How Long Has This Been Going On?

I've been using Instagram for over a year, and I swear I never noticed that option before. I've been liking stuff left and right, all the while thinking it was pretty stupid to not have an option to view what you've marked as a fave. Color me stupefied. At any rate, this is the last time I'll quote Ace in post titles.

EVIL!

Speed Dial 7's "Pure Evil", featuring Pip Skid. More madness from Marathon of Dope, directed by Mike Maryniuk. So damn good.

Ten Years of Me and GP

Posters everywhere! They were the oasis in my corporate world. Photo taken Dec. 8th, 2006. 

For me, one good thing came out of the week that 9/11 happened: I became a member of gigposters.com. I'm still unsure, but I do believe I found GP through a link at the Tijuana Bibles (R.I.P.) site. In addition to half-assing my graphic design assignments at RRC, I spent many a late hour "surfing the web" (shit, does anyone say that anymore? It was still appropriate back then) in the Mac lab, looking for all kinds of stuff online, and GP became part of my regular routine.

I can't say this enough: GP changed my life and put me on my current path. Seeing the exciting work coming in from all over the world, and bending the ears of people I admire in the forums truly augmented my book learnin'.

Gotta give many thanks and props to Clay Hayes, the site's mastermind/head honcho/caretaker. Dude, I can't thank you enough.

September 11th, 2001

On that day, I do believe I woke up later than I should've for school. I can't remember if I caught the coverage right away, or if Sarah called me and told me what was up. Probably the latter.

I do remember the commute to RRC being far more sombre and quiet than usual. I also remember a TV being set up in the general area of the Graphic Design department so we could all stay up to date. The gravity of the situation gradually became apparent to me as the day went on, and that nothing would ever be the same.

That's all I remember.

TOOTH!

If you don’t know about the kick-ass work of Dale Flattum (the man known as TOOTH), it’s high time you got familiar. He just put out a terrific book of his sinister collage and digital doings (look in the store section of his site) which I recommend purchasing.

Yes, I drink a fair amount of Pepsi Max. I plan on doing something with those caps.

(Cross-posted at Mr. Lorde Should Be Drawing)

The Many Faces of Pip

Two flavors of "You Soooo Much", from Pip Skid's Skid Row album. Directed by Jason Lapeyre.

Tecmo World Wrestling...

...as reviewed by internet wrestling pundit Joe Gagne for Mike and Tom Present...
I'm all too familiar with this game. I never had my own NES, so I rented one (with Mom's permission) from a nearby pawn shop to play this specific game. I never finished the game, but I had a blast trying to. This may have been the first time I stayed up until sunrise due to a frivolous pursuit. Mom was pretty pissed.

Jokes!

What we've got right here is the new video for Speed Dial 7's "Jokes" (from the album 11, which you can get at Marathon of Dope). My homie big Yy takes the second verse. Pip Skid plays the scuzzy clown. Enjoy!

The Unveiling of the Jets Brand Identity

So, we got the new Jets logo that I've been wondering about since May. It's quite...middling in quality. Take a look.

Now don't get me wrong; I don't hate this at all, I just expected more, especially with the primary and alternate wordmarks. I just find them a tad stoic. That's usually the coolest part for me. I'm not saying it should look all bouncy and puffy, but it should look lively. It's kinda cold.

• What I do like about it: The use of Avenir (that is Avenir, right?) and the RCAF/RCAF Flyers connection.
• The People That Could've Handled This Better
  Locally - Stu Reid: Stu has been holding it down graphic design-wise for years, and he created the Winnipeg Goldeyes logo. He would've been the natural go-to for me.
  Americans - Aaron Draplin or Von Glitschka: I know either of these men could've kicked ass at this.
  Aaron is the master of subtle cool-yet-functional design, as far as I'm concerned, and I have no doubt that he'd sum the Jets up in a way that would make everyone proud.
  Von is a meticulous pusher of pixels (buy his books!) and an avid lettering guy. Not only would've the primary mark looked amazing in his hands, the wordmarks would've also been world class. Do I have to mention that he worked for Upper Deck? He knows what's up.

This, of course, is merely my opinion. Apparently, there was a line-up around the corner for the new merch at the Jets Gear store, and it might still be there as I type this, so the people dig it. That's all that matters.

Man, I really hope Armin Vit has something to say about the new look. I enjoy his identity dissections. I'm pretty sure folks have pointed it out to him.

Random Thoughts: July 15th, 2011

Surreal, yet terrific.

• Black, White, and Read All Over. Yes, I was in the Free Press about two weeks ago. And yes, it felt pretty cool! Also, just in time for the article, I revamped allanlorde.com via Behance ProSite. I finally have a site that I'm proud of.
• Fringe Time! Yup, it's that time of the year! Due to the awesomeness of parenthood, Sarah and I are planning on seeing two shows instead of the usual 20 or so. Four hours ago, we saw our pals CRUMBS tear up The King's Head, and we've got our tickets for Lucky 9 by superstar T.J. Dawe. If you're going to the Thursday afternoon show next week, give us a shout!
• Mike Holmes' True Story. If you pick up only one comic this year, make sure it's True Story. Mike Holmes (not the house dude) is an illustrator and cartoonist of undeniable skill, and he's responsible for bringing the real stories of average people to life in The Coast, a Halifax alternative newspaper. I don't know who put me onto this man's work (I suspect it was Exclaim), but I'm eternally thankful. There are over 100 of these slice-of-life moments in this book that are touching, cringe-worthy, and downright hilarious. Hey, you haven't laughed in a while. Pick this book up, frowny!