I dunno man...get a girlfriend or something?

This was just too weird to not post here. From The Consumerist:

Going from strip poles to iron bars in one night, a Consumerist reader says he got tossed in jail when he refused to give a strip club his thumbprint. Their ATM was broken so he had to pay his tab using a credit card cash advance. The club demanded a thumbprint and he refused, so cops that were already there threw him in jail. Was this legal?

Our intrepid reader writes, “I was at a “gentleman’s club” in downtown Detroit and their ATM didn’t work so I had to get a credit card cash advance on some moneys owed on my tab.

They charge a premium for this obviously but I just wanted to pay up and go (about 160 bucks). It was the end of the night and police were there already for whatever reason. They ran my card (with my photo ID in hand) and came back asking for a thumbprint. I thought this was absurd and declined. Well the two uniformed police stroll up and side with the bouncers and say surrender the thumb print. I refuse. They say they’ll arrest me if I don’t. I still refuse and I am taken in for disorderly conduct. Everything was later dropped but still this all felt terribly fishy.

I owed a girl for a few dances (I told her I would need to hit the ATM if I was going to get a dance when she approached me) and drinks for me and a friend (those add up fast at nearly 9 dollars a pop). They wouldn’t put the dances on the bar tab and basically made me use their cash advance (not the bank’s) system where you pay 20% to the club to front you cash. The advance fee, dances and drinks all came to something in the neighborhood of the 160. I had about 4 failed pings to the ATM the next day that vanished from my online bank statement a couple days later. Everyone was paid what they were owed in full.

I had to spend a night in jail which was obviously uncool; the lawyer I spoke to said it might be more trouble than it’s worth and pursuing it would be more a matter of principal. Sometimes righteousness isn’t very cost effective, I guess.

I must also confess that I had a couple adult beverages that night but it was made very clear to me that the ultimatum was “thumb print or jail”. I returned to get my credit card from the bar and an employee reiterated that, “all you had to do was put down your thumbprint!” The cops even took a moment to relish in mocking me when I said I know my rights and said I’d call the ACLU. He must have had a change of heart because when I arrived at court none of the police paperwork had been filed and I was free to go.

Mostly, I’m curious about the legality of giving my thumbprint to any CC merchant that wants it. I tried very hard to look into this and couldn’t find much info.”

What do you think? Legal? Abuse of power? A right not worth fighting over?

Ah well, there go my plans to see the Star Wars strip nights in LA.

Ken Eakins

Bit larger than your average iPhone

VJ Fader, a fan of OTT club technology it would seem, has created the ultimate tactile trance-orientated portable touch screen…thingy. I say ‘thingy’, as other than a (very cool) toy, the faderTouch 3.0 is pretty pointless as a device, but very cool as a piece of art.

Fader is a fan of using visual art to stimulate musical output in new and innovative ways. Personally I think 1:44 is pretty cool sounding:

This isn’t the first time I have encountered Fader’s work. He also simulated a very Wilsonian ‘Processing Interactive Sequencer’.

…and this crazy ‘Orb’ exhibit.

Ken Eakins

Check DJ Fader on Vimeo and Myspace

I remember back in the day when these sorts of things used to appear all over the Interwebs. The problem, at that time, was the low-resolution screens and crappy moniters gave you the digital equivalent of a dirty hangover when you finished the starefest. Now, thanks to high-def screens, and hlf-decent graphics cards, we can finally experience these optical illusions without needing a post-stare-brain-scan.

The guys over at Unreality have compiled some great examples of these head-spinners:

I’m sure there are some even better ones, if you know of any, let us know!

(source – Unreality)

Ken Eakins

Carroll Poke Runyon explains Goetic Magick

Ignore it’s 70’s/80’s cheesiness, and this series is quite a find!

Goetic Magick is something that we have discussed with Lon Milo Duquette on one of our shows, but sometimes I think that you really need to see some of this stuff in practise to truly appreciate that it can be done.

