http://www.last.fm/user/grafixforlife/

but worth checking out: http://www.last.fm/group/Typophiles (if other people actually left the iScrobbler app running)

I have my library on shuffle and right at this moment, it’s Dr. Octagon (Kool Keith). Last song was Sizzla, “Woman I need you”. Next song will be “In hell I burn” by Deicide. Hmmm, gonna have to put the skip on Deicide. Not the chillinest of design music. heh. Thats shuffle for you.

oh and it’s 9:25pm here in colorado.

My stuff is on LAST.FM too. Typophiles Group.

I’m currently obsessed with the new cds by Gregory and the Hawk, Marit Larson, NOFX, and Nickel Creek. Also The Waitresses, Phil Ochs, Devildriver, Ephel Duath, The Rentals, and Regina Spektor. Pretty all over the place.

Hmmm, gonna have to put the skip on Deicide.

Death metal usually throws a wrench into the whole shuffle thing. I like to make playlists by genre/mood and shufffle inside those.

Alison Krauss & Union Station always inspires me. Jerry Douglas is the BOMB! And their harmonies are soooo nice. (The Live DVD concert is something I don’t see how anyone could not love).

Interesting mixture you are listening to mpolino :)

Rap, Reggae…
… Deathmetal

The Waitresses! My god, that’s a blast from the past. I should talk, I’ve been listening to Blondie Parallel Lines, Velvet Underground & Nico, Talking Heads.

Also, the new Neil Diamond (Rick Rubin produced), Beth Orton, Gomez (seen the last two play recently), Chocolate Genius, Jeff Buckley, Neil Young, Johnny Cash but will check out some of the others on the Typophile list.

Oh I my next track is a classic:
Monkey Island - Main theme

Yeah, pretty all over the place. Girls Against Boys just came on. Haven’t heard that in a while. Heard some pixies a while back too. Those bands bring me back to high school. Are the waitresses the ones who had that song “I know what boys like”
heh. This is a fun thread. I don’t know if I necessarily get inspiration from the music but it is required. Ok, back to work.

Anyone remember that song “I might like you better if we slept together” (Romeo Void) more or less the same era as the Waitresses?

I recognised it here and in my class too! Most of the creative people like to listening to Non-electronic music or they like rockmusic too!?

I have never heard of Romeo Void!? Also I have never listen to The Waitresses. But I know that crappy song by the former band of Waitresses bandsinger. “Tell That Girl To Shut Up” by Holly and the Italians

If you want good music Google Search Popa Chubby, a blues player that will sit you on your ear.

This is always a popular topic.

Same thread, same title:

http://typophile.com/node/123

I’ve been all over the place recently. Here’s some of the stuff I’ve been listening to:

György Ligeti - Lux Aeterna, Musica Ricercata
Arnold Schönberg - Pierrot Lunaire
Tangerine Dream - Zeit
King Crimson - Lark’s Tongues in Aspic, Red, Lizard
Iannis Xenakis - Anastenaria, Electronic Music
Sonic Youth - SYR 3, SYR 4
Radiohead - Kid A
Elis Regina & Tom Jobim - Elis & Tom
Miles Davis - Kind of Blue, Bitches Brew

http://www.beatbasement.com

or a random iPod mix:

White Stripes, Radiohead, (older) coldplay, the cramps, talking heads, tribe called quest, hieroglyphics, the clash, the cure, helmet the hives, mos def, kanye west, pinback, transfer, the police, ramones, the roots, sigur ros, black moon…

Goldfrapp: Supernature and Ricky Gervais’ Podcast mostly. Also Radio 1 (Come back Mark & Lard).

Pink Martini, Paris Combo, Rachid Taha, Khaled, Manu Chao, Moby, Royksopp, Stan Getz, Amr Diab...

I just got the entire Mozart collection (every single concerto and symphony). Really inspiring to work with.
Also occasionally, Buddha Bar...for something more chilled out.

Roxy Music, The Who, Placebo, Underworld, David Bowie, The Beatles, Pumpkins...

Beastie Boys, New Order, Joy Division, Alden Tyrell...

4’33” by John Cage. Over and over again…

peace

Varies... today the Crash, Nits, Belle & Sebastian, Morrissey.

Tomorrow Depeche Mode and David Sylvian, maybe

4’33” lol. I work mostly in silence since the lyrics of most songs distract me from the words I’m dealing with in my work.

However, on the subway, on the iPod, in addition to earlier mentions: Patti Smith, Damien Rice, Golden Palominos, Beck’s Guero and Guerolito (altho I can’t BELIEVE he’s a scientologist!), Decemberists, Franz Ferdinand (anyone else think they sound a lot like Frankie Goes to Hollywood?), Fiona Apple, Marc Ribot, MC 900 Ft. Jesus, Radio Head, Lucinda Williams, White Stripes (plus the one with Loretta Lynn).

Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Show Your Bones

Patty you should check out Sigur Rós if lyrics distract you from the words your dealing with at work. Other bands on that tangent include: Múm, The Album Leaf, Boards of Canada and Sound Tribe Sector 9

Today I’ve got my Dance Mix going in shuffle mode on iTunes: FC Kahuna (Chillout 2003), Jem (Finally Woken), Lustral (Best of Trance Vol 1), Air (Moon Safari), Erykah Badu (Worldwide Underground), William Caslon Experience (Same), Missy Elliott (Da Real World), No Doubt (Rock Steady), Racoon (Universal Vibes), Sarah McLachlan (Bloom: Remix Album), ATB (Two Worlds), Better Daze (Remix Project) and a few I won’t mention as I don’t want to admit to all of my guilty pleasures.

