Update: I won a Midi Fighter 3D!!!!

Wow, I'm blown away! For the second time, I won a free Midi Fighter! Only this time, it's the crazy awesome Midi Fighter 3D. It's a brand new arcade button-based, motion-sensitive midi controller from DJTechTools.com.  I came in second place, but in a last minute move of generosity, DJTT decided to award four Midi Fighters in the contest. FUCK YES!!!!!

They launched this contest to win one of the first Midi Fighter 3Ds. I had to use their set of sounds in the form of an Ableton Live Pack and create a controllerism routine under two minutes in length. Their sounds were mostly oriented towards hip hop, dubstep and drum and bass.

Here's my cue point juggling routine from 2010 that won me my first Midi Fighter.

The Midi Fighter in 3D

This is a really cool new midi controller. The Midi Fighter 3D is a better looking Midi Fighter that allows you to control additional parameters by tilting the device or rotating it. So you could turn on a bitcrushing effect by pressing one button, then tilt the Midi Fighter sideways and the effect would get more intense. Or whatever! You can set the parameters or use the included mapping.

Unlike in the video, you don't have to go swinging the thing around to make it work. You can just casually tilt it off your table, and the feet are curled to make that easier.  He uses a simple electro house song to demonstrate the Midi Fighter 3D, but I can imagine all sorts of possibilities with a whole range of music.

Plus it just looks so damn cool. There's something about LEDs and arcade buttons. The MF3D goes on sale in April for $249.

Over the past three years, I've been watching DJ TechTools grow up into a real consumer electronics company. This device got them more attention than ever from the tech press. Here are some short writeups.

Synthtopia: DJ TechTools Introduces MIDI Fighter 3D, ‘The Most Expressive Compact Controller On The Market’
CNET: MIDI Fighter 3D, the BFF for ADD DJs
Engadget: Midi Fighter 3D has arcade buttons and motion control, still can't throw fireballs
The Verge: MIDI Fighter 3D brings motion controls to DJing

AUSTIN TEXAS SUMMER TIME PARTY MIX USA Vol. 2

It's been too long since I posted a mix! Here is volume two of AUSTIN TEXAS SUMMER TIME PARTY MIX USA. (volume one here) Mostly indie dance and disco tracks I have been enjoying a lot lately. Hope you do too!

Track listing

Prince - I Wanna Be Your Lover (White Girl Lust's Bump remix)
Breakbot - Shades of Black
Missy Elliot - Work It (acapella)
Delorean - Stay Close (RAC remix)
Far East Movement - Like a G6 (acapella)
Smalltown DJs - Autograph
Holy Ghost! - Hold On
Dual Citizen - Speeding at Night 
Chromeo - Needy Girl (Zdar dub)
Digitalism - Idealistic (A-Trak remix)
Theophilus London - Humdrum Town
Futurecop! - 1988 Girls (Instrumental)
Depeche Mode - Enjoy the Silence (acapella)
Madeon - Shuriken
Ashanti - Still On It (acapella)
StardonE - CT
Worship - Starcrash
Phoenix - Armistice (RAC remix)
Lenno - Your Style (Club mix)
Siriusmo - Gummiband
Loredana - Rain Rain (Endiamonds remix)
Treasure Fingers - Cross the Dancefloor (Chromeo remix)
Grum - Can't Shake This Feeling
Rocco Raimundo - Can't Shake This Feeling
Midnight Star - The Midas Touch (Bedmo disco dub)
Breakbot ft. Ruckazoid - Fantasy
Michael Jackson - P.Y.T.
Ghosts of Venice - Her (Bit Funk remix)
Eumig and Chinon - Kaschow
Notorious BIG - Juicy (acapella)
Calling in Sick - Fun Punch (Calling in Sick remix)
Fukkk Offf - Worldwide (Fukkk Offf remix)
Skrillex - Disco Rangers
Wolfgang Garnter - Anthology (Madeon mashup)
French Fries & Chaos in the CBD - With You
Falcon Punch - Where You'll Stay
Rocco Raimundo - Be With You
Jacques Renault - Norman's Fire
Mary Jane Girls - Candy Man
Wax Motif & Anna Lunoe - Love Ting
Treasure Fingers - Lift Me (Gabriel remix)
Christopher Cross - All Right (Fiero Catalina Remix)

Mixed in Traktor Pro 2 using a modified VCI 100, a Midifighter (Instant Gratification mapping), and a Novation Launchpad with an upgraded custom mapping. 

SXSW 2011

This pretty much sums it all up.....

