Rainbows and Puppy Dogs

Noam Chomsky Speech [DN!] - I know I said I wouldn't post political stuff, but this one's a doozy. Besides, it's the commentary that gets me a riled up. So none of that here. Just friggin' listen to it.

Rove Is Promoted To Deputy Staff Chief [W. Post] - again, no comment. But check this other Post article for more info.

Hey, everyone's favorite keytar-rockin' nu gaze band M83 is coming to DC. They'll be playing the Black Cat April 14th. Pitchfork has the full tour schedule. [Ok, I don't know if they actually use a keytar, but they're definitely NU-GAZE.]

Baby Name Wizard [via Lifehacker] - Sounds like a shitty band name or something, but it's really pretty neat. Look up your name and chart its popularity over time. (requires Java)

Podcasting Part 1

Have you heard about podcasting? It's likely you have, if you spend much time online, even if you don't quite remember what it's all about. The term (about a year old now) is a bit of a recent buzz word and has been cropping up more and more lately.

Podcasts are audio files, most often in the form of MP3, delivered to the user's computer via special RSS feeds which use enclosures (basically the same idea as email attachments). That's where the big deal of podcasting is—in their delivery. Using specialized aggregator software, these audio files are automatically downloaded to the listener's computer (and subsequently, a portable mp3 player) for listening at a later time. You subscribe to these feeds like you would an XML feed of someone's blog or of a news website, and instead of being delivered and experienced in realtime (such as a streaming broadcast, for example), they are downloaded and saved for listening at your convenience. Though the technology for podcasting is obviously much different, the end result is akin to what a Tivo does for video.

I won't get into the specifics of the technology at work here. You can read more about enclosures and the RSS 2.0 format elsewhere. I'd rather talk about the bigger picture.

As I mentioned earlier, the cool part of podcasting is in its delivery. That's what distinguishes it from the Internet broadcasting you are used to. Rather than streaming content (which we all know is often low quality and glitchy without a super fast connection), podcasting captilizes on the always-on-ness of broadband Internet access. Instead of clicking a link and waiting for it to queue up into a buffer and/or having to suffer through the often jumpy experience of streaming media, podcasts are downloaded when you are away from you computer, when your bandwidth is just going unused. The speed of delivery then becomes relatively unimportant. The aggregator software checks for new podcasts and downloads them when you are away. When you return, you have the entire file sitting locally on your computer ready to go. Sure, you could find a way to do this manually, but the magic comes in the elegance of the system.

The more I read about this stuff, the easier it is to see how podcasting fits into this bigger picture of emerging media technology. It's completely in line with the whole on-demand idea we're seeing in digital cable television and ever-increasing prevalence of DVRs. I think pretty much everything is going to move in that direction sooner or later.

Well, as you can see, this is hardly a comprehensive discussion. I suggest you check out the following links if you'd like to read more about podcasting and the ever-growing number of podcasts currently online.

In Part 2 of this post: A brief look at some of the more popular podcasts and my selfish reasons for caring about podcasting.

Podcasting Resources:

• ipodder.org - maintained by Adam Curry (yes, the former MTV VJ), co-creator of podcasting. Good info on the history and background of the phenomenon, as well as podcast listings and resources.
  
• Wikipedia entry - a decent overview of podcasting.
  
• iPodder 1.1 - one of the aforementioned aggregator programs used to get podcasts. Open source.
  
• PodcastAlley.com - a comprehensive site with podcast listings, reviews, links to relevant software, and user forums.
  
• audio.weblogs.com - the latest 100 podcasts.
  
• 'Podcasting' Lets Masses Do Radio Shows - a recent AP article on Yahoo News.
  
• howtopodcast.org - read how you can create your own podcasts.
  

The Soft News

Wanted: Just About Everything [Wired] - a look at the film 24 Hours On Craigslist, a documentary now showing at the San Francisco Independent Film Festival which “chronicles the outcome of more than 80 Craigslist postings from a single day.”