Thanks David - I do have a few Sigur Ros tunes on the Pod. I actually have an ambient playlist which includes Freeworm, Color by Numbers, some Qawwali and other eastern music, Badawi, other stuff.

i almost forgot!

http://www.typeradio.org

oooh, saw nickle creek in concert last week and they did “toxic”: too funny. i still wish i would have been there to see/hear them do “where it’s at.” and if you have their last album, “anthony” is so much better live. and i wish they would have performed “helena.”

good to see some favorites enjoyed by other peeps: pink martini in particular (another great concert). can’t believe no one else is listening to clap your hands say yeah...

quote - I work mostly in silence since the lyrics of most songs distract me from the words I’m dealing with in my work.

I agree with you. So I tend to listen to instrumental music or music with lyrics in foreign languages. I’m big on Gypsy music from just about everywhere, and also non-techno ambient music. Classical is also a very nice thing to design to…

peace

Paul Cutler: Classical is also a very nice thing to design to..

I agree. I use classical if I need help to concentrate or if I’m writing something. Different kind of music for different kind of jobs.
Pop/rock is good for Photoshop work.

in the office: Japancakes

Ahmad Jamal, Cross Country Tour: 1958-61

Swinging, sparkling... simply amazing.
—Michael.

———————————————————————————
// love what you do or do something else. //
Michael Ebert — graphic designer, jazz saxophonist, horror movie devotee
http://homepage.mac.com/mwebert
mwebert@mac.com
———————

Zebda

mwebert - How about a little Mal Waldron? Ahmad Jamal is amazing. Bill Evans perchance? 50s era Miles? Jimmy Scott? I could go on…

peace

When a jazz mood hits I love: Coltrane (Ballads [one of the sexiest album in the world], Giant Steps, Lush Life, My favorite things), Mingus (Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus), Bill Frisell with Dave Holland and Elvin Jones, Toots Thielemans (Ne Me Quitte Pas), Etta James (At Last), Sarah Vaughn (Love Songs), Madaleine Peyroux (Careless Love)

Classics all…

Art Ensemble of Chicago - Muhal Richard Abrams - Sun Ra for a more modern taste…

But we can look at these lists and the conclusion I come to is that academia has ruined jazz.

peace

Pletnev playing C.P.E. Bach

Glen Gould playing Mozart or J.S. Bach…

peace

I can’t listen to anything while I work but my old 60gig iPod has every opera ever written on it with multiple recordings of most by different artists. I have to be careful not to sing along when the bass arias come on. A strange bald guy singing Don Giovanni arias alone in a crowded subway is not a pretty sight :-)

ChrisL

Glenn Gould is just fabulous playing Bach. Screw what the purists say. I bet JSB would love to hear it if he were alive.

ChrisL

For the ultimate in music that disappears: Golden Bowls by Karma Moffett

Fado: Amalia Rodrigues, Mísia

Flamenco: Pepe di la Matrona

Roma: Taraf de Haidouks, Istanbul Oriental Ensemble, Romica Puceanu

Turkey: The Erguner Brothers

The throat singing of Tuva

The overtone singing of Sardinia

Russian Orthodox choirs

There is so much good music in the air…

peace

quote - Glenn Gould is just fabulous playing Bach.

No doubt. I love both versions of The Goldberg Variations.

I like his triple Mozart solo CD even better. The articulation and relaxed way that he plays Mozart is sublime…

peace

I like the unencumbered legato in the left hand where he sustains the bass overtones under the articulated notes above. What a sound!

ChrisL

He truly makes the music his own. That is very rare. I love it…

I have some budget CDs where his humming is very present. Pretty hilarious, actually.

peace

Anyone of you saw White Stripes!? They had such a nice stage. So lovely designed.

The whole stage and the equipment was painted in red.
http://images.freemusic.cz/koncerty/whitestripes/12.jpg

On every side of the stage were hanging very nice banners.
http://sophiejarryonstageandback.neufblog.com/photos/uncategorized/the_w...

They had also real palms painted in white on their stage. Nice Carpets everywhere on the ground. Many kitschy stuff, like cuckoo clocks, those little hawaian girls puppies that dances to the sound of the music. The whole area looked like a beautiful red livingroom. I wish my room were so comfortable.

And by the way: The music and the show was breathtaking. I wonder how 2 people could entertain a hall so much.

Nine Horses — Snow Borne Sorrow
William Orbit — Hello Waveforms
Neil Finn — Try Whistling This
Elbow — Cast of Thousands

Some misc. great music:

Anyone courageous enough for something different in a foreign language, I can recommend anything you can get by Maria Dolores Pradera (from the Canary Islands). One of the richest voices in the history of mankind.

And there are some incredible performances by Om Kolthom (Egypt), if you can get an ear for Arabic scales and instrumentation. Otherwise it is music to drive away unwanted houseguests. Few westerners are capable of enjoying this, but if you are feeling adventurous...

Anything by Rhonda Vincent (killer bluegrass)

Unforgettable by Terumasa Hino (standards by a Jazzman from Japan playing a cornet)

Brad Paisley’s guitar licks on Time Warp from the new CD (left me speechless) will confirm country musicians are stepping up to the plate as far as chops go.

Some raw, heart-wrenching Mexican rancheras for those not offended by anything Mexican, can be found on the early works of Chavela Vargas. Later on she lost a lot due to excessive tequila drinking, I think.