Party like it's 199X

My pal over at chungkingmansions.com released his first iPhone app, Bubble Pets! For a very limited time it's on sale for FREE! Grab it now! It has retro, 8-bit graphics for people like me who grew up on NES. Very addictive and fun! Check out the features below.



Features

* Thousands of PIXELS
* A DINOSAUR ON THE MOON
* 10 unique levels (and more to come)
* MASSIVE bosses
* FEVER MODE: everything goes wild!
* BONUS ITEMS + BONUS POINTS + BONUS STAGE + COMBOS (FOR BONUS POINTS)
* Game Center leaderboard (achievements coming in next update)
* Facebook and Twitter support, Challenge email
* Rockin' retro track by Kevin Macleod

Midifighter assembly pictures

I was sooo happy yesterday when after months of drooling over the arcade button-based midi controller, the Midifighter, my very own arrived in the mail! These are produced in very limited quantities and had been out of stock for months. Making matters even sweeter was the fact that I won this one in a DJ Tech Tools contest.

One of the cool things about the Midifighter is the ability to customize your own. This isn't a mass produced controller that everyone has. You choose the color of your Sanwa arcade buttons, and you can spraypaint the arcylic faceplate. The result is a whole bunch of different looking Midifighters.

There is a fair degree of assembly required, so I thought I'd walk you through it.

These are all the items that arrived in the box. The circuit board, two acrylic plates, screws and stuff, arcade buttons, a super high quality DJTT usb cable, four stickers, and a letter with assembly instructions printed on the back.

First step is to peel the plastic off the bottom acrylic plate.



Then remove the circuit board from the anti-static bag. This circuit board features hand soldered connections, so that you can just snap in the arcade buttons with no soldering required.



The next step was to peel off the protective paper from the second acrylic plate.



Then I had to insert these plastic rods into the plate. These will feed light from LEDs on the circuit board to the top surface of the Midifighter.



After that, you want to attach these little rubber grommet things to secure the tiny plastic rods in place.



Next I secured the bottom acrylic plate to the circuit board using screws and little metal spacer things. Then I screwed in those larger spacers on top.



These Sanwa arcade buttons are super high quality and made in Japan. Look for the Sanwa on the bottom of your arcade buttons to make sure they're awesome.



Inserting these buttons was a little scary for me. I was afraid of snapping the connections. They do require a little extra push (but not too forceful) just to get them to snap into place.

And voila! My new Midifighter! I chose colors that roughly match the excellent Traktor mapping developed by DJ Tech Tools. If you're interested in what the hell that is, here's a video explaining it. I opted not to spraypaint the acrylic plate because I like the clear look. If I change my mind, I can always remove it and paint it.



Once I plugged in this thing, I was elated to realize this is an extremely rare Midifighter with red LEDs! Usually they are blue.



I flipped it over, and realized for the first time that mine was one of only 100 with red LEDs. Number 89 to be exact.

Soon I'll be posting a video of this thing in use! Thanks again for the free Midifighter DJ Tech Tools!

My entry to the Midifighter contest

UPDATE: HOLY SHIT! I WON!!!  http://www.djtechtools.com/2010/05/20/midi-fighter-contest-winning-videos/  THANKS DJ TECH TOOLS!!!

UPDATE: Contest winner won't be announced until Monday, May 24  Friday, May 21. Stay tuned. 

I am in love with the concept of this midi controller.  (A midi controller is this.)  Not only does the Midifighter look cool as shit, but arcade buttons were designed by engineers to be rapid fire. That is a very useful thing with midi controllers.

Like a lot of cool things, Midifighters are also very rare. Only 200 were made in the first batch. Each was individually numbered. They are sold out, but 500 more are becoming available in late-May.

The guys who make this also run a blog called DJ Tech Tools. Last month, they launched a contest here to WIN A FREE MIDIFIGHTER!  People were invited to do a cue point juggling routine using any controller. You had to use their four songs.

Coincidentally, one of the tracks was a Gangstar acapella. I should note they chose this track before the tragic death last month of Gangstar's Guru at age 43. Turned out to be a timely selection.

Here's the DJTT example.

Now here's my vain attempt at winning! I'm using a Novation Launchpad, which I custom mapped to Traktor Pro. My mapping divides the Launchpad into four parts. Each quarter of the grid controls one of four decks in Traktor. Each deck has eight illuminated cue points that trigger specific points in each track. You can see the Traktor window in the bottom right of the video.

Contest deadline is May 16. A winner will be chosen May 18 Monday, May 24. Wish me luck! (Other entries can be viewed here.)

(Vimeo version of this video here.)

Basutbudet - Fett Med Soft

Happy Saturday night!

