by Danielle Cassley and Jason Citron

game type: Block puzzle role-playing game hybrid (MMo)

game platform: for iPhone and iPod Touch OS 2.0, free on iTunes App Store

Game Brief

A superb 10-week opus by 22 year old designers Danielle Cassley and Jason Citron, Aurora Feint is, indeed, a beginning. Their lush fantasy graphics situate you in a puzzle narrative that combines Bejeweled, Tetris and their own uniquely original block breaking physics with power-up purchases and unlock systems. Players mine five basic natural resource essence blocks (wind, water, earth, shadow, fire) by three-matching to clear. Aurora Feint exploits gestural controls ingeniously by applying gravity to blocks, making the accelerometer sensed screen reorientation a game move. Tilt the screen to cross swap and let the blocks re-fall into place. Music and sound effects very effectively reinforce both the narrative and pure-play experience value with satisfying stone-clunks and brick-booms that punctuate reverb-y chord progressions – all adding up to a Tolkeinesque atmosphere. Earned power-ups directly boost play enjoyment by adding new blocks to the autoflow. Play reward revolves around bigger and more beautiful block explosions. This game is very comparable to the Puzzle Quest franchise which brought the three-match RPG genre to consoles like PSP and Wii.

Rocky Launch

After a rough launch of unstable build that (when it worked), executed questionable privacy security practices (passing your address book over insecure transport) without disclosure resulting in an uproar and apology, climaxing with an official de-listing from the App Store, only to be re-listed as a maintenance update, appearing to resolve some of the version 1.0 errors and security concerns. Crisis averted skillfully despite the developer’s failure to realize that such a well-designed and free Touch game wouldn’t be a smash hit. The developers are accepting users crash reports by email which illustrates a challenge of providing support for App Store apps at the moment.

How to recover from Aurora Feint crashes

In the currently available version 1.0.0.1 running on iPhone 2.0 you will encounter serious bugs that seem to corrupt the local app data and then prevent it from launching. You can best resolve this issue and avoiding further App Store problems, including fatal reboot failure that requires a full system restore, follow these steps:

1. With your iPhone/touch plugged-in to your sync machine, after choosing the device in the source column
2. Open the Applications tab
3. Choose to manually manage Applications
4. Uncheck Aurora Feint
5. Apply the sync
6. Click on Applications in the source menu (left-hand side)
7. Contextual click (control-click, right-click) on the the Aurora Feint icon
8. Choose Delete
9. Confirm both dialog boxes asking you how to deal with the file
10. Choose iTunes Music Store, Applications, and search for Aurora Feint
11. Re-download Aurora Feint, confirming dialog boxes
12. Choose the device in the source column
13. Open the Applications tab
14. Check Aurora Feint
15. Apply the sync
16. Launch the game on the device

Your previous character should be appear, after negotiations with the server. It may not be the most recent version of your character, so you may have to re-play the make up for the lost progress. Seems like a big “David Hasselhoff!” to play this game. We, agree. If you haven’t yet installed Aurora Feint, consider holding out for a new version from the game developers, instead. An update from Apple to fix the serious bugs in Cocoa Touch 2.0 would likely solve some related problems that cause catastrophic crashes as you attempt to uninstall and reinstall apps through the mobile version of App Store, not a recommended method.

We haven’t tested the multiplayer aspect of the game, but should we decide to trust their new privacy security policy and try it out, we’ll update this space.

Aurora Feint succeeds at being well designed for mobility by saving the game state and allowing a full game resume. This feature rewards quick burst play and mitigates the consistent interruptions typical with play on-the-go. Few other non-free games at the App Store are this well polished and well adapted to the mobile OS X Touch platform. We look forward to the inevitable software updates from Danielle and Jason, along with the needed fixes from Apple, to make the whole play experience reliable and enjoyable.

Grade: I (Incomplete)

We’ll review again after a round of major updates.

• Aurora Feint official site
• Aurora Feint forums
• Aurora Feint on App Store
• Aurora Feint review by Touch Arcade

Despite furious speculation, Jobs releases incremental product improvements, rather than fundamental game-changing gear

Apple announced four new products today in San Francisco:

1. Time Capsule, wireless base station and network storage device
2. iPhone and iPod Touch firmware updates
3. Apple TV 2.0 and iTunes Video Rentals
4. MacBook Air ultra-thin notebook
5. One more thing… There is NO “one more thing!”

Interestingly, these announcements merely validate earlier predictions, mostly based on patent-filings, clues embedded deep within application strings, and the usual rumoring that surrounds Apple product design. In fact, the first three announcements represent the fulfillment of promised features more than anything else.

Time Capsule simply makes good on the promise of Leopard’s Time Machine feature to work usably on portable computers. The notion of a network storage appliance is nothing new.

The iPhone and Touch firmware updates, free for phone owners and a $20 upgrade for Touch owners, merely respond to the deluge of feature requests that at times overshadowed the praise of these revolutionary devices. Indeed, text messaging to multiple recipients, locative services in Google Maps, lyrics and video chapter displays, and home screen customization capabilities seemed like no-brainers from the start. On the Touch side, owners must shell out to gain the applications that are standard on the iPhone, which motivated the Touch jailbreak movement to establish a feature parity across the products. At least Apple is focusing on listening carefully to the user-base chatter. The iPhone firmware 1.1.3 is already available. Will a new jailbreak method appear before the official SDK launch?

When considering the Apple TV free software update and reduced introductory pricing, here is another example of Apple merely updating the software and business platforms to add serious value to existing owners. In many ways, today’s announcements are the biggest news for existing customers, especially owners of iPhones and Apple TVs, who in two weeks will be graciously rewarded with significant feature upgrades for free. No wonder all other companies envy Apple’s relationship with its customers.

The MacBook Air, however, is a mixed bag of excitements and disappointments. Certainly, the barely-there form factor is what will attract attention. But it’s the multi-touch trackpad and the planned obsolescence of the optical disc that represent the most significant futurist shifts. But $3100 for the solid state drive version is really, really, really expensive. Perhaps the most controversial aspect of the new Air is its striking lack of a user replaceable battery!

Top 10 Expectations Unfulfilled

Indeed, wild speculation seemed to include every possible configuration and predictable product launch, and so, these were not announced today:

1. No tablet computer, basically an iPhone/Touch the size of a notebook, running OS X, not Mac OS X, 100% touch
2. No replacement for the Mac Mini, some kind of a screen-less, entry-level desktop
3. No 3G iPhone running on AT&T’s UMTS, nor a 16 GB storage upgrade
4. No AT&T wireless networking built into notebooks
5. No “copy & paste” for iPhone/Touch
6. No WiMax devices
7. No BluRay disc devices, especially on the Apple TV
8. No Speed bumps to product lines other than Pro towers, especially iMac, MacBooks and MacBook Pro
9. No Leopard Software Update 10.5.2
10. No iPhone SDK based application demonstrations

At this moment, Apple’s stock price is not surging, but then again, most of the market looks to be tanking. Not even Father Jobs can lure the US economy from a looming recession with his “halo effect” against the debt crisis and devalued dollar.

