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Radio OK Fred 22

As promised, here we are with a brand new episode of Radio OK Fred (22), the “Robot” episode. Yes, that’s us trying to act cyborg-like with a few wires sticking out — and from the looks of it, I’m a pretty broken machine I think. Below is the link to download the episode as well as the playlist, and you can subscribe to a feed too.

Radio OK Fred 22 (50MB)

1. Kraftwerk – “The Robots”
2. Prefuse 73 – “Robot Snares Got No Cadence or Balance”
3. RJD2 – “Chicken-Bone Circuit”
4. Playdoe – “Neolectro Afrobotic”
5. La Chatte – “Cosmique Cosmétique”
6. Universal Robot Band – “Dance and Shake Your Tambourine”
7. Cornelius – “Brazil”
8. Röyksopp – “The Girl and the Robot”
9. James Kochalka – “Monkey vs. Robot”
10. Breakbot – “Happy Up Here (Breakbot Remix)”
11. Dan Deacon – “Jimmy Joe Roche”
12. Born Ruffians – “I Need a Life (Four Tet Remix)”

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Where Hast Thou Been?

Don’t you just hate posts that refer to the lack of posts on a blog? Oh well, such is what you must deal with on occasion, as your humble blogger feels the need to assure everyone that it “ain’t dead yet.”

I’m coming off what has a been quite a project — it’s no secret that I’m a contributor to the upcoming updates to The Rough Guide to Tokyo and Japan, set to come out in early 2011. I still have a bit of follow-up work to do, but the bulk of it was handed in the other day, and so suddenly I have a bit more breathing room.

Throughout this I continue with my work for PechaKucha — for those who don’t know, part of what I do there is update the PechaKucha Daily blog, but I do a lot of stuff on the administrative side of things as well. And without going into details, I can tell you that I’m lining up a lot of interesting things for PK this year, and I can’t wait to see it come to fruition, and be able to share it with everyone.

Part of this involves the fact that this year I’ve associated myself with Amsterdam-based art director Luis Mendo, a good friend I’ve mentioned on this blog a few times, and who I met just last year when he came to Japan for a 3-month “inspirational retreat.” Luis runs his own company, GOOD Inc., for which he pulls help from the Goodfellas Network, an amazing collection of potential collaborators who work in pretty much all fields. Not only am I a “Goodfella” — both professionally and personally, me thinks — but me, Luis, and graphic designer and artist Hiyoko Imai have formed a Japan branch of GOOD Inc. Our expertise is magazine-related production, so do get in touch if you are interested in working with us. And yes, we are currently developing something PK-related (which is how this paragraph came about).

Other than that, SNOW Magazine continues at a fine pace, and if you missed it, here’s a media kit we recently put together for the site — it includes details about advertising on the site, both pricing and placement, as well as a few reasons on why you might want to do so. I’m of course very excited about the upcoming “SNOW Magazine Cafe” event as well, and have already gotten lots of amazing contributions — imagine my surprise when the first email I received after announcing it came from The New York Times Magazine! If you’d like to participate, please get in touch. Oh, and there’s a great collaboration with the site Poolga coming too.

I think that’s enough for now. Yes, I’ve got my hands in other things — of course — and I’ll try to cover more of it here in the days/weeks to come. For all you Radio OK Fred fans, a bit of good news: me, Ay2, and Yoshi are getting together next Wednesday to record a new episode, so expect that to be online very soon (very likely on that day).

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Delightfully Tacky, Yet Unrefined

It’s been a while since we’ve had photos to share from a PauseTalk, so big thanks to Martin Holtkamp for sending me these from last night’s edition (Vol. 40).

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Confiture Love

My dog Confiture did in fact get a lot of love at last night’s PauseTalk (Vol. 40), posing with a few of the attendees. Much thanks to Martin Holtkamp for the photo above.

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PauseTalk Vol. 40

HUGE thanks to everyone who made it out to PauseTalk Vol. 40 tonight to help me celebrate the event’s 4th anniversary. The conversation maybe wasn’t so smooth — due to the turnout of 30 or so — but it was great to see so many people there, and the overall vibe was definitely good. Lots of people were there for the first time, and they mentioned really looking forward to the next edition. And big thanks to Design Festa‘s Stephen Lebovits for treating everyone with tickets to this weekend’s bash at Tokyo Big Sight. Even my dog showed up to help celebrate, and seemed to be quite the hit with those who went outside to hang out with him for a bit.

Since it’s become so difficult to keep track of everyone who comes, I think it’s time to stop with the attendee lists, especially since they are always so incomplete. Also, I mentioned it in passing towards the end, but I’m going to have a special game-themed edition sometime this summer (not a regular edition) with the idea of bringing together people working in the industry. More details to be revealed when we eventually choose a date. The next regular edition of PauseTalk (Vol. 41) happens June 7.

Update: Here are a couple of photos from last night’s event, as well as one of my dog posing with attendees.

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PauseTalk Tonight

And so following a post that announces “PauseTalk Next Week,” we get a post that asserts “PauseTalk Tonight.” Start time is the usual 20:00, although we have the cafe from 19:30. Come join us for Vol. 40, which also marks PT’s 4th anniversary!

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PauseTalk Next Week

Enjoying the Golden Week holiday? Don’t forget that this month’s edition of PauseTalk is coming up on Monday (May 10) at Cafe Pause, with the usual start time of 20:00. As I mentioned a few weeks ago, this will be Vol. 40, and it also marks PauseTalk’s 4th anniversary, so even though we’re not having an official party or anything, I intend to celebrate with a drink or two (or three). Do come on down to help mark the occasion — and the cafe is reserved from 19:30, so feel free to come early.

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SNOW Magazine Cafe Update

I announced the SNOW Magazine Cafe event a couple of days ago, and already I’ve been getting some great feedback — lots of people who wish they could actually come to Tokyo to attend — and also lots of contributions. I think we have the makings of something special, and I’m already excited about coming up with some new elements to add to the month-long celebration.

Also, I’ve set up a more permanent area for the event, so please feel free to share that link instead of the post on SNOW Magazine. I’ll also be using that space for future updates, both before the start of the event, and during. Notice that “2010” in the title at the top of the page? Sure, why not make this into an annual event. And I’m certain that whatever I learn from putting together this year’s edition will contribute to making an even better event next year.

And again, if you are a publisher of (or work on) an art, design, or culture magazine and would like to participate, it’s as easy as sending me your latest issue. Zines are also welcome — I do love those too — and Ian Lynam is already going to help me put together a nice selection for the event.

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Fuji

Ah, yes, Fuji-san, something I’ve been lucky enough to see a few times this past month as I continue research for the new editions of the Rough Guide for Tokyo and Japan. The view pictured above is from the train as I leave the Fuji Five Lakes area. Oh, and I’ve now become completely addicted to the joys of the Japanese onsen.