This three years old, but it's so awesome I had to share it! Sweden keeps impressing me. (via iheartcomix.com)

Think About Life plays in a field

iPhone video of Montreal's Think About Life playing to people waiting in line to get their wristbands at Fader Fort. I think it's the best ever.

Trailer Park Boys: Countdown to Liquor Day releasing tomorrow in the US!

Canadians are sometimes forced to wait for American TV shows or movies to appear north of the border. But the opposite is true for the epilogue of the long-running and totally fucking awesome Canadian comedic mockumentary TV/movie series: The Trailer Park Boys.

Countdown to Liquor Day was released in Canadian theaters last September. American fans have been waiting on edge for the US release date of the DVD, which just so happens to be THIS TUESDAY. It is available for pre-order on Amazon, but a customer service agent told me that means it will be shipped on February 23; it does not mean it would arrive on Tuesday.

Happily, the people at Best Buy are finally doing something right and stocking this thing on Tuesday. We'll be at the fucking door.

If you have not heard of The Trailer Park Boys, I urge you to give it a shot. You can buy the complete series or watch full episodes on YouTube (or find it another way). It all started in 1999, when Creator Mike Clattenberg wrote and directed a low budget mockumentary about a pair of liquor drinking, pot smoking, petty criminals and debuted in at Canada's Atlantic Film Festival.

Eleven years later, The Trailer Park Boys has spurned seven TV seasons, a couple TV specials, and two movies. It has also inspired a legion of rabidly loyal fans who obsess about the show on web forums.

If you've never seen TPB, you might think the show is based on laughing insensitively at the socioeconomically disadvantaged. And in a way I guess it is. But that's not all it is.

The characters are not one dimensional. They feel human. And they are relatable. Growing up in a small town in the mountains of western Canada, I felt like the characters on the Trailer Park Boys were an amalgam of people I actually knew, and maybe even included a part of myself. They are believable. And they have heart.

The Trailer Park Boys also boasts some great Canadian actors. Ellen Page, now famous in the US because of Juno, got an early start as a character on the show. Barrie Dunn, who plays the hard drinking cheapskate Ray on TPB, is in real life a Canadian TV producer, actor, and a practicing attorney.

One of my favorite characters is Jim Lahey, the uber-hammered manager of the Sunnyvale Trailer Park. Lahey is played by Canadian theater veteran John Dunsworth (his daughter Sarah is also on the show). Dunsworth proves his acting skills by turning a character who should be a depressing alcoholic into a hilarious clown:


But the main focus of the show is Ricky, Bubbles and Julian.  They're just three friends looking to swindle enough cash to have an early retirement.  And sometimes the law catches up with them.

Anyway, I could ramble on about this show forever. If you like Canadian trivia, drinking, and low brow humor, you should watch the last eleven years of The Trailer Park Boys from beginning to end.  You can thank me later.

Tomorrow is Liquor Day in America.

Vancouver Time Lapse Video (Redub)

These guys put together an extremely visually compelling time lapse video featuring scenes of my city! Unfortunately, the music they chose was dreadful.  Cheesy, Enya-inspired, new age music with lyrics about Vancouver -- just too obvious and literal.

In honor of today's opening ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Games, I decided to do everyone a favor and redub this amazing video with some other music that I thought better reflected Vancouver's mood.

Vancouver is such an aesthetically pleasing city, and my one Olympic wish is that TV stations covering the games transmit that in their broadcasts.  Tonight's opening ceremonies present an opportunity for all sorts of helicopter and crane shots. Let's make it happen TV networks!

Today, someone pointed out to me another amazing way to take in Vancouver over the internet.  This site gives you 360 rotational viewpoints from several points in the city.  The images are large, allowing you to zoom in quite a bit.  It's the next best thing to flying over the city!

Drooling over analog gear of Holy Ghost!

We are planning to see Holy Ghost! this Friday in Austin. This 13 minute VBS interview shows what cool analog gear geeks they are. On the one hand, it makes me jealous that they have all that expensive gear and can still somehow afford to live in Williamsburg. On the other hand, I do not envy having to mess with that modular synth and spend hours tweaking and documenting every new sound.

To hear the gear in action, check out this awesome music video.

As a side note, that video is a tribute/rip-off of New Order's video for Confusion.

Can't wait to see all that modular synth crap on the stage. Good luck switching patches between songs, guys!

UPDATE at 3:25 PM on Sunday, October 18, 2009:

In my enthusiasm to see Holy Ghost!, I missed the small print on the poster that it was only a DJ set! It was still a great dance time, especially when they played their own song.

Shot Through the Heart!

