Streetfrog's Street Blog

Direct Note Access

2008-04-17T08:34:00.004-05:00

This is pretty amazing. Peter Neubäcker and his company Celomony have developed a method for direct note access in their upcoming software release of Melodyne.

Pretty much for ever, direct note access in a recorded song or chord was impossible and thought to be impossible, but if what the folks at Celomony are saying is true, than we could all have access to an individual note of a guitar chord or even be able to change a note along with it's corresponding harmonics.

Personally I'm blown away by this, but check out the video

(Via Technology Review)

iPhone Guitar Hacks

2008-03-19T11:20:00.006-05:00

Alright, this is cool from a technological angle, but I'm not sure how practical it is from an ergonomic perspective.

(video courtesy of Technology Review)

Shinya Kasatani has developed the iPhone hack, PocketGuitar which takes advantage of the multitouch screen, normally used for zooming or manipulating iPhone data.

This opens up a whole new window for the development of electronic instruments using modern digital technology. Imagine if you could replace the guitar sound with any synth or use it as a MIDI controller.

Imagine if you could change the interface from guitar strings to piano keys or an MPC sampling pad, that would be badass.

But for now, prior to the development of a new piece of hardware, it appears we are limited to using an overpriced piece of Apple equipment, which occasionally makes phone calls, in order to live out our digitally synthesized melodic dreams.

Bad Blogger... Good T-Shirts

2008-03-11T11:12:00.002-05:00

I'm finding less and less to talk about these days so I guess I just have to make things to blog about.

I just placed an order on T-shirts for St. Patrick's day with an original design for the holiday, none of that cookie cutter garbage, this is 100% original.

The shirt/character is called Clovah Head, your favorite Bostonian Imbibe celebrant.

Let me know what you think and tell me as soon as you can if you want one (I only placed a small order). In fact, if you reserve your shirt before Friday you can get it for $10, but you'll see me hawking them on the streets of Southie for the rest of the weekend at $12 (send me an email at streetfrog.org@gmail.com).

Check out the Design

Disgusted by Media and Facinated by Lack of Cat

2008-03-05T17:59:00.004-05:00

I had decided to take a break from my computer by sitting myself in front of another glowing box in order to relax a little. When I turned on the TV I was so disgusted by what I saw that it made me go back to my computer and blog about it.

The TV was on MTV (I don't think I was the last one watching) and I saw a clip from an unnamed reality program (That's Amore.. Ok I named it) featuring another failed reality actor, searching for love, a shag or 15 minutes of fame.

Anyway in the 15 seconds I had the TV on before nearly vomiting, I saw some of the most graphically produced montages of anger and hate between contestants battling for their own 15 minutes of fame and it really made me question what the value and message of our mass media entertainment is

Sorry, just a little rant

On a lighter note:

enjoy this and more at
http://garfieldminusgarfield.tumblr.com/

Dubcast & Day 13: Well Tough Tuesdays

2008-03-04T15:21:00.005-05:00

Alright, I've been slacking on the blogging. let's just say I took a 3 day weekend.

So I finally got the podcast piece up I was talking about last week and I officially named it a dubcast rather than a podcast or mix tape.

Here it is
March, 2008 Dubcast

So it's only about 5ish mins and features three beats including the Reg & Dub, "if samples were legal" anthem, Been Such a Long Time.

I hope you dig it, let me know what you think in the comments and tell your friends to download it and put it on their iPods or other new fangled music machines.

Day 10: Now What?

2008-02-29T14:21:00.003-05:00

(again with the lateness, my apologies)
So I finished my freelance project today
www.thepostscript.com

Let me know what you think.

Now that I'm done with it I have a whole bunch of other projects to work on. Yayyyy!

Looking forward to getting some audio up early next week. Should be good

I'm just noticing now that these posts seem to be lacking the piss and vinegar they once had, like a week ago when I first started telling you we would talk every day. Now just over a week later I feel like there is less to write about.

Hopefully a new week will bring all sorts of new tales of legendary weekends... naw, I doubt it but at least it will be a new week with more to observe, analyze, and mock.
(ps. I'm a little grouchy today because I had a restless sleep with an early AM rise, so I may fall asleep now... G'night)

Day 9: Dropped the Ball

2008-02-29T12:40:00.002-05:00

I totally dropped the ball yesterday, sorry folks.

