It's directed by Casey Pierce, who has done work with Twen, Molly Martin, Jessie Baylin and so many more. The video itself evokes the infamous Eames "Powers of Ten" short or the 1982 cult classic feature Koyaanisqatsi. It exists on an epic scale - from celestial bodies to earthly creations to cellular division. It's a video that begs to be immersed in, not watched casually.
Much of the feedback I've heard about the sugar sk*-*lls music so far is that people have a hard time connecting with the vocoder vocals. I understand this take but I'd point out that the robotic nature of the vocals is sort of the point, since the content of the lyrics is incredibly emotional. Listening to the lyrics on "Two-Chambered" is a legitimately moving experience for me. Particularly this bit:
I know where to look
But not where to find you
Within memory
All I know is this
It strikes me as heartbreaking - searching for someone but knowing they only exist as a memory. It is delivered by a robotic voice but it's as human as it gets.
Anyway, I'm superbly biased on my enjoyment of the video and the song but I think you'll dig it. I hope so at least!
Wonder Popular Science piece here on successful nuclear fusion. Scientists have now been able to fuse atomic nuclei and get an energy gain - more energy coming out than going in. About 1.5 times as much coming out. Not a huge amount but a fairly momentous step forward in the realm of science. Even more exciting is that they've been able to do it more than once.
The article is enlightening but, truth be told, I got the majority of my comprehension on this topic from the latest episode of The Cross Cut, my bi-weekly podcast that combines recent news with film chatter. Hosts Jesse and Forest talk about the fusion and the 1997 film The Saint. One they liked, one they did not. I'll let you guess which.
A great listen and a fascinating topic to learn more about.
A very neat idea of which I am quite skeptical. I’m sure Netflix has the infrastructure to make it happen but a controller on a smooth phone seems… not fun. Subjective tho! Will give it a whirl.
Eleven years ago I had the good fortune to be hired by VHX; a startup that pivoted from being a video sharing platform to being a video distribution platform. Casey Pugh and Jamie Wilkinson built a team of eight people to develop the ways and means of getting video directly from the creator to the audience without needing a middleman to make the sale.
In 2016, Vimeo acquired VHX and rebranded it to Vimeo OTT. I've been with that same product for eleven years and today is my last day.
It is bittersweet! I have a new job opportunity working with ex-VHX'er Kathleen Barrett; the now CEO of Mosaic and my new boss. I could not be more excited for what I will be working on with her and the team at Mosaic. More on that later.
Despite my excitement for the new thing, I have a lot of loyalty to the VHX product. It isn't perfect software by any means but it is a pretty incredible piece of work. It powers Criterion Channel, World of Wonder, Dropout and loads of other services that you likely know. And some you don't know but should.
I learned an absolute mountain of things working at VHX / Vimeo. I started as a designer, I morphed into client services, I grew into Head of Client Solutions, I pivoted to Product Manager and am leaving as Head of Product, Vimeo OTT. Not too shabby for eleven years.
I am thankful for everyone I got to work with. I've made a load of great friends in my time there and hope to keep in touch with each and every one of them.
Nice that they offer an opt out. Comes across as a little too late but maybe they will untrain based on future opt outs?? Unlikely but interesting to know this exists regardless
a compilation album from a label worth knowing. The first two preview tracks are wonderful and the track-by-track writeup makes me even more hype for its release in Sept.
I've been working with the band sugar sk*-*lls for around a year preparing their new album, Star Time. After much preparation, today we're finally able to unleash the fruits of our labor on the world.
First and foremost, the video for "Becomes Me" is now available. It was directed by Dycee Wildman and it's an absolute blast. It's got witches, it's got rituals, it's got loads of synth. I'm biased but I'm such a big fan of what she was able to do.
Along with that video is the "Becomes Me" maxi-single - a mini-EP of sorts that takes the album track and pairs it with 2 remixes and a bonus track. The wildest part is that the bonus track is a cover from another band of a different album track. It is a bizarre and strange idea that I really can't express my affection for enough.
Lastly, but not leastly, is the new full-length album Star Time is now available for pre-order. It's set for release on October 6th and can be procured in digital form or as 2x Deluxe Cassette; featuring all of the remixes and covers compiled into a special mixtape.
There will be plenty more to share about this project over the coming months and I am overjoyed to start spreading the word. Please indulge and spread the word.
