Giant Robot Store and GR2 News
Sometimes, this stuff is the best. [youtube]FfweZ-mVjQE[/youtube]
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I’ve always suspected that the reason why the iPhone gets outsold in Asia is its inability to allow the user to decorate it with cell phone charms. I’m pretty sure I’m right. Cell phone charms are BIG business. A Tokyo 3D printing company has joined the decades long trend for a niche market – pregnant ladies. Their primary product is a personalized 3D printed model of your baby in utero. You can go old school and get a 2D grainy, black and white scan of your spawn and try to guess which body part is which. You can even upgrade to a 4D ulstrasound and get clearer images and video of your lumpy baby, OR for $1,200 you can go all the way and get this resin model based on your 4D ultrasound, that is shaped like your pregnant gut. It’s great for carrying in your purse to show off to friends and family, and also doubles as a paperweight! And don’t forget about your cell phone – the company throws in a free miniature cell phone charm version so you can show everyone what your not-yet-born baby looks like without having to carry your resin model around with you all the time. The company is diversifying their product line. In addition to the resin models, and the bonus cell charms, they will also be offering 3D models of just the mushy face of your baby. Baby faces sort of fall into all-rook-same status at this point in fetal development, but I imagine there’s a growing market for this, and not just in tech-wacky Japan.
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Old friends, new bands! I closed out Thanksgiving weekend by seeing Mayuko and Tsuzumi Okai from The Binges in their new group (above) but first things first. I finally got around to catching Dum Dum Girls drummer Sandy in the outfit that she fronts, SISU, on Friday at The Satellite. Along with fellow Dum Dum Jules and friends Ryan, Nathanael, and Chris, Sandy’s “other” band is psychedelic, dark, and gorgeous. It’s way heavier than DDG and also more Goth and complex with its swirling textures and sounds. There are five people in the band for a reason, and the heavy instrumentation supports the ethereal vocals of Sandy insanely well. I bought a hand-stenciled and spray-painted EP to go with my splattered 7″ single and can’t wait to give it a spin. Check ‘em out at the Casbah tonight or Constellation Room tomorrow night if you can. The headliner was Colleen Green, who was practically the opposite of SISU with her ultra stripped-down sound of natural vocals, raw bass, and drum machine. Combine the sincerity of Beat Happening with the lo-fi experimental sound of Blackbird (post Rank & File, Dils) and put sunglasses on it, and you’re getting close to Colleen’s sound. She showed a great sense of humor about her icy cool demeanor by closing her set with a Corey Hart cover. The Okai sisters’ previous band, The Binges, recalled the rock ‘n’ roll spirit of the Cathouse scene of the ’80s. Their newer group, Boost is as ripping as ever but heavier and more influenced by ’70s hessian grooves like Sabbath or Deep Purple. All new songs and all new riffs but there’s still nothing like seeing Mayuko and Tsuzumi dueling on their axes. I don’t know anything about the new singer or drummer (yet) but the band rules and you gotta check them out when you can. More details to come in this blog, for sure. Sunday night’s show at King King was part of the New Years World Rock Festival, which is being shot in five countries and will be shown in Japan. The headlining band showcased finger-tapping bass master Billy Sheehan (Mr. Big, UFO, MSG, David Lee Roth, Steve Vai) in a jam band with Mayuko, Eric Dover (Jellyfish, Slash’s Snakepit), and Ray Luzier (9.0, David Lee Roth, Korn). They played masterful, ripping covers from Led Zep to Deep Purple, with Tsuzumi jumping in for the final song. This top-shelf rock ‘n’ roll was intended to help tsunami victims in Japan but felt pretty excellent for us in the crowd, too.
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Coffee drinkers… his work is the stuff that you see passed around online. “Ohhh, cool” It’s a quick thrill and poof it’s on your FB page. There are more photos at the link. (Toxel – Latte Art) Also see his twitter, there’s plenty of links to images.
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“North Korea’s top leader named The Onion’s Sexiest Man Alive for 2012.” Either the have the greatest sense of humor of all time, or they just don’t know how to research. Yet, to his defense, he is looking dapper on his horse. (People’s Daily – Sexy Kim Jong Un)
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