Dabitch.net - Everything is so random there must be a pattern

I don’t have a theme this week, other than “sounds that clean the cobwebs from my head,” I guess.

Earfloss, I call it.

Some sounds are so easy to like, others, like nails on chalkboard make some people recoil. I never minded nails on chalk, but can freak out when the vibration-rattling of the old car window changes hum as a large truck passes. This is why you see me wearing headphones all the time, the oddest sounds set me off. But some are great when turned into music.

It starts with that ‘eeeeeeeiiingggazzzeeieiingg’ noise that enters my ear like this, and manages to lie right between ‘sounds cool’ and ‘ouch.’

And then there’s so many ‘al-al-al-al’ that you reach the points of “yeah too many soon’ but right then it stops and Blinky Bill takes to the mike with a huff and a puff in Huff+Puff. Soon I’m ready to Disco, thanks to this earfloss from Just a Band (Kenya – there’s a French “Just a band” as well, don’t get them confused).

Then Yelle starts banging her drum in Les Femmes (SIRIUSMO rmx). I can’t even pronounce any of it but I sing along to whatever she’s saying, and she brings the earfloss in at the end.

The glimmer song from A Band Called Quinn is easy to sing along to. We’ve all woken up with glitter from yesterday on us. Haven’t we?

Now we Go Go Go (Ft. The Genevan Heathen) to the D I S C O – oh yes, we’re going to the Dicso, and every time Teki Latex sings “danse danse danse” I see with my minds eye this cat dance. Welcome to my weird brain. Use only as directed.

Feeling a little urge to rock out, I call upon Dj Moule & Good Love, Good Rock where Joan Jett & the Blackhearts’ I love Rock’n Roll shines again. The entrance Joan makes in the video is golden, and mimicked to death by me when I was 9 years old while wearing my grandfathers flannel work shirt as it was the ‘rockiest’ thing I could find in the house. Of course, everyone thought it was adorable… aaar! you.. you.. you suck! *doorslam*

We gotta be ready, man. Don Omar ft Tempo & Dynasty do Hasta Abajo Remix 2 and those rock-riffs are blown away with high doses of speedy Spanish Rrrrr-rolling rap. There are turtles all the way down, by the way.

Lady N will rap about Wine wine wine wine feeling fine, and you’re a queen when you dance. I think that’s what she’s saying, I dunno, I’m too busy wiggling my hips to care at this point.

R.A.C.K will start a Révolution, complete with the sound of guns and sounds that make you want to jump around. We’re way beyond earfloss. The thump-thump at the start makes me flashback to Joan Jett entering that bar. Thump-thump = what Joan Jett’s bar-entrance makes my heart do.

When I walk into my offsprings primary I have to pass through the high-school, wearing bone-print-jeans (yes, like skeleton legs), an ankle-long bright green leather coat and mirrors glasses while I hum this: “I got Ray-Ban vision, these ain’t no prescription, I see you haters comin’ [xxxxx] don’t think that I’m slippin’ and it’s all the catchy A-Trak feat. CyHi Da Prynce “Ray-Ban vision” fault. It amuses the primary kids, as whenever the bright purple headphones are on I do the headboppin’ dance that probably looks like a pigeon-walk.

I need to go back to Africa now, and the haunting sound of Dj Mujava’s township funk. Earfloss!

End with another visit to Kenya and Just a Band’s Usinibore: Don’t tell me what I can and can’t do. I can change the world.

Here’s the open playlist in another window link. Hope you enjoy.

I guess I should warn you about two things. First, if you don’t like reggae/dub and women who rap faster than a speeding bullet, stay away from this playlist.
Second it is totally inspired by what is on top of my mind right now. Those who guess what I’m worrying about may donate to my beer-fund. And yes, there’s a cover in there, I can’t help myself.

That said, lets get down, shall we?

Since we love Edwin Starr, lets have him vs Donna Summer – Working Hard for Edwin by Matt Bland. What is she working hard for? Gee. Dunno.

I can’t get more obvious than this: I Need A Dollar – Karl M Remix

It’s M.I.A. and Paper Planes, but not as you’ve heard her, I think. This is the DFA Remix and it’s got a certain twang.

Easy Star All-Stars cover Pink Floyd’s Money as reggae / dub and The Alchemist Remixes it even more so.

