<b<bbc.co.uk: "Nanotechnology has become a big buzzword – so much so that the stockbrokers Merrill Lynch has created an index to track investment in the newly burgeoning industry. But others are concerned. Prince Charles, taking a lead from the environmental group ETC, has expressed concerns where this ‘atomtech’ may lead. The environmentalists see it as a step beyond genetic engineering.
In Small Worlds, science writer Philip Ball explores what’s happening in nanotechnology and just where it might lead."
Programme 1: Engineering at the Atomic Scale
Programme 2: Why Worry?
Programme 3: Nanobiotechnology
bbc.co.uk: "If recent projections are on target, by the year 2050, the USA will no longer be the world's biggest economy, although it will still be in the top six." Download here
wnyc.org: "The average American produces sixteen hundred pounds of trash each year, but not many people know where it goes. Writer and filmmaker Heather Rogers looks at the hidden life of garbage and its impact on the planet." Listen here
ostmoderne.com: "ostmoderne shows buildings from the post-war socialist era still largely unknown in the west and widely regarded as unwanted relics from the past in the east after 1989.
ostmoderne documents this architecture - often threatened by demolition - as long as it still exists. An architecture that put its stamp on a political and cultural era, as well as on the urban fabric it was implanted in.
We do not aim at a comprehensive catalogue, our focus is to highlight the typical and the extraordinary, thus making connections and patterns visible. Between prefabricated seriality and prestigious monoliths, between political statement and mass housing, between proud ambition and restricted ranges of material, a certain style, an urban atmosphere and an architecture of superior quality was generated.
ostmoderne starts off with architecture from the 60s and 70s in Slovakia, and will grow continually."
ostmoderne.com
bbc.co.uk: "Minamo are a Japanese quartet who perform using an unusual combination of instruments that includes electric and acoustic guitars, computers, keyboards and electronics. If the term 'electro-acoustic' were not so heavily associated with twentieth century modernist composition, it might be an apt one to apply to the group. The music they produce is, however, rather less intimidating than the likes of Schaeffer or Stockhausen." More
boomkat.com: "The fabulous Jan Jelinek is back with his third solo release on ~scape; 'Kosmischer Pitch'. With a sound that is broadly comparable to his own 'La Nouvelle Pauvrete', Jelinek has made a significant move from the crackling lint of 'Loop Finding Jazz Records' whilst managing to retain that special something which made it so damn irresistible. Opening with ' Universal Band Silhouette', Jelinek's time collaborating with Antipodean jazz-boys Triosk is startlingly clear; as a mealy and much worn sample is incrementally layered upon by live instrumentation and thrumming intent – a sound which can't help but recall the more dark-hearted corners of Ennio Morricone's back catalogue." More
kyo-ichinose.net: "Born in Tokyo on June 26, 1972, Kyo Ichinose graduated with honors in composition from Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music in 1995, and continued to study composition on a postgraduate course. He received his M.A. in music in 1997. Kyo Ichinose started producing, playing, and composing a wide range of music including soundtracks for commercial film, and collaborations with architects, interior/graphic designers, and artists. He made and released 2 solo albums, “the machineries of joy” (2002/current) and “Lontano” (2004/cubicmusic). His music that is an amalgam of electronic sound which is elaborated algorithmically and instrumental sound which is processed precision scoring. He is now revered as a cutting-edge creator and mastermind in all cultural industries."