I love classical while working. Mostly classical guitar stuff - Bach, and some spanish composers like Rodrigo. In the pop/rock vein: David Gray, Coldplay, Wilco and Neil Finn get consistent play. But I’ve been listening to Joanna Newsom all day (heard one of her songs on an animated short here at the Nashville Film Festival on Saturday. Very interesting stuff (link to a quicktime video if you’re interested).

http://www.dragcity.com/bands/newsom.html

yo Steven,

i have never seen the white stripes in concert, but it’s something my lady and i want to do next time they are in town. we have one of their DVDs (under blackpool lights) and it totally rocks! i have all their albums and they seriously are one of my favorite bands.

a speaker at the Y conference recently told us that she had a theory about all graphic designers secretly wishing they were rock stars. i’d say the white stripes are rock stars who secretly want to be graphic designers! (i mean that in the BEST possible way!)

———

My guilty pleasure today: Sean Paul. He rocks.

Also I have a totally awesome album of 70s funk from West Africa called “Love is a Real Thing” puts Sly & Parliament to shame.

Ive been enjoying electronica & classical mixes. Also more more ambiet electronica is good to work to. A short list of music:
Four Tet
Furious Angels
Prodigy
Crystal Method
Fischerspooner
Mozart, Beethoven
The Orb
Underworld
The Faint
Massive Attack
also hip hop- Handsome boy modeling school, jurassic 5, beastie boys, the streets -funny british stuff

quote - puts Sly & Parliament to shame.

I’m sorry but this is not possible. You are talking about two of the bedrocks of funk. Next thing I know you’ll say James Brown is Fela Kuti’s weak sister. :)

========

quote - I love classical while working. Mostly classical guitar stuff - Bach, and some spanish composers like Rodrigo.

I recently saw Pepe Romero at a church in Pasadena playing a program of Spanish music. It was sublime! He can play Asturias by Albeniz like no one else. There were 3 encores.

peace

I always thought Fela was overrated. Saw him once and he was an arrogant prick onstage - there would be like 10 mins between songs. Plus he was a polygamist.

Also recently rediscovered Grandmaster Flash. Not for working, tho.

The first Grandmaster Flash 12” single was a revelation. Incredible…

Fela had a big influence on James Brown. When he returned from his trip to Africa in the late 60s, his music became more political…

BTW - my forebearers are mostly Mormons. My great-great uncle had 16 wives. Always wondered about that. One is more than enough for me… :)

peace

“One is more than enough for me… :)”

LOL!!! Imagine the “Honey-do” list from 16 of them! :-)

ChrisL

“The Hardest-Working Man in Show Business” has a bad hair day (funny if you haven’t seen it and can get past the sad part)

at this very moment ... The Postal Service : District Sleeps Alone Tonight

at this moment:

foreigner - waiting for a girl like you

; )

iPods are so random…

Mo Bob. Stop me, please…

http://gbv.com/sounds/DancingGirlsAndDancingMen.mp3

I am listening to Public Radio being taken over by commercial interests and yet ask for sponsorship from their listeners. An example: This weather forcast is brought to you by (corporation) and maybe a description of their product or services. Another: Our arts relationship with (corporation, or club) presenting (artist) you can get tickets by calling…. Then in the next breathe: we can’t do it without listeners like you, become a member. The non profits have more commercials per hour than commercial radio. So sad

right now, im listening to, Nerd, Lapdance... oh, it ended,
current one is Boudewijn de Groot, Verdronken Vlinder (its dutch) folksinger of sorts.. kinda like simon and garfunkel whom are definitely my hero’s, musical wise..

Dan,
Our public radio station here sent out a survey saying they were thinking of dumping classical music and going more talk crap instead (note my hint of bias). There was a outcry of NO! from far and wide. I sent them several letters of protest telling them if they dumped classical music my donation days were over.
The next week they dumped classical music. The next day I got a request for donation. The next day I wrote another hot note. The nextweek I got another request for donation for their “new improved format”. The next day I sent a hot email and will never send the bums another dime.

ChrisL

We are really lucky here in LA.

We have KMZT and KUSC - 24/7 classical stations. KUSC tried a few years ago to change but the uproar worked.

Talk radio is out of control…

peace

I have a friend wh is a DJ at the radio station. She told me there were more complaints than attaboys with the change but the suits went with the change anyway. So much for democracy in action. My guess is that the corporate sponsors wanted the change.

ChrisL

Has anyone heard of a film called Sahara Blue? Well, the soundtrack is something mind blowing. It’s composed by Hector Zazou and lyrics are actually poems by Rimbaud. Cannot guarantee you will be able to listen to that AND do some work at the same time though. It’s part in French, some songs are in Arabic and some in English...it would be nice to know if someone here knows it.
Otherwise I love Amy Winehouse and Aimee Mann and Elliot Smith (loads)...

I am not familiar with that one Lorenza. Sounds intriguing though.

ChrisL

Hector Zazou is playing here in LA with Peter Buck, Fred Chalemor, Matt Chamberlain, Robert Fripp and Bill Rieflin. The project is called Slow Music.

There’s an amazing film that tells the story of the Gypsies through music. It’s called Latcho Drom. It starts in India and works it’s way into jazz, etc…

Really beautiful film. I have the soundtrack and you can rent it at my local video store.

