S.o.t.D. - A Screw (Holy Money) – Swans

A Screw (Holy Money) – Swans

I guess this track can be taken two ways. Literally. Or figuratively.

S.o.t.D. - Back To Reception – Terry Lee Brown Jr.

Back To Reception – Terry Lee Brown Jr.

Yet another appearance of that Ferris Bueller sample.

S.o.t.D. - Cheki – Phaeleh

Cheki – Phaeleh

Yet another gem from Phaeleh.

Bryce Huffman Carter Park Mural

S.o.t.D. - Generation – Dub War

Generation – Dub War

The flip (and better track) of yesterday’s track.

Gage Park Greenhouse

Roxann and I went to Gage Park this morning to check out the greenhouse there. It’s already a gem in Hamilton and the greenhouse is a gem within that gem. Weird how I’ve lived here for years and it’s only the first time checking it out. Worth a trip.
https://www.hamilton.ca/attractions/culture/gage-park-tropical-greenhouse

S.o.t.D. - Murderous Style – Dub War

Murderous Style – Dub War

From the point when garage started delving into the early (non crappy) iteration of dubstep.

S.o.t.D. - Your Heart (Sven Weisemann Remix) – Synkro

Your Heart (Sven Weisemann Remix) – Synkro

S.o.t.D. - Way Down Yonder Blues – Lemuel Turner

Way Down Yonder Blues – Lemuel Turner

Instrumental from 1928.

S.o.t.D. - Dust Bowl – Silence Groove

Dust Bowl – Silence Groove

Atmospheric producer from Poland.

S.o.t.D. - Afraid Of Jazz – Madmen & Poets

Afraid Of Jazz – Madmen & Poets

Yet another example of D&B not being a simplistic club staple, but a genre that has branched out into real soulful areas.

S.o.t.D. - Nobody Speak (feat. Run The Jewels) – DJ Shadow

Nobody Speak (feat. Run The Jewels) – DJ Shadow

Oooh new DJ Shadow. Nice birthday present.

S.o.t.D. - Moving Minds – Nexus & Tight

Moving Minds – Nexus & Tight

S.o.t.D. - Alaska – Maggie Rogers

Alaska – Maggie Rogers

You’ll thank me later. Gal’s name is Maggie Rogers. Student at NYU Clive Davis Institute. Trust me. She deserves to be huge. Still a demo, but just incredible.

S.o.t.D. - Annie’s Song (Shadow Child Remix) – Alix Perez

Annie’s Song (Shadow Child Remix) – Alix Perez

Garagey booty shaker.

S.o.t.D. - Comin’ Home – City and Colour

Comin’ Home – City and Colour

I like the folky acoustic stylings of Mr. Dallas Green.

Bottle’mups

There was a Contigo bottle a client had left at the shop, languishing in the basement for well over a year. My Sigg bottle cracked and leaked, and I needed a new bottle. I kindly adopted this poor, abandoned one. But I needed a way to carry it. So, naturally I made one.

Fairly straightforward. Took some 3" webbing I had, sewed a 2" strip down the front and another one down the inside back, PALS webbing along the back, a Duraflex Spring Release Buckle on the front, a 1" strap on the top, a cord lock at the bottom on the back and then threaded bungee cord through the whole thing.

I put a piece of 1" edge tape across the buckle to prevent it from flopping around, and to make it easier to reseat the male end of the buckle back into the female end of the buckle.

Mounted along the back of the Messenge’mups.

And it also holds this aluminum bottle...

....and this thermos.

S.o.t.D. - Swing Break {feat. Kate Mullins} (Opiuo feat. Russ Liquid Remix) – The McMash Clan

Swing Break {feat. Kate Mullins} (Opiuo feat. Russ Liquid Remix) – The McMash Clan

Infectious.

S.o.t.D. - Happened To Me – Rich James & Rare Candy

Happened To Me – Rich James & Rare Candy

Housy goodness.

S.o.t.D. - Slip Inside Your Mind - Goodbye Honolulu

Slip Inside Your Mind - Goodbye Honolulu

Rocking good time.

S.o.t.D. - Intrusive – Hajimari x Satori

Intrusive – Hajimari x Satori

Incredibly catchy, shuffling beat. Love this!

Sloot my shingshot

Went with my pal Shaggy to sloot my shingshot. Great fun. I got one knock down hit, a no knock down hit and we both got several balls very close to the target. Then we ran out of balls.

More projectiles will be fired on another day.

S.o.t.D. - Beat Up Kidz – The oOohh Baby Gimme Mores

Beat Up Kidz – The oOohh Baby Gimme Mores

Really fun song and video from this Toronto punk band.