It’s never been easier to install custom applications

You can now jailbreak your iPhone or iPod touch to install third-party applications with extraordinary ease. Visit the URL pictured above with your Mobile Safari and in an instant your device’s file system will be opened and the AppTapp Installer will appear on your Springboard after a restart.

Via Erica Sadun at TUAW — Instant Jailbreak for iPhone and iPod Touch

If you’re new to all of this, check out Erica’s advice for where to go from here.

This method supersedes all previous methods, including our own process← that we document in meticulous detail, now deprecated in favor of using AppSnapp. Interestingly, this method uses the TIFF Exploit of Mobile Safari to open up the lockdown of the system, and then does Apple the favor of patching the security hole!

Space Time Play — Computer Games, Architecture and Urbanism: The Next Level

» Book Website (spacetimeplay.org)
» Table of Contents (PDF)
» Introduction (PDF)

Available to the US in November 2007 from Birkhäuser and edited by Friedrich von Borries, Steffen P. Walz, Matthias Böttger, Space Time Play — Computer Games, Architecture and Urbansim: The Next Level offers readers 62 concise essays and interviews interspersed between 64 game, film and science-fiction book reviews, and 48 game research projects, all brilliantly organized into 5 ascending levels, sequenced into topics that build upon the theory of the editors, that video gaming has come of age as one of society’s most crucial and influential cultural artifacts. Richly illustrated and well populated with important and influential theorists, designers and academics, Space Time Play multi-tasks as a scholarly tome, coffee table guide to gaming, and manual of pop culture memes driven by gaming industry.

Steffen Walz, friend and editor of the collection, generously sent me an advance copy, and I’m thrilled to share the news of this exciting addition the growing library of scholarly treatments of gaming on culture, art, media and urbanism. The text is especially unusual in the way it will appeal to gamers and scholars alike, exemplifying how the subject matter is no longer relegated to fringe discussions of gaming’s profound influence on contemporary humanity. Every reader will find at least one game review that resonates within him or herself, whether it’s Katie Salen’s perfectly worded analysis of Alexey Pajitnov’s timeless classic Tetris or the de-mystification of the first alternate reality games (ARGs) to emerge such as EA’s Majestic reviewed by Kurt Squire, or The Beast reviewed by Dave Szulborkski, used by Spielberg to promote A.I. Artificial Intelligence. Readers will enjoy remembering classics such as Asterioids through Jesper Juul’s reframing it as a “forgotten futurism” or considering if SimCity informs and influences notions of urban planning and governance or simply reveals itself as simulated simulation.

Levels 1 and 2 situate the history of computer games as interactive play spaces and connect these basic ideas to the framework of the Ludic Metropolis, or City of Play. Along with the physical representations of space in video gaming, the urbanist modes of exchange and social intercourse are examined with many specific game and research projects. In the end, we discover how narrative environments like World of Warcraft shape identities through an interconnection of an architecture of play, socially immersive design, and timeless storytelling.

In Level 3, Ubitquitous Games: Enchanting Places, Buildings, Cities and Landscapes, the Ludic City is crafted as an actual real-life play space, broken out of the computer console, but no doubt influenced by its tendencies, parameters and tools. Examples like geocaching, locative games, ARG advertising, augmented realities, mobile media, Parkour, and others evoke an idea of gaming within true social space, the city as a game board, and the separations between game and life fully blurred.

In Level 4, Serious Fun: Utilizing Game Elements for Architectural Design and Urban Planning, the Ludic City is envisioned as a proving ground and design tool. Architects and urban planners, embracing the organic, player driven models of gaming, employ its modes towards generative and evaluative instances of complexity management and design research. Here especially, the editors posit the newly respected role of game technologies for the social causes of urbanism and design towards the common good. Skeptics of the value of gaming will certainly be challenged in this chapter, their views perhaps not resistant to the well articulated examples of how game design and technologies have already proven their value off the living room couch.

In the final chapter, Level 5, Faites Vos Jeux: Games Between Utopia and Dystopia, the editors collect examples of how games and war play an uneasy partnership on the battlefield for hearts and minds across societies, present and future-minded. This chapter also examines virtual economies, such as the Chinese Gold Miners of World of Warcraft, and in-game advertising’s rise to importance.

The book begins and ends with references to Spacewar!, the very first recorded instance of a video game design, a creation of MIT students in 1962 for the PDP-1, the first device with a graphic monitor, instantiating the language and context of video gaming for many years to come. In reflecting upon how quickly computer games have infiltrated the collective and individualized societies of yesterday, today and tomorrow, we cannot help but imagine their inevitability in the human condition and the importance of play, time and space.

Verdict: An indispensable addition to the library of any interaction designer, game designer, social theorist, architect, urban planner, futurist, student or scholar, casual or fanatical gamer.

For those who cannot wait for an AppTapp 1.1.1 Update

See our Install AppTapp 3.0 beta in iPhone 1.1.1 without Command Line tutorial←

Certainly, at this moment, we can only assume that Nullriver is busy updating their AppTapp installer to integrate the revised jailbreak and install procedure required with the iPhone 1.1.1 software update. Only in the past few days have the new symlink technique tools been released in beta. Ironically, you use AppTapp in the process of preparing your iPhone 1.0.2 to update to 1.1.1 and then apply another third-party hack to get around the recent lockdown of the SpringBoard, which no longer uses the DisplayOrder.plist file to determine the visibility and ordering of icons on the main menu, rendering SummerBoard obsolete in favor of another hack which allows horizontal-style scrolling to add more icons.

What you’ll lose with 1.1.1

By gaining the 1.1.1 features such as the WiFi Music Store, Home button double-click shortcuts, and space-bar double-tap for a period feature, among other minor tweaks, you will lose certain things you might have enjoyed under 1.0.2 and under, with the third-party applications and enhancements. This includes losing the ability to order the icons in the SpringBoard with rSBT, applying SummerBoard themes, and perhaps most critically for some, the ability to create custom ringtones. iPhone 1.1.1 requires a strange ring tone file format (.m4r) and tools to create these files don’t seem to be available, yet. This is especially disappointing as it effectively eliminates your ability to create sound effect ringtones, or install the brilliant Cellphone sound that’s found deep the iLife sound library. Why does Apple think we only want musical ringtones? What if customers find them dreadfully annoying, and would prefer a simple ring that sounds like a cellphone, such as the one featured on the original iPhone TV commercials!

Update requirements

Once a step-by-step procedure was published by iPhoneAlley, we decided we would take the plunge and see if it works, rather than wait it out for Nullriver to release their elegant “next-next” wizard that handles the process easily and command-line free in a single fool-proof method that minimizes opportunities for error. We can confirm with amusement that, indeed, the 1.1.1 software update does allow third-party programs to be installed. Although the process is different, it’s not really any more or less scary than the original manual method we used before AppTapp was released with its novice-ready installation. In fact, the tools and methods have actually evolved since, and someone who fits the following profile could consider doing this also:

1. Have a Macintel (no PowerPC or Windows support at this time)
2. Have an AT&T account (no unlocked SIMs; free/open source unlocking tools aren’t ready yet)
3. Have about 30 minutes of patience to follow directions very carefully
4. Have some experience with AppTapp, Terminal, SSH and SFTP
5. Don’t mind potentially voiding your Apple warranty

Disclaimer, Warning, Caution

If you don’t qualify with all of the above conditions, you should definitely either wait for Nullriver to update AppTapp for 1.1.x, or think again about your inclinations to modify your iPhone.

