Okay kiddos, kiddies, ex-kids, big kids, and everything in between!  Today we’re gonna talk about a little band called CAN.

But first I must preface this whole thing (as usual), starting with the fact that I really did try to come up with some sort of comprehensive list for the ending of the decade and what have you.  But it quickly dawned on me that I haven’t even listened to enough records that were released in 2009 to even compile a top 10 list.  In addition, I can’t even sort out or remember everything I’ve listened to this year.  Story of my life!

So then I thought really hard again (as years go by, this becomes increasingly more difficult), and thought I came up with this grand theory of how music becomes so personal to people, becoming “the soundtrack” to their lives as they say, that certain genres and artist become personalized markers on everyone’s individual chronology/timeline of growing up.  AND THEN, I was gonna just share stories of which artists my friends, family and loved ones have introduced me to, which have shaped my musical taste to date.  But goddammit, then I realized, “Hey, that’s fucking BOOOOORRRRING, and oh yeah, there’s really no point to this whole thing.”  And yeah, I also realize that maybe I’ve just lost my mind too.  So alas, I stared straight into the center of the cyclone of chaos where nothing made sense, and just said to myself, “Just fucking pick ONE band, or ONE genre, or just anything singular!”  And there you have it folks.  I chose Can.

CAN (Communism, Anarchism, Nihilism—how awesome of a backronym is that!) was an incredibly brilliant German experimental band from the late 60’s—1968 was there starting year, to be exact.  They were one of the very first krautrock bands; which basically meant they just said a big “FUCK YOU” to American musical influence, and stripped things down to a more minimal sound, and incorporated more world music into a psychedelic stew.  (Psychedelic shit is a running theme in my posts if you haven’t noticed..Mom and Dad are proud, I know).  Anyway, another thing that set Can apart from a lot of bands, was the fact that they used free improvisation and editing almost on the regular, to the point where they coined the term, “instant compositions.”  Sponteneity as the impetus for genius.  I like!

In addition, Can has laid the groundwork and influenced so many different artists spanning different genres, including: avant-garde, experimental, underground, ambient, new wave, electronic music, and post-punk.  Dude…The Fall, Siouxsie & The Banshees, Joy Division, David Bowie, Talking Heads, The Stone Roses, Sonic Youth and Radiohead have ALL cited Can as an influence.  If that’s not epic shit, I don’t know what is, man.

Read the rest of this article »

Wow…. For someone that has only been spinning for a few months, this Video was kind of a kick in the nuts so to speak. its amazing to see raw fresh talent displayed, but for us newbees its incredibly daunting, and yet It Just makes me want to work that much harder.

cuz you know Action Bastarrrd Love da kids.

Every Wednesday the contributors of Shruglife get together to talk about the things that happened over the past week, things that are going to happen in the current week, and the things we’d like to see happen in the following weeks to come.

At 1AM there were only a few of us left standing. TAANS, DJ Scallywag, and myself. Topic drastically changed and we ended up speaking about the internet and society. In detail, we discussed how as time passes and the internet grows, we all (in general) must be more careful with how we use the internet. We came to an agreement that we all must be conscious of how we are being portrayed in the online world.

It’s not like the 3 of us have anything to hide from the public eye, but just the thought that all the information on the internet is never actually deleted but just archived is insane. 10 years from now any person with the proper credentials can pull up your online history with the click of a button. Why add to this?

People have lost careers, loved-ones, and even worse over information that they thought was in their past but has come to re-visit them. I; of course am writing this with the assumption that all this “past information” is 100% legal, maybe just; a bit….tasteless and/or… stupid. Facebook (of course) was an actual example we were using and we all came to the agreement (by ourselves at separate times) that we would be taking steps back from the technology and reverting to more traditional ways of communication.

In the end, The fact that anyone can get a photo of you and just put it up for all to see has become a bit too much for the three of us to handle. So in the New Year, you may be receiving a few extra phone calls from your buddies at Shruglife and fewer Facebook Chat Requests. We didn’t even get into the fact that our phone conversations can be pulled up at anytime… We had to compromise somewhere and just give up.

So, why am I writing this. Anyone who really knows me, knows I am a sucker for good design, typography, and all things with a minimalistic feel. Crawling through the internet I stumbled upon this design project by Barton Smith called Facebook Facelift. After looking at his Facelift of Facebook’s website (that’s not going to happen) I was immediately drawn and said to myself… “If Facebook looks like this, I’d never leave it”. Going against everything that I said above. So Facebook, If you want to continue having me as a customer (not that you need me) follow Barton’s vision and you may add to your hefty 350 million active viewers.

Below is a video of Barton’s vision & some photos to see how great design can go a very long way.

Facebook Facelift – Home & Profiles from wearetol on Vimeo.

Check out the rest here

Cheers & Don’t do stupid things on the internet (unless the design is really cool)