Bounty

Wow I’ve been gone a long time. I took a 12 day vacation to Michigan where the weather was cool. Now I’m back in the city and I’m sweatin’. Never got a chance to get to the Founders Brewery in Grand Rapids like I planned, but I still have a chance to see ‘em at the WCL Taste of the Great Lakes beer tasting next Wednesday which I mentioned before.

This also looks cool:

Hardcourt Bicycle Polo World Championship September 5th – 6th, 2009 Philadelphia, PA

Check out the names of some of the teams from around the globe. There’s also a fundraiser for it this weekend at Trophy Bikes with PBC beer (no, not PBR, PBC).

Now on to the tunes:

The Revenge-Heavy Love
From Big Stereo

Kleerup- Until We Bleed (with Lykke Li)
From Fluxblog

If you’re like me you get all excited when you happen across an obscure funky oldie you come across online. What makes them even more interesting is when some dude takes an already great song and chops it up, loops the best parts, and adds an extra kick drum or two. So lately I’ve been digging this dude Pilooski from Paris, who makes magic with every song he screws with. He’s reworked Can, Frankie Valli, Elvis Presley, The Pointer Sisters… I can’t get enough:

MP3: Del Shannon- Gemini (Pilooski Edit) (via Mediafire)

Get more Pilooski on Dirty Edits Vol. 2.

I can’t embed it but the video for his Elvis edit is definitely worth checking out. here.

Bling

This faux crocodile laptop personally engraved with gold lettering can be yours for under 950 bucks.
Not a bad price since it includes a blu ray burner and a 14″ screen.
Limited run of only 500 so get yours quick!
Sonystyle.com

It’s Winter in New Zealand

Mr. Boh seen on the Market Frankford Line. No idea what it means.

Check out Kmart’s homepage. I dare you.

Some random beer news:

Iron City Brewery finally closed it’s old troubled brewery in Pittsburgh and is moving all operations to Rolling Rock’s old brewery in Latrobe, PA. Most local beer geeks think it’s the end of the road for the brewery. One expert even mentioned something I suggested a few years ago- convince the hipsters to drink the stuff and it’ll make a huge comeback.

Music:

A new find for me, a band from New Zealand on Drag City. Bachelorette

MP3: Bachelorette- Her Rotating Head

MP3: Bachelorette- Mindwarp

From the My Electric Family LP. Looks like we just missed their US tour- they played Kung Fu Necktie in June. Bummer.

BONUS: Largehearted Boy turned me on to this great track:

MP3: Brian Olive-There is Love

Jody Watley is coming to World Cafe Live on July 28. She’s still lookin’ good too.

July 4th in Philly

At the Roots/Sheryl Crow concert:

I’ve never seen such good weather on a holiday weekend in all my 32 years. The last two years were washouts and I seem to remember it raining most of the times I stayed in Philly for the fireworks.

Here are some better pictures via flickr:

(photo Dan Callahan)

(photo moocatmoocat)

Long Weekend Playlist

MP3: Passion Pit-The Reeling (Calvin Harris Remix) (c/o bbqchickenrobot)

New Orleans band on “former New Orleans now Philly thanks to Katrina” -based label Park The Van Records:

MP3: Generationals- When They Fight, They Fight (Hearya turned me on to them)

Generationals online

Finally some new, interesting dub/dancehall:

MP3: Major Lazer-Can’t stop now feat. Mr. Vegas & Jovi Rockwell (via dilate choonz)

From Guns Don’t Kill People, Lazers Do. The whole thing is wicked. Get it.

I’ll see you at the Roots/Cheryl Crow (!) fireworks display- have a good 4th!

Founders Hall @ Girard College

I literally live a block from one of the most beautiful and historic spots in Philly- Girard College (not actually a college but a boarding school). It’s rare that the general public is allowed inside the sprawling campus and high walls but we peasants were allowed in as part of Hidden City Philadelphia. It allowed me to finally check out the grand Founders Hall, which was designed by Thomas Ustick Walter, the same guy who designed the US Capitol dome. It was the second most expensive building built before the Civil War, second only to the US Capitol, and it is larger than the Parthenon.

Some history of Stephen Girard and his school:
He was one of the wealthiest men of the US industrial age and he left the bulk of his money to the city to build a school for “poor white male orphans.” Brown vs. Board of Education in the ’50s ruled that separate but equal schools were unconstitutional and Martin Luther King Jr. himself marched outside the college. It allowed blacks in 1972. It didn’t admit women until 1984.

Check out the very interesting complete timeline here.

I really need to brush up on my photography skills but I managed to get some good shots:

The colorful props are left over from a scene that was shot for M. Night Shalamadingdong’s next project The Last Airbender.

Student graffitti on the ceiling of a closet from 1880. I think this is so cool:

All of the old student records dating back to the mid 1800s are piled up in this dusty old room. So cool:

Better pictures on flickr.