Renowned for playing host to the some of the world’s largest artists, Wembley stage will soon host it’s first mobile phone performer, singer/songwriter Gary Go. Instead of using traditional instruments, Gary Go chooses to play music with his iPhone. Using his phone’s virtual recording studio application, Go has already successfully managed to recreate melodies on guitars, drums and the piano for his new album demo and now he’s attempting it live: ‘I think it’s pretty amazing that I’m going to be using a mobile phone on stage at Wembley Stadium in front of so many people’, he said. ‘My biggest [...]

It seems like every time I put on the “telly” I am bombarded with pictures and breathless stories about Susan Boyle, the Scottish lady who left fucktard Simon Cowell speechless (for about one minute) when she opened her mouth and belted out some show tune or other. Yeah, I’m one of the ten zillion people who’ve watched the clip on YouTube and I’ll admit she has a pretty good voice… But all the chat since that performance isn’t about her voice; it’s about her eyebrows and the frumpy dress she wore etc. World War III could break out tomorrow and [...]

Rob Walker points us to the short documentary “Possessed”, a film directed by Martin Hampton that delves into the fascinating world of hoarders and their belongings. Martin tells the story of four individuals who can’t let go of their mounds of stuff, ranging from old furniture to memorabilia to completely valueless bits like used cotton swabs and trash. The film tries to get at what drives hoarding behavior, suggesting it may be a type of mental illness and/or an extreme reaction to reckless consumerism and a culturally-condoned obsession with material wealth and consumption. Martin made the film during a [...]

Australasian alcohol company Lion Nathan recently launched their 6 Beers of Separation campaign for their beer, Tooheys Extra Dry.  The competition offered young people a chance to meet the person they found most inspiring, attempting to demonstrate the concept of ‘6 degrees of separation’.  Entrants were asked to submit a video entry to be considered, and now with four Australian finalists chosen, the microsite is streaming their progress.  With eighteen days and $12,000 at their disposal, the finalists must meet with five people, each person intended to move them one step closer to the person they aimed to meet.
Toohey’s Extra [...]

Formula 1, after having gone through a decade of profligate spending, a general lack of eco-consciousness, and manufacturer domination, is currently experiencing a small renaissance.  The introduction of eco-innovation, various cost control measures, and the early season dominance of a “privateer” team, has set the tone for a season that is set to be one of the most exciting to date.
The global recession has hit F1 quite hard with ING, RBS, and Honda all withdrawing from the sport, albeit in various capacities and on various schedules.  The harsh economic realities have enabled the FIA (Formula One governing body) to push [...]

The movies aren’t usually considered a sensory experience, despite several historical attempts at scented cinema dating back to 1916. But soon you may be able to actually feel what’s going on in the movies – perhaps a Michael Bay explosion or an Angelina Jolie drop kick…or even better, to experience a real emotional reaction based not just on what you’re seeing in a movie, but on on actual physical stimulus.
Researchers at Phillips Electronics just debuted a jacket lined with 64 vibration motors at the 2009 World Haptics Conference. As described by Paul Lemmens, a Philips senior scientist, the jacket is [...]

Earlier this week CBS released a new app for TV.com that allows iPhone users to stream full episodes from their network (including their other channels like Showtime, CW and CBS Sports) via wifi or 3G. It works sort of like a mobile Hulu – you can add shows, clips or series to your list of favorites (and queue them up for watching later), ‘channel surf’, or watch special, TV.com-only ‘webisodes’. The range of shows on offer is still somewhat limited (no ‘The Mentalist’; only clips of shows like ‘The L Word’ and ‘Weeds’), the app is a promising sign and [...]

We reported earlier this year about the increase in sex toy sales as the economy took a dive. And we’re finding that in Nashville, Tennessee, the same goes for live libidinous entertainment: Jason Helson, manager of popular strip club Déjà Vu, says business has actually improved with the economic downturn. The venue, which advertises “hundreds of beautiful girls and three ugly ones”, has witnessed a boom while most other businesses have suffered. Helson says: “Times are tough, but with any type of vice, people will always find a reason or a why or a how to do it… And everybody [...]

Milwaukee’s danceypant hipsters have found a haven in The Get Down, reportedly one of the city’s best and truest dance parties. DJs Andy Noble, Brent Goodsell, and Nesh entertain the sweaty masses with rare soul finds at various bars throughout the city, while Mad Planet serves as its regular host.
[via The Decider]

We’ve written about Shantell Martin a number of times over the past year, yet we remain inspired by both her art as well as her unique form of storytelling.  In the below video, Shantell explains how her style evolved from doing street art and tags in London to doing much smaller and more intense drawings in Tokyo and how that ultimately influenced her current work utilizing projectors and wacomb tablets.
Explaining how her recent trip to New York helped develop her style, she describes how drawing in front of live crowds and interacting with the environment puts the audience in control [...]

Savvy Boomer shares some interesting observations about a new, trend bucking film titled Last Chance Harvey. It’s a romantic movie that stars Dustin Hoffman as 60-something man, who in the midst of dealing with a storm of personal problems, falls for Emma Thompson’s character. Savvy Boomer views this kind of story, one which focuses on the details and ups and downs of a baby boomer’s life is a genre that will be expanding in popularity.
They explain:
This genre of movie is probably going to become more popular as the industry realizes that boomers have their favorite actors who are aging as [...]

At the PSFK Conference Asia 2008, Charles Ogilvie (Panasonic), Creative Designer and Inventor of RED, the award winning in-flight entertainment system for Virgin America, speaks about service innovation, new revenue models, and the use of airborne technology throughout Asia and the world at large.
From the drab grey seats and drop down projectors of just ten years ago, Charles describes the process he and his team went through when challenged by Richard Branson to figure out “What’s next in aviation?”
Interestingly, Charles explains that in addition to personal entertainment systems, mood lighting, and all the wizzy-wig technological concepts being tossed around, Asian [...]

Burnwater, a Philippine-based design firm, has teamed up with a lifestyle magazine (Rogue), a literary publication (Story), a recording studio (Wombworks) and a bookstore chain (Fully Booked) to produce a streaming HD video site called Pelicola.tv (”pelikula” is Tagalog for “movie”). The site aims to be an insider’s guide to the country’s cultural hotspots, influential tastemakers and local music scene.
The site’s adfilm revenue model notably follows the growing trend of quality content as advertising, and was admittedly inspired by BMW’s “The Hire” series and the Cartier Love campaign. Other companies can get involved by working with Story to create sponsored short films that will be featured [...]

The Media Entertainment Market starts today in London which will “bring together over 90 of the key players from across the value chain of mobile entertainment.” The conference will revolve around these areas: Mobile Music; Mobile Games; Moving Pictures, Mobile Video & TV; Direct to Consumer & Innovative Business Models; Mobile DRM & Regulation; Mobile Entertainment.
15th – 16th June
Earls Court, London SW5 9TA – +44 (0)20 7385 1200
www.mem05.com