The host, Carroll Poke Runyon aka Frater Thabion, does a pretty decent job of explaining some of the key ritual techniques (and pimps his companion book ):

His background in occult study and practice is extensive: in 1970, following a near-death experience, and a mystic vision, he became the founder of The Ordo Templi Astartes (O.T.A.). which is now America’s oldest continually operating Ritual magick Lodge. In 1980 Runyon received his Master’s Degree in cultural anthropology from California State University at Northridge, specializing in Magick. After graduate school he went through all the degrees of Freemasonry in both the Scottish and York Rites

The videos appear in 7 10 minute parts, and are quite extensive. Enjoy:

Ken Eakins

pic via - biccebitesbyhazel

Ever had problems explaining Bob Dobbs and Discordianism in court? Then watch this video we dug up on the tubes:

From the video blurb:

The incredulous defendant is required to explain the Subgenius spoof webtoy for declaring a Short Duration Marriage, the Shor-Dur-Mar. We have a sworn & witnessed reading of a reply from the recipient of the joke email generated when you fill out the Subgenius Form. This was then construed by the State as a real wedding.

After doing a little research, it would seem that the defendent is one Sondra London, who is described on Wikipedia as ‘The Queen of Serial Killer Groupies’. The case appears to be either in defense of, or providing ‘expert testimony’ for Danny Rolling, aka The Gainesville Ripper.

Talk about reality being stranger than fiction!

Ken Eakins

That's one way of collecting bounty I guess

I suppose that's one way of collecting bounty

LA is known for some of it’s more obscure attractions. This, however, is a work of genius:

Saturday night, downtown club Bordello temporarily transformed itself into Mos Eisley Cantina for a night of Tatooine-styled shenanigans helmed by Devil’s Playground. Star Wars Burlesque reimagined a host of beloved characters from the film series — from the sexy to the androgynous to the grotesque — as scantily clad female performers, with locals On Blast assuming the role of cantina band. Check out the cast of characters below.

The dream of so many boys.

One day I’ll goto a Star Wars strip show…one day.

Ken Eakins

(Source: LA Weekly, Pics: Shannon Cottrell)

"Urgh, last night was messy, I drank loads of wine, did a mountain of coke, and tattooed my eyeball."

"Urgh, last night was messy, I drank loads of wine, did a mountain of coke, and tattooed my eyeball."

Ok, so I can get my head around people inking their body, it’s a control thing, you are showing the world that you truly own your body. Although I am tattless, I can appreciate this concept.

What I can’t quite wrap my head around, however, is the need to tattoo your freaking EYEBALL!…yeah…I said EYEBALL!!

Why would you want to spend the rest of your time on earth looking like you had a really heavy night? Also, I don’t think these perps realise that if they rob a bank, mug someone, or basically commit any crime; identifying them will be reeeeallly easy. Dumbasses

Ken Eakins

Click to download full issues

Click to download full issues - Paraphilia IV Cover © 2010 John Coulthart

Paraphilia Magazine is one of those cool publications that you wished you’d stumble upon more often. A kind of art/avant/underground aggregator, published in a true magazine format, the mag is really coming into its own. I caught up with editors D.M. Mitchell and Dire McCain to get a bit more insight into the project:

1)  Tell us how Paraphilia Magazine came into existence. Díre: We’ve recently come to realize that PARAPHILIA has been in the works for the duration of our lives, but it didn’t begin to materialize until late 2008, when Dave and I were simultaneously struck with the idea amid a conversation one day.  It honestly started out as an impulsive leap that was driven by our deep dissatisfaction with the publishing industry.  Once the idea was germinated, we set out to make it a reality, by bringing in several of the absolutely brilliant people we’re surrounded by, who were gracious enough to donate material for the first issue.   And the rest, as “They” say, is history… 2)  What’s the ‘mission statement’ of the site and magazine? Díre: It’s difficult to pin down or summarize, but basically, we want to provide people with a venue where they don’t have to check themselves, where they won’t be censured or unjustifiably censored, where the almighty dollar doesn’t call the shots, and where they can find other like-minded souls nestled within our pages.

