Clockwork Vaudville

Steam Powered Giraffe
My latest musical obsession has finally busted a barrier I had discussed IN a COUPLE previous posts. Mostly about how I felt that most "steampunk" expressions try a bit to hard to fill the culture with more of the same instead of creating something to be amazing and it happens to fit the scene.

I have mentioned a couple previous endeavors that really speak to me as far as being Steampunk or just being a creation that's amazing and not trying too hard.

"SPG" does this, and really screams to me as a group, as music, as performance, as art.
The above video has, from left to right, "The Jon" who left the group recently, The Spine, Rabbit, and Upgrade, who left the group a while back, performing on their "home turf" busking at a local park.
All of them having trained in Mime, Clown, music & dance, formed this group and developed these characters as well as a backstory and everything.
Anyone who knows me in a theatrical sense knows this sort of thing really turns me on artistically and I have fallen in love.
Honestly, if given the opportunity, I would buy a concertina & develop a robot in a heartbeat if given the chance to perform with them. No lie, I would LOVE to add my tenor to the troupe.

A year or so back they even produced a DVD through a Kickstarter, which led to some excellent music videos showcasing a new clean sound along with some superb music videos.

Although their ravenous fans post excellent video after video from their numerous performances in Balboa Park, San Diego Zoo, and the Steampunk Con circuits, its also great to have high quality, high production value samples to show new potential fans. As of the composing of this post I have infected half a dozen other new SPG fans directly and countless other secondary targets.

I would of course like to give thanks to THIS SOURCE where I came across  #5 Brass Goggles Via Houston Press "Top 10 Steampunk Songs" and have been hooked ever since. I literally consumed their media for the week preceding our trip to Disneyland.

I love the attention to detail of their robotic movements and how The Spine has a pneumatic "bounce" to him, and how Rabbit truly moves like one of those mechanical show bots from an amusement park, with the small little isolated ticks and rotations. And then of course their musical talent as a group. In every incarnation of the group so far each member is a master of multiple instruments (vocals count) often switching instruments for different songs. If you have not listened to any of thier music yet, let me tell you, hearing The Spine go from a high sustained harmony and suddenly dropping to a rich baritone just makes your music heart rumble with his vocal chords. And watching Rabbit prance around to Captain Albert Alexander reminds you they're true performers in every respect, not just a band with a gimmick.

They recently added Hatchworth to the lineup, to round out the trio (no punn intended) as he was one of their "humans" until The Jon left, so now the Ticking Mantle shall tell how it sits upon the newest robot.

Above is the song I was introduced to them with and I hope it gets you just as excited as it did me. HERE IS THEIR SITE! There you can get almost everything Steam Powered Giraffe related, including info on where the bots are from, where they went, how to throw money at them for things, as well as a COMIC! It hasn't been updated in a while, but rumor has it from a friend of mine that Rabbit is also a graphic designer (good reason as to why he designed most of their art) so, he might understandably be busy.


And as a nod to "Honeybee," their song which they've intro'd with Rabbit talking about his love Jenny the toaster, I give you, my own bit of SPG fanfic, Jenny
 
She has gone into a life of performance as well, this is her after a production of Taming of The Shrew. Petruchio used her to tie up Kate, it was set in the generic time frame of 50-60's sitcoms.

Bliggity bliggity blog bluh blaow!

Ladies & others, I have been at this Blog thing for a very short time, barely almost two years at this time. In this time I have done some research into what a Blog is, what it's purpose is and how it can be successful spiritually as well as maybe financially.

I've found it very rewarding and slowly but surely my readership has grown. Many of my friends will bring up what I've written in conversation, and as I intended with the Meme-Orables, I have a place on the Intarwebs I can go and quickly grab whatever I want to show someone.

But, what do I look for in a blog?
Below are a few of the blogs I currently read and why.

Topless Robot

This site is a powerhouse. Updating multiple times a day, all work week long, there is never a want of content on this sight. With regular lists and a weekly, terror article(FFF) I've even seen memes born from this site. Although I don't read every single post, I get a lot of my nerd news from this site that I otherwise would have never sought out.

Islands In The Sky

The blog site for a very fun, very well drawn, comic. They update semi-regularly, at LEAST once every two months with how far along they are in their process, what cons they will be at, the Con reports, and any other events they might be involved with.

Hanzi-Smatter

It's a site run by a couple people who speak several asian languages. They receive all sorts of crazy media with different asian calligraphy and then decode them for what the meanings ACTUALLY are. Brilliant.

Frost is The New Black / Steampanku

These two blogs are run by the same author, Krizzlybear, "Frost" is a Wow centered, specifically, Frost mage-centric, and he updates semi-regularly whenever he has a strats or something goofy to put up. As well as Steampanku, which is his blog for his love of Asia-centric Steampunk. I have personally found it fairly informative as far as what Steampunk literature entails as well as exploring facets of a far east flavor to the genre. It hasn't been updated recently, but his past posts are still a source point for much of my own research.