Told you that I can’t help myself with the covers. Having a bong bubbling make the opening sound is my kind of humor.

She’s a Gold Digger Cuban S.O.S. Li, Green Papi, Rolex & Mayombe (Oriente Star Sound).

Aaaah, Beyonce. What would we do without you and your handy definitions? A Diva is a female version of a hustler. Okay then (Whatever Whatever Remix).

Red Cafe and Red Cafe featuring Fabolous. How faboo. Red Cafe and Red Cafe featuring Fabolous. How faboo.

Nicki Minaj is pink-wigged, hipshaking, asskicking fast and she sings “gimme the mun-mun-Muny” in a way that you can’t help but bop your head to. Don’t try and sing along, you sound nothing like her.

N.A.S.A. mix it up real good with Money featuring none other than the fantastic David Byrne, Chuck D, Ras Congo, Seu Jorge and Z-Trip. Ever seen the video where David Byrne interviews himself? That was the exact moment I swore my eternal love to that man. “Why the suit?” “I wanted my head to appear smaller, and the easiest way to do that was to make my body bigger.”

You might not know it from the get-go but Good As Gold starts up and — wait for it. Yes! The riff that everyone knows, because there was a time when MTV never stopped playing “Money for Nothing”, and I hated it then but it must have worn my resistance down because I love this. Dire Straits, you’re officially forgiven for stalking me every time I tuned into MTV in the 80s.

Lady N will tell you everything you need to know about Money, Speedy Gonzales style.

And yes, I know I already did this to you once, but I can’t help but love how Gramophonedzie vs Downlink took Peggy Lee’s “Why Don’t You Do Right” and turned it into a dubstep anthem: “Why Don’t You Travel on a Crippled Camel (Fito & Mikro Remix).” Someone even made an updated video of Peggy Lee to go with it. Get me some money money.

I you prefer to open the playlist in a new window knock yourselves out here.

This was a music post for The Advertising Week social club

It’s Friday Playlist time! Here’s one that might even please that guy in the office who claims he only listens to classical music. There’s one in every office, so set this on speakers and play it loud. First one to call out the original song wins a beer at the pub tonight.

At first I thought I’d just feed you a few choice covers, I have a thing for covers. I once played a 4 hour set of covers with my baby girl wobble-dancing at my feet at a beach club. Then I figured I needed a rule, so how about only covers of modern songs, with classical instruments? I rejected The Deep Blue Orchestra ”Misirlou” because while that’s entertaining it has awful drums. This is what I dug up for you, 12 songs, one is not a cover. Spot which one (or cheat by reading below the playlist).

https://8tracks.com/dabitch/dabitch-s-classic-covers

All you need in Finland is Vodka and Heavy Metal Rock. Of course they’d birth a cello rock band like Apocalyptica who covers Metallica.

Now meet the Balanescu Quartet, their arrangement of Kraftwerk’s “Computer Love” is sublime. Investing in this album if you haven’t already is a good idea, you’ll never tire of it.

When DJ-ing covers I like to throw off people by adding an original they might not have heard, like Linda Lyndell belting out “What a Man”, or Big Mama Thornton’s “Hound Dog.”

This time my joker in the set is Music For A Found Harmonium by the Penguin Cafe Orchestra. Someone should cover that in a totally different musical style. Like make it a samba.

Sulic & Hauser almost set fire to their cellos when they do Smooth Criminal, just watch the video, one half expects them to tears off their shirts and kiss at some point.

Vitamin String Quartet interpret Are You Gonna Be My Girl and I’m sure the Aussie rock Band Jet approves.

Maxence Cyrin goes Around The World with her piano, it’s my favorite Daft Punk song and now my favorite piano piece.

Turtle Island String Quartet take us to the Crossroads and Robert Johnson would fit right in here, but the rule was classical today, not blues.

Penguin Cafe Orchestra cover the Johnny Smith’s “Walk Don’t Run.”

Once more with The Balanescu Quartet, because “Model” with strings is epic.

Secret Cello Society do “Runaway,” which was originally a Kanye West song.

Another Daft Punk cover, Tom Hodge does “Aerodynamic.” This is brilliant.