3)  Do you only publish online, or can we expect some hard copies of the mag?

© 2010 Sid Graves

Dave: Our original intention was to make the magazine a free publication. Only that way could we really stick to a non-elitist, non-stratified and uncensored programme. If we started making hard copies of it, we’d need to start charging for it simply to cover costs and that introduces all sorts of conditions that would totally change the direction. For starters, we would need to be more selective of the contents in terms of ‘salability’ and favour using more people who are already commercially established. We’d need to pay contributors and some contributors, being already professionals, would want more than others. At the moment, the magazine is like a playground for people where they can go crazy and do all the things that other publications might not let them do, in terms of style and content. We’ve toyed with the idea of making them retrospectively available as printed versions but have ditched that idea. Maybe we’ll do a sort of ‘Best Of’ at some point.

4)  How have the ‘netizens’ (I hate that term, sorry) taken to the site and mag?

Díre: Well, it’s been ten months since we launched PARAPHILIA, and so far, the response – from both readers and contributors – has exceeded our expectations tenfold.

Dave: I think we’ve hit the right combination at the right time. It’s incredibly gratifying.
5)  What inspired you to start selling books on the site? Are these your own releases?

Alex in Wonderland

Alex in Wonderland - © 2010 Sid Graves

Dave: We haven’t started publishing out own books as yet, but we will be doing in 2010. I’ve been involved in publishing since around 1991 doing work for Creation Books, Savoy Books and my own press for a while – Oneiros Books. People still want books and I believe a lot of them want something new and inspiring.  I’m confident that they don’t want to keep reading just the same old stuff from JK Rowling and Dan Brown. Not that I’m knocking either of those authors, but it’s true that most authors taking their work to publishers are being asked to write ‘something like Harry Potter’ or ‘something like the Da Vinci Code’.  Most books nowadays are churned out by big companies which are run by very unimaginative people who operate their businesses like sausage machines.

The ‘BOOKS’ page on our site at the moment is to promote books put out by independent presses, or simply individuals, stuff that is normally frowned on as ‘vanity publishing’ but which I see is the only area currently that is producing much that I’m interested in.

6)  I see you recently had a conversation with James Williamson, can we expect more audio from you guys?

Díre: That particular audio was comprised of the unused portions from the extensive article on James Williamson that’s featured in PARAPHILIA V, which can be found here:  http://www.paraphiliamagazine.com/magazine.html

We actually recorded two and a half hours of conversation that night, and rather than scrap the “leftovers” we decided to run it as a webcast.   Dave and I thought it would be interesting, since the magazine and some of its players are a featured topic of discussion.   The other motive was to give the fans a more complete picture of James – who really is a lovely, personable, easygoing soul – by giving them an opportunity to hear him rather than relying entirely upon the written.

There are currently a couple of tracks on the site that are related to material included in PARAPHILIA V.  Once the new music quarterly is up and running, we hope to feature more.  Not sure about more audio conversations, interviews, etc, but since we’re open to just about anything, the possibility definitely exists.

7)  What’s the future of the project? What can we expect to see in the near future? Dave: Dave: More issues of the magazine (including a new quarterly publication devoted to music), a lot of books, maybe some graphic novels, some music, a lot of madness, and hopefully a lot of fun for everyone involved. We’re not into ‘Serious’ culture (with a capital ‘s’ and a big frown).  We hope people simply enjoy what we’re doing as much as we are ourselves.  If we stop enjoying it, then it’s time to rethink and maybe change direction.

Dire: And of course, we intend to maintain our kamikaze mindset and delusional optimism, both of which have guided us from the get-go.

Ken Eakins

ZOMG!!!11!11!11one

ZOMG!

The modding culture is pretty much one of the geekiest, niche, yet super-cool communities out there. However, for this installment of Countertech I have tracked down a mod  to end all mods.

I’ve admited freely in the past that I am somewhat of a Star Wars nerd, and if you listen to our shows you will also know that computer games are often the cause of late episodes. So, imagine my shock when I found this badboy.