I was totally consumed with this freelance project I'm working on.
It should launch today so I'll keep you posted and will try to come back with a Day 10 before the end of the day.

Until Later...

Day 8: Hump Day

2008-02-27T14:38:00.002-05:00

My God, Wednesdays still stink even when you aren't working.

Last night we went in to the studio to record some vocals. I haven't listened to them yet but I'm pretty sure they came out great (the truth is in the mix).

I've been working on a couple of websites simultaneously. One is for the redesign of Streetfrog Productions while the other is a little freelance project I got brewing.

I reacquainted myself with my old friend Flash today. In the process of getting used to the Macromedia interface I hung out with some Streetfrog Characters too. Expect new Characters with introductions and all around fun crap in the near future. I'll keep you posted.

I think that's all I have for today
Peace

Day 7: Creative

2008-02-26T16:06:00.005-05:00

Feelin the good vibes, feelin the mojo working, oh yeah.

I had a chance to spend a good amount of time on my own creative projects today justified by some good news I received this morning along with some additional positive work I had done.

I had a chance to work on a little Bowen Remix which for now will remain unnamed, Clancy came over and we got down a sick jam on keys and tonight, weather permitting, Reg and I will be heading into ye ole' studio to get down some vocals. Nice!

I'm still looking for an answer to the question I asked yesterday

Happy... Today is Tuesday. Right?

Day 6: Still Unemployed with my BCD2000

2008-02-25T14:40:00.003-05:00

Alright, no big surprise, but coming off a weekend it felt a little more real and surprisingly a lot like a work week, you know, Monday morning you get into work you sit at your desk, then you open your eyes and are like, "Wait; what was I working on last Friday?"

Well I had a case of that today when I got back to it all.

Over the weekend (i.e Day 4 & 5) I was working on a mixtape style podcast of a couple of old Double O'Dub beats using my new Behringer BCD2000. If you don't know about this thing then let me say you need one anyway.

It hooks up to your computer and you can mix and scratch MP3 and WAV files; it's awesome. I've been using it for mixing and scratching my own beats but if you had an extensive mp3 library and just wanted to DJ a party too, this thing would be perfect.

Anyway, I'm hoping to get the podcast up soon and then send them out on a regular basis if possible; I was thinking monthly podcasts (wow I must be crazy, first writing daily now podcast monthly)

By the way, can you think of a better name than podcast or mixtape, because it is really neither of those. It is a mixed selection of beats with a little creative and possibly (no guarantee) educational material.

Let me know in the comments

Day 3: F'n Busy

2008-02-22T17:15:00.002-05:00

So i made the pledge to write everyday but wasn't really considering the cover letter writing process mixed in with blogging, so I am going to keep this short and to the point... well let's face it, there really isn't a point, I'm just trying to fill some sort of text field with content to entertain or educate you.

Last night I was in the studio with the Bowen Street Band which was a very productive session of listening, mixing and sharing our feelings... ok, not so much the last one there.

This album could become the masterpiece to make every other band and musician jealous, so keep an eye and two ears out for it during the next future.

Happy Friday working folk.

Day 2: I'm Feeling a Little Bit Like a Storm Trooper

2008-02-21T16:14:00.004-05:00

So here we are back at it. I'm keeping my promise, still writing (granted, there were no promises on quality, so be warned).

Today, in an effort to take my mind off of the Job search process for a little bit, i engaged in a flickr photo search; I was inspired by the visage of a rather bizarre looking man who actually had a flickr account. Anyway I entered the term unemployment into the search and a ton of photos came up. I guess this should make sense, I mean this is the Internet we're dealing with here.

So after a quick glance down the page I came across this one, great image

But this image really put it all in perspective for me (ok, I' reaching a little but I can't just say I like Star Wars). At least my job didn't get "blow'd up." It's not like my life has even really been impacted, just realigned... Right?

I can't wait for "Day 35: Unnecessarily Hairy," but for now I'm still optimistic and doing good.

