From directing duo Exploding Motor Car (Winston Hacking and Brett Long) comes this video for "Restoration," the second single off The Acorn's album No Ghost. Nothing too groundbreaking going on, just some time-lapse footage of a BBQ feast on location at a farm in Ontario. Standard scene for a folky tune. But the when the sun goes down, there's some beautiful, lo-fi lighting......read more
Self-described as “the only hard-rockin’ pop band with ukulele," the Honey Brothers clearly don't take themselves too seriously. But, as we discovered on our first episode of Lighten Up, the playful New York City indie rock outfit is serious about at least one thing — the environment. In this behind-the-scenes look at the band, we catch them goofing off in their......read more
When the Honey Brothers took their new wave folk sound to the road, they made a commitment to minimize their tour's impact on the planet. Traveling in a biodiesel Sprinter van, the bandmates hit up local farmers' markets for grub and LEED-certified hotels for shelter. In this episode of Lighten Up, made possible by the good people at Stonyfield Farm, the Brooklyn five-piece inform us that touring......read more
A couple weeks ago, SHFT descended on New York for another pop-up event with our good friends at Wired. This was our fifth collaboration with the venerable tech magazine, a partnership that began in 2008 when Adrian and Peter curated an eco section of products for a Wired shop. For this one, we were asked to feature our Lighten Up series, so we had The Honey Brothers perform to a packed house. ......read more
Boston.com's The Big Picture assembled a collection of astonishing images from Iceland's volcanic eruption last weekend. We collected a few highlights. Photo credits, left to right: 1. AP Photo/Brynjar Gauti2. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson3. HALLDOR KOLBEINS/AFP/Getty Images4. HALLDOR KOLBEINS/AFP/Getty Images5. AP Photo/Brynjar Gauti6. HALLDOR KOLBEINS/AFP/Getty Images7. AP Photo/Arnar......read more
Aww, is it "too cold" to ride your bike in the winter? No matter where you are, it ain't as cold as St. Petersburg, Russia, where Adams Carroll rides his Ukrainian beast — made from surplus military tank parts — through the snow. Check Carroll's notes on winter cycling at the Fader. On a one-way path to wind energy dominance, China is steady flouting world......read more
For big, juicy photos of important happenings around the globe, there is no better place on the internet than The Big Picture. For green types like us, the Boston Globe photo blog's environment and wildlife gallery, The Natural World, is tops. TBP recently pulled fifty their picks for the top 50 photos of 2011 from the gallery, and published them here. Definitely some phenonmenal......read more
Ah shoot, more evidence that Mark Ronson is actually THE dude. The video for "The Bike Song," off his excellent new album with The Business Intl, follows a story about bike gang spies set in swinging '60s London. The tune itself is a big, fun glorification of two-wheeled transport, featuring Spank Rock on pro-environment raps: "I can't understand it, but I can't really stand 'em, girls love cars,......read more
Ryan McGinley's latest exhibition Life Adjustment Center features the photographer's trademark nudes posing with live, wild animals. Flavorwire has a slideshow of the strangeness. The book is available from Dashwood. We know you love the "The Bike Song" by Mark Ronson because how can you not? Now, the nice people at The Fader are giving you the chance to win a custom Republic......read more
Judging from the lyrics of this song -- and the story of its beautifully conceived video -- indie-folker Yoriyos has the same values as his dad, Yusuf Islam (formerly known as Cat Stevens). Directed and animated by Ron Winter and Jon Watts, the video is a tightly wound narrative of environmental and spiritual reawakening. Great piece....read more