bleep.com: "A New Year's selection of 9 tracks for 2006, free to all registered Bleep users. Contributing artists and labels incude Dexter (Clone), Jimmy Edgar (Warp), Mara Carlyle (Accidental), The National Trust (Thrill Jockey) Kero (Detroit Underground), Wisp (Sublight), Battles (Warp), Nectarine No9 (Creeping Bent) and Skeletons & The Girl Faced Boys (Ghostly). The release is priced at zero: add to basket and checkout. No payment details are needed, just an email address and password from new users, existing users login as normal." Download here
cyclicdefrost.com: "Hailing from Adelaide, a breeding ground for a large proportion of Australia’s top electronic artists, Stefan Panczak has recently released a mini-album, any colour you like, as well as a beautifully packaged one-track business card CD called root drinking in the dark. His music takes sampled acoustic instruments and sequences them with electronic beats, but what sets Inch-time aside is the depth of feeling that’s produced by his tracks. Gamelan instruments and warm double bass combine with beautiful string arrangements to create something very special." More
irights.info/: "Netzlabel haben sich als Online-Alternative zu den klassischen Vertriebsstrukturen des Musikgeschäfts etabliert. Sie verbinden kostenlose MP3s mit einer gezielten qualitativen Auswahl. Doch wie steht es um die rechtlichen Aspekte der Netzlabel-Plattformen?" Weiter
themilkfactory.co.uk: "Following a series of appearances on labels such as Melodic or Static Caravan, Dublin-based artist Thomas Haugh, who officiates under the Hulk banner, is now releasing Silver Thread Of Ghosts, his debut album, on new Irish imprint Osaka Recordings. The result of over a year’s work, this album follows a growing trend in electronic music that sees musicians assimilating complex electronic structures with classical-inspired soundscapes. Here, Haugh combines found sounds and treated field recordings with live instrumentation, including acoustic guitar and cello, to create a rather haunting series of compositions." More
dradio.de: "Der Journalist Tiziano Terzani war zeitlebens ein Reisender. Er schrieb für italienische Zeitungen und den "Spiegel" aus Asien. Als er 1997 erfährt, dass er Krebs hat, reist er noch einmal um die Welt und probiert diverse Heilpraktiken, um am Ende im Himalaya ein unsentimentales Resümee zu ziehen." Weiter lesen
LSD Inventor Turns 100
"The Swiss chemist who discovered LSD celebrates his 100th birthday today. We look at its influence on music and '60s pop culture." Download/Listen here
Montreal in 2006
"Patti Schmidt of the CBC fills us in on news from the musical underground in Montreal, and beyond. Music we played: Arcade Fire, "Power Out" 7 Riviere des Diamants, featuring Omnikrom Akufen, "Mary Jane Kelly" Destroyer, "Rubies" Download/Listen here
I just discovered East Village Radio by googeling for "Hulk"(the musician). They are offering all their shows as podcasts!
"East Village Radio. Started in 2003 as a nonprofit Internet radio station that catered to the Lower East Side and its most pressing issues, the station is working against these ridiculously accepted radio “norms.” With a variety of commercial-free shows dealing with everything from punk rock to minimal techno to underground dance, East Village Radio is a strong force against the seemingly indestructible suck that is corporate radio." Read more
allmusic.com: "Along with Olaf Dettinger, Ulf Lohmann, and Argentina's Gustavo Lamas, Markus Guentner represents the ambient-leaning end of the Kompakt label spectrum, proof positive that the label offers far more than tech-house; his productions for the Cologne, Germany, imprint are rarely reliant upon beats and overt melodies, often sticking to drifting, oceanic atmospherics and chime-like effects." More
allmusic.com: "Austrian ambient/electronica composer Susanne Brokesch is one of a small-but-growing contingency of female producers releasing innovative experimental music in an unfortunately predominantly male field. Born in Austria and currently residing in Vienna, Brokesch has recorded as Sil, Sil Electronics, and under her own name for such labels as Cheap, Sahko, Tension, and Disko B." More
Sufjan Stevens and the Illinoisemakers, Akron/Family, Mike Wexler, The Wingdale Community Singers, Hannah Marcus, Brian Lipson, Michael Holt, Amy Kohn's radio opera "1 Plum Sq.," Colleen, and Doveman. Next week: Antony and the Johnsons, Jose Gonzalez, Michael Gira's Angels of Light, M. Ward, John Vanderslice, A Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra and Tra-La-La Band, Dirty Projectors, Viking Moses, and Jana Hunter.
wnyc.org: "The Danish filmmaker set Dancer in the Dark, Dogville, and Manderlay in America. But they were all shot on sound stages in Europe, because von Trier won't set foot in the United States." Listen here
This interview is part of "Us and Them" - Kurt Andersen and Azar Nafisi talk about how artists around the world view American art and culture.
news.bbc.co.uk: "2005 was arguably the year citizens really started to do it for themselves. Raising mobiles aloft, they did not just talk and text, they snapped, shared and reported the world around them." More
