keith birthday wonders when all the snow will melt

from the cartoon ‘Полёт на луну’ (fly to the moon)

Sun, 14 Mar 2010 13:22:32 +0600

from the cartoon ‘Полёт на луну’ (fly to the moon)

Guess I just ‘released’ my newest Norwegian Arms ep...

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 13:17:00 +0600

Guess I just ‘released’ my newest Norwegian Arms ep type thing called ‘jttrbg’ and it’s now available on my (bandcamp) 4 free n stuff. Two songs on this one, one that ya’ll may know because it’s been around a little bit but without a ‘proper release’. Also includes a super duper old song [written circa 2007] while living in Germany but also had yet to be recorded or what not. enjoy if you enjoy things like this.

Also now available there is my first ep release from last summer ‘Louise’ in its entirety. Also free. Share away friends.

Link: Apparently Tomsk is the Russia capital of hacking, maybe I should get lessons

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 13:03:00 +0600

Link: Apparently Tomsk is the Russia capital of hacking, maybe I should get lessons:

“In the snow-coated Siberian city of Tomsk, one in every five residents is a student. Information security is what they excel in. But in college corridors here, students talk of hacking with respect, even reverence.”

Funny that they talk about “Tomsk University”, because there are six universities here, all with the words “Tomsk” and “University” in them. NICE RESEARCH BBC!!!! (read here)

Link: When I Use a Beard - Special International Edition- Keith Birthday!

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 12:53:00 +0600

Link: When I Use a Beard - Special International Edition- Keith Birthday!:

Today I am featured on (Guts & Glitter) for being a guy with a beard who lives in Russia. All of my answers are 100% true.

Had to take/send the photos myself and it made me really nervous. Worried about the lighting/what plaid I should wear. Took a shower so I would look ‘not dirty’. Think it turned out okay-pretty good.

Sometimes I read G&G in order to try and understand women, not sure if it’s working. You should too. (read it here)

Photo

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 20:37:01 +0600

Poland I: Warsaw/Beatbox Maracas/Wait We Understand Polish?/Where the Milk Bars at?

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 13:48:00 +0600

Poland I: Warsaw/Beatbox Maracas/Wait We Understand Polish?/Where the Milk Bars at?:

part two in an apparently ongoing series about Keith Birthday’s recent travels through Europe. (part one here)

It was probably the most absurd thing that I had seen/heard in a while, the ‘DJ’ in this Warsaw basement bar was making a ‘shicka-shicka’ sound into the microphone in rhythm to the music, in what appeared a very lame attempt at beatboxing along with the music. At that point I wondered two things: a.) did he actually think that it sounded good? and b.) why on earth did he decide that the best sound to use in order to accompany the music was a half-assed maraca? Looking at K and the Australian and the other Australian they all seemed to agree, and we all imitated him and laughed…..(more)

Big big big fan of Jose’s Seattle project (Neighbors). He...

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 09:52:00 +0600

Big big big fan of Jose’s Seattle project (Neighbors). He just linked me to the (EP) called Finalist they just ‘released’ on bandcamp and it’s absolutely fantastic. Makes me think if Pavement had a noisy baby with the quiet earnest observant kid next door. Nice touches of tasteful dissonance throughout.

Jose’s lyrical ability has always made me a bit jealous, and coupled with his ‘I’m sorta apathetic about this’ vocal delivery these songs shine.

It’s also free. Always a plus.

he also has a (tumblr)

the strongest grandma in the world lives in Dagestan...

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 15:12:00 +0600

the strongest grandma in the world lives in Dagestan (Султан-Янгиюрт). JUST LOOK AT HER RIP THAT PHONEBOOK IN HALF/STAND ON NAILS/HOLD THAT LONG TWISTED PIECE OF METAL LIKE IT’S NOTHING!

Padla Bear Outfit - Za Belym Krolikom This is by far my favorite...

