More Nerd News in Brief

I didn’t intend to watch Kid Nation last night, but I did.

Now, I’m sure everyone has already established their personal views concerning the relative level of A) actual, feasible reality inherent in this reality show and B) exploitation inherent in involving children in such a fiasco, but let’s table that discussion for now.

The thing that struck me – more so, even, than the cheesy locales, the razor-sharp edits, and the subtle, camp counselor creepiness of host/former Sundance award winner Johnathan Karsh – was that the bulk of these children were just so goddamn nerdy!

I’m not sure why I was surprised by that. I mean, if your plan is to leave 40 kids to their own devices in a ghost town for over a month, it probably plays to stack the deck with a few extra smart ones.

Still, it lacked a lot of the Lord of the Flies quality that I was expecting, and, as a lit nerd, that was a little disappointing. I’m not sure if I’ll stick around for the rest of the season, but I suppose it’s good to see the next generation of poindexters getting some screen time.

• Pretty (Internet) Hate Machine: The fine folks at BOSSFIGHT were nice enough to send me a little press release concerning the forthcoming EP by their own IllGill. Internet Hate Machine, is slated to be released on the 25th of this month, and interested parties are encouraged to download the album’s premiere single “Hatin’.” On a side-note, the single, as well as the other tracks on the EP, was mixed and mastered by fellow BOSSFIGHT artist ZeaLouS1.
• Tear the roof off the sucka: IllGill also garnered a recent mention in the LA Times for a series of parties he’s been throwing on his roof. Gill is even included “in the picture section … talking to some dude that [he] can't remember.” California does, indeed, know how to party.
• Internet famous: Thanks to some tireless name-dropping by my pal Church, Hipster, please! was recently mentioned in the “Link Pileup” over at Geek Studies. As I’ve previously mentioned, I’m a big fan of this blog, and getting a little pop from it was a really pleasant surprise. Don’t let the moniker fool you; Geek Studies is tons of fun while still being both scholarly and culturally relevant.
• Whack Friday: mc chris has promised to release a full list of dates for his fall tour this Friday. Probably. Will mc make it to upstate SC. Will Z. buy him a beer? Will the person who took my bicycle pump please return it?
• Double your pleasure: Fans lamenting Ultraklystron’s retirement from the sphere of nerdy music got a double dose of auditory delight earlier this week when Karl released both Never Knows Best and Never Yours to Share It for free download via his Web site. After several attempts to remaster both works, Ultraklystron finally elected to release them in their original incarnations. Concerning the albums, Karl says “This is basically what I [was] capable of circa 2002-2003.” Never Knows Best is “pure Drum n' Bass and Glitch [and] not unlike a soundtrack.” Meanwhile, much of Never Yours To Share It is stuff that was originally intended for Never Knows Best and some additional material he “happened to make during a bout of inspiration that really didn't fit in with the main disc,” encompassing everything from Eurobeat to Breakbeat. While you won’t find any rhymes here-abouts, I highly recommend that fans check out both.
• In the Old Country: Matt was kind enough to direct me toward the MySpace of this British Wizard Rock festival. The roster is nine bands strong and tickets just went on sale, so jump on that shit if you find yourself across the pond.
• One more for the Wrockers: I’d also like to direct your attention toward this Tokyo Game Show update from the guys at Kotaku. Apparently they got to demo a broomstick controller peripheral. Three words: Quidditch World Cup.
• An open letter to Hideo Kojima: Mr. Kojmia, please read the following piece from Destructoid concerning film conventions that don’t translate well into gaming. Pay special attention to point 6 concerning cut scenes. PS: Lunar Knights is the shit!
• What would NNIB be without a video closer? Unsatisfactory: Throwdown is a straightedge metalcore band named after the Food Network television show featuring cantankerous restaurateur Bobby Flay. Okay, maybe not, but they are also not Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Even though they should be!