Dinner Time View

A spot I enjoy every so often.

Eureka Moment

I’ve been aware of the Chouinard Expedition Repair Kit for quite some time. Chouinard was the fore-runner of Patagonia, and this item disappeared from the market many years ago. I’ve seen some efforts to recreate it, (another effort, and another.) Patagonia recently brought it back, but they can be challenging to track down.

I have a Stewart Speedy Stitcher, but the bulk and weight mean it’s a home work shop item. Now an awl isn’t even something I use that often, but still, a handy tool to have access to.

Being the guy I am, I thought of making one myself. I had found a collet chuck for a pittance at Princess Auto recently. Still a bit bigger than I wanted though. Plus I would have to drill a hole through hardened steel.

Another tool that I use a lot and will carry in the Sew’mups, is an X-Acto knife.

Both for regular #11 blades and for curved blades to use as a seam ripper.

While looking through a tool box that I had had up in the boat loft, I found this knife, that I had practically forgotten about. (I have a few knives like this. Building models, doing pasteup and stripping film – some I’ve had for 35 years.)

Since the curved blade is meant for a scalpel holder, it isn’t a perfect fit, but it holds without slippage or wobbling, so it’s fine.

Great, it holds the blades. But wait! The proper X-Acto brand knives I have, have a single slot to clamp the blades.

This one has two slots...and a hole to hold a circular object!

Like a #4 needle meant for the Stewart Speedy Stitcher.

My kit also contains some drill bits, and a saddler’s awl.

Now clearly it lacks the ability to mount a T-handle, but I may drill a hole though this so that I can use a cotter pin (or something similar) to use for that purpose.

Great to find one tool that can serve dual duty. And when it’s one I didn’t have to pay for – even better. Given this thing is likely 25 to 30 years old, I couldn’t for the life of me tell you who made it or where to find one.

S.o.t.D. - Peace Fixation (Trance Mix) – Freaky Chakra

Peace Fixation (Trance Mix) – Freaky Chakra

Like yesterdays track/act, Juno Reactor, another track/act from the early days of techno and trance that I think haven’t been bettered.

S.o.t.D. - Man to Ray – Juno Reactor

Man to Ray – Juno Reactor

Great album, great era. I think they were one of the first acts to embody the whole acid trance thing, and still not sure any one has ever really bettered this. Just those beats and those skittering sounds alone.

S.o.t.D. - Dreams – Lexi Love

Dreams – Lexi Love

Something from the late 90’s big beat era.

S.o.t.D. - Dayz – Roni Size

Dayz – Roni Size

Creamer.

S.o.t.D. - Coco Joao (Hotbox Remix) – Arcoiris

Coco Joao (Hotbox Remix) – Arcoiris

Brazilian tune gets a D&B reworking. The two styles work well together.

S.o.t.D. - Daydreamer – Tyler Straub

Daydreamer – Tyler Straub

Boppy.

The Birch Bark Canoe: Navigating a New World

Terrific 20 minute documentary on this incredible craft.

Cellophane Light

I call it cellophane, but I don’t if that’s correct. Polypropylene maybe? Not a plastics expert.

In any case, I was reading a hardcover from the library, which is covered in a clear protective plastic. I noticed that patterns formed on the wall as the light from the sun hit it. Move it slightly and the shapes changed completely. Had to photograph them.

S.o.t.D. - Wine and Roses – L’Indécis

Wine and Roses – L’Indécis

Really nice vibe. Just love that mashup between jazz inspired melodic elements, and hip hop inspired rhythms.

Capacitance Electronic Disc

Spent an incredibly fun day with my friends Roxann and Ryan on a Saturday a fortnight ago. They had gone out garage sale-ing earlier and Roxann, being a horror buff had grabbed this curiosity. A “Capacitance Electronic Disc”. I have very vague memories of seeing these back when they may have mattered. Developed by RCA in 1964, they were essentially a phonograph record that played images and sound, not just sound. It was two sided, with each side capable of playing about 60 minutes of NTSC video, with about 27,000 frames per side. A special stylus read a high density groove. The disc sat inside a plastic caddy. It’s about +/- 12" by 13".

And a couple of photos I stole off the internet to show the interior. Sorry.

For a variety of reasons, it wasn’t commercially released until 1981, by which point it was competing against LaserDiscs and Betamax and VHS videocassettes. Like I said, I vaguely remember this, but I don’t think anyone I knew had them or the player for them. I was under the impression that it may have been expensive, but apparently RCA meant for this to be a low cost consumer product. Despite that, it never really took off. In the end RCA lost $600 million on this.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capacitance_Electronic_Disc