The Entertainers: Andrej Kurti, violin & Viktor Uzur, cello cover “Bohemian Rhapsody,” and yes it’s entertaining.

Also the end.

Hope you enjoyed, if you want to open this in another window — by all means, have at it.

This post was written for The Advertising Week social Club.

OMG! It’s Friday again! I can’t stand it! I haven’t had any fun at all this
week! In fact, this week was painful, my scooter has been sold, so I’ve had to bid adieu to a ten-inch-wheel friend.

Sadness.

Quick! Let's fix that by turning on some music that has pelvis-bone-vibrating bass pulsating through it. Because it makes me tingle. Read as much as you want into that, you know you need it too. Music, people, sheesh.

My plan is to make you do the John Travolta strut all the way home (or the nearest after work bar) tonight. Because, yes, I’m walking too. We’re all walking. But we look cool doing it.

Let's start our Friday strut with Ruby Rider by the aptly named boombass.

01 RUBY RIDER

0:00

/498.062378

1×

It’s not blues, it’s not electro-techno-stuffs, it’s all of the above. If your feet aren’t kicking the imaginary bass drum after a few bars, you need to have more coffee.

Now let’s turn on Robot Michael Jackson, the way Tek Step does the bass when he remixes Billy Jean makes me want to dance on the speakers.

More crunchy noise in Open letter to NY (Wizestar remix) / Beastie Boys. This will be my soundtrack when I arrive in New York for Advertising Week.

Now lets slow down, Don’t Mean To Be Rude Feat. Zaki Ibrahim makes me
tap my feet as Spoek Mathambo knows exactly what buttons to push. I’ve carried a torch for him ever since I saw Spoek Mathambo’s cover of “Control”, he even retweeted me making my day, so let's add extra doses of Spoek to the playlist so that I can be the ass shaking video hoochie like he is in Gnucci Banana – Famalam Jam.

Walk It Out – Trizz, remixed by A-Trak. Because this is about the shuffle, the
walk, the strut, remember?

Oh yes, ladies too, Crank Dat Kitty Kat with a bit of steel drum hum hum hum, from Kitty Kat who knows how to crank it.

You’d think with me bouncing around town like this I might be on that other
Columbian export, but no. Still, Charlie (feat. Spoek Mathambo) fits
quite nicely here.

Now I wanna know, Whooz Da Baddest ?! (cue everyone throwing their hands in the air like they just don’t care yelling back “I’m the baddest!”). The Cheerz are the baddest, and this brings me to Les Gourmets Tout doit Disparaitre remixed by Wizestar. Everything must go!. You too!

Go go, walk to the after work pub, your date, your house, to the park, just go
strut your stuff. Word to the wise: If you see me comin’, better step aside…

Posted at advertising weeks blog on Friday, August 26th, 2011

Love around the world.

Welcome dear friends and social club members to another Friday. Lovely Friday.
They’re largely symbolic as the signal of the end of the weeks these days when
we’re always going in to the office on the weekend anyway, but still, Fridays
mean after work drinks, going out for dinners, or a nice treat at home watching
an animated movie with the kids depending on where you are in life.

Some Fridays end busy jacked-up weeks and what Dr DJ orders is a chillout
session, take two and call me in the morning. This week I will funk you
up and jazz you down. Lean back, sort those timesheets in order and
chillax.

Edwin Starr might have walked twenty five miles to see his girl, a song that has
been edited to every walking scene in Hollywood’s recent memory by the way, but with this dL edit he’s just Easin’ it.

Now you’re cool like dat, just like the Rebirth Of Slick. When we’re not
chillin’, or being cool, we’re all about love. Nadeah is searching for hers,
when she’s not deep sea diving: “He must love me, and need me, and never deceive me and make my day every single day”. Even “Ah Ndiya” means “Oh my love” and is the monster hit from Oumou Sangaré, the Songbird of Wassoulou, a Malian singer.

Oum has a voice most French jazzfans know well, she’s a Moroccan singer who
started her career at an early age and spent many years recording in France,
this is from her recent album Lik’Oum where jazz meets soul and African music in
a spicy mix. She can’t stop loving, and I love her right back for it.

Will I Touch Your Back? What happens when Katherine Ellis is the voice on Amy
Winehouse’s Back To Black interspaced with Bros? Weird magic.