Otherwise, all the usual warnings and disclaimers apply: Do this at your own risk. We assume no liability. Future updates from Apple are almost certain to close whatever loopholes were discovered at this point. Third-party applications make modifications to your iPhone, such as write preference files, that an Apple support technician might be able to detect, even after performing a Restore.

Further clarification

We followed iPhoneAlley’s step-by-step instructions, which are adequate for those of us that fit somewhere between a command-line hacker and a novice. The process takes about 30 minutes and seems to be reversible with the described downgrade feature. It’s important to make the clear distinction between “unlocking” and “jailbreaking,” the former is a far more risky endeavor where you modify the deep innards of the device to allow SIM cards and service providers other than AT&T. Inoperable bricked phones have been reported with the 1.1.1 in this case. Jailbreaking is simply opening up the iPhone’s file system to allow read and write access to allow the installation of third-party software and other customizations. Unlocking and 1.1.1 upgrades is probably still too risky at this point, while jailbreaking seems to be fairly safe.

Lean Machine

It’s worth noting that there are only two third-party applications that we ended up installing on our newly upgraded 1.1.1 system: NES and Chat. All the other programs are basically proof-of-concepts, raw experimentations, non-essential and easily forgettable. However, retrogaming and a genuine IM client, two things that might never be officialized by Apple (via AT&T) are considered indispensable additions to sorely lacking features of the factory feature set: games and IM.

UPDATE October 20, 2007

It turns out that the release of iNdepenence 1.2.2 was probably premature, as a later, greater version (1.2.4) emerged on October 18 that resolves some key issues with 1.2.2, that include how the Springboard is handled. Anyone who used 1.2.2 (us!) could have either used some patches released to resolve issues, or end up starting the whole restore, downgrade, exploit, upgrade, re-install process all over again. We’re compiling a tutorial and notes as we go through it. Stay tune for a posting on the subject.

UPDATE October 15, 2007

A new version of iNdependence was release today (v1.2.2) on Google code which supports Jailbreak on 1.1.1 firmware. It includes a special UI to perform and prepare for the 1.1.1 update which is not indicated in the iPhoneAlley step-by-step guide that we followed. Any users that have not yet updated form 1.0.2 to 1.1.1 should read the included Help documentation to learn the best method of preparing for 1.1.1 and then using their post 1.1.1 upgrade procedures available in the Firmware tab of this program. If you updated to 1.1.1 from 1.0.2 before this was released, you may need to downgrade with it, and then re-update to allow the ability to perform jailbreaks in the future. In the procedure outlined by iPhoneAlley, you really only get a one-shot-deal to jailbreak, so this new method is clearly preferred. We’ll comment on our experience preforming the downgrade and then re-upgrade using the new version of iNdependence.

UPDATE October 16, 2007

Some experiences in using iNdependence 1.2.2 to manage the migration to iPhone 1.1.1 while preserving AppTapp and jailbreak access (not SIM unlocking) follow. The built-in Help provides the step-by-step directions, however, it still needs some work, as it confusingly refers to itself in a circular fashion. We would still recommend waiting for Nullriver to release AppTapp for 1.1.1 if you’re at all weary of needing to carefully follow an arcane set of instructions or avoid using the command-line altogether. This update to iNependence achieves jailbreaking capabilities on the new firmware, but that’s about it.

Helpful Hints

Things to watch out for, not well documented in the built-in Help, when working with iNdependence 1.2.2 and the 1.0.2 to 1.1.1 upgrade process with jailbreak:

• The built-in Help documentation does not cover how to install AppTapp. However, you can use iNdependence or an SFTP client like CyberDuck to copy the Installer.app file found within the AppTapp installer package. Once copied, you can SSH into your 1.1.1 iPhone and trigger launching it via the command-line. Then you can enter the conceited software beta installer link into your MobileSafari, adding the required Trip1PogoStick hack, to allow the 1.1.1. SpringBoard to display programs, including Installer. Refer to the iPhoneAlley tutorial steps that cover these aspects, and ignore the steps that are covered by the new iNdependence method, which precludes the need to preform the installation of the Trip1Prep step. That seems to be the symlink trick that allows the 1.1.1 upgrade, but iNdependence handles that during its Pre-1.1.1 and Post-1.1.1 steps. On the iPhoneAlley tutorial, they say not to use iNdependence or use the traditional AppTapp installation. Although true in the case of the AppTapp installation, this tutorial needs to be updated to account for the reality that iNdependence has since been updated, and can be used to update to 1.1.1, in fact, offers a preferred method which retains the jailbreak. By following the iPhoneAlley method, you lose the jailbreak after completing the upgrade. It’s gotten very confusing, indeed. Apple is doing an excellent job of altering the infrastructure just enough to disrupt our efforts significantly.
• Be sure to kill the iTunes Helper process using Activity Monitor. Otherwise, iTunes will launch during many of the required reboots, and could interfere with the crucial timing of the re-activation.
• Temporarily deactivate your media syncing in iTunes, especially if you have downgrade. This will save you lots of time as the iPhone gets “erases” and re-built. Re-check the boxes for your songs, photos, videos, etc. after the process has been completed and sync up.
• We discovered the hard way, that you really want to let iTunes perform the Activation, rather than use iNdependence. It appears that if you use iNdependence to activate the phone and then deactivate it, iTunes does not appear to successfully re-activate, and thus you become dependent on iNdepedence. Yikes!
• Although the built-in Help claims that your YouTube will be fine during this process, we found that it did not work after the process. Fortunately, we easily found this reference, where you can download the appropriate security key files and upload them to the correct place on your iPhone file system (/var/root/Library/Lockdown/), and this seems to restore YouTube functionality.
• You’ll need to re-sync one additional time after the process is complete to get your Apple iTunes Music Store account properly associated with your WiFi Music Store in order to purchase music on the iPhone.
• Don’t forget to change your SSH passwords from the defaults, to help prevent getting truly hacked by a malicious user on some WiFi network. iNdependence does make it easy to change these passwords in the SSH tab.

Indeed, we could work on a write-up that combines the best of what’s offered on iPhoneAlley and the iNdepenence built-in Help, but by the time we finish that, Nullriver might have their brilliant AppTapp Installer updated, and then, like before, it’ll be a waste of time, thankfully. It’s very likely that some other passionate modder has beat us to the punch, by now.

Hyperbole Essay Muses a Protestant Split Over Jesus Phone

Release a breakthrough product, ready the defenses. Slash prices within 60 days of its release. Pre-test an elaborate consumer store credit program. Maintain control of user experience, revenue streams, and product integrity. Expedite firmware drops to shore up security against an unpredictably vigorous, yet independent, and ingenious rogue software design movement. Monitor ensuing online chatter and surveil the field, ready to deploy assets.

