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March 31, 2005
Explicit Content Only....
I've been really excited about this idea I had to remove everything from N.W.A.'s Straight Outta Compton album except for the curse words. It's like a reverse censored version of the album I'm calling "Explicit Content Only". I want to do the entire album but below is the title track as an example of what it would sound like. I love this idea but feel like it must have been done before. If so please leave a comment and let me know so that I can save a lot of wasted audio editing time. If it has not been done than stay tuned to the ni9e.com site for the complete album in the next few weeks.
Full version in real time (4 min 19 secs)
straight_outta_compton.mp3
Areas of silence edited out (19.4 secs):
straight_outta_compton_EDITED.mp3
My findings for "Straight Outta Compton" show a 7.4% rate of explicit content.
Posted by fi5e at 02:50 PM | Comments (48)
What The Font....
this site is amazing. You can upload an image of a font (.jpg, .tif, .gif, etc.) and it will find either what font it is, or fonts that are similar. After you find the perfect font (which you will never have on your system), you can preview different words in that font and then save them as images.
Posted by fi5e at 02:43 PM | Comments (0)
March 30, 2005
HOWMLIVN....
word. Willoughby St. represent.
Posted by fi5e at 04:39 PM | Comments (0)
March 28, 2005
HAPPY BIRTHDAY....
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TINAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!
Posted by fi5e at 12:07 PM | Comments (1)
March 27, 2005
"New York's Finest"....
I was just reading the website for "New York's Finest", and found some interesting stuff on graffiti (I don't want to post a direct link to it, but if you go to www.nyc.gov and put 'graffiti' into the search engine you'll find it). Including this quote, "Calls can be made to 911 for acts of graffiti vandalism that are in progress". On the one hand other people are dieing, but at least that wall will remain solid cinder block with no sign of color!
They also have a .pdf on their site called "Combat Graffiti" which outlines the different kinds of graffiti as "hate graffiti, gang graffiti, satanic graffiti, street graffiti, and generic graffiti". In over a year of photographing graffiti around NYC I've seen hate related graffiti only twice (which was promptly covered in anti-hate graffiti), almost zero gang related graffiti , and unless you consider NECK FACE to be satanic graffiti than I won't even comment on the idiocy of that label, it is all "street graffiti", and none of it is "generic". I have seen "beautiful graffiti" (SWOON), "political graffiti" (just think back to the RNC), "up lifting graffiti" (De La Vega), and "tag based graffiti" (names not of gang members but of creative people that live here). With everything going on in this city it makes me sad that they are putting this much effort into the elimination of an art form that was created here.
Posted by fi5e at 12:40 PM | Comments (2)
...a resource for street artists
Abe Lincoln Jr. is running a blog called Street Res which he describes as "a resource for street artists so they can find things like cheap printing, open calls for shows, how to's and what not." It's got some really useful information, check it out.
Posted by fi5e at 12:22 PM | Comments (0)
March 26, 2005
And Then There Was One....
So the Grey Cat learned a valuable lesson yesterday.... you can piss and shit on my stuff 29 times.... but not 30. Grey Cat took a ride on the 4 train back to the ASPCA where she will no doubt con another innocent victim into letting her use their home as her personal toilet. I wish you well Grey Cat.... wherever you are.
Bloggers everywhere are picking up on the story. Pancake City reports:
My other sister, Michele, finally got rid of the grey cat. It didn't even make it to Naming Day. The grey cat violated the "Three Strikes and You're Out" rule, except replace "three" with "10" and "strikes" with "peeing on her and Evan's stuff".
Posted by fi5e at 01:55 PM | Comments (1)
March 24, 2005
Univ. of NM....
New stuff from my boy Louis at the University of New Mexico architecture department. Click here to view.
Posted by fi5e at 02:22 PM | Comments (1)
March 21, 2005
'Garamond G'...
Garamond is one of my favorite typefaces so I thought I would post this thesis project I saw on display in the Parsons gallery. It's by Troy Lumpkin and seems to draw connections between type and architecture.
Posted by fi5e at 08:05 PM | Comments (0)
March 20, 2005
'Graffiti Analysis'...... bitten
In the parsons gallery on 5th ave. there is a thesis project on exhibition with a poster en-titled "Graffiti Analysis"...... which happens to be the current title of my thesis project. All I have to say to this obvious academic threat BRING IT ON SCHOOL BOY. We should do a thesis battle to the death for rights to this title!
(This project is actually really great and worth checking out if you are around 5th ave. and 13th st. This person as developed a set of graffiti symbols for the homeless which would allow them to identify friendly areas, food sources, etc.)
Posted by fi5e at 06:36 PM | Comments (1)
me on a truck...
I saw this on an ice cream truck near Union Square. I'm saving this image for my first album cover when I become a rock star.
Speaking of rock stars, happy birthday to Lee and his brother (next show April 6th at the Bowery Ballroom).
Posted by fi5e at 06:24 PM | Comments (0)
March 17, 2005
ni9e in the world....
I've got tons of events coming up, April seems to be the big month for festivals. Below are upcoming shows in which ni9e pieces will be shown. I'm looking at this list and wondering how I am going to get through all of this AND finish my thesis:
FITC Design and Technology Festival in Toronto. I'm giving a talk called Geek Graffiti which will include my thesis project on Graffiti Analysis. I'm excited but pretty nervous about having to follow Ben Fry and Casey Reas who are personal heroes.
Tokyo Type Directors Club, curated by John Maeda, will be showing the Typographic Illustration project.