A Lonely Man's Journey. Day 1: Optomistic

2008-02-20T14:56:00.005-05:00

I've recently been afforded some time off from work where I am free to sit at home in the confines of my apartment and search for new work.

My obligation is limited, just to find a means of indefinitely supporting myself while dealing with all the other physical and financial limitations this planet has to offer, I think they call it life.

Anyway, when I was working, I was a writer, no, no better, I was the associate editor, and everyday I had to write about something. Now, in the absence of writing (one day mind you off a three day weekend), I already feel an emptiness, an emptiness so deep I must fill the void.

So here, right here, right where you are looking right now, I plan to continue my writing to let you know the state of my sanity along with any other sort of entertaining shenanigans I get up to.

Speaking of which: benefit show, March 29th at Shenanigans in South Boston. The Bowen Street Band with Autumn Hollow.

See you there

Streetfrog T-shirts Continue

2007-12-14T14:09:00.000-05:00

Here is the image for the shirts I just produced

For more info go to my Streetfrog Productions t-shirts page

I hope you like them

Streetfrog Productions T-Shirts

2007-12-02T15:23:00.000-05:00

I just printed up these awesome T-shirts with an original design on the front and a logo on the back, they're honestly pretty ill.

Let me know if you are interested in one, I'll get the image up here shortly.

DJ Spookey on Trojan: Creation Rebel

2007-12-02T14:38:00.001-05:00

I just picked up Creation Rebel, the DJ Spooky (AKA Paul Miller) remix of Trojan Records Classics, all in honor of the 4oth anniversary of Trojan Records.

It starts up with the DJ mash up intro, Creation Rebel featuring Rob Swift. This Track drops a ton of notable samples and set's the stage for the rest of the album.

Then Miller moves on to an amazing Remix of Mister Brown, which happens to be my favorite Marley song (ever since my brother played me a "Best of Trojan Records" comp from an old Mojo).

Anyway, I was impressed by his taking a classic Marley tune and doing it right. It wasn't too far fetched with Lasers and excessive cutting, but it had a pretty sweet beat differing from the original.

Other Notable tracks include Under Mi Sensi which again wasn't too far off the original but had an updated beat and used a new sample base. Also Dis Poem, Under mi Sleg Tang and Soul Rebel, all great tracks on a 14 track album.

Check it out.

Artist Friends

2007-09-22T16:15:00.000-05:00

While on the theme of posting artist friends, here's another.

My friend Mikey is a painter who now live on Martha's vineyard and is now a chef at 20 Kennebec Bistro and Bar in Oak Bluffs

If you are in there tell him I say what up.

He went on a road trip sponsored by Red Truck wine over the summer.

Here's his blog from the trip that he maintained with two other road travelers.

-Sean
www.seansnyderink.com

2007-09-18T18:11:00.000-05:00

Alright, so work and personal time don't blend together very well, as I'm finding since the last post I had was around the same time I started my job; which by the way is going well. I've been doing some podcasting and general writing for the site and I have a blog there which you can see here.

But anyway, from now on I am going to commit a bit more to tell you about cool stuff.

alright, let's see...
cool stuff, cool stuff.

well this is kinda cool.

Jonah

this is my buddy Jonah's website, he just started it up, but already it kicks the but of most websites I have seen, he's an artist and musician as well as a kick ass web developer. keep an eye on his work.

-Sean
www.seansnyderink.com

---> In the Post Script, I would like to say from here on out I am trying to keep this updated and fresh... yes, so fresh, and so clean clean. -Peace

Wiki Wiki Wah

2007-04-26T16:03:00.000-05:00

So...
the good people at wikimedia have released selected excerpts from wikipedia, as a CD.
http://www.wikipediaondvd.com/

Kinda cool idea, and they are definitely giving Britannica a run for their money.

But when they sell it who gets the money? Will it be cheep enough that it only covers the cost of production, or are they going to try and put more money in Jimmy's pocket?

It's Official

2007-04-10T14:15:00.000-05:00

I produced a podcast and had it published on the Design News website.

I interviewed the director of the FIRST Robotics Challenge for an article I was writing, and produced the piece from our conversation.

