Remake

I hate remakes of good movies, don't you? If it ain't broke the chances are you're only going to **** it up. But today I read about a remarkable exception. Two boys from Mississippi spent a considerable chunk of their childhood (over a period of about 7 or 8 years,) making their own version of Indiana Jones: Raiders of the Lost Ark. Spielberg LOVES it and the first ten minutes are available for our viewing pleasure on Youtube: Raiders of the Lost Ark: The Adaptation

Block

I'm in the process of designing a typeface based on a little challenge I set myself a while back. The idea was to take a rectangle and see how little could be taken away from it to make it recognisable as a letter. This was inspired by the chunky type used in Susology magazine which is a FREE magazine (www.suso.co.uk) and surprisingly high on worthwhile content for a freeby.

The typeface (working title Block) is included in my final major project, might see use as my band logo, will be sent to at least one other band to see if they're interested and I'm planning to incorporate it into a design for my entry to the Glastonbury t-shirt design competition being run by Q - first prize is £1000 and two tickets to the festival. I should probably be a good designer and be more selective with its use. Oh well.

J-Malk.

Official Secrets Act at the Social

Went to see Frontiers (www.myspace.com/frontiersofficial) last night, supporting Official Secrets Act. They put on a good solid set, their new material's evolved since last time I saw them (at Rescue Rooms not so very long ago) and their frontman's falcetto really was top notch in the one section of a song that made prolonged use of it. I think their performance is currently too music orientated though - could do with more showiness, but there's a fine line between that and looking like arrogant something-or-others...

The headliners, Official Secrets Act (www.myspace.com/officialsecretsact) were more showy - fairly camp if they don't mind me saying, and fairly entertaining because of it. Their quirky dancing made me more inclined to hear out a set of synthy dance-rock falling somewhere in the Franz Ferdinand / We Are Scientists ball park. But sort of different. Haha don't listen to me, listen to them.

J-Malk.

Glastonbury: Hopes and Predictions

Franz Ferdinand are already confirmed - should be good. All of the following are unashamedly tinged by bias and very little research or listening to rumours. It's pretty much a wishlist.

It's been announced that there'll be two US acts and two from the ol' U of K headlining Glastonbury this year. My bet for US is Green Day and Bruce Springsteen - both easily have the muscle for the headline slot; Bruce's album is sitting at #1 in the charts, and Green Day's is scheduled for release in the month before the festival; so they have stuff to promote. UK? Blur perhaps, and since that would make it three old established acts we'd need a surprise, so someone young and punky. Non-headliners I'm hoping for = The Subways, White Lies, Elbow (I think Elbow are as good as confirmed anyway). I'll add more as and when I feel like it.

Multitasking

Bottom left: "fear and panic in the air" a page of my typography sketchpad. Typornography cos I google it so much.
Left: My pencil case, an All Saints box.
Top left through to bottom: Drawings for my current project, a character design of Y.T. from Snow Crash.
Top right: My printmaking sketchpad open on top of some other pads.
Bottom right: Letraset and a Muse biography. Two essential tools of the trade. (What trade? I have no idea... the Muse-obsessed typographer?)

J-Malk.

Happy New Year

That one special day of the year we make promises to ourselves that we probably won't be able to keep instead of the far more common making of promises to other people that we probably won't be able to keep! It's a good job I don't work for a greetings card company with catchy phrases like that for the holiday.

My New Year's Resolution is pretty much always be better, work harder, get fitter... and so on all rolled into one Everest of a challenge. This year I feel it's best summed up by "Stop Procrastinating (you lazy ****)!" which incorporates all of those things for me. In that spirit; today was the first day of applying for uni accomodation, so I got right on the website and filled out the form. It's both scary and exciting. I'm also doing some college work on a mask made out of a pack of playing cards (cutting up playing cards is anathema to me,) so I'll post a picture when it's done.

J-Malk.

The Stereotype Bad Present

Christmas is all done and dusted, people are making plans for new year's eve. Did Santa bring you anything nice? I got what is generally the butt of jokes when it comes to presents - books. I LOVE them. Here they are:

That's 2548 pages of booky goodness!

J-Malk.