There’s an amazing segment with Taraf de Haidouks where an old man is playing the violin. He has stripped all the horse hairs off of the bow except one. It is the most haunting sound…

peace

For 20th Century classical fans, I love the stirring dissonance of
Scriabin’s Piano Sonatas

—Michael.

———————————————————————————
// love what you do or do something else. //
Michael Ebert — graphic designer, jazz saxophonist, horror movie devotee
http://homepage.mac.com/mwebert
mwebert@mac.com
———————

currently: the Broken Flowers soundtrack.

forStars, Sondre Lerche, Aqualung. Mellow stuff indeed.
But for people who are interested in downloading some music legally (from non mainstream musicians mostly), there’s www.epitonic.com

I’m headed out to the Coachella Festival this weekend. Should be enough music to last me for a while…

peace

The Sisters of Mercy

esther venrooy’s immaculate ’shift coordinate points’ (from entracte.co.uk)

Also more more ambient electronica is good to work to
Agreed: Stereolab, Japancakes, Stereolab, William Caslon Experience, Stereolab, Beck, Stereolab, Julian Cope, and some Stereolab.

pink martini | Hang on Little Tomato

pink martini | Sympathique

Anyone else here not recognizing almost everything mentioned? I guess there is no more getting around it. I am an official antique.

Hey Paul, haunting is exactly the word I was looking for!
Hector Zazou in LA...now THAT is cool. I wouldn’t miss it.

Then come on down… :)

peace

quote - I am an official antique.

That just means your value went up… :)

Of course those chips, dents and cracks are going to impact the asking price. And don’t listen to Antiques Roadshow. Clean yourself regularly.

peace

Currently listening to Art Brut - Rusted Guns of Milan.

Current favourites:

Art Brut
Robert Pollard
Jens Lekman
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah!
Boards of Canada
Band of Horses

Another Pollard fan!

(Boards of Canada, what I’ve heard, is really nice.)

I don’t know if this makes sense. I mean, everyone says what’s listening to while working, but they do the same on music forums.

What was interesting was the association proposed at the thread’s beginning: what’s the relationship between your design and the music you relate to it.

Personally I did often in the past the opposite: I played certain things as I worked on early creative stages of alphabets. I recall I did it with Neoritmo: since the face was a destructured/restructured approach to the classic lapidary/roman framework, I played alternatively traditional rock and pop, as well as things evocating the Roman Empire in modern context. Examples which could apply:

Killing Joke - Rubicon (and the whole “Brighter…” album)
Iggy Pop - American Caesar
Psychic TV - Slur
Sigue Sigue Sputnik - How do U Dream Little Caesar
Morcheeba - Rome Wasn’t Built in A Day
Anthrax - American Pompeii
Culture - Roman Soldiers of Babylon
and so on…

I did the same with a face I have not released as well, recently. The thing is very very destructured and meant to convey a sense of the future, so I played an album I just discovered (in 2004), which is The Human League’s debut album “Reproduction” from 1979.
If you are used to the “crappy” pop done by Phil Oakley in mid-1980s you should check the original first two albums of the band, which convey an unsurpassed sense of “the future”.
“Black Celebration” by Depeche Mode would have been equally suited. A masterpiece of a concept album. Considered it’s from 1986, it’s optimistic considered what we live right now.

BTW, I think music while you work is better suited in stages of repetitive tasks, or less creative ones.

And of course you should be working alone (like in type design at home). I can’t stand music, talking, noise et al, where I work. It’s almost a nightmare, since I can’t concentrate, so music becomes the opposite: a force of hindrance.

marcos valle..

great stuff!

There is a fund drive coming up at this non profit Jazz station, now tell me if this isn’t as or more commercial than a commercial station selling soap. Along with the sponsorship ads for every news reports and the constant begging for listener support, now they are asking for local businesses to donate food and beverages. Well what happens is after the fund drive they advertise those businesses until the next fund drive. So most of an hour is dedicated to raising funds. I get more music from my commercial classical station WQXR who is owned by the New York Times than WBGO. Sad

Great topic. I am currently listening to Iron and Wine live. Love to work to Sigur Ros, Mogwai, Radiohead, DangerDOOM, Mos Def, D’Angelo.
Also great to work to jazz (Monk, Trane, Mingus).

Official antique? How charming, I love vintage!
Definetely great to work with jazz (cool californian...like Paul) with my cat sleeping on my lap and a glass of red (maybe not Californian, though). What else do you need in life?

De Phazz!

With broadband, I’ve found my CDs gathering dust. I have a “VIP” subscription to Live365.com — very cheap, like just a few bucks a month! And if something comes along I like, I investigate further via P2P. And if I really, really like it, I may even buy a copy eventually.

Anyway, on Live365, you can do keyword searches and make your own playlist. Some of the “stations” are just a few hours looped, but others update pretty frequently. Type in “mozart” or “soul” or “gogos” and see what comes up!

Genres? From artful 50s/60s jazz I’ve branched out to that whole new realm of nu jazz, chill, trip-hop, etc. De Phazz is my new favorite thing. Indian classical is great for working— being an ignorant Westerner, I don’t get caught up in any “meaning” that may be there— it just lets my brainwaves float along. And that’s really the key for most working music— just enough to move the brain along, without “knowing” too much of what I’m hearing.

And sometimes silence is golden.

Definetely great to work with jazz (cool californian…

An acquired taste, but Chet Baker’s singing is a nice change of pace.

I like the unencumbered legato in the left hand where he sustains the bass overtones under the articulated notes above. What a sound!

OMG!~ Are you joking?