Such is the life of Applists, at the brink of factioning off into a ruthless, fringe element, no longer allegiant to Pope Jobs. These followers protest, disillusioned with the rejection of their effusive prayers and deeds in the name of the product’s church. Emblems of the faith, splendid exemplars of user interface mantras led by installers as elegant as “undocumented features,” spreading customizations and innovations of every whim as if Gnostic Gospel. Each passionate shortcoming of the breakthrough product, much hyped, yet still maligned beyond nitpick, had been redeemed, by painstaking devoted minds, dedicated to unlocking the mysteries of the revolutionary creation, without manual, in disobedience to advice and guidance.

Today the mark is 1.1.1 vs. 1.0.2 — those who have crossed over towards Applist orthodoxy and those resistant, not yet yielding, making due without holy sanctions, verified creed. Perhaps it’s the attraction of a more personal relationship with the Godhead, the sacred code, Kabalah’s sublime intertextual numerology, the open principles of touch-based human interface guidelines and their applications, Gnostic texts canonized by Memex. This divine intimacy of the populace is too much for the orthodoxy to stomach, unmediated transgressors. Only deep within the Vaticanal campus of Cupertino, could the details of iPhone be realized and celebrated through masses. Or could they? The orthodoxy obediently applies edicts from axis mundi, replete with sharia, releasing newly inscribed sacraments of commerce, and trivial revisions to interface ritual, all as sacrifices to the Godhead in the name of stablity, security, and eschatology. The reformists resist the superficialities of bug fixes, feature tweaks, and new revenue streams in favor of purist pursuits of homebrewed exchange and unmediated gadgeteering.

Watch the iPhoneDev splinter group, the prophets Erica Sadun, and her followers, all Digging, the global audience, Natetrue and Nervegas and Nightwatch, all the great disciples of the tripartite theory of Jobs, Ives, and Schiller; now splintering off into a Protestant reformation, rejecting the hegemonies, the hierarchies, the corporate religiosity that puts shareholder before stakeholder, priest before parishoner, mission before congregation, partner before customer, policy before press, business before pleasure.

Other churches reap followers by addressing the misgivings of these loud voices, the difficult choice of switching allegiances, and selecting new identities could be the most drastic reaction to the Applist inquisition. Once dedicated followers, so-called fanboys, mavens, influencers, the variously labeled, occasionally ridiculed, persecuted acolytes of American design purity, objects painstakingly assembled by Chinese workers, clothed in their consumer best, they are lovingly delivered to lavishly spoiled consumers, whose lives change instantly, noticeably, invisibly, despite clear markings and insignia.

Needless to say, we aren’t the only ones jolted into a state of doubt, of second-guessing, a crisis of faith. Our iPhones remain 1.0.2, our AppTap apps continue to dance upon our SummerBoard with a flick, semi-useless, yet somehow indispensable reminders of cherishing the essentials of open, of freedom, of flexibility. We remember not to take for granted the simple joys of the original Applist congregation, enabled to seek more personal relationships with what the breakthrough product enables, beyond expansion and customization: retrogaming, instant messaging, operating systemics, electronic literature, voice recordings, recreation, media redistribution, virtualization, and location-based positioning.

The factionalization inevitably reflects the disconnect between the hierarchy and its Diocese. Cupertino must enforce and enrich its control and influence over the essential elements of its worldview, the device software. There are specific fiduciary duties towards contractual partners and shareholders that assess profound regard in refocusing the consumers attention towards revenue streams and away from endeavors that distract from ongoing tithing. Yet the followers, in their humanistic zeal for coming to know the the device software more intimately, more greatly, more intrinsically, unlocked an interconnection that may not have even been intended for mere mortals. This Pandora’s box exemplifies the detachment of the Tripartite from its congregation. Such a clearly precedented trait of Applists was forgotten, and now fracturing ensues.

Will devotees of Apple fracture into subservient and subversive sects, now prompted to select allegiances?

Firmware Update Unsettles

The long awaited firmware updated is released today. We’ve speculated its identifier as iPhone 2.0 and other possibilities, but the important thing is that new features and capabilities are added for free to expand the software offerings of iPhone. Certainly, not everyone will be 100% impressed with what’s been added today, as you can only please most of the people some of the time.

Early reports suggest that this update does not break or “brick” when applied to a device with un-authorized third-party applications, especially using AppTapp. However, early reports suggest that the installed applications are wiped out as the fresh OS install essentially reformats and reinstalls. If you’re insistent on preserving your third-party apps, it’s advisable to wait for Nullriver to release a new AppTapp tested with 1.1.1 support before launching forward with the update. However, bricking is likely with SIM unlocks. Certainly, the comment streams will be awash with controversy.

Sporting provocative bullet points, this essay may not be new news, but it speaks refreshing truths while standing the test of time.

» Download essay [PDF]

This scholarly paper by was originally presented as a talk for the conference Mobile Communication: Social and Political Effects, held on April 29-30, 2003 in Budapest, and is collected in Mobile Democracy: Essays on Self, Society and Politics. We’ve come upon this text during regular research in pursuit of an interesting range of academic treatments concerning critical viewpoints of mobile media and electronic culture. The “Global Nomads in the Digital Veldt” essay stands out in the collection for its succinct expressions that thoughtfully document complex social changes in deceptively simple terms. Despite the arcane literary device in the title, the writing is downright accessible and the core message articulates a cogent framework for thinking about mobile technologies and society.

Meyrowitz’s use of the Veldt to encapsulate his message is regrettable. He plays off Marshall McLuhan’s coinage of “global village,” contrasting it with a reconceptualization of cyberspace as a primordial hunter-gatherer society. We agree with the idea, and we can even visualize the metaphors. But we’re belly-aching on the word-play, the sprechen-spiel. Perhaps it feels hokey and detached while attempting to persuade us with trite McLuhan soundbyte style textual imaging. Our cover image◊ might suggest our frustration with attempts to photo-illustrate the idea of a global nomad in the digital veldt. We also succumb to the tendency to pepper titles and blurbs with metaphors that amuse with clever yet esoteric cultural literacy for readers — something catchy that sums up an idea with a wordy picture.

Even for an academic paper, however, the reference is unnecessarily obscure, and diverts readers away from the simple elegance of his central point. That said, his word choice motivated us to conduct some cursory research into the term veldt, and so we sidebar now in order to reveal subtle ironies that redeem his transgression. Our electronically nomadic research trail begins with the Wikipedia→, jumping off to a copy of the Ray Bradbury short story→ of the same title, off to a quick cheat using a study guide→, and ending up at veldt.com→, which upon closer look, manages to poetically reinforce Meyrowitz’s metaphor. When you perform a View Source on the empty page, you discover the anonymous author’s epitaph embedded as a comment in the HTML source code:

veldt.com is dead.
old, useful content may come back to life, when i find the time.
i may post at veldt.vox.com
but no guarantees.

it’s not been all that fun, blogosphere.

