Archive for ‘December, 2008‘

As you folks may or may not know, I’m writing from California this Christmas holiday. Not much to report (besides a growing waistline), but I did find something I wanted to send back north: a picture of Macy’s electronics vending machine.

It’s nothing special when comparing it to other electronics-heavy markets, but still, it made my head tilt. Not a bad way for Macy’s to move high-demand items without having to make room for an entire department.

How about you folks? What’s the weirdest stuff you’ve seen in vending machines? Leave them in the comments!

P.S. It’s a bit late, but Merry Christmas, folks!

P.P.S. You ever walk into an Abercrombie and think it’s dark and loud enough to be a night club? Today, I did. Makes me wonder if anyone’s ever flash mobbed a dance party in an Abercrombie …

Courtesy of the fine folks over at Tranceaddict, over 25,000 votes were collected from their community to name the top 250 DJs of 2008. Like most polls of this size, the results were heavily skewed,with 50% of the votes going to the top 25. Looking back to previous years (2007, 2006, 2005), the upper echelon hasn’t shifted all that much.

And for 2008, here are the top 250 DJs of 2008:

1. Armin van Buuren
2. Above & Beyond <3 <3 <3
3. Paul van Dyk
4. Tiesto
5. Markus Schulz
6. Ferry Corsten <3
7. John Digweed
8. Sasha
9. Sander van Doorn
10. deadmau5 <3
11. Menno De Jong
12. Aly & Fila
13. John 00 Fleming
14. Sean Tyas <3
15. Eric Prydz
16. Danny Howells
17. Gareth Emery
18. John O’Callaghan
19. DJ Shah
20. Carl Cox
21. Eddie Halliwell
22. Richie Hawtin
23. James Zabiela
24. ATB <3
25. Steve Lawler
26. Andy Moor
27. Hernan Cattaneo
28. Kyau & Albert <3
29. Dubfire
30. Christopher Lawrence
31. Simon Patterson
32. Desyn Masiello
33. Daft Punk
34. Marco V <3
35. Marcus Schossow
36. Cosmic Gate
37. Airwave <3
38. M.I.K.E. (Push)
39. 16 Bit Lolitas
40. Manuel Le Saux
41. Ronski Speed
42. Lee Burridge
43. Airbase <3
44. Axwell
45. Sander Kleinenberg
46. Daniel Kandi
47. Luke Fair
48. Leon Bolier
49. Giuseppe Ottaviani
50. Paul Oakenfold
51. Yoji Biomehanika <3
52. Alex M.OR.P.H.
53. Adam Beyer
54. Infected Mushroom
55. Gabriel & Dresden <3
56. Nick Warren
57. Steve Angello
58. James Holden
59. Blake Jarrell
60. Laidback Luke
61. Sven Vath
62. Stoneface & Terminal <3
63. Jon O’Bir <3
64. Mark Knight
65. Blank & Jones
66. Jody Wisternoff
67. Super8 & Tab
68. The Thrillseekers
69. Martin Roth
70. David Guetta
71. Joris Voorn
72. Solar Stone
73. Astral Projection
74. Richard Durand
75. BT <3 <3 <3
76. Max Graham
77. Magda
78. Ricardo Villalobos
79. Luciano
80. Erick Morillo
81. Sied van Riel
82. Trentemoller <3
83. Orkidea
84. Booka Shade
85. Nic Fanciulli
86. Rank 1 <3
87. Chemical Brothers
88. Kenneth Thomas
89. Hybrid
90. Lange
91. Matt Darey
92. John Askew
93. Benny Benassi
94. Agnelli & Nelson
95. Judge Jules
96. DJ Eco
97. Andy C
98. DJ Scot Project
99. Steve Porter
100. Andy Hunter
101. Mauro Picotto
102. Kaskade <3
103. Roger Sanchez
104. Jonas Steur
105. Chris Lake
106. Dave Seaman
107. Justice
108. Danny Tenaglia
109. Chris Harrington
110. Kristina Sky
111. Victor Dinaire
112. Adam White
113. Fred Baker
114. Yahel
115. Deep Dish
116. Galen Behr
117. Greg Downey
118. Talla 2XLC
119. Adam Sheridan
120. Mikey Mike
121. Scott Brown
122. Mstrkrft
123. Preach
124. Fedde Le Grand
125. Andrew Bennett
126. Victor Calderone
127. Oliver Prime
128. Abel Ramos
129. Dirty South
130. Sydney Blu
131. Rowan Blades
132. Flash Brothers
133. Mark Sherry
134. Chus & Ceballos
135. Claude VonStroke
136. Precision
137. DJ Dan
138. Marcel Woods
139. Cliff Coenraad
140. Kaenow
141. Jelo
142. Adam Freeland
143. Darude
144. Paolo Mojo
145. Dave Clarke
146. Sebastian Ingrosso
147. Deko-Ze
148. Nicholas Bennison
149. Armand van Helden
150. Johan Gielen <3
151. M.A.N.D.Y.
152. Chris Liebing
153. Tom Colontonio
154. Astrix
155. Fast Distance
156. Satoshi Tomiie
157. Arnej
158. Niklas Harding
159. Donald Glaude
160. Damian Lazarus
161. Thomas Bronzwaer
162. Paul Miller
163. Firestorm
164. Heatbeat
165. Tiefschwarz
166. Miika Kuisma
167. Stephan Bodzin
168. Matthew Dekay
169. Breakfast
170. Ben Sims
171. Josh Wink
172. Ozgur Can
173. Pole Folder
174. Joop
175. S.O.S.
176. Pete Tong
177. Ricky Ryan
178. Anthony Pappa
179. 2ManyDJs
180. Funk D’Void
181. Umek
182. Mark Oliver
183. DJ Lucho
184. Mark Farina
185. Sandra Collins
186. Sash
187. Sultan
188. Kimito Lopez
189. Sebastian Leger
190. Bryan Kearney
191. Ferry Tayle
192. Bob Sinclar
193. Jochen Miller
194. Timo Maas
195. Nitrous Oxide
196. Mike Foyle
197. Mike Koglin
198. Misja Helsloot
199. Randy Boyer
200. Josh Gabriel
201. Re:Locate
202. Junior Jack
203. DJ Icey
204. Re-Ward
205. Loco Dice
206. Mark Norman
207. Suzy Solar
208. Radio Slave
209. Quivver
210. Will Holland
211. Filo & Peri
212. Orjan Nilsen
213. Shiloh
214. Lord Of Bass
215. Andy Farley
216. Jason Jollins
217. Rob Turner
218. Nic Chagall
219. Mat Zo
220. Robert Nickson
221. Phil K
222. Pendulum <3 <3 <3
223. D.A.V.E. The Drummer
224. Jaytech
225. Moshic
226. George Acosta
227. DJ Dean
228. Guy J
229. Thomas Datt
230. Ideal
231. Signum
232. Matt Hardwick
233. First State
234. Raresh
235. Topher Jones
236. Demi
237. Felix da Housecat
238. Andy Duguid
239. Darin Epsilon
240. Jimpster
241. DJ Rush
242. Gil La
243. Marco Carola
244. Boys Noize
245. Jeff Mills
246. The Crookers
247. Moby
248. Fabio
249. Westbam
250. Randy Katana