This is a video of my dad, my sister, and me lip syncing the popular Bon Jovi song in the West Edmonton Mall in the late 80s. It's this place called Stars on Video. You pick a cool song. (Not the original version, a cover band recording.) Then they set you up with guitars, drums, and essential rock n roll accessories (i.e. my wicked fingerless leather gloves). You go into this green room and rock out!

This tape languished on VHS for years and years until I finally took it to this local business called DubKing last week where they convert it to a DVD. Now the memories will last as long as the internets!

Gear porn

I've been drooling over the Akai APC40 midi controller for awhile now, and the good dudes over at SonicState.com got their grubby little hands on one. In this video, they spend 20 minutes flaunting it in front of our faces. If you're not familiar with the Akai APC40, it's a controller specifically designed for the most amazing music production software ever created, Ableton Live.

Update: I was listening to this episode of the Sonic Talk podcast yesterday, and the host (whose name I don't know because he never introduces himself -- Radio 101, buddy!) said an insider at Akai told him the APC40 was back ordered in the quadruple digits! That means at least 1,000 on back order. He was also told that three out of every five calls they get are asking about the APC40. It certainly explains the shortage.

Clearly, this product landed at the right place at the right time at the right price. Take a listen to the Sonic State podcast to hear their thoughts about the APC40. The discussion starts at 31:55.

distracteddispatches.com!

If all went well, you were forwarded to this site from distracteddispatches.blogspot.com. Registering my own web address and hosting this blog on an external server not only makes me the master of my own domain, but it also allows me to attempt incremental content delivery improvements. In other words, I get to fuck around with web technologies I only faintly understand to make this blog even more entertaining!

In the meantime, check out my friend Steve's new blog at chungkingmansions.com. He moved to China around the same time I moved to USA.

Geotagging, yay!

My new G1 phone has its pluses and minuses (the battery is a real bitch), but I'm happy with its ability to add GPS data to pictures. It means when I upload to Flickr, it automagically puts the photo on a map! For some reason this makes phone photography more appealing.
Here's the map.

Call me a geek, but we'll all be doing this in a couple years.

This blog in BusinessWeek Chicago!

That's right friends, we finally hit the big time with a quote in BusinessWeek Chicago, circulation 60,000! Click on the above image to take a look. It was in reference to a post I made about Jimmy Dean Breakfast Bowls back in September. Even though they made the fatal error of not mentioning this blog by name in the article, I'll give them credit for writing a fairly interesting story about product development. You can read the entire magazine here, but because it's one of those annoying "virtual magazines" I can't link directly to the article. It's on page 22.

Born to ride...

At this mall in South Austin the mall cops ride around on Segway scooters! Making matters worse, they are wearing helmets! I'm sure teenagers are more amused than intimidated. It is hard not to laugh at them.

Panorama Mania!

I figured out how to make panoramic images by taking several pictures with a digital camera and using software to stitch them together. Now I can show you with more detail the various places I go to in day to day life these days! These are fairly high resolution photographs. The best way to view the pictures is to zoom in and scroll horizontally to see the most detail.

Check it out....

Dunkin Donuts near NECN. (Google Map) This is where I might stand and drink an iced coffee before work while listening to WBUR.

West Newton. (Google Map) One of the areas of Newton I frequent regularly. They have a cool repertory theater and the some of the best damned Yankee BBQ you'll ever find.

Webster Park. (Google Map) There are some many beautiful parks in Newton and this is one of them. This is the view from a well-maintained park bench located in a discrete area of the park where you can sit and enjoy nature.

Shaw's grocery store. (Google Map) This is not a high-resolution picture but still gives you an idea about the place. I mean, it's a grocery store, whaddya want? All the fantastic American food products you could ever desire can be found inside that building.

Montreal at night from the top of Peel Plaza. (Google Map, the one with the pool on top) This is a fantastic building to sneak on top of at night to witness a stunning panorama of downtown Montreal. It's puts you much closer to the buildings than the observatory on Mount Royal. But you'll have to figure out a way to get past the front locked doors and a security guard. You're on your own for that one!

Well those are all the panoramas I have for now. Stay tuned for more!

Desert Storm trading cards!

Click on the card above to take a tour through the first Gulf War, AMERICA STYLE. I found three packs of these trading cards at a comic book shop in Waltham, Mass. See why Bush Sr. can proudly say, "Back in '91, we gotter done." My personal favorites include card #1, Commander in Chief (George Sr., looking dapper in a leather pilots coat), and card #71, Anti-Aircraft Chemical Gear ("Alright kids, remember there are three basic types of chemical weapons.").

For some reason, the current Iraq war hasn't yet made it into trading card form. Perhaps if it had, we wouldn't be in the mess we're in now. You hear that Topps America?!