Clearly, the proprietor of veldt.com has wandered on to greener pastures, perhaps disenchanted with the promise of online social networks only to find the veldt a hostile playground of disillusionment rather than the abundant network of social connections and benevolent discourse. There is rewarding irony in this discovery when you connect it linguistically with the use of Veld, the low German form of the word, which means, according to Wikipedia, at retrieval:

[...] a place that is generally overgrown or has gone fallow, such as a thicket or a field that has become overgrown from lack of maintenance.

Comparing the term “Digital Veldt” with the vernacular that emerged through unfortunate force of popular lexicon — “blogosphere” — we can’t decide which is worse. In fact, no one has even come close to coming up with a quality term for describing the electronic human condition, and do it with a pleasing aesthetic and semiotic.

Now this diversion aside, it’s still not clear after re-reading “Global Nomads” why the author selected the Veldt to image the lonely wasteland of electronic communications. Despite misgivings with the literary references, the essay still stands as an important discussion of how electronic media fundamentally alters humanity and its societies. We’ll get over our squabbling and get to the point by quoting the core passage of the essay where Professor Meyrowitz states his uniquely succinct observations:

From “Global Nomads”

A key feature of the electronic era is that most physical, social, cultural, political, and economic boundaries have become more porous, sometimes to the point of functionally disappearing. This seemingly simple proposition has far-reaching significance and implications. The relative products, services, and channels of communications have been leaking into each other. While the key change is literally happening “at the margins” of all social systems, the change is not simply something happening “out there.” As the margins change, the contents of all forms of human organization change. As a result, we are experiencing a dramatic shift in our sense of locale, identity, time, values, ethics, etiquette, and culture.

The increasing functional permeability of boundaries — combined with the continued physical existence of most of those same boundaries — explains the contradictory feelings we have in the early 21st century: Many things still seem the same, and yet everything is somehow changed. In our electronic landscape, we have thinner distinctions:

• between here and there
• between now and then (and yet to be)
• between public and private
• between male and female spheres
• between child and adult realms of experience
• between leaders and average citizens
• between office and home
• between work and leisure
• between business and customers
• between users and producers
• between news and entertainment
• between one field or discipline and another
• between different media genres
• between simulated and real
• between copies and originals
• between direct and indirect experience
• between biology and technology
• between marginal and mainstream

Your thirst for additionally succinct world-changing bullet points will be quenched, as the author delivers another set of bullets that further illustrate twenty-first century living. At least scan for the passage where he connects his idea of global nomads to September 11, 2001.

Response

More than any other essay in the collection, “Digital Nomads” provokes us enough to seriously consider undertaking the multimedia production of photo-illustrating all of these bullet-points, a sort of electronic media peer review. Or at least, we’re interested in annotating the quotation with commentary hyperlinks. We’re not through with this one yet. Too many unresolved considerations remain.

Credits

Essay quotations © 2003 by Joshua Meyrowitz.
Photo by Teseum via Flickr. Photo-illustration by mercurious via Creative Commons licensing.

For the uninitiated, Processing→ is an open interactive media platform published on free software license via MIT by Casey Reas→ and Ben Fry→. Originally created as a learning tool, it is maturing through a Beta phase currently while winning tremendous support within the academic and design community. It appears to be emerging as the [tag]Sketchpad[/tag]↔ of the future. Sutherland→ would be so proud of his fellow alumni.

• Download Sample Chapters→ in PDF
• MIT Press→

For those in-the-know, this MIT Press release, Processing: A Programming Handbook for Visual Designers and Artists will be noticed on August 24, 2007. A substantial amount of the book is available in PDF format now. The free preview certainly suggests how tremendous and definitive this text is going to be. Take a peak at this inspiring passage from the introduction. It begins by describing the world view of Processing and the philosophy about software it epitomizes:

Software is a unique medium with unique qualities
Concepts and emotions that are not possible to express in other media may be expressed in this medium. Software requires its own terminology and discourse and should not be evaluated in relation to prior media such as film, photography, and painting. History shows that technologies such as oil paint, cameras, and film have changed artistic practice and discourse, and while we do not claim that new technologies improve art, we do feel they enable different forms of communication and expression. Software holds a unique position among artistic media because of its ability to produce dynamic forms, process gestures, define behavior, simulate natural systems, and integrate other media including sound, image, and text. (p. 1)

The introduction continues on to beautifully frame the pursuit of aesthetics through software. The free preview includes not only complete Table of Contents and Index, but also a very solid introduction to Processing and some of fundamental concepts. It’s enough material to function as an ideal free resource for getting started, while also leaves you thirsting for more.

Indeed, a more comprehensive review is forthcoming.

Impressions.

Although Gizmodo→ is recommending that those who haven’t already early-adopted should wait for the first software update, the iPhone is a stunning achievement. Really the only salient reason offered by Gizmodo for waiting applies to users who constantly MMS and/or SMS to multiple recipients. Despite owning many phones capable of both these features, we must admit that we rarely, if ever, use these features. Otherwise, the iPhone offers a feature set where we find ourselves using it instead of our laptop, perhaps because the elegance of the multi-touch interface makes the conventional OS seem blasé by comparison. Or, maybe it’s that we truly enjoy the personal nature of using the device, and marvel at its ability to overcome the limitations of the screen size, input methods and network capabilities.

Problems.

Update, August 2, 2007: iPhone Sofware Update 1.0.1 delivers the goods→ 

Unresolved issues that are real disappointments.

1. Issue Resolved→  The iPhone Car Bluetooth interface is not working well with my Audi A3 factory Bluetooth integration. Although it pairs beautifully and offers a terrific integration with the navigation system’s interface, the Bluetooth connection does not remain connected, and periodically drops and inconsistently reconnects. Perhaps the polling frequency of the Bluetooth software implementation needs to be adjusted in the forthcoming software updates to more reliably maintain the headset profile connection?
2. Issue Resolved→ The iPod Car integration kit is not working. This extremely expensive, official dealer-installed accessory that allows an iPod connected through the glove box to offer audio playback through the factory unit and charging does not seem compatible with the iPhone. The compatibility warning appears, suggesting the Airplane Mode to be activated. In either setting, the audio does not playback through the system. It is reduced to an inconvenient car charger. This is perhaps our greatest disappointment and we do hope that Apple improves compatibility with various Dock Connector accessories in the future updates.
3. I hate to write about this, but indeed, my first iPhone was a lemon. It froze, crashed and resisted the restore process. AppleCare customer service and my local Apple Retail store offered stellar customer service, however, and gladly replaced my unit, without much hassle. The replaced unit runs flawlessly, and clearly, there was a hardware issue, probably a faulty NAND RAM unit with my first one.

Wish List.

The Top Ten features that we’d love to see in the forthcoming software updates.

