February 17, 2018

Take it to the bridge!

Birmingham UK's GorillaBot take a Robodyssey to discover that I'm Just A Robot
posted by Catblack at 10:27 PM PST - 6 comments

Punk Rock Church—Cult?

Longread. Church becomes cult? Survivors bond into ... a cult? And so on.
posted by MovableBookLady at 6:31 PM PST - 28 comments

“frenetic yet orchestrated ballet of sword slashes and bullet-speed art”

You've never played a game quite like Bayonetta [GQ] “There’s also a pair of high powered pistols attached to her absurdly high-heeled shoes. Oh, and the game darts between biblical analogy and sexual innuendo quicker than Bayonetta herself can backflip into the air to shoot a horde of angry angels with her deadly Louboutins. That near-the-knuckle approach to sex and sexuality is often gratuitous, especially when you’re forced to watch the nth slow-motion crotch shot while you loudly insist to your girlfriend, “Really, this is not what it looks like.” But the game also takes the time to empower Bayonetta. She’s a fantastic female lead and it’s refreshing to play as her rather than just another one of the bone-headed muscle men that are rife in most action games. She’s absolutely the star of the show, and both games string together some of the most absurdly bombastic set-piece moments you’ve ever seen on screen, in a way that’s so audacious you’ll wonder how it continuously ups the ante.” [YouTube][Trailer] [more inside]
posted by Fizz at 6:18 PM PST - 54 comments

Blackhats

The Family Tree of the Noir Western
posted by Artw at 5:39 PM PST - 17 comments

Love the second time around

He woke her in the middle of the night.

"Will you marry me," he asked.

"Of course I will, darling," she replied, a bit saddened.

Truth was, Michael and Linda Joyce had been married for 34 years, but Michael is battling Alzheimer's and he'd forgotten.
[more inside]
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 1:44 PM PST - 16 comments

"The first Phoenicians on this beach"

Hanno the Navigator was Carthaginian explorer who traveled south along the African coast in the sixth Century BCE. He left behind an account of his journey, a periplus, which among other things gave the world the word "gorilla", which may have been a kikongo phrase originally. It can be read in English translation on Livius along with scholarly notes by Jona Lendering. Hanno's brother Himilco was also an explorer, venturing north along the Atlantic coast of Europe. Lionel Casson puts Hanno in context of the history of exploration. While reading the links, you might want to listen to folk rocker Al Stewart's 2008 song Hanno the Navigator.
posted by Kattullus at 12:29 PM PST - 14 comments

"I thought I'd had one too many wines for my birthday lunch," she said

"I was just trying to enjoy my book when all of a sudden an earthquake happens..." At 14:31:05 today, Britain suffered its largest earthquake for over a decade, being felt across major population centres such as Cheltenham, Manchester, Blackpool, Rhyl and Salford. The 'massive' quake centred on the village of Cwmllynfell (pronounced 'Cwmllynfell') in Wales, at a depth of 7km, and is the 17th in the UK so far this year. "I posted on Facebook immediately." While residents carried on or prioritised, and cats startled, questions have been asked. Please send British tea and moist crumpets.
posted by Wordshore at 11:38 AM PST - 63 comments

Don't call it a comeback: Dabrye finishes his x/3 trilogy after 17 years

The final installment in Dabrye's trilogy was worth the wait (Doug Coombe, Detroit Metro Times)
Dabrye is musician Tadd Mullinix's hip-hop producer alter ego. His first album One/Three came out in 2001, a unique hybrid of techno influences (Detroit techno, Warp Records, and kindred labels) and the classic hip-hop productions of Pete Rock, DJ Premier, the Bomb Squad, and J Dilla in particular. His second album, Two/Three, came out in 2006 and featured his hero J Dilla and Phat Kat on the single "Game Over," as well as Waajeed, Invincible, MF Doom, and Guilty Simpson. And then... pretty much silence from Dabrye.
That is, until now. Behold: Three/Three, featuring "a dream lineup of both Detroit (Danny Brown, Clear Soul Forces, Nolan The Ninja) and national (MF Doom, Ghostface Killah) MCs." [more inside]
posted by filthy light thief at 10:11 AM PST - 6 comments

Wolkoff To Pay $150kto each 5Pointz Artist

Gerald Wolkoff Pays for Destroying 45 Works Of Art Judge Federico Bloc orders Gerald Wolkoff to pay maximum damages to the artists whose graffiti art he whitewashed over in 2013.
posted by Yellow at 9:21 AM PST - 23 comments

Farid Ayaz & Abu Muhammad

Farid Ayaz & Abu Muhammad sing “Kaan Roz ke Rooh” & “Adam Amad Babadan” [more inside]
posted by mahershalal at 5:22 AM PST - 9 comments

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