TYPOSONIC, in Southern Germany, will be showing Typographic Illustration as well. This show is billed as "an exhibition on experimental and new tendencies in typography", and there is some cool stuff in the Typografen section.
Version>05 in Chicago will be showing All City Council, Graffiti Taxonomy, and possibly Tag Graphic Illustration. I wish I had the time and money to check this event out, it sounds like fun. "Version>05 is a drunken boat on a river whose flow has been reversed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers."
Digital Disobedients is producing a DVD that will include the All City Council project (along with Messa Di Voce if the rumors are true). Their site has a section called the Nerds Fight Back.... got to love'em.
Streets 2k5: festival of street art is happening in New Brunswick. I'm probably going to show All City Council, but I'm still not sure.
I'm also hoping to show All City Council at the 10FL show coming up at the Chelsea Museum of Art next month, give a talk at Sacred Heart University, and present my thesis at the end of May. I'm extremely grateful for the interest in my work but sort of dreading getting through the next 2 months. If I can make it to June I will drink margaritas until my heart stops.
Posted by fi5e at 12:46 AM | Comments (3)
March 14, 2005
ni9e updates.....
ni9e co-founder and West Coast representative Max makes his first update to the site since his legendary DC METRO design. Check out his latest GREY.
Posted by fi5e at 02:17 PM | Comments (0)
March 13, 2005
Banksy...
Next time you've got an hour or two on your hands do a google images search on 'BANKSY'.
http://images.google.com/images?q=banksy&hl=en&btnG=Google+Search
Still my all time favorite.
Posted by fi5e at 03:01 PM | Comments (0)
Invade LA...
I just got my copy of Invade LA in the mail. This is primarily an image based publication on the street artist Space Invader's take over of Los Angeles. This book is one of the best pieces of documentation of an art project I have ever seen in print. The book was designed, photographed, and produced primarily by the artist and it shows. Anyone who knows me has heard me preach about the importance of documentation, and how it breaks my heart to see wonderful ideas slip through the cracks because no one hit record on a video camera. Invader has it all, maps, dates, sketch books, installation photos, gallery photos, video stills, illustrator screen captures, error messages, etc. It's one of those books you can tell was made with love.
His documentation was so precise that I was able to figure out that this photo I took this December while in LA was from his third wave of invasion, 07/12/2003 (and was worth 30 points out of 1260 total points scored in LA). A couple quotes from the book I enjoyed were:
"The space-invaders may be illegal but they are basically harmless. They appear and they watch, that's all. And by doing that, they tell us about who we are through what we make of them."
And in commenting on the connection between the games industry and contemporary art (listen up MFADTers)....
"It's important not to confuse the art of the game and the game of art."
Posted by fi5e at 12:14 PM | Comments (0)
March 11, 2005
MC++
In a passing conversation with a fellow classmate I found re-newed interest in an idea I had last year. I let the idea go because nobody thought it was quite as brilliant as I did. Well today I found a kindred spirit... and that kindred spirit happens to know how to make the phat beats. Stay tuned to this blog for the appearance of MC++.... one better than all other MC's. MC++ raps entirely in code that can be complied to create useful applications and web pages. I think NYC wants to hear what MC++ has to say... maybe we will soon find out.
Posted by fi5e at 02:32 AM | Comments (3)
March 09, 2005
Robot Comix....
Robot Comix........... straight nerd style.
Posted by fi5e at 09:27 PM | Comments (0)
March 06, 2005
Birthday weekend....
One of the highlights of my birthday this weekend was my new status at Pancake City:
"Evan, Curator of Pancake City's Museum of Graffiti and Urban Arts".
Thanks Jason for something new to add to my resume.
I also bought a LED name belt buckle, an 11x17 printer, drank sangria with Inge, and ate a whoooooole lot of Mexican food.
Posted by fi5e at 10:53 PM | Comments (0)
Parsons Gallery...
The different departments at Parsons are starting to show work on the ground floor galleries on 13st. and 5th ave. The illustration show was worth a look.
Posted by fi5e at 10:50 PM | Comments (0)
14th St. Union Square...
This put a smile on my face. 14th st. just West of the square.
This I found in a newspaper box on 14st. near the metro. I get a real satisfaction in finding mixes like this of beautiful writing and beautiful decay.
Posted by fi5e at 10:42 PM | Comments (0)
katsu...
KATSU has been a favorite for last couple of years, and has recently been putting up new stuff around Parsons. These were both taken on 5th ave. and 13st. I would love to get his tag into my graffiti analysis project, if anyone knows him please point him in my direction.
Posted by fi5e at 10:38 PM | Comments (2)
Gammablablog....
This is a blatent re-post of Hypocycloid from gammablablog.... it was just too nerdy to resist. Gammablablog is one of the few blogs that I acutally check almost everyday. It's a nice personal blog run by someone who seemingly just walks around the L.E.S. all day.
Posted by fi5e at 12:49 AM | Comments (0)
March 03, 2005
Smash The State....
Mark sent me this link this morning. San Francisco Board of Supervisors President (and Green party member) Matt Gonzalez commissioned highly published print, canvas, and graffiti artist Barry McGee to do an installation in his City Hall office. graffiti = activism.
Posted by fi5e at 11:46 AM | Comments (0)
March 02, 2005
LED Belt...
Clay sent me this site where you can order LED Scrolling Belt Buckles. For obvious reasons I'm very excited about this, the only problem is that you can only order in bulk. If anyone else wants to get one leave a comment and we can all go in together. They'll be around $35 each.... but for that money you can become the coolest nerd on your block.
Posted by fi5e at 09:47 PM | Comments (4)