1. Junk Mail filter. It’s a shame that junk mail filters have truly become an essential aspect to any usable email client, and anyone who uses a standard POP or IMAP account can attest to the difficulty of using the iPhone email client without spam filtering.
2. Improved Bluetooth implementation. We’re talking full A2DP wireless stereo headset support, more aggressive polling to maintain headset or car kit connections, and full disk mode access via Bluetooth. Basically, a non-crippled, optimized implementation, and that’s not too much to ask.
3. Improved Dock Connector accessory compatibility. Obviously, Apple is worried about the interference caused by the AT&T cellular network frequencies. You’ve heard that distinctive ‘dih-dih-dih-dih’ that interferes with speakers nearby your phone as a call comes in. It would be better if you could accept this interference and enable full compatibility mode for legacy dock connector devices.
4. Disk Mode. You should be able to mount the iPhone as a USB drive and through Bluetooth to exchange files. This should also enable the file based editing of wallpapers and ringtones. In addition, manual media management should be allowed through drag-and-drop control in iTunes, as supported in iPod connections.
5. iChat. Surely, AT&T strong-armed Apple into not including iChat on the initial 1.0 release to swindle customers into opting for biggest SMS account features. It’s no coincidence that even the most expensive plans limit text messaging to 200 per month. However, an iChat client offered by Apple is badly needed.
6. Games. The multi-touch interface, motion sensors and brilliant screen are begging for games. You simply need something to enjoy on this device while you’re in the subway or in other network dead-zones. Not to mention, games are, uh, well, fun.
7. Nike+ compatibility. The Nike Plus system should work on the iPhone. It is not recognized as a compatible accessory.
8. Dock Remote Control. This is perhaps the most elaborate request, that will likely be enabled by a third-party and then absorbed by Apple into a Leopard upgrade release. We’re talking an SMS interface on your laptop/desktop, call control with caller ID, brightness/backlight control, iTunes remote access (so you can play off your iPhone instead of off your main device), and the ability to configure certain settings.
9. iSync Bluetooth synchronization support for Contacts, Calendars, Notes, non-media data. Obviously, Bluetooth is too slow to sync media files. But that feature could be achieved over WiFi, as is implemented on the Apple TV product.
10. iTunes Music Store. We’d like to buy music, movies, TV shows, games and subscribe to Podcasts directly on the device. Maybe it would only work while on a WiFi network until the 3G iPhone arrives, someday.

1. Into the Rainbow Vein 0:44 The opening songlet nicely ‘tunes’ your ears for the record, and fades out quickly, tagging the album aesthetic with a sonic marker of sorts.
2. Chromakey Dreamcoat 5:47 Tape distorted guitar is the key tone color that is added to the well-established Boards sound with Headphase. Muddy drum samples, and descending bass notes vary with complexity beneath the simple repeating descending wobbly guitar sample. Synth progressions establish the chord complexity in the middle of the song, over a melodic variation, with intricate punctuations. At about 4:30, the track stops like a mechanical tape, introducing the final theme of ascending chords, and a patchwork of stringed instrument samples including violins, and some spoken voice samples emerge that still need to be decoded help close Dreamcoat in a fulfilling fade.
3. Satellite Anthem Icarus 6:04 Oceanic tide rolls in. Classic rock anthem guitar riffs open up this exceptionally low tempo track. Classic rock bass helps contrast against the the spacious synth and brassy pads above. The song feels like it’s in slow-motion, and clear rests in sections remind us it’s intentional. A few vocal touches pepper the track, still to be transcripted. Ocean wave-like washes ebb behind the theme at the 4:30 mark, again signalling the compositional resolution to a very strong track, again with a fullfilling fade. A songlet is embedded at the end of the track which pauses after the fade from about 5:30 to the end. It’s a warbling organy loop, reversed and run through the Boards’ patented filtration system.
4. Peacock Tail 5:24 The previous song’s ending songlet lead us nicely into the first notes of Peacock Tail. A melancholy melody broods over sharp bass drum kicks, and shuffling percussion collages with spacious pads echoing the melody chord progression. The space opens with the emotional tone of the song, which gets ‘happier’ as the upper register melody arrives at 2:00. This upper tune is what you may find yourself whistling or humming, despite its deceptive simplicity. Some ethnic vocals dissonante in the background, at around 3:20, where the song does crescendo into a delicate resolution. The vocal loops grow in on top of the theme, as it fades, revealing some flutes and a sense of how many people comprise the recording.
5. Dayvan Cowboy 5:00 Guitar riffs open Dayvan Cowboy, this time electric rather than acoustic. Again, a simple riff, with a similar tone color to the previous track emerges. It does sound like a theme and variation composition pervades some parts of this new record. Soft percussion hides in the background, steady during the intro, which lasts the first third of the composition. Rewindy echoes appear at the middle, and abrutly shift to an electric guitar strum pattern that sounds like its running into the organ spinner. A classical violin section appears with some majesty. The song is feeling epic, quite a build-up. Filter distortions play against the droplet pads and stereo-shake-shake rhythm. Strings return to remind you that the group is evolving its sound into a new maturity. The opening riffs fade and close up this big track.
6. A Moment of Clarity 0:51 This songlet is an amazing sonic sculpture. Perhaps the most difficult moment of the record to translate into words.
7. ‘84 Pontiac Dream 3:49 The heavy down tempo rolls in again, with thickly layered organ chords and melodies. The main melody line is really catchy, very lyrical. It’s rare that you listen to BoC and imagine vocals fitting in. It happens here at times, especially during the chorus. Bubbly gurgles mumble in the background, as the chords change. The remaining fades out, feeling not quite almost done.
8. Sherbert Head 2:41 Muddied and deep chords descend over static laden matrix. Some vocal elements do pierce through the sound fog, and need more analysis to extract them. A mirrored composition, in that it feels like it ends like it begins.
9. Oscar See Through Red Eye 5:08 Some have conjectured that this the big hit of the record, if there ever could be one from BoC. The song really does work well, although I have a small beef with it, when it goes into a Latin-esque rhythmn patch, sounds a bit too Casio keyboard demo for such a top shelf act on an other wise top-shelf song. At 2:11, the song nicely solos a guitar-esque melody riff, that sounds as if it was made out of reversi. The different tones enmesh melodically in At 3:11, we hit the bit I smile at, it’s a samba out of nowhere.
10. Aatronchronon 1:14 Muddy, distant pulsing tones, melodic, dissolve.
11. Hey Saturday Sun 4:56 Another guitar arpgeggio riffs, with cymbals starts this track off, with swishy percussive accents. Soon a reversi melody rolls in, against the guitar arpreggio, with gentle percussion rests. Another guitar appears, fitting in with the rock drum kit sound. Spacious sound beams chord over the guitar loops, and then the pieces interlayer in a very satisfying, analog, decidedly authentic BoC moment. The reversi melody leads us into a final section, with high register siren tones. The guitar riff remains solo with the drums in a dissolving fade out.
12. Constants Are Changing 1:42 Muddy keys vamp over more electric guitar sound collage, as the bass guitar, very indy-rockish, lays out the theme. Some nice fret echoes punctuate nicely at the end, and then a fade out.
13. Slow This Bird Down 6:09 Distant organs move toward us, with a strong deep bass pulse in the definite foreground. A muted flute tone slithers out a high register melody, in one of the few moments of this record that aesthetically references a previous record. There is a hauntingly familiar tonal voice in this song, that feels reincarnated somehow. Dirgelike male chorus layers drape the backgrounds in ceremonial mystery. Towards the end, a semi-songlet emerges, with a very distant solo guitar noodling.
14. Tears From The Compound Eye 4:03 Dripping wet organs enter, muddy and spacious. The melody hesitantly builds in, repeating, but layering. A harmonizing upper register slightly syncopates the melody. The organ chords get played deliberatively, almost on the beat. At the half-way point, the composition turns towards its final direction, with the resolving melody theme. Again, it’s restrained, not left to mature into a resolving melody and is faded out prematurely, a haunting, teasing end. No cathartic waterfall of sound cleanses us at the end like Everything You Do Is A Balloon or . It’s uncertain, unresolved, instead.
15. Farewell Fire 8:28 Chorus and filtered keytones with one of the only characteristic “childlike” innocent moments on the record appears. The repeating melodic theme here has a purity that somehow contrasts with the heavier, thicker colors of the middle part of the album sequence. Within the first two-thirds of the track, the composition fades deep into the background. You sense a long drawn out ending, metaphorical to the title imagry. The flames settle into embers, smoke hovering, dissapating. Near silence with very distant tones around 4:30. The song still burns. By 5:30 you may be imaging the sounds, they feel so distant, so unreachable, even with maximum volume. And yet they’re still there, listenable, but beyond reach. By 6:30 the tones move closer, briefly, with a varied melody. By 7:30 the melody has devolved into perhaps two alternating notes again dissolving into an end. total time: 1 hour

