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july 18 " (re)collect
One day I noticed that there were no more record sleeves spilled across my floor and my desk was suddenly free from the towering stacks of jewel cases that once provided it with a skyline. Everything was just too neat and clean, and no music lover should lead a Spartan lifestyle. For several months, a file folder on my hard drive has dictated my relationship with sound and, although this folder (cleverly titled 'mp3s') contains about nine weeks of excellent music, I care nothing for these songs. As far as my gut is concerned, it's all trash. Although the endless data stream effectively cleaned up my apartment, it devastated my sense of ownership and participation so I unplugged all of my file-sharing devices today.
I want to touch, open, and unwrap again; I need a living, breathing collection that takes up too much space on my shelves and gets messy and unruly and then organized again. It's a risk worth taking. A good collection is always in danger: it lives under the perpetual threats of time, weather, sloppy friends, and housecats. It needs protection; it needs me, and the constant vigil that only I can provide and understand.
The forgotten acts of touching, flipping, cataloguing, and sorting are what keep us sane. These rote maneuvers allow the background thoughts to surface in a way that can never happen while clicking through imaginary folders on an imaginary desktop. Sit down on your floor surrounded by stacks of vinyl (or CDs, books, or whatever your bent may be) and you'll discover a simple and meaningful yet terribly underrated activity that is tailor-made for rainy days. Our collections allow us to make associations in our own private ways: sort your records by name, year, genre, label, color, season, or emotional temperature - and then sort them all over again a few weeks or months later when your sense of order finds a new criterion.
Analogue collections are designed by their owners and these designs imitate our lives, mirroring our logic, underscoring our quirks, and changing with our thoughts. They make curators, architects, and artists out of all of us.
june 30 " underground station
The Kino-Glaz live set from May 4th's 'Meanwhile' event is now available for your listening delight. Download the mp3 (23 MB).
may 10 " recommendation #01
Four exciting ways to (re)discover the genius of Prince: Controversy, Dirty Mind, When You Were Mine, and Irresistible Bitch.
april 27 " quotation #01
"Our primary device is montage . . . but we do not neglect Construction. We deal with the material in a free manner, disregarding actual proportions . . . turning figures upside-down; in short, we employ everything that can make a busy passerby stop in their tracks" Vladimir Stenberg, 1928
april 26 " event #01
Red Antenna and e|i magazine present "Meanwhile..."
Marking the launch of e|i magazine, Red Antenna artists Karl Zeiss, Candy Chang, Addisko, and Kino-Glaz will perform live at Tonic on Sunday, May 4th. It's free and runs from 8pm-1am. DJ sets from Karl Zeiss and Stochastic, slideshows by Red Antenna's agitprop department, and free magazines for those who show up on time.
april 25 " the c train & other notes
Join Kino-Glaz on The C Train for an encouraging 49-minute sequence of techno favorites for your commute. Play it in Real Audio.
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As you can plainly see, the Kino-Glaz site is now on the interweb.
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After a long series of Cold War-style negotiations, Kino-Glaz has acquired the General Design Commission. Any further information will given on a need-to-know basis.
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