Check it out here

New Dizzee Rascal video

2007-04-10T14:06:00.000-05:00

Dizzee Rascal has switched up his style a bit, but he's still droppin bangers.
Check out the new video below for his latest track, Sirens.

But I love wasteing my time

2007-04-10T13:49:00.000-05:00

Alright check this out
The most addictive mindless game ever.

I've never really been seduced by aimless games, but this one was mocking me so I had to show it what's up.

For the record I beat level 12 with 264 big bad points.
(Props to Adam)

Stupid Apple

2007-03-30T10:47:00.000-05:00

New Apple TV
This is why (at least one of the reasons why) I hate apple. they take an idea that has been around for a while, repackage it, make it sleek and then promote the crap out of it and claim that they invented the universe.

There is nothing special about this component, except that it is wireless and works with your already existing iTunes interface (You can listen to music on your computer...? Oh, you mean the ITUNEZ, yeah I've heard of that).

I was even hesitant to post about this because I don't want to offer any indication that I myself am promoting it, but I would rather get my thoughts out and have you make up your own mind.

Google Phone

2007-03-30T10:33:00.000-05:00

"This is not going to be a high-end device but a mass market device aimed at bringing Google to users who don't have a PC,"

This should be interesting, and maybe it will treat Apple's iPhone the same way the Wii has treated the PS3 (PS what?)

Check the story here

The Traffic Jam

2007-03-16T10:37:00.000-05:00

Check out the new Stephen Marley track.

(Props Palms Out Sound)

Magic Squares

2007-03-12T15:06:00.000-05:00

Just in case you were wondering...

I was trying to remember a zip code so I entered it into Google. The search returned a map of the town I was thinking of and that was that.

After that search, I started entering random (and not so random, in fact very organized) numbers into Google.

It made me think a little bit more about how cool numbers are, and how we categorize things; it was an interesting experience.

I would like to dedicate a website to a number, but I'm not sure which one yet. Any Suggestions? Everyone should design a websites devoted to a number. That would be awesome.

Alright now... go do it.

Informational Feedback Loop

2007-03-01T16:25:00.000-05:00

Sooooo. I don't have a whole lot to talk about at the moment, so I figure I will give my portfolio a plug, I recently updated it.

Sean Snyder INK

And since my portfolio links to my blog, I have in essence created a closed loop of my own data

Streetfrog.ORG

2007-02-16T14:07:00.000-05:00

Here is a small graphic tease of the new Streetfrog.ORG site which I plan on having up in the next month or so, I'm just working to finish some freelancing first.

In this next version, I'm hoping to have streaming and a forum... that's right a forum, where you can talk about how cool the Bowen Street band is, or how you can't wait for the next release from Double O'Dub and Reggie Brown... the possibilities are limitless.

Also...
FYI, the Bowen Street Band is playing tonight, 9:30 at the Junction, 110 Dorchester Street in South Boston.

Awesome VW commercial

2007-02-16T12:09:00.000-05:00

So I haven't posted in a few days because I've been experiencing the highs and lows of the job search, but I just wanted to get this up.

(props to Bailey and Volkswagen)

Mash it up

2007-02-07T18:05:00.000-05:00

Gnarls Barkly w/ Biggy
Crazy Thoughts

Who's teaching who?

2007-02-07T12:20:00.000-05:00

If you are interested in web 2.0 or just the general evolution of the Internet, you should totally check this out.

It's a (not so) short (by YouTube standards), very well produced piece about text, hypertext and the Internet.

(props to Mizo)

Two Posts in One Day

2007-02-05T15:48:00.000-05:00

I just wanted to post a couple of thing I found while exploring the internet today. They may not seem like the results of a successful day of "finding a job", but trust me they are.

More Free Music:
Chrome Children II (download album)
I found this on the Cartoon Network Website, I've been following the Mooninites as best I can because of the recent scare. I found their website didn't provide much info on the album, in fact I thought the site seemed intentionally limited, which was frustrating (side note: I've noticed this trend in websites with content, trademark and brand heavy companies, like cartoon and comic companies). See for yourself.