1. West Wing, NBC, 8-9 pm
2. Desperate Housewives, ABC, 9-10 pm
3. Curb Your Enthusiasm, HBO, 10-10:30 pm
4. Extras, HBO, 10:30-11:00 pm

Naturally, we record Rome on HBO during the Housewives spot, and tend to it later. It requires so much attention, so much concentration, and usually repeat viewing to appreciate all the narrative and production detail.

West Wing opened with a vexing “Three Years Later” sequence prior to the show open, offering us a tantalizing glimpse at the awkward reunion of the Bartlett cabinet at his library dedication ceremony. Apparently, CJ marries her reporter beau (the dude from Thirtysomething) sans ankle bracelet. I’ll need to review this scene again on the DVR to pull out the rest of the details of where they all end up. When Josh arrives, we wonder if he’s the new chief of staff, suggesting a Santos win. But, maybe he’s just being Josh. It’s ambivalent. Just as the new president steps out of the limo, the horns and flag graphic cuts in. After the break, we get a “Three Years Earlier” and we’re brought back into narrative current time. Will the season drag out the election for 15 episodes? Will we get the split ticket we crave?

Desperate Housewives probably doesn’t merit much discussion here. It’s the guilty pleasure of the evening, I suppose. Perhaps what’s more telling than anything: The term “desperate” is currently the top seed on zeitgeist-o-meter Google and guess where it links?

Curb Your Enthusiam promises delicious giggles, despite the bad breath of a whitefish, sable, caper and onion sandwich.

Extras, a joint venture by HBO and the BBC, offers up the next Ricky Gervais comedy from the makers of The Office. Certainly, he’s the same character. I guess we’re to imagine that he left the paper company to aspire to Hollywood stardom? The winning formula of this show isn’t so much the schadenfreude of watching Gervais’ social ‘flailure.’ Instead, it’s watching the guest stars who interact with the extras on set, revealing their surprising ascerbic off-camera idiocy. Kate Winslet’s unabashed Oscar obessions and foul-mouthed dirty-talk advice make Ricky Gervais’s oafishness seem warm and kind in comparison. And next week, I guess the idea is that Ben Stiller will take the brinksmanship of idiocy to levels not yet seen, even opposite oafsters like a Wilson brother. Wait a minute. Wasn’t Ben Stiller a total dick on his special appearance against Larry David on Curb Your Enthusiam

Amazing Race Family Edition runs on top of NBC’s promising My Name is Earl and The Office, while ABC serves up Commander In Chief during the same slot. Only two are recordable/viewable. Something has to go, and when we imagine watching a reality show in real-time, the answer is clear. Perhaps we should wait until the woman president concept goes reality tv too on CNN starring Hil?

Update: Another potential version has begun circulating and it has been authenticated as the real deal.If anything, this review can help you determine if the copy of The Campfire Headphase that you’re probably enjoying right now is indeed a legitimate work of our favorite Scottish duo. Inspired by another fake review, I offered mine, only to be quickly corrected by a vigilant forensic investigator of sorts. In my case, I had read about the possibility of fakes, but I really wanted to believe that this was an authentic leak from a true insider, even though I knew, deep down, the chance of forgery was palpable. I offer the review here, republished and somewhat edited with this additional context just to appreciate the fascinating controversies that emerge out of a mysterious electronica act with a zealous following, a musical aesthetic that’s apparently easily and convincingly emulated, and the anarchy of information that comprises file sharing networks.Regardless of everything, what’s really interesting, is that this does pass as an authentic Boards of Canada record if you’re willing to believe in it. Whomever assembled this forgery, they a did a fine job. So if you get your head around what’s true and what’s false, the album review still stands, and the forgery may even earn some historical respect as a meta-recording related to the real October 17, 2005 release.

Original post, somewhat edited for accuracy

By a stroke of continued good fortune, I have come upon a genuine pre-release of The Campfire Headphase [wiki] exactly two months prior to its scheduled October 17, 2005 release by the venerable Warp records. I’ll be honoring the artists, those who passed it upon me, the record company and all the lawyers, and so forth. Don’t use this page to spread information about torrents and whatnot. Don’t even bother asking me to leak it anymore than it already has. This will provide you with a pre-release non-press review from a considerable fan, and that’s all.The Scottish duo, Boards of Canada [wiki], has left its zealous following waiting three years with bated breath for a new release. I cannot affirm the authenticity of this recording, as I’ve read about fakes of this already appearing on P2P networks since the album art and song list were released. Others appear to have written fake reviews. I received 320 kbps MP3 files from an inside, but anonymous source.Approaching my 10th listening, I’m coming to know this record much better. My first listening was startling. Probably, because the music isn’t by Boards of Canada. Familiar yet unfamiliar sounds, layered and smothered in their distinctive aesthetic. Clearly, as with their past two full albums, Geogaddi (2002) and Music Has a Right to Children (1998), two key tracks on the record stand out in supreme listenablity. These are the ones that you repeat and memorize. I would say Chromakey Dreamcoat and Sherbet Head will stand out as the 1969 and Aquarius type songs that folks just can’t get enough of once they’re hooked. Whether, these two songs do emerge as the breakout hits, remains to be seen, when we can listen to the official retail release. The rest of the record is chock full of lush and eerie songlets and textures. On first listen, some of the tracks put me off, again, because they were not properly attributed, but with subsequent listenings, the tracks revealed their depth. Some feel deceptively ‘experimental’ but structure reveals itself in repeat listenings, as new layers and moments are discovered. This discovery process is similiar to much of the older BoC tracks I have come upon by other means, the potentially vast library of material circuluating out there not originating from retail release. Indeed, filtering out the fakes from the originals is part of the open market collector’s task. BoC brings the art history back to music for many of us. The poingancy of this statement is all the more, well, poigant.

