Cool Hunting
| 03 October 2006view entries from: this week | this month | view previous day | view next day |
Christopher Willits: Surf Boundaries
by Mike Reger
Christopher Willits may not yet be a household name but with previous releases for experimental labels like 12K, Sub Rosa and Plop and a list of collaborations with the likes of Kid606, Matmos, Taylor Deupree (12K), Latrice Barnett (Handsome Boy Modelling School), Paul D'Amour (Tool), and even Ryuichi Sakamoto, Willits has already laid a foundation for a strong following in indie electronic music circles and beyond.
His upcoming album, Surf Boundaries (due out 17 October 2006), is a gorgeous blend of shoegazer guitar, custom-designed software, glitchery, lush 5-part vocal harmonies, treated brass and strings, and jazz improvisation, perfectly timed for the changing colors of fall. Willits' label Ghostly International bills it "Avant Pop" and while the juxtaposition of those terms may seem ironic or contrary to the uninitiated, Surf Boundaries is no hipster fodder. It's genuinely beautiful mature song-craft, unafraid of taking on the bleeding edge.
Hear a free mp3 now at Ghostly International or pre-order from Amazon.
Communicating with Pattern: Circles and Dots
by Letizia Rossi
Circles and Dots proclaims, "the world is rounder than you think." Packed with amazing images of circular shapes in nature, art and design, as well as facts and historical context, it's as much about inspiration as it is a practical desk reference. The work of freelance brand consultant Mark Hampshire and Keith Stephenson of Absolute Zero Degrees (whose clever wallpaper and children's tableware designs we love), the anthology of round shapes also explores the way that circles can represent inclusion, while dots can signify rebellion, illustrated by examples from political propaganda and street signs.
The edition is one of the first in Rotovision's new series of books, Communicating with Pattern, which pays homage to the most basic and essential design elements in all their incarnations. Each volume is a unique look at how we communicate with a single pattern and the complete set hopes to be a "bible of pattern" for designers of all walks of life. The series currently includes a book on Stripes (also by Mark and Keith), with books on Squares, Checks, and Grids to follow. You can find both Rotovision.