The Powerpoint of Life:
I thought this was funny and well done; great production and content. (give it a min to load)

Is Beat Producer Timbaland a Thief?

2007-02-05T12:22:00.000-05:00

It recently came to my attention that our friend Timbaland (the man responsible for the awesome recent release by Justin Timberlake, as well as the less awesome but still good recent release by Nelly Furtado) is under suspicion for music thievery.

Aparently Timbo used a song produced by Finnish composer Janne Suni, which was created and posted in 2000. The song in question is Nelly Furtado's "Do It"

As a music producer myself, I am very familiar with "borrowing" from other musicians. I taught myself audio production by sampling bits and pieces of songs that I liked and mashed them together to make new/derivative works. I sometimes still do this, but I primarily compose or assemble my own sounds as to avoid any copyright infringement.

The main difference between myself and Timbaland, is that I make music as a hobby and share it with my friends and family, and Timbo makes music for a career and sells it to the world.

I'm not sure exactly where I stand but there are some serious similarities between the two songs in question. I think at the very least Timbaland should admit the similarities between his song and Janne's, and explain how this all happened.

Check out these YouTube links to learn more about the ongoing debate.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4KX7SkDe4Q
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wV2fTEeP6GM

(props to Mizo for telling me about this issue)

Boston Terror

2007-02-02T12:13:00.000-05:00

Soooo......
I just heard this morning that Turner is accepting all responsibility for the whole bomb scare in Boston, or as I refer to it, "The Turner Terrorist Plot."

My friends and I were talking yesterday about making stickers, and we came up with a few slogans and such.

I laid them out for an 8.5" x 11" piece of paper, so if you want to feed them into a printer and print them on sticker paper, be my guest.

(Just Click on the images above for the black or white PDFs)

For the fans of Hip Hop

2007-01-29T15:02:00.000-05:00

At the beginning of the year Talib Kweli and Madlib released an album of the financially friendly persuasion. That's right FREE, they released this album called Liberation for free on the internet for the first week of January.

Although they took the link down from their site, after a little digging I found the link, and the files are still on their server. I think you should be able to download it here.

Good Luck

Amen Brother

2007-01-26T15:27:00.000-05:00

Alright...

A friend of mine showed me this a few years ago, and I still have it on my computer, but thanks to YouTube, I can share it with you without e-mailing a 40meg file.

So here it is in all it's glory, a short documentary on the origins of Jungle/DNB and one of the more influential players in Hip Hop.

Check it out (it may take a minute to load)

Magnet Poetry

2007-01-25T22:50:00.000-05:00

I went to get some milk from the fridge (even though I so rarely drink milk, but I was having chocolate chip cookies) and I got trapped doing Magnet Poetry. I actually came up with a kinda cool one and thought I would share it with you

Symphony beats
whisper beneath
the bitter sweet music
produced on wax

Although the runner up was definitely...

I like puppy s

What do you know about the Muppets?

2007-01-25T15:23:00.000-05:00

If you ever had a question about the Muppets or knew some tiny tidbit that may not be known to the mainstream audience, and want to share it, then I suggest you check out the Muppet Wiki.

I've only recently discovered it (fortunately I have a girlfriend that is way hipper than I), but my limited use and exposure have been fruitful.

Plus it's a good resource for finding cool Muppet images (like Animal here).

Also...
on the Muppet tip
There was a good article on Caroll Spinney in the Boston Globe titled "Featherhood." Spinney is better known for his role as Big Bird or Oscar the Grouch. (I'd give you a link to the article, but now they're making you sign in, so you can check it out yourself, just search "Featherhood" on the site)

There is no longer a relationship between The Muppets and Sesame Street, nor Henson for that matter. The Muppets are now Disney and Sesame St. is The Children's Television Workshop.

Bigger than Google...

2007-01-25T02:59:00.000-05:00

So, believe it or not, China has their own search engine, Baidu.

It really makes sense as they are one of the largest growing internet using populations, but the interface is exactly like Google's, except in Chinese.

Advertising Age had an interesting article on it, check it out.

First Post

2007-01-25T02:24:00.000-05:00

Finally, after ages of pondering, I have set up a new blog...
and I don't have anything to talk about.