I have played many instruments for many years and if you have to talk about music like that, you aren’t enjoying it as much as you should. Actually, you are probably just smarter than me but it seems like too much thought for music listening. I can honestly tell you that my least least least favorite part of music is theory. I hate it. I bet slash couldn’t even read music, but he is one of the greatest musicians ever recorded and distributed. I am not knocking the person who wrote that, but it seems a bit “gay.” Oh my gosh, what have I said? Watch the flows come in.

Heh, oh and I am listening to Merle Haggard and Michael Jackson

font player, is that the same person as Oum Kalthoum. Brilliant. Bizarre but brilliant. Good call.

quote - if you have to talk about music like that, you aren’t enjoying it as much as you should

There is no CPA for taste.

Everyones experience is different, thankfully.

Living on the edge of the world…

peace

agreed, I just always think I am right. Need to get over that...as well as my need to speak(type)before thinking. Peace

peace

font player, is that the same person as Oum Kalthoum. Brilliant. Bizarre but brilliant. Good call

Yes I have it spelled both ways on CDs. (forgot to mention that)

Kudos for being able to “grok” it.

Btw, as best I can make out, when she does something particularly moving, and you hear the audience break into applause, apparently it was customary to then repeat that section as sort of an immediate encore. This probably being a factor in each CD containing only one song.

One I can recommend is the “Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam”.

My favorite work soundtracks:
– Norwegian Public Broadcasting
– 22 Pistepirkko
– The Shins
– System of a Down
– Wilco
– Jan Johansson

Has anyone mentioned Type 0 Negative yet?

I tried typeradio, but I don’t know. They lost me when explaining how the dot over the ’i’ was actually semen spurting out of a penis.

2 Days offline and so much to read, but this made me laugh out loud

Chris:
A strange bald guy singing Don Giovanni arias alone in a crowded subway is not a pretty sight :-)

I want to see it pleeeease :-)

to istitch
About the graphic designers secretly wishing they were rock stars theory. In Germany there is a dj(The Frank Popp Ensemble) who is a graphic designer and in his contract he has the clause that every artwork has to be done by himself. Some nice works, I think.
http://www.frankpopp.com/

Hi ’Ya All:

I definitely have different tastes from most of you guys here. The genres I listen to while working (creating graphics) are:

Underground Disco, Deep House, Jazzy House, Classic House, Disco House, (I really love all shades of house), Bossa Nova, Afro-Beat, lots of electronic down-tempo, and some strange pop tracks thrown in for fun!

Songs and artists rocking my world:

Flunk- Blue Monday (Blue States Remix)
I:Cube- Disco Cubism (Daft Punk Remix)
Grace Jones - La Vie en Rose
Royksopp- Remind Me (Tom Middleton Cosmos Mix)
Aqua Bassino- We Could Be Friends
Terra Deva- Fresh Start (House Remix)
Terra Deva- Speak Low
Aya- Uptown (Trentemoller Mix)
[re:jazz]- Donaueschingen (Andre Lodemann Club Mix)
Aquanote- Only (Weekender Vocal)

My very specials:
Daft Punk- Indo Silver Club
Lisa Shaw- Always (Lovetronic Vocal)
Martinez- Autumn Jazz Ep....every single track is fabulous

My favorite track of ALL time (featuring a gorgeous smokey atmosphere):

Dalminjo: Repetitiveness

Yes... sometimes I stop working so I can dance(or sing). I enjoy myself non-the-less and I do accomplish what I intended.

See you guys later,

Mike D

PS... And yes, all these tracks can be found on iTunes ;)

Nice to see a couple of Mingus fans amongst this list. His music is just so intense and so full of soul, and his album The Blank Saint and the Sinner Lady introduced me to one of my longtime favourite fonts, Profil! Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus, Mingus Ah Um, Let My Children Hear Music... all incredible. I also like a daily dip into my 5- and 4-star rated Thelonious Monk, Dave Brubeck, Duke Ellington and Jimmy Smith tracks. (Gotta love rating tracks in iTunes).

In the non-jazz world, I’m always listening to White Stripes, Radiohead, Spiderbait, Art of Fighting, Rocket Science and They Might Be Giants.

Mike, Royksopp- Remind Me is beautiful, I couldn’t stop watching the animation...it’s so gentle...
And for the days you need to do some physical work...like carrying your stuff around, mounting boards, cut stuff, put some order in your studio etc....I suggest some Henry Mancini so you can dance around at the sound of it and have some fun.

Dennis...acquired taste? Can you expand on that?

and Jimmy Smith

All the more enjoyable when you realize on most of his stuff he was playing bass with his feet, and track that at the same time. Some of the up-tempo things, both hands and both feet are going for it, so it gets pretty amazing.

Dennis…acquired taste? Can you expand on that?

Chet’s singing style is certainly not mainstream, but I found that it grew on me. Of course some of his trumpet work is classic.

Ramones
Morrissey
The Hellacopters
Kraftwerk
Leftfield
Mogwai
The Streets
Jokke & Valentinerne
New Order

I like Chet Baker’s singing. Like Raymond Chandler, that cool sound could only have come from Cali…

peace

I like Chet Baker’s singing. Like Raymond Chandler, that cool sound could only have come from Cali…
peace

Isn’t it amazing how Chet’s voice sounded more and more like his horn as he aged? Ever see the film “Let’s get lost”? It is way out of print, but it is really good. The soundtrack is good as well if you can find it. He really does a nice version of Costello’s “Almost Blue”.

