Actually a lot of people have noticed the similarity between the bassline of Release Yourself by Graham Central Station and the Sonic 2 Special Stage (it’s kind of a standard gospel style rise and fall), but this was the only mix I could find so I made one. The video content is from the amazing old Japanese commercials for Reknown clothing.
My house burned down a few months ago. I was getting ready to mow the lawn when either my lawnmower exploded or maybe the water heater did or one caused the other but the bottom line is I don’t live where I used to anymore. Nearly everything I’ve worked on including many long complicated projects that I feel so stupid for wasting time gilding the lily on is just kind of dust now. I was pretty obsessive and kept my idea notebooks that I’ve had since I was a kid and all of those are gone as well. Games and movies and books I could kind of care less about but I really hated losing so much. I met a lot of my neighbors for the first and last time and they were all very kind and helpful to me and I wish I’d gotten to know them sooner. My insurance worked out and I am sort of semi-settled and financially okay now. I spent a while in hotels getting to know what watching tv on a tv is like. The good part about this kind of thing is that it has kind of put a fire under my ass (no pun) so I feel like I h to hurry up and finish things that I have been diddling around with. Having to reflect on where I am in my life and what I want to put out into the world was very healthy for me, I think. I feel like I have new purpose and I have even started this exercise and eating right thing I’ve heard so much about and I actually do feel physically better. I have a big project related to the kind of things that I used to write on this site coming up so look forward to that later this year.
This is my old house during the fire, after the fire, and how it currently looks with everything cleared away.
It fucking blows, but I feel like I have so much creative energy now that it was almost (almost) worth it. Okay no it fucking wasn’t but I feel like some good came out of it.
Also viddler closed my account for copyright infringement that was pretty funny.
If you still want to watch my Sonic 1 video you can watch it HERE
Win some, lose some.
Whoa I gotta update that links list
It has never taken me longer to put together a video. The beat is a remix of the Press Your Luck theme song. I also realized that I hadn’t watched as much of this show as I thought. It was a real shame that the NBC Promo department made it look like some kind of lame soap opera when it was really only a kind of lame but really funny situation comedy. I cannot imagine anything more pointless than this, but it was fun to make.
Da Bomb Malt Liquor
Just completely ineffective and out of touch. Harsh terrifying lighting and over aggressive salesmanship make this one just not work at all. The pitchman could have easily been more appealing if they had decided to either make the current one more of a buffoon (keeping everything at the level of the fire breathing would be a good start) or recast someone with more authentic credibility for the urban demographic. None of the other actors seem interested in the product at all. Essentially like having your dad’s weird cousin yelling at you for no reason. Not worthy of a national campaign and more suited to a local curiosity. Possible ironic sales to hipster market.
Job Malt Liquor
Job strikes the proper chord of pure fun with its ads. The first commercial has a light tone, and while it won’t win any awards, the simplicity of a catchy jingle and straightforward pitch actually serves to make it stand out from the rest of the alcohol market on television. The second ad has an unforgettable character and its sheer audaciousness is backed up with confident comedic swagger. Both ads do a good job of selling to those who see them as parody while at the same time being legitimate pieces of entertainment for lowbrow consumers.
Rocket Fuel Malt Liquor
This is how you do aggressive. While the demographic placement of the thing is completely wrong, it is undeniably charming and fun. The first two have just enough actual party atmosphere to make the unreality of it actually add to the appeal. Pomp and bravado go a long way to make this throwback hit the target. Casting a serious newsman is also a real attention grabber. Much better use of urban slang than Da Bomb. The third ad is unfortunate, but that’s the risk you take when you do live radio ads.