Soft Serve

Haven't posted anything in a long time... apologies... but now, time for a Soft Serve update!

After a great gig on Saturday 21st February at the GoGo Bar in Newtown, Johannesburg, I was sent a link on our Facebook group (click here if you're on Facebook and want to join) to this article on SPIN Earth. A particularly complimentary review, complete with some awesome photos of (most) of the band members. To be honest, for me the best part is "I can understand that this will not be to everyone’s taste with some criticising the performance as pure musical madness or for being 'to far out there'." I agree! (The writer likes us btw...)

If you haven't seen any Soft Serve, would like to see what we're about - check out some of the videos on YouTube that I've posted below. Obviously if you would like to see more, search for Soft Serve on YouTube - other videos include The Ice Cream Theme, Conezor, Kudu Jive, as well as animated episodes 1&2 and 3&4.

I'll post up any additional performance dates when I have them. Should be a few in the next little while... ;)

Soft Serve - The Ballad of Mr Drippy

Soft Serve Animation - Episode 5&6

Soft Serve Launch

Launching at Go-Go Bar, Newtown (cnr Bree/Henry Khumalo)
11 October
21:00
R40 cover

Soft Serve, Soft Serve... What can we say about Soft Serve?

Firstly... It's crazy. We mean, really crazy. Like some weird space time flux it tests the boundaries of what we think is real.

Follow the band through a warped storyline revolving around ice cream,
featuring a cast of freaks in hoodies who torment the soft serve
obsessed office worker and the Mr Drippy van run by a crazy ice cream
man who extrudes dodgy soft serve from his mouth.

Soft Serve combines music, sound and visuals in a slightly crazy - no -
insane performance that anyone who's slightly eccentric or just
downright warped in the head will love. Jam to sounds of the ice cream
jingle from your childhood, giggle hysterically as you see what REALLY
goes into soft serve and run in fear of the deformed freaks that will
haunt your dreams for nights to come.

Soft Serve is Jonathan Crossley (guitars), Janus van der Merwe (sax,
keys and voice), Isaac Klawansky (drums), Stefan Henrico (bass) and
Pippa Stalker (animation and visuals).

Pasop Kinders!

Miss Bimbo VS GTA4

A cross-post from @joburg.net

I regularly follow a writer called Leigh Alexander, who amongst other things, writes the blog Sexy Videogameland. I came across this article at GameSetWatch. I think it's an interesting meditation on the game, Miss Bimbo, which at first glance appears to be an offensive lifestyle game, targeted at young girls and including such activities as 'weight maintainance', consumerism and just overall superficiality. I must admit that my first impression of Miss Bimbo was as expected - disbelief at the sexist nature of the game, however, after further investigation and a more in-depth read of Alexander's article I find it interesting that my reaction to this game wasn't initially mediated by my love of the other example she uses - the more popular, controversial game - Grand Theft Auto IV.

Alexander argues that, "It's easier to blame the game, of course -- it's challenging to find one article on Miss Bimbo that doesn't correlate it to problems with eating disorders, female self-esteem, gender equality or anything else. Finally, a point of relationship between Miss Bimbo and the everyday gamer. If you're going to be disgusted at Miss Bimbo, you should probably avert your eyes from GTA IV, too."

Yes, GTA4, the game so many people love to hate - the game that I have always spouted as a self-consciously ironic critique of society. The game that I have always argued is, yes, violent and controversial, but nevertheless is my right to play should I feel the need. And I do. I LOVE GTA - not just from version 3 onwards, which are the more well-known, popular editions, but since GTA1. When the game was presented as a birds-eye view map of the city. When the words "Kiiiilllll FRENZY!" were announced by some manic narrator as you picked up a killing spree icon. When "Molotov Cocktail" was again shouted by the crazed narrator as you collected a bottle stuffed with a rag and petrol. And yet here is another game that whilst perhaps isn't
self-consciously ironic in the same sense, but nevertheless has just as much right to exist and be a part of the public domain.

"While Miss Bimbo, unlike GTA, is meant for kids, it's non-violent, and contains no pornography or overtly offensive language. It's distasteful and hard to agree with, but we can no more take issue with the game itself than we can blame the interesting social microcosm of Bully for -- well, bullying. Like GTA, Miss Bimbo is somewhat of a satire of these archetypes, and that can rob them of their venom. In fact, it's a safe way for girls to explore ideas about social pressures. What they do from there is a parental responsibility primarily, and an issue for our culture at large."

The Graveyard - good and bad

I subscribe to this feed, and so read the post a few days ago but have refrained from commenting while I waited to hear what others have to say.

My initial reaction to The Graveyard was an extremely positive one - I thought it was a great look, one which has inspired another project I'm working on at the moment, and I've shown it to numerous people, some of which have 'got it' and some which haven't. Ok, no I haven't bought the full version (and haven't watched the death sequence on youtube either), but I understand why some people don't get it.

