PODCAST OF THE WEEK
Where would we be without the satirical newspaper site The Onion? It is too easy to conclude that we would be sad and lost souls who would never know the blissful nirvana induced by such articles as “Kim Il Jong Unfolds Into Giant Robot” and “Mr T to Pity Fool”. But its deadpan faux-serious format makes a good fit with aural media too, as shown by Onion Radio News. Hosted by Doyle Redland, who apparently started working at the station in 1963 as a 14-year-old, this daily newscast has already delved into such stories as “Father’s Dying Wish a Real Hassle” and “AOL E-Mail Checked for Old Time’s Sake” in The Onion’s own inimitable manner.
www.theonion.com/content/radionews
BLOG OF THE WEEK
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If the people behind Invent Music were to make an impassioned speech to the pop and rock-loving hordes about what they do, they would at least mention that music is more than just guitars and drums. In fact, it would be about new instruments practically no one has heard of, such as the AudioPint and the PureJoy (“a flexible vocal expression interface”), which this collaborative group of musician-technologists at Massachusetts Institute of Technology have been creating and playing with. You can read all about their experimentation on the project blog. Chronicling their “regular build days and performances, and archives, photos and video”, it succeeds admirably in being baffling and fascinating at the same time.
www.inventmusic.org
LONDON GUIDES ONLINE
In August, Times readers in the South East were treated to a series of four special guides to London from The Knowledge team. We are pleased to say that all four of these guides are now available online, as free downloads for all Times readers. Head to Times Online’s London page and follow the instructions. While you’re there, take the time to explore the cornucopia of capital-related delights, such as a selection of monthly walks and links to travel and accommodation deals. www.timesonline.co.uk/londontravel
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WORDS AND PICTURES
However brilliantly written they might be, film reviews can still fall short by not being visual enough. This, at least, is the opinion of one Rick Trembles, who has decided to spice up a selection of reviews with the illustrative cartoons of his Motion Picture Purgatory series. While the weekly reviews of the new (A Scanner Darkly) and the old (The Birds) are really retellings of the plot combined with wild rants that encourage the odd chuckle, it is the bright and silly cartoons that draw your attention. You should, however, be warned of Trembles’s tendency to slap on huge blocks of Beat- inspired text littered with exclamation marks.
www.montrealmirror.com/potatoes/mpparchives.html