I don’t even recognize half of this list. I’ve got a lot of people I need to see.

Danceheads, what do you guys think? Anyone missing? Have any favourite experiences with these guys? Who would you place at #1? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

It’s funny. As a kid, I used to strut around in t-shirts during winter; these days, I only go outside if forced to – or if photo opportunities present themselves. As we get hit by Vancouver’s coldest winter to date, I haven’t been too eager to leave my slippers. Still, the flurries have brought my family together for a couple of shoots, so I’m happy to suffer a few numb fingers.

Care to see? Swing by the Flickr set for the ever-growing collection of winter shots.

On December 1st, stargazers from around the globe were puzzled to find a giant face – the huddled Venus, Jupiter, and crescent moon – smiling back at them. So choked I missed it.

Mark March 15, 2012 down on your calendar folks; that’s the next time the stars gaze in kind.

Thanks Jon Lee for the tip and 3water for the photo.

It’s snowing outside, and the quietude is breathtaking.

It’s also freaking cold, leaving me stuck at home until I decide to man up. It’s not all bad though, having given me a chance to clean and rummage some artifacts from the back of my room, including the awesomeness you see above: the 1988 ‘Together Forever’ single for Canadian consumption. Beautiful.

Here’s hoping ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’ is lying around somewhere. Cross your fingers, folks!

I’m going to have a hard time writing this post. The soul is willing, the body ready, but the mind is still taking it all in, and I’m not quite sure when it’s going to finish.

Last night A couple of nights ago, I went to see ‘Mist and Mechanisms’, an experimental music showcase hosted by students from Simon Fraser University. Held in a muted hall on the upper floor of The Western Front, the composers flaunted a quirkiness that you don’t find often.

With classical savvy and what must have been some very deep soul searching, classical instruments were tooted, tapped, whacked, warbled and whistled to create vivid soundscapes, each with their own tale. While it definitely wasn’t musical in the traditional sense, the imagery and unorthodox use of instruments blew my mind. I won’t describe each piece; I wouldn’t be able to capture the complexity. However, I will say kudos to the crying flute, the flanging saw, and textures created by the violin tapping. Brilliant touches.

Congratulations to everyone who put the night together, especially to the composers, Julio Torres, Aaron Engum, Elliot Vaughan and Aska Lirit Bithron.

For more of the photos, hit the Flickr set.