Not all Love works out, as Rox tells us “My Baby Left Me”, but she won’t
crumble. Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings say it takes 100 days and 100 nights to
really know a man.

Brother Ali welcomes us to the United Snakes, his take on Uncle Sam Goddamn, and the song that Verizon hates. See, they don’t make them like they used to, The O Liffey Family sends props to all the hip-hop stars and labels of yesteryear. Now
I need a cover, because I’m burning inside like Prince once said, but
it sounds quite different when Gretchen Phillips sings it.

Nobody knows more about hurtin’ love than the boys from Jersey, lets hear Frankie Valli Beggin’ in Pilooski’s edit. It’ll pep you up enough to finish
off those timesheets and go hug someone who is important to you.

If you wish to open the playlist alone in another window, use this URL here.

This musc post was written for Advertising Week's Social Club.

In what I will now always refer to as "the miracle of Cannes" story, I only explain that i lost my bag with iPhone, Macbook and dayplanner in it, while my other phone decided to die on me for a few days. There's more....

When I got up at 3 in the morning (no joke) to hit the 4:15 train to the airport in Copenhagen, I met two ticket-machines that hated me. The first one went all the way through the ticked-buying dealio, and then right as it printed the machine blinked, and displayed a red banner stating "machine out of order" (ie: without paper. The damn thing charged me). I put my emergency card in the other machine, which also let me go through the motions and the second I put my code in, it switched to a big red "not working screen". I ran to catch my train and met a sympathetic conductor who understood the iPhone images I showed her and let me ride along anyway. At the airport I checked in via machine that suddenly blinked "CONTACT DESK", and voila now I have to wait in like for 45 minutes just to say I couldn't get my little print-out for the luggage. Thanks machines. The boarding pass I got was lacking enough ink on one of the zeroes so I made it to the wrong gate (behind passport control) only to realize I shouldn't be in that area and couldn't get out. Once again, a sympathetic human let me out through the stewardesses door so I could (barely) make it in on my flight.

The funny thing is that this simply continued, if I borrowed someone's tool or even went near anyone elses hardware it would die. Just ask Véronique who lent me her camera to film one of the interviews (she filmed it after I had touched it) and was now feeling bad because as she goes to empty it, there's literally nothing on the film. Ten minutes of... bits, and garbled noise.

Somehow, this seems to be the best song for how I feel about machines right now.

No worries, I'm in control freak mode again, but dammit, I need extra hardware. LOTS OF SHINY HARDWARE! And battery-driven screwdriver set so I can pick shitty machines apart! I've been asking for this every birthday and Christmas, but do I get any fun tools? No wait, I inherited my grandfather's toolbox, I have a brass hand-pumped blowtorch, I do have cool tools. Still, need that mini screwdriver thing (machines have small x-screws, membah?)

I also checked through security control at Nice airport on my way home wearing this t-shirt.

Ad Buzz, a Canadian ad news site created by a group of ambitious ad youngsters took note of "The World’s Very First Advertising Blog"
 

Adland. Where ad critics, lovers, grunts and ranters go to keep up with all types of happenings in the commercial industry. Over 90,000 members and 45,000 archived commercials strong- only one person to thank.

From a very simple, spontaneous birth in 1996, founder Åsk Wäppling (@dabitch) has spearheaded Adland’s exponential growth over a decade and a half. Working as an Art Director in Malmo, Sweden, she has been able to amass (among many other things) the world’s largest Super Bowl commercial collection in the world.

“In 2000 we restructured with RSS feeds, user logins and a nice fat database to become a user generated advertising community, or a blog, or both depending on who you ask. This makes us the world’s very first advertising blog. We still think it’s just Adland mind you.”

Being the first-to-market means something. In this case, it means Åsk has been following, sharing, curating, collecting, and commenting on the global advertising scene for a very long time. It means she knows a thing or two about the industry, which is why so many people have chosen to become members and participate. Hats off to the core team for being able to juggle day jobs and simultaneously create a meaningful community of ad enthusiasts!

Brand Republic made a list of "the web's most influential bloggers", and at some point we were ranked number six on it.

"The BR 200 list of the best advertising, marketing, media, PR and digital blogs from around the world, ranked in terms of traffic and social influence."