That’s right people, using a 1979 Kenner Millenium Falcon, a original Xbox, and epic amounts of win, the Major Leauge Mods team have finally combined two of our greatest geeky pasions! Not only that, they have given away the instructions for free in a amazingly detailed PDF.
If you need some help, the guys over at Instructables have added additional pics and videos to help you on your way.

Check out some of the pics below, and get modding:

The finished product

The finished product

Make sure you check out the PDF (linked above), before attempting this at home

Make sure you check out the PDF (linked above), before attempting this at home

Ken Eakins

laaaaame!

Goodnight Sweet Prince!

Urgh. So, one of the best live gig video sites on the net, http://www.fabchannel.com,  has closed down. I first discovered this amazing gem of a site a few years ago when looking for Bright Eyes concert footage (I was trying to prove they were crap both on album AND live). When I stumbled on FabChannel, I found a rich wealth of amazing shows featuring everyone from These Arms Are Snakes, to Girls Against Boys:

Back in March, the site ceased to exist.

Thankfully, because I hate it when sites don’t do this, site owner Justin Kniest has posted a massive blog entry outlining the reasons for the end of the site:

Fabchannel and the record Labels

No money means no content. That is the way the labels (major and independent) look at potential partnerships with internet companies. Even when it is obvious a service provides added value in promotion and sales, the mantra stays the same: no money, no content. Even when a service invests substantial amounts of money in creating high quality concert footage and an award winning platform to show it to the world, the mantra stays the same: no money, no content.

When you look at it from a label point of view it might even look logical. Their businessmodels have been hammered the last ten years by decreasing CD sales. Their radio, TV and newspaper partners are not doing their promotional job as they used to. And last but not least: the majority of consumers are now downloading tracks for free. All bad things for companies that invest in recordings of artists.

So the most important feature that new partners have to have is: MONEY. Money to counter the decrease in CD sales. Promotion has turned into a dirty word. MTV for example got big and wealthy by showing videoclips paid for by the labels. So now these labels think: We will not let that happen again. From now on everybody who wants to become a mediapartner online is going to have to pay upfront to even start!

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Growing up
Around 2007 it became obvious that we would have to start making some serious money on our own in order to survive. Subsidies were not going to be there forever and labels, collective rights agencies and publishers started seeing the commercial potential of the internet. That meant that for only showing the concerts we would have to pay a minimum amount per click to collective rights agencies and labels. So we had to come up with a plan to cover all of our cost without the help of subsidies.

First we looked at selling the concerts. A lot of our viewers mail us that they love our videos and want to have them as download or DVD. We pitched that idea to the labels, but not one of them saw it as an interesting businessmodel. And we do not have the rights to sell them ourselves. We need their approval.

We also did a lot of research on subscription models. The most important result from our research was that we did not have enough and appealing content to justify a subscription model that would cover our costs. If you have to pay 10 Euros per month to watch a concert archive and live webcasts you would want to see the big names too, right? Also we would have to lock up our archive which would seriously hinder the promotion of our upcoming bands. In the early days when we asked visitors to sign up to see our streams, 80% of them did not. We did not want to lose the thing we had going for us, promoting the bands that needed it.

As we do not bring in enough money to keep our service going we had to make very hard decisions. Of course we wanted to keep the archive online for you, but the cost of running the service is just too high and our money runs out. Even without us around, the money we have to pay collective rights agencies for showing the archive is way too much. And we will get sued immediately when we let you download the concerts from our archives for free.

We still believe in the concept we created. It worked as a promotional platform in the days CD’s were sold and it works today as a powerful promotion/sales platform. All of your warm replies made that even more obvious. But we also believe the next few years will be getting even more difficult as companies are forced to decrease their spendings on advertising and sponsoring. When on top of that the most important players in the music industry still don’t see what we bring to the table, nothing we can think up will help. We are fully dependent of them for recording artists.

So, goodnight sweet prince, you will be sorely missed.

Ken Eakins