I think the term 'interactive' is such a difficult one anyway, because by it's nature as a piece of computer software, it is by definition 'interactive' (see Lev Manovich for more info on that concept if you're interested) and although I have certain problems with this argument, in those terms The Graveyard is certainly interactive. It could indeed be argued that it's not a 'game' in the traditional sense of the word, however I would strongly argue that it is indeed an 'art game' (www.selectparks.net for more info on this if needed although Kai already refers to it in this capacity). The other alternative is that I guess to some extent it could be considered 'interactive narrative' although I have less experience in this argument since it's not really my area.

I won't deny that I have certain criticisms of the game (yes I'll still call it that regardless) but the frustration that is a part of this game and the way that the game itself plays on that is in itself interesting.

An imperfect experiment? Yes, perhaps, but is any experiment ever really perfect? I think the important criticism to take away from this is that it's a stepping stone to something else. No, you won't grow if everyone only praises you, that is true, but what I DO like about Kai's review is that although she clearly doesn't empathise with the character, doesn't enjoy the gameplay and regards this game largely as a failed experiment, she does say,

"In any case, it's worth admitting that I admire Tale of Tales' willingness to use the medium of video games to convey emotions other than "fun". In fact, I wholeheartedly encourage other developers to do the same – we can certainly do with more "art games" in this comparatively superficial landscape of ours. The fact that The Graveyard was, in my eyes, an imperfect experiment in some areas by no means implies that we should simply go back to killing things and solving Sudokus."

She doesn't like the game and yet she still finds something positive within it. Just saying a game is bad without saying why you think so means you haven't actually bothered to engage with it on any level, and Kai has obviously tried to engage with it somewhat because she justifies her response to the piece, whether as a game or as an interactive painting, narrative, whatever. I saw another review on YouTube where the guy's rationalisation about why the game was bad was because "games are about high scores". To me that's not a review, that's an uninformed opinion.

Just because I appreciate the concept over the actual interactivity (or relative lack of in this case) doesn't mean that I'm under the illusion that everyone thinks this game is great, but I don't think the authors are under the impression that everyone would like their work.

Just a thought - use it, don't use it...

Repurposing...

Ok, so I haven't posted in ages, but I've decided to clean up this blog and use it for a more specific reason other than just talking about whatever is on my mind. I'm going to leave some of the posts up, just because I do still find some of them interesting, as well as the fact that many of the ideas are still relevant to my work etc, but I've deleted all the random personal posts.

Occasionally I'll cross post to AtJoburg.net, same as before.

I recently began presenting a TV show called PlayR for Channel Go in South Africa. PlayR is an international show where I do the local re-voicing as well as the local on-camera links. At the time of posting this, episode 6 was screened last night, and PlayR was in the pick of the day in The Star newspaper. I also did another interview with The Times this afternoon for their media section, and I think it will be up Monday or Tuesday.

Ok then... :)

Games and popular culture - atjoburg.net

Apologies for cross posting...

Having always being fascinated with all things ludological, I can’t help but include images and links to things that are a bit bizarre, especially when they are related to games that I played once upon a time. What I thought was pretty cool, was the portable NES built into a shoe (although of course nobody seems to know if it actually works…) Either way it’s worth checking out the sites Wii Wii and BoingBoing

Not that I would take the trouble to make a Q*bert quilt.
Or wear a Mario miniskirt.
Or even though I have a number of tattoos, and am obsessed by games…. get a Mario sleeve…

But I guess that this isn’t really the point.

Digital Surrogates

New works by:
International collaborative, Eva and Franco Mattes
Bronwyn Miller and
Pippa Stalker

Digital Surrogates brings together four artists from across the globe who blur the line between digital interactive media and the fine arts. The show will feature five large digital portraits from a series entitled “13 Most Beautiful Avatars” by Eva and Franco Mattes alongside paintings by Bronwyn Millar and photographs by Pippa Stalker. Together this work translates persuasively into an analysis of self, public perception and possibility.

Eva and Franco Mattes, also known in techie circles as 0100101110101101.org are internationally recognised as supreme interventionists. Most of their projects involve different forms of media hacking and bogus culture trafficking. In one instance the duo temporarily hijacked the Nike logo for a public installation in Vienna. In another, they created an entirely fictional artist, only to murder him once he was sufficiently famous. Here, they have made a series of dramatic portraits of avatars created on Second Life with New York printmaker, Jean-Yves Noblet. Second Life is a 3-D virtual world wherein one can build an alter-ego or avatar to meet with others, be entertained, buy land even trade real-life products.

Bronwyn Millar will be showing paintings of a new avatar, created in preparation for the show with a photographic, animated portrait of her ideal self. Through her examination of the subversive nature of art games, Stalker has created a photographic body of work documenting the hundreds of characters she has killed within the game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.

We encourage you to come and experience this event at David Krut Projects.
Opening 11 Oct at 6pm