I’ll be looking for it…

peace

Gipsy Kings’ Allegria CD

The Streets? Are you kidding? Is that popular in Norway? I thought it was such an English fenomena. That’s pure chav spirit...do you guys have chavs in Oslo?
I think they are brilliant. Not the chavs...the Streets.

The Poncho Sanchez Latin-jazz band was playing at this coffeshop, and it was pleasant to work to.

(I think Jupiter boy forgot to “/cite” and now everythang is italicked)

Thanks Lore:

I do love Henri Mancini too. I bought the Pink Panther’s Penthouse Party cd- loved it. But I loved it so much I lost it. I miss that disc. [tears welling up]

Ultra Lounge compilations are also really good for old funky jazzy tunes. Crime Scene is da bomb. [yes i said da bomb]

By-the-way.... Does anyone listen to Jean Michel Jarre (the god father of French electronic music)??? Very deep relaxing tracks.

Smiles and Winks,

Mikey

Jean Michel Jarre...I still remember the concert in Houston Texas...on TV! Someone told me his stuff was obsessive and repetitive. I find it liberating...

Hi Lore:

Wowsers you actually saw that! I was a little kid then. But it was when I was a little kid that I first started listening to electronic music.

Do you remember the Equinoxe cd? The first track is amazing!!! And the other album I love is the one with the big yellow ear on it... I think its called Cousteau in Concert.

Liberatingly Yours,

Mikey

If you’re looking for obsessive and repetitive and liberating, you might want to listen to Terry Riley “In C”. It was the first minimalist classical recording released and led to Steve Reich, Phillip Glass, Laurie Anderson, John Adams and many great pieces of music. It is a classic record…

You might also want to try out Balinese Gamelan…

peace

Burt Bacharach’s ’Casino Royale’

I’m a not-so-closet metalhead at heart.

Shadows Fall
COC
Opeth
Children of Bodom
Dragonforce! *woot!
Evergrey
Elvenking
Kamelot
Helloween
In Flames
Soil
Soilwork
Megadeth

Most of these, if not all these artists hae MySpace pages, if you wanna listen. Dragonforce is my latest, Upbeat power metal. Hey Paul, keep it Metal!

Right now I am listening to The Weepies, Katie Herzig, and Margot & the Nuclear So and So’s in constant rotation. All music I’ve discovered in the past month or so and totally love all of them.

You can find them all on iTunes, myspace or at
www.katieherzig.com
www.theweepies.com
www.margotandthenuclearsoandsos.com

I also love to listen to Rhett Miller when I’m really into working on something...www.rhettmiller.com

Kathleen, my wife and I are huge fans of “The Weepies” - do yourself a big favor and catch them live. Takes your breath away.

—Michael.

———————————————————————————
// love what you do or do something else. //
Michael Ebert — graphic designer, jazz saxophonist, horror movie devotee
http://homepage.mac.com/mwebert
mwebert@mac.com
———————

Hey, hold on a second! I was a kid too! Ok, a teenager maybe...11-12? I still have the tape of Equinoxe somewhere! A tape!!!! And a Philip Glass vinyl...how can you get rid of these kind of things? You can’t. Paul: I’m writing it all down...

Anyone of you plays in a band!?

I actually saw them live in Nashville two weeks ago—really amazing. Can’t get over Deb Talan’s voice. Can’t wait til they come back.

These days, my Top Five reads as follows :
Calexico Crystal Frontier
Antony & the Johnsons Fistful of Love
Candi Staton I’m Just a Prisoner (of Your Good Lovin’)
Townes van Zandt Kathleen
Emmylou Harris Boulder to Birmingham

quote - Anyone of you plays in a band!?

I was a professional musician for many years, really fun, really hard, now I’m an AD, really fun, really hard…

Life is funny that way.

peace

quote - Anyone of you plays in a band!?

I was a professional musician for many years, but I dropped out of the biz when I realized I was probably going to be an official alchoholic.

Many places we played gave free drinks to the band, and I was compelled to take advantage of that. Not to mention the other influences of the life-style seemed dead-endish (drugs, married women forgetting to mention the married part, etc.)

The deciding night was when one drunk asked to sing The Yellow Rose of Texas, and then proceded to bend over and sing the whole thing into the weighted end of the boom-stand. Then at the intermission another drunk walks up to the drummer and says, “Hey man, I used to play the drums.” And then passed out into the middle of the kit, sending cymbals and drums rolling off in various directions, while the drummer just sat there stunned, looking at the guy laying where his drumset used to be.
: )

Where can I find some tracks to listen to you?

The stuff I recorded would probably only be found in a Mexican Dr. Demento show. But you can hear the guys I used to play with in Norwalk, Poncho Sanchez and the Banda Brothers: Ramon (Mon) and Tony.

They kept at it, and have been pretty successful. The break came after Poncho was asked to fill in for Cal Tjader’s regular conga player, and Cal asked him to stay. When Cal died (stranding the band in Japan), Poncho was able to sign with the same label (Concord). The early versions of his band was manned by some of my college classmates.

The stories I’d hear of European tours of 11 concerts in 9 countries in 8 days (or something like that), then coming back to LA for a gig, then the same night taking a red-eye flight to Mexico for a jazz festival really scared me. It sounded grueling. On the plus side they did get to play with many of the people who were our heroes.

quote - Where can I find some tracks to listen to you?

