAA sues, no matter how many times music executives point to the growth of digital music, we believe an increasing majority of worldwide consumers simply view recorded music as free,” he asserted in a research report Thursday morning. “A new model for music consumption must emerge and that model most likely involves DRM-free downloadable music at no cost to consumers, fully supported by advertising.” But as Greenfield notes, “the music industry is not ready to endorse such [...]

Following the announcement of Microsoft’s investment in Facebook, Attention PR founder Curtis Hougland shared some thoughts with PSFK about what advertisers must do to succeed on social networks:

Advertising can certainly be profitable in social networks.
After all, the holy grail of advertising is micro targeting, and social networks are chock full of people publishing their personal information. You can now even export your friend’s data to a .CSV file.
However, the golden eggs will most likely kill the goose in the end. This is what is happening on MySpace.
The effectiveness of advertising and publicity overall is diminishing, because there is simply [...]

Outside.in is a company focused on aggregating information that is relevant to place. So, for example, if you live in Nolita in New York or Primrose Hill in London, you can find restaurant reviews, community board decisions, events, news, and all sorts of information that is targeted or “geo-tagged” exactly to your specific neighborhood.
It is part of the broader trend of location-based information, allowing people to access content that is relevant to where they are at any given moment. PSFK recently spoke to John Geraci, co-founder of Outside.in, on the company’s business model, the future of local advertising, their plans [...]