You know that guitar sound at the start of "Touch Me I'm Sick"? Or when Keith plays the big riff in "Satisfaction"? That's fuzz. I love fuzz, and I was very happy to stumble across this fine documentary about fuzz pedals and their makers. Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 7, Part 8 Should be enough there to sustain your interest for a while... (Previously...)
posted by awfurby on Mar 22, 2009 - 28 comments

Looking to boost your mad Photoshop skillz? Here's a trio of sites that offer the latest in PS tips and tricks. Best Photoshop Tutorials has vectors, icons, and free brushes. PShero works with effects and shapes, and Photoshop Girl features photograph enhancement. That should get you started.
posted by netbros on Feb 19, 2009 - 15 comments

Legendary special effects artist Stan Winston has passed away from cancer at the age of 62. From Mr. Roboto to the Terminator to Iron Man, he leaves an almost unparalleled body of work.
posted by dersins on Jun 16, 2008 - 62 comments

Shoegazer 101 Shoegazing (also known as shoegaze or shoegazer; practitioners referred to as shoegazers) is a genre of alternative rock that emerged from the United Kingdom in the late 1980s. It lasted until the mid 1990s, peaking circa 1990 to 1991. The British music press (notably NME and Melody Maker) called this genre "shoegazing" because the musicians in these bands often maintained a motionless performing style, standing on stage and staring at the floor while playing their instruments; hence, the idea that they were gazing at their shoes. The shoegazing sound featured extensive use of guitar effects, and indistinguishable vocal melodies that blended into the creative noise of the guitars. Some notable bands are Ride, Lush, Swervedriver, Slowdive, Curve, and American bands Lilys and the Swirlies. [more inside]
posted by psmealey on Oct 3, 2007 - 113 comments

A world of sounds. Despite their difficult URL, The Freesound Project has grown at a rapid pace over the last year, arguably surpassing archive.org's audio library when it comes to sound effects, field recordings, site design, and usability. Now Freesound is combining their sound library with geotagging and Google Maps, allowing users to navigate the world by sound too! (previously on mefi)
posted by insomnia_lj on Mar 4, 2006 - 11 comments

The Steam Tank is a brief visual effects reel by Chris Paul, from the Vancouver Film School. It begins with a somewhat mundane steam powered tank attacking a mounted gun in a downtown building, but then replays the event shot by shot, showing the original filmed plate, and adding on each cgi component, to give a good idea of how cg & reality interface in an effects piece. warning: link goes to direct download of 56MB QuickTime mov
posted by jonson on Feb 7, 2006 - 13 comments

CrusFX 1000 - Holy power to thrash

Justin Frankel creator of Winamp, is up to new tricks.
posted by sourbrew on Nov 11, 2004 - 6 comments

Videohelper.com sells music and sound effects to film/video producers. Here's their FAQ. It's the most fun FAQ I've ever read when I wasn't even trying to have fun. Though they are a serious business, their entire site is in this style. I want to work there!
posted by grumblebee on Oct 23, 2003 - 10 comments

Will we ever know what is real anymore? The making of the Matrix sequels. After these movies, will we ever be able to tell what is real or not on the small and large screen?
posted by npost on Apr 8, 2003 - 72 comments

Not that I'm into that sort of thing, but PillReports - apparently a spinoff of BlueLight (wonder how much KMart offered for that one) - offers moderated discussion about Ecstacy, so you might be able to get some idea of what that pill you just paid $20 for is likely to do to you. Things there aren't verified by actual lab tests like they are at DanceSafe, but it's better than being completely uninformed.
posted by endquote on Mar 27, 2000 - 3 comments