THE SILVER THREAD

We all have a story to tell.

This is going to be awesome.

Our new remix just released!

Download the swan song for the final episode of Battlestar Galactica – I Am A Cylon (A Crowd Electric Remix)

www.myspace.com/acrowdelectric

Loved this. Jade Jagger shot by Terry Richardson for Belvedere Vodka.

And—I need a new pair of Adidas.

Recognize anyone? I’m sure you do.

How awesome is this video for Vodafone?

Can I get a bluetooth device that lets me to write a novel in the woods while I party in the city? Or is that too much to ask?

Ralph Fiennes

I’m big on compliments. I always have been, but only recently have I felt compelled to be more vocal about it. Here’s what I mean by that. Do you ever write an email to someone in your head? You spend all this time formulating the thought and then once you have it, you hit SEND. And then, a few days later after you haven’t heard back, you realize, wait, that SEND part was only in my head.

I’m like that with compliments. I formulate this nice little nugget of praise and hit SEND, only for it to knock around the interweb of my own mind.

So I’ve decided to take the direct route. I’m turning off my brain and delivering the compliments in person. Friends, colleagues, girls, guys, shoe repairmen, soldiers, police officers. If you’re doing something right, I’m going to let you know about it. Even celebrities, who we might think get showered with compliments every day, but seldomly do (at least in a genuine way). Case in point: Today I ran into Ralph Fiennes on a street in the West Village. He, like me, was just trotting right along on his way to something. I recognized him immediately, and as our paths were crossing, this is what I said:

SH: Mr. Fiennes.

RF: Hi.

SH: I’m a big fan of your work.

RF: (surprised) Thanks. (stopping)

SH: You’re doing a great job.

RF: (beaming) Thank you.

And that was that. I could have mentioned that, as far as I’m concerned, he steals the screen in every film he’s in, but I figured I’d save that for next time. And if you’re wondering—yes, he is that handsome, and his eyes really are that kind.

Photo by Terry Richardson

Another completely random celebrity moment was when I was standing in line behind Terry Richardson at Starbucks. If you don’t know who that is, he’s the photographer who wears the big glasses and has shot pretty much anyone who’s anyone – or not – and made them look incredibly sexy. I let him order his venti latte, then, as he made his way over to the milk-and-sugar-station, I said:

SH: Mr. Richardson.

TR: (turning to me, slightly off guard)

SH: I’m a big fan of yours.

TR: (slightly surprised) Thanks.

SH: Keep up the good work.

TR: (smiling) Thanks man.

Then I let him get back to his sugar. And yes, he was wearing the glasses.

Come to think of it, while we’re on this communication theme, here’s Terry talking about what gets him excited about communicating with people. It seems like compliments and art go hand in hand.

Johnny Depp annoys me.

Michael Mann is a genius.

What happens when the two collide?

Your guess is as good as mine.

The first time around.

And of course, one of my favorite, and most misunderstood, Michael Mann films of all time.
(This is what 2 hours of visual poetry looks like.)

No, I haven’t read The Di Vinci Code. And I haven’t put a hold on it at the library. But if you’re like me, and you have trouble accepting the simple reasons of things, you might enjoy a movie called Bloodline. I did. It’s a documentary filmed in 2008 following a small group of amateur researchers, including documentary filmmaker, Bruce Burgess, as they seek to uncover the secret union and subsequent bloodline of Jesus Christ and Mary Magdalene—believed by some to have escaped to the south of France following his crucifixion, with their child. Which, if true, would discredit the very foundation of Christian belief.

Laugh riot? No. Uber-creepy tomb raid with fiber-optic cameras and random wire tapping? Yes.

If you have Netfilx, you can download the stream, and start geeking out immediately.

Here’s the trailer:

One of the things I paid particular attention to was what was happening to everyone who tried to tell this story prior to, and during, the making of the film. That, and the final cryptic statements made by the representatives from the Priory of Sion and the Roman Catholic Church.

I’m not going to say what I think about the whole conspiracy theory, but like I said, I tend to distrust a simple explanation. Or another simple explanation proving the opposite. Usually, there’s a much more intricate reason for why either explanation was ever allowed to develop, and that, I believe, is somewhere far beyond the focus of the film. What that reasoning is, I don’t know know. But I think there are truths here—being discovered throughout the course of the film. And as they weave together, a picture begins to form that makes a great deal of sense.

Our friend Circlesquare in Vancouver, Canada just launched the microsite for his new album Songs About Dancing and Drugs.

Everything about it is so perfectly done I want to punch myself in the face.

And if that wasn’t enough, watch the video for the first single “Dancers” here:

If you’ve been listening to MGMT, you’re going to be listening to these guys next.

Their EP, Chunk of Change, is on iTunes.

Be sure to download “I’ve Got Your Number.”