Empowered Fire

Chicks play WoW too, they are very vocal, and they may not like being called chicks, now that I think about it. A couple fire/arcane Magesses, they constantly discuss and explore many topics pertaining to the fem-WoW community, everything from why "rape" is not an acceptable verb outside describing a terrible sex act, to how the new patch changes will effect vanity pets and how "pretty" an avatar is. (Don't even begin to delude yourself, most guys are VERY concerned with how their toons look, I'm looking at you, fire festival ensemble, guy.) Haven't updated in a while, well thought out posts.

A little Bark, A Little Bite

My Guildie! A stalwart druid, great raider, better friend, she has been playing WoW for a long while, and been blogging about it for slightly less time but is still entertaining to read. Semi-regular updates from simple screenshots, to strats, to personal reflections on the drama and social aspect of Azzeroth.

Tails From the Con / All the World's A Stage

My lovely and talented Fiancé's blogs, one is the adventures of T1nk, the Con Fairy, dispensing hygiene products and sarcasm in equal measure on the con floor. She's been quiet due to con season being over, but should be picking back up come next spring. "Stage" is her theatre blog as she has restarted her passion for stage, updates constantly with casting calls and various events throughout the South Bay, as well as reflections and experiences of her own.

Slice, Dice, & Dish

Mr. "Steve" Wes O'Leary's Blog which features three of his passions, food, table top gaming & weaponry. He hasn't updated in a while, and I'm still waiting for a guest spot from him detailing a Pathfinder game he ran at S.G.I.S.Con IV, but it's all good. The stuff he has up there right now is still worth a read.

Playing D&D With Porn Stars
This is one of the most entertaining and resource rich gaming blogs I read. With a video tie in to The Escapist's I Hit It With My Axe, Zak is constantly throwing out ideas, concepts, commentary, and tables, oh boy, does he love him some tables. As well as, yes, his gaming group (as well as himself) are comprised of people in the adult entertainment industry, and they are all cool. Update: "I Hit It . . ." was dropped from the escapist but they are still gaming maniacs, we just have to hear about it through Zak now.

The Art of Manliness
My Man-Buddy/Lost Boy Homie Gilliam introduced me to this Blog a few years back and I have been a devoted follower ever since. Constantly updating about many manly topics not only does it ask the question "what is it to be a man?" It looks at the many concepts of "man" and how to be a gentle man as well as a manly man, great articles, many great guest posts.

Gnome Stew

AND yet another Gaming Blog I follow, mostly focused on the Game Master aspect of gaming, has won several awards for gaming resource as well as blog quality. I love the Gnome community, always striving to better and enrich the gaming universe.

Wolf Gnards

A fantastically Nerdy Blog. Mr. Gnards is a blogger for you if you enjoy my sense of humor but wished for more graphs and more 80's retro references. His fixation with werewolves & rufio keep his nerd cred strong, and his sense of awareness of the Geek culture are constantly being displayed over at "Gnards."

There are a few more, but this is a big dent.

The ones that update all day everyday inspire me, the ones that only update weekly, inspire me, and those that update, maybe, every . . month(s) . . ish? inspire me! They give me a clear guide of what a readership will tolerate as far as update schedules and content length. And which blogs, regardless, I will return to again and again because of content of the blog.
I would like to thank, all bloggers I've come across for being the inspiration and examples, for better and worse, that help keep me spewing my mind across this intarweb.

semi-meme-orable

Taking a short break from academics to recharge metal batteries, my usual net trolling has dredged some fantastic things I wish to present here.

Thanks to the people I follow on Twitter (like The Front), Topless Robot (a wonderfully geeky blog with outrageously constant content), as well as a few other places I've seen them linked and referenced.


SLINGERS
dude, for reals, this looks cool. I'm not entirely sure it has the potential for longevity, but the hook is clean, the ideas look concise. watch it, please.

SLINGERS from Mike Sizemore on Vimeo.

Panic Attack
(yet another -in developement- video. So, why some superior race/alien force, would attack some South American city, that may or may not pass a as a regional capitol, is the only question that haunts me, but other than that. very cool. stick it in your eye hole)



The ONLY Team Edward for me.
A while back Battle Star Galactica was having some sort of contest to have dinner with him and one of the ladies from the show, or some such. I wanted to enter, but the whole time I'd be like "Oh, ma'am, you look pretty. *rapid refocus on EJO* Dude, you were El Pachuco, and 'chemo.' You are my ethnic/proffesional hero. teach me your SECRATS!!!"










And last but not least. Remember to educate your elders and less-tech-savy members of your family on what things are and how they work . . . or else . . . .

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=b84_1259716791


And crap, half an hour later, I finish my 5 minute post. Maybe I should just sacrifice today and post 3rd nrrd, and a new Blog. hope this holds you over.