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 11:38:00 +0600

Padla Bear Outfit - Za Belym Krolikom

This is by far my favorite Russian band, mostly because they are one of the only groups in this country that doesn’t make super sugar coated pop/techno music. Also digging the Guided By Voices reminiscent lo-fi aesthetic

So Helen turned me on to this large collection of photos of...

Mon, 08 Mar 2010 20:21:00 +0600

So Helen turned me on to this large collection of photos of Russia taken for LIFE by Margaret Bourke-White during the second world war. Apparently a lot of them were unpublished. All of them are fantastic. You can see more here.

I have wondered essentially my entire life the following...

Mon, 08 Mar 2010 19:58:46 +0600

I have wondered essentially my entire life the following information concerning the above song/video:

1. Who sang that song

2. What the hell it was called

both of those problems have now been solved.

I'm in that phase I go through every year post oscars in which I watch every single movie nominated. Kinda love it kinda hate it.

Mon, 08 Mar 2010 18:47:48 +0600

Activist Punches Tomsk Governor In the Face

Sat, 06 Mar 2010 16:39:08 +0600

Activist Punches Tomsk Governor In the Face:

all the good stuff happens when I’m not in town.

LEAVING НОВОСИБИРСК FOR ТОМСК ON AN АВТОБУС SUPER EXCITED TO HAVE INTERNET

Fri, 05 Mar 2010 21:45:00 +0600

was nice to see a different city for a week, though. have more ‘conference related presentation giving’ feel more like an ‘academic’.

My Top 5 Artists (Week Ending 2010-2-28)

Tue, 02 Mar 2010 09:14:37 +0600

My Top 5 Artists (Week Ending 2010-2-28):

Imported from Last.fm Tumblr by JoeLaz

dead dog & dead man

Thu, 25 Feb 2010 20:05:00 +0600

first there was a stray dog, lying on its side, shivering, convulsing, seizing or freezing, am still not exactly too sure. A women stood next to me, said ‘this is what happens when they freeze to death.’ How do you help a stray dog?

15 minutes

second there was a man, lying on the ground, at the bus stop where I got off to work. Sprawled out like a starfish, not moving, two people guarding, blanket over his face, everybody staring. Wonder if he froze to death/had a heart attack/was drunk/got hit by a car. There was no blood then or on the ice afterwards when I walked by again and pointed the spot out to a friend. He said something like ‘You see, this isn’t really a good place to live.’

This song by Palais Schaumburg never ceases to amaze me. Even...

Wed, 24 Feb 2010 22:21:20 +0600

This song by Palais Schaumburg never ceases to amaze me. Even crazier that it’s twenty years old.

A compilation of silly Soviet era commercials from the 80s....

Wed, 24 Feb 2010 13:33:00 +0600

A compilation of silly Soviet era commercials from the 80s. Can’t help but lol at the editing. Being able to youtube in Russian has opened up endless possible foriegn lol possibilities. loving it.

My Top 5 Artists (Week Ending 2010-2-21)

Wed, 24 Feb 2010 07:10:28 +0600

My Top 5 Artists (Week Ending 2010-2-21):

Imported from Last.fm Tumblr by JoeLaz

Olympics/Thoughts on Versions of ‘We Are The Champions’ as Covered by Various Ethnic Groups Within Russia

Wed, 24 Feb 2010 00:52:00 +0600

Olympics/Thoughts on Versions of ‘We Are The Champions’ as Covered by Various Ethnic Groups Within Russia:

There are no fewer than six of these videos from the last two olympees from Russia, and each one is performed by and reflects a culture/language within Russia other than Russian. I figured this space would be a good one upon which to ‘review’ each one and ‘discuss my feelings with the blogosphere/twitterverse’. Also saw this as a way to expose all you ignorant jerks to other cultures and to ‘open your eyes’ to new ethnic styles to integrate into future buzzbands you might create. Who knows?…. (continued at rubpawpress.com)