Search Paul B. Cutler - that’s me…

peace

You list Blue Cheer as an influence? That seems strange to me in that when I lived in a trailor in Laguna Canyon, they practiced in the house right above me. They used to drive me nuts because they would jam for hours, seemingly all day, in one key (Being rock musicians, I’m guessing G). That is all I remember.

Blue Cheer was the redneck acidhead answer to the San Fran psychedelic scene. Louder. Just like the first Alice Cooper album was the alcoholic Arizonan poke in the eye to the hippies. And Roky Erikson and the 13th Floor Elevators was the Texan take…

Those were fun times…

peace

The past few days I have mostly been listening to Neko Case’s latest, “Fox Confessor Brings the Flood”... Probably a good way to get tired of it real soon, but I can’t get enough of it for now. :-)

Just like the first Alice Cooper album was the alcoholic Arizonan poke in the eye to the hippies.

Wow, you have a context for all that. I’m impressed. I was so into jazz at the time, I couldn’t find a place for it.

I was trained as a classical pianist and played Saxophone and French Horn then I found the guitar.

I started with jazz as soon as ZIggy Stardust came out.

Eventually worked my way into the avant garde: The Art Ensemble of Chicago, Muhal Richard Abrams, Cecil Taylor, etc…

Then avant garde classical music: Stockhausen, Mauricio Kagel, John Cage, etc…

Then Roxy Music and when punk rock hit I was in all the way…

It was really fun.

The great thing about those albums I mentioned is that they’re not music. They’re some thing beyond music. A bunch of young crazy guys with guitars and really loud amps. Rock has been absolutely vigorous from time to time…

peace

As a music related tangent, have you seen Christopher Walken’s “More Cowbell” skit on Saturday night live.

“I have a fever, and the only presription is more cowbell!”

I been switching back and forth between three albums while going between a random mix of jazz:

- Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Show Your Bones
- Built to Spill, You in Reverse
- Roots Manuva, Alternately Deep

I’ve been working on two projects: a project for a Scion event and my BFA show. The energy is necessary.

quote - “I have a fever, and the only presription is more cowbell!”

Having had all the Spinal Tap things happen to me has turned things like this into horror, not comedy. I can watch Spinal Tap now and find it funny, but it’s funny in a very tragic sense…

peace

Burt Bacharach’s ‘Casino Royale’

Oh Dusty, my beautiful self-deprocating amazon with a voice so out of this world…

...Brian Ferry is considered one of the greatest Brits alive, it’s amazing how he reinvented himself as an aristocrat when in fact he came from a working class background...and now his son is campaigning for fox hunting and all that. Weird stuff.
I was into Frank Zappa at the time, I think...although I was really young at the time (I had a very ecletic musical taste for a teenager) Valley Girl is one of my favourites...

I really liked the first four Mothers of Invention albums with “We’re Only In It For The Money” being my favorite. I felt he turned on his audience after that and started talking down to them instead of with them. Just my take…

Love the Roxy Music albums with Eno and Avalon is also an amazing record!

peace

And, as you probably know, even Pierre Boulez (le marteau sans maitre)and Kent Nagano used some of Zappa’s classical pieces...

There is no doubt that for a short time Zappa was taken seriously by the classical community. But he didn’t fall far enough from the Schoenberg tree to have a lasting impact. Don’t get me wrong, lore, Frank Zappa had a tremendous effect on my life.

My favorite quote: “Quit school and go to the library”

His liner notes for Absolutely Free credited a pantheon of 20th Century composers and artists, many of whom influenced me also.

Partly because of him I had the courage to conduct my life as an autodidact…

peace

Btw, Here is a photo I took Easter morning of our bass player, Javier Bojorquez. (The text refers to a bad translation in a game) We couldn’t afford a bass player with 8 strings, but Javier does pretty good with only 7. (poeple from Tijuana, MX tend to be resourseful)
: )

I just started listening to Jacob Borshard. He’s indy, he plays the ukelele, he’s awesome. You can download both of his albums for free on his website... http://www.creebobby.com/

Great pic, fontplayer. That’s one heck of a bass. More strings than I play. Actually thinking of having a 4 string guitar made for me…

peace

He has a fretless version too. Does some cool things sliding chords through changes. Unlike me, this guy is the real deal. Same with our drummer, who has toured with Jose Feliciano and other credits that escape me. The acoutic guitarist is a clinician for Martin. The electric guitarist rips too. I’m pretty much the only person doing the smoke and mirrors thing.

Well, I have to quit for a while. No way I’m taking the lead on the prolific poster list. Hmmm...

I like them all. The XYZ thing is intriguing. I got the impression you are in SoCal? Let me know if you are exhibiting the collection anywhere.

For the last 8 years I’ve been designing and building instruments. I have an ensemble called International Metal Supply with a friend of mine from France. Here’s some photos of the instruments:

The Buddhaphone:
http://pages.sbcglobal.net/pbc1313/allgraphic/ims/buddhaphone.html

The Void
http://pages.sbcglobal.net/pbc1313/allgraphic/ims/thevoid.html

XYZinium
http://pages.sbcglobal.net/pbc1313/allgraphic/ims/xyzinium.html

We recently played at Redcat in Disney Hall doing the soundtrack for a silent film:
Kurutta Ippeiji (A Page of Madness) (1927) by Teinosuke Kinugasa

And collaborated on the soundtrack for A Darkness Swallowed by Betsy Bromberg.