Google Maps [via BoingBoing, + many sites] - another new "beta" service from Google. Guess what it does.

Lifehacker is a new(ish) addition to the Gawker blog/media empire (which also includes big name blogs like Wonkette). They offer daily tips and how-to's on anything from importing album art into iTunes to the different ways to tie a shoe.

Do-It-Yourself Smart Radio Station [via Lifehacker] - here's a good one I found through Lifehacker. This guy details a fairly intricate system of Smart Playlists he has set up in iTunes and on his iPod in order to serve up a rotation of new and old songs, in effect creating something like a personalized portable radio station.

**I've decided to keep away from the political and real-world news, at least for a while. It makes me ANGRY.

Pernice Bros DVD

Just a quick one: If it wasn't for today's Pitchfork review of this Pernice Brothers tour DVD, Nobody's Listening/Nobody's Watching, I wouldn't have known that one of my favorite bands of 2003 had even released such a thing. Where's my head at these days? This thing has been out since December and I've neither heard nor seen anything about it. Thanks, Pitchfork! [I still like you despite what everyone else says.]

If you haven't yet heard Joe Pernice & Co's most recent album, Yours, Mine & Ours, I hiiiighly recommend it. It's one of those front-to-back pop records you'll just wear the hell out of once it's sunken in. I was lucky enough to catch them playing at the Ottobar up in Baltimore (12.20.03), so I can faithfully recommend their live show as well.

I just went on over to their official site to order myself a copy of the DVD and accidentally purchased the reissue of their 2002 tour EP as well. Whoops. Oh well, it's always nice to buy direct.

Sunday Listener

Seeing Kings of Convenience last night was not to be. Thanks to equal parts of me running late and the club's malevolent ticket policies, I arrived to find that the show had already sold out. And I knew I'd have to get there early to get stamped—it just didn't come together. Yes, another notch in my belt for shows missed due to this shitty venue. Thanks again, Iota Club and Cafe. I hate you more than ever. Ya know, the $16 cover was a bit steep anyway. Not to mention all the goofy couples likely to be inside, swaying to the gentle folky sounds of these S & G wannabes. Eff 'em. I walked back home the long way and listened to bands I like better.

What's the consenus on the new M83 record, Before the Dawn Heals Us? I, for one, am not feeling it, Frenchy. No sir, monsieur. I really enjoyed M83's 2nd album, the critically acclaimed Dead Cities, Red Seas & Lost Ghosts, but even that record already had the band teetering on the edge of retro cheese. In fact, it came so dangerously close to cornball, I was almost afraid of where they'd go next. Now that the new album is out, my fears have been confirmed as it now seems that maybe Nicolas Fromageau (formerly half of the duo, which is now just uno) was keeping them from falling into this vat of fondue. All the heavy synth leads and those phony 80's toms, which in the context of Dead Cities often made me smile, now make my ears angry. To be fair, I'll give it a few more listens. I suppose the first single, “Don't Save Us From the Flames,” isn't actually that bad.

The new Prefuse 73 album, Surrounded By Silence (due out in March), sounds pretty good so far. Pitchfork has the tracklist. As you can see, it's almost all collaborations with guest MCs and other bands. First impressions: I tend to like the non-MC collaborations better. Maybe I'm just too white, but “Hideyaface” which features El-P and Ghostface Killah (posted on Monday at Music For Robots) falls a little flat to these ears. On the other hand, “Now You're Leaving” (with Camu) is pretty wicked. The Books(!) remix/collab “Pagina Dos” and the closer “And I'm Gone” (which has something to do with Broadcast and upcoming Prefuse side project Piano Overlord) hit my sweet spot just like that. This is another one to grow on, however, and I'm sure my thoughts on this album will settle a bit with repeated listening.

Song of the week (file under nostalgia): Ride “Decay” [go there]

Next up: A post about podcasting will appear here soon. Plus, a little something about what I've been reading lately.