As T.S. Elliott said in his classic poem The Waste Land, “April is the cruelest month.” And as we say in our monthly blog series about the coolest shit the internet has to offer, “April was full of cool shit.” So who are you going to believe? Us, or some guy with initials for a name? We thought so.
In that spirit, enjoy new stories about second lives, afterlives, life after fame, and a whole lot more. It’s April’s now you know…
meta gets meta
While we wait for the dust to settle on the results of Elon’s lust for Twitter, another tech giant is busy plowing ahead with plans for the next generation of AR/VR/Metavers-osity; including, ironically, Meta opening its first physical store in order to sell virtual technology. Pay attention, because with Meta’s reach and resources what happens here has implications for the entire immersive media industry.
Mark Zuckerberg’s Augmented Reality
Facebook is opening its first showroom to sell VR headsets
no game company would ever come up with that
Often overlooked in the “no one actually wants a metaverse” conversation is the fact that in Second Life (and The Sims) millions of people have been playing virtually for well over a decade now. As Zuck and the rest of the tech elite plow forward into their vision of the metaverse, they’d do well to learn some lessons from what came before, namely the strength of true community empowerment.
Lessons From 19 Years in the Metaverse
visuals from the afterlife
We have a thing for the interplay between digital and physical concert experiences in the same way that Garfield has a thing for lasagna, so it’s fascinating to watch Brazilian DJ Matteo Milleri collaborate with visual artist Alessio De Vecchi to merge NFTs into massive concert visuals. Even if this doesn’t end up becoming the future of concert visuals, the present looks pretty f-ing great.
Is THIS the Future of Concert Visuals?!
that’s it. it’s over.
What happens to a pop star deferred? Do they dry up, like a raisin in the sun? Or do they fester like a sore? This interview with dozens of former stars on how they handled the demise of their fame and built new lives for themselves is a rare look at the often mundane aftermath of fame.
What a brutal business’: pop stars on life after the spotlight moves on
my approach is exactly the opposite
Steve Albini is a legendary producer not only for his vast catalog of work – Nirvana, Pixies, The Breeders, etc. – but for his hands-off method to collaboration. Being able to read his pitch letter to Nirvana to produce what became In Utero is like being able to read Michelangelo laying out how he’d approach the Sistine Chapel,
Letters of Note: Steve Albini Write to Nirvana
the mac(os8) daddy of computer sims
Last month we shared a digital recreation of some of Roland’s most legendary beat machines, leading to hours of us making very fun, not very good beats. This month, our pick for Best Way to Procrastinate goes to this simulator of some of Apple’s most memorable software. (Turns out that A-10 Attack game is still as hard to play as it was in 1995). RIP to your productivity…
Infinite Mac
