I like the look of this too... Incoboto for iPad

Another game @myopicaardvark recommended was Incoboto for the iPad... it looks awesome and sounds tremendous too.

In fact, the soundtrack is on Bandcamp and is by Dene Carter. I've embedded it below for you to have a wee listen to. I really like it.

Enjoy.

Tx

I like the look of this... Waking Mars for iOS

WAKING MARS - Official Trailer from Tiger Style on Vimeo.

When @myopicaardvark raves about a new iOS game... I tend to listen... and boy was he raving about Waking Mars this morning.

I'm going to check it out... and I thought I'd share it with you... in case you were up for some Red Planet action.

Tx

Birdhouses and serendipity

This is the home of a couple of blue tits... they have been coming each Spring for the last 5 or 6 years... faithfully.

Unfortunately this home is no more. Yesterday morning a big fat cat sat on the house (try saying that fast) and took it off the fence. Fortunately our wee family hadn't laid any eggs... no one was hurt... not even the cat... although I will if it comes back to Olly's garden.



Anyway... on Saturday, for Mother's Day, the girls bought Olly this fantastically bright and gaudy birdhouse. It was meant to be decorative... a colourful addition to the garden... but it is now in use!!!



Talk about serendipity... who would have thought, when we bought the new birdhouse, that it would become the new home of our wee family... especially so soon after we bought it?



It really did make my heart sing to see them this afternoon.

Tx

Two posters I designed recently...

I love designing posters and was privileged to work with Leanne Laird on the top one for an upcoming event at the Clydebank Salvation Army... I was also delighted to volunteer my services for the poster for the next "Rock the Hospices" charity event that's organised by pals of mine at work. Both clients were delighted with the outcome... as was I.

Some days I wish I could work in Photoshop for a living.

Tx

Some pictures from my front window...

A few more photos of birds... taken with my Nikon d60 with the 55-200mm lens... from the front window next to my front door... including the first time I had ever seen two Robins together.

Tx

Two videos from PBS' Off Book series - Book Art and Product Design

I found both these videos from PBS' "Off Book" series for hopefully obvious reasons.

Take some time out and watch them... Tx

Listening to... Globetronica's broadcasts

I have a soft spot for "global beats"... that catch-all term for electronica-infused world music. I'm not sure how I got into this wide and all-encompassing genre... I think it could have been my love of reggae, dub and One Giant Leap... or it could be the Future World Funk compilations I had on vinyl... I'm not too sure.

Anyway... I some how came across the Globetronica website recently and have been smitten by their podcasts. The have three main broadcasts:

• "The Globetronica Broadcast"... an eclectic and deeply exotic two hour show that features the best music from around the world.
• "Frequent Flyer"... a deeply chilled hour long mix intended to make your journey above the clouds a peaceful one.
• "Yoga Sonic"... another chilled hour long mix... this time it is intended as the backing for a yoga session or a post-session come-down.

They also feature other DJs but I haven't been as interested in those mixes... the work of DJ Pathaan is more than sufficient for me just now.

I have spent most of this afternoon working my way through the second instalment of each of their broadcasts. The Frequent Flyer and Yoga Sonic mixes make for excellent listening material at work... when trying to remove distraction and focus... and The Globetronica Broadcast transitioned nicely from the office to the gym via my commute home.

I would heartily recommend these mixes... each of them displays both a breadth and a depth of content... in their own unique ways. In fact, the Yoga Sonic mix I listened to earlier got me thinking about restarting my yoga practice.

If you are looking for something different to listen to then you can do far worse than checking out these mixes... they are now in my Downcast and I anxiously await fresh material.

I haven't check out the Magazine and Reviews sections of the site but I will... I have a feeling this site will become an important music site for me in the near future.

Tx

Watching... PBS presents Type

"Typefaces are not toys... they are tools."

I love this mini-documentary from PBS. Grateful to Brainpickings for the heads-up.

Enjoy!

Tx

My thoughts on "Ólgusjór" by Lockerbie

Every-so-often I hear something that is just so wonderful it stops me in my tracks. To be honest, it's been happening more and more lately... maybe I am becoming more selective or maybe the quality of the music I listen to has increased significantly... I don’t know but either way I am thoroughly enjoying what I am getting the opportunity to listen to.


One such album that made me stop and listen is “Ólgusjór” by the Icelandic band, Lockerbie. My initial thought was that they were a less ethereal, more straight-down-the-middle Sigur Ros (please note: I am a huge fan of Sigur Ros). This isn’t a lazy join-the-dots comparison... musically they genuinely sound like Sigur Ros... and I, for one, can not get enough of them.

For the rest of the review... please visit my post on thisisnotascene

Please Note: 
I received this album to review for Alternative Matter and thought it wasn't going to be used... so I posted it here instead. Turns out it was used at thisisnotascene instead... so I've truncated my post here so Google doesn't have a fit.

Some photos from today

I haven't posted some pics on this blog for a wee while because, if I am honest, I've been in a bit of a funk with my photography of late. I was bitterly disappointed when I didn't get to second at a wedding recently and... well... I kind of lost interest for a while. What's more... the gang of photogs at my work have all went their own way... and I'm not as free at lunchtime now that I'm a gym-bunny.

Anyway... I got out into Olly's garden this morning with my trusty Nikon and was able to get a few shots. Olly also moved the pole we hang the fat balls off of to the front garden and was able to get some shots of our starlings... I say "our" because they live in a gap on our roof.

I can't wait for the clocks to change as we head into Spring... I'm in desperate need of some light. Hopefully the muse will inspire me once more.

Tx