It’s a lot of fun and hard work building these. California is a hotbed of percussion inventors…

peace

i used play in a band in high school, but for the past ten years i have just been a solo artist, recording music and playing on my own…

(drums, bass, guitar, vocals… mostly just guitar and vocals now)

Hey Paul:

I would really like to hear a sample of these “instruments” : )
Anywhere a website where I can listen to something!?

Anyone know Janko Nilovic!?
I love him, really funky music!

Steven

These are not “instruments”. They’re instruments… :)

I’ll try to post an MP3…

peace

I think that you’ll ALL enjoy this website, if you haven’t gotten to it yet..

www.pandora.com

and for the record.. my working music usually comes back to Underworld, Esthero and Hooverphonic. I think I may have too much of those three to have a fair shot at shuffling the iPod.

______
“They always say time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself.” -Andy Warhol

As requested many moons ago:

Music for Typographers or Not…

peace

Ha ha ha ! !!!

Nathan Fake, Tipper, and Anthony Payne’s reconstruction of Elgar’s Third.

Glen Gould playing Bach is great, my kids have me listening to Pink Floyd, especially “Money” and “Another Brick in the Wall.” Coltrane (anything) and Miles Davis (anything). Can’t listen and work at the same time though.

If anyone wants to check out my trio, here’s an MP3.

—Michael.

———————————————————————————
// love what you do or do something else. //
Michael Ebert — graphic designer, jazz saxophonist, horror movie devotee
http://homepage.mac.com/mwebert
mwebert@mac.com
———————

Michael - Very nice. I love that song.

Floating in the silence that surrounds me…

Do you find that music has helped define your artistic viewpoint when it comes to design?

I do…

peace

Definitely. Part of music’s appeal is its challenge (to both artist and audience). Music requires effective decisions between lots of variables; it must balance chaos & order, passion & logic, expectations fulfilled & thwarted, objectivity & subjectivity, humor & humorlessness, and so much more.

I think graphic design balances many of these same dynamics, as do many other artforms (and crafts).

What does everyone else think about this? Do you feel that your appreciation of music is analogous to your appreciation of design? Do you “respect” the same types of “solutions”?

—Michael.

———————————————————————————
// love what you do or do something else. //
Michael Ebert — graphic designer, jazz saxophonist, horror movie devotee
http://homepage.mac.com/mwebert
mwebert@mac.com
———————

Most of my artistic viewpoints were formed by music, since I’ve been playing all my life. I came to design later and music will always be the deepest in my heart.

All these decisions you talk about are essentially ones philosophy. I discovered in my mid-20s that the act of playing guitar was no longer a technique, it was a philosophy. That is the same way I feel about design. I take it on faith that if I pay attention to my life and my beliefs, that my art will flourish as a result.

When you were playing that track you were not balancing all those things, you already had and you were showing us the answers that you had formulated. Thanks for the peek…

peace

Hey gcincinnati,

Thank you for you hint! Pandora is great! :)

But part of improvisation, at least for me, involves making these decisions while you play. I think musicians come to their work with a certain take on these dynamics - a taste, if you will, about how to balance them. But I certainly try to “switch gears” when playing in order to introduce variety.

Sorry if I hijacked the thread. :-)

—Michael.

———————————————————————————
// love what you do or do something else. //
Michael Ebert — graphic designer, jazz saxophonist, horror movie devotee
http://homepage.mac.com/mwebert
mwebert@mac.com
———————

Interesting. I improvise to get out of here… :)

I think the most interesting thing about improvisation and life in general is the sense of time.

A good description that I heard from a friend is that improvisation is like a rubber band, when you start stretching it it is not as pliable as when you warm it up a little. The more you play the farther you can stretch and still snap back.

Like a vacation it’s always good to leave, and good to return…

peace

...also on shuffle: morcheeba, au4, kruder&dorfmeister, nick warren, sasha, gotan project,

BLOOM/Gabriel&Dresden, www.di.fm(progressive/chill, house), múm, back to mine,

a lot of progressive, electronica, chillout, trip-hop, trance, house... :)

Mostly Black Throated Blues and Magnolias and the occassional Cardinal. The bird migration here is almost over, to bad.

Lordi

I’m surrounded by mockingbirds and crows. Also quite a few hawks around here.

Mockingbirds are my favorites, they learn hundreds or songs through their life. The more they know the more they get laid. I guess I better write some new songs.

I love crows just for their Gothic presence…

And the hawks are sublime.

peace

Improvization provides you with an outlook that softens the shock of change. You make the best of wherever you find yourself in the changes, and if doesn’t go as planned, but you work yourself out of the jam, you can pretend it was what you meant to do. This last part may be easier in music than in real life.
; )

Mockingbirds are my favorites

Mine too. I had one that nested in a night-blooming jasmine tree, and I could sit in the yard and trade licks with him. He always smoked me, but it was an honor that he would play off some of my licks. And he taught me to appreciate things I hadn’t got into before, like quartile riffs. One he liked to repeat was three rapid ascending fourths, then go up a half-step and do three more, then another half-step and do three more, then resolve it with a rapid minor-third trill. He’d repeat it until I whistled it right. A truely patient teacher.

The tree and the bird. The smell and the sound… wonder.

Language is such an amazing thing. We can codify what the mockingbird was singing while he’s just trying to successfully propagate.

Improv. I have felt for many years that at my best I was merely grabbing music out of the air that already exists and will always exist and retransmitting it through the filter known as me.

Beethoven referred to The Music of the Spheres (after Pythagorus). If I look up at clouds passing while listening to one of his symphonies I can almost understand.

peace