Verdict: Fans will get plenty of mileage on this record. Warp rightly knows it has another so-called IDM blockbuster on its hands. And, we probably won’t hear the real record until the actual release date. And we’ll still love it.

After collecting and identifying the actual artist and titles to this forgery, I’ll revise this section to include the actual attributions. Compare to review of the actual release.

1. Into the Rainbow Vein (0:57) The opening songlet nicely ‘tunes’ your ears for the record, part-test pattern, part ‘paging dr. deeznutz.’ Organy-synth verbed over a delicate shuffle beat pianissimo.
2. Chromakey Dreamcoat (4:29) This could be the breakout hit of the record, and maybe the one to watch for out in more popular media. All of the usual BoC elements are delightfully conjured: dense-sparse synths over muddy beats, vocals and genius bass work stamping the true BoC designation of authenticity. The ‘I was kind of on my own’ sample feels like the chorus sound-byte element that makes these kinds of BoC tracks so listenable, sometimes you catch yourself vocalizing these samples along, especially if you’ve discovered how fun it is to drive with BoC. Like we’ve seen before, this stuff makes for a great commercial for some reason. That’s why you’ll hear it again probably. Chromakey Dreamcoat represents some of the duo’s best work to date. The three years spent birthing this one have been worth it for this anticipator.
3. Satellite Anthem Icarus (1:33) The whole notion that there are fake (or misidentified) Boards of Canada tracks circulating on P2P suggests that many do try to fabricate another’s distinctive sound into their compositions and pass them off on their own. Part of it relates to the nature of electronic music instruments and their processes lending itself to a certain musical aesthetic. I say all this, because a good friend of mine is a composer, and did something very, very similar to Satellite Anthem Icarus a few years ago. For me, listening to the song is thus, familiar, and friendly, and I’m endeared by the shared aesthetic. Stuttering synth samples on drippy, spacious presence.
4. Peacock Tail (3:42) This may one of my least favorite cuts on the record. The hokey melody feels intentional, and works with the mood of this piece. But it’s a tad plodding and silly to really keep this track on repeat listen. Toy piano and other muddy-MIDI sounds dance all over this one with fast-forward style beats, that cut to half-tempo sections and so forth. On further listenings, I think I’ll find the typical BoC ‘childlike’ attributes and accompanying analysis to consider really enjoying this one.
5. Dayvan Cowboy (1:58) Perhaps part of the “newness” of this album is related to some of the new sounds and effects that seem to be introduced, especially in this track. Highly sparse soundscape, with dancing pops and plucks, a melody teases, but never fully forms.
6. A Moment of Clarity (7:40) Not a high point, but I’ll return to it for another listen-up soon.
7. ‘84 Pontiac Dream (3:29) Like the track the preceeds Chromakey Dreamcoat, songs like ‘84 Pontiac Dream remind us that we should still buy albums and keep encouraging recording artists to keep making albums for us to buy. These songs go together, in a seemlingly intentional sequence. The tones and colors complement the palatte of The Campfire Headphase, perhaps serving as a better thumbnail track than either of the two ‘hit singles!’ That said, ‘84 Pontiac Dream stands on its own as a splendid and gorgeous composition. It’s one of those rare BoC cuts that can really overwealm you with beauty and mystery if you close your eyes, get in the mood, and really focus on it. Some folks get spooked by this type.
8. Sherbet Head (4:37) You’ll love both the title and the song, I assure you. My choice for the breakout #2, Sherbet Head is a lucious homage to all things good and glorious in the whole BoC pantheon of sorts. Annointed with a haunting scream vocal, reminiscent of the truly amazing work Boards of Canada did for Beck on his Broken Drum import remix, where they created a goose-bumps vocal zenith out of sampalishlishing the hell of that freaky Scientologist. Like all BoC musical moments, this one ends much sooner than you had hoped, one of those buildups that are more tip than iceberg. Before the first minute elapses, you’ve been delivered the key lick, which prepares ‘the space’ for the vocal restructurizing that follows and endears. Remix Mr. B. Hanson?
9. Oscar See Through Red Eye (4:34) Solemn and delicate, the first minute’s ’sherm’ holds you into a smattering of verbed-out pulses, that dance from channel to channel. Muddy mechanical thumps and whirrs rustle in the foreground. BoC melancholy is beauteous. An organ in a magic church takes you home at the end of this one.
10. Ataronchronon (8:12) Not only the most unpronouceable track, Ataronchronon is part of the conspiracy of this album to open your ears a little more to what the Boards have to offer. It’s still slow and steady wins the race as usual, but some of the tones and accents in this song feel new and fresh. Feeling like it’s missing a tangible core, it takes active work to dig into this song. Only at midway, do the reclusive duo reveal the footprint of the track. You are rewarded with a distant hornesque melody accented with a sinister set of chord tones. It crescendos and completes deliberately into a melodic resolution after build-up. Electronica rarely delivers so much compositional and emotional richness to a listener. Concludes on continuous tones that allow seemless repeat crossfade looping.
11. Hey Saturday Sun (1:32) This is one of my favorite songlets on Headphase. The reversi effect under joyously muted innosynths. This song is kids playing in soft rain.
12. Constants Are Changing (5:12) In keeping with the consistent feel of this record, this track opens with sparse organ synths, which shortly contrast sharp, staccato IDM beats. The contrasting melancholy melodies with characteristically abrasive rhythms is an aspect of BoC music that is something most probably either love or hate. Like many tracks on the album, this composition doesn’t really go anywhere, instead, it establishes a color-tone and carefully explores it. The beat section is really only in the middle of the song, and it ends much like it begins, with contemplative, solemn, and very spacious organ-synth chords. Perhaps one of the saddest songs on the record.
13. Slow This Bird Down (7:31) Some might comment that this song shares the strongest affinity to other IDM aesthetics, evocative of Autechre, Plaid, Aphex Twin, etc. Some of the beat effects seem familiar, but it’s still pure Boards. Thumping muddy bass syncopates against brash beat breaks, with reversi and regularly spacious chord patterns. It opens with an almost bag-pipe chord set, perhaps one of the few times a Scottish music influence is revealed. This song represents some of the new sounds that the duo seems to be developing and evolving. It’s unique in its variety and complexity, the the middle portion of the song, varying the tones to a deeper, more cautious feeling. The latter portion of the song changes dramatically in tempo and beat structure, speeding up quite dramatically. The tones brighten up and really nice arpeggios and modulations contribute towards this very dynamic composition. The tempo slows back back towards the end, reintroducing and redeveloping the themes of the early portion. There’s a forbiding sense in this song, something disturbing, anxious.
14. Tears From the Compound Eye (3:10) Short synth chords play against arhythmic pulsations. It’s typically spacious, with some highly effected whisperings that I cannot make out. You remember how few examples of vocals exist in this record compared to previous releases.
15. Farewell Fire (19:44) In CD form, this song may actuallly constitute a portion of a so-called “hidden track” that the Boards often include at the end of albums. Perhaps the most ‘experimental’ and ’soundscaped’ composition, based on the title you can imagine the crackling of fire in the effects.total time: 1.3 hours