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Name that Rune

As we near the end of the first decade of the Twenty-first Century, I'm going through all the music I have listened to and purchased in the past ten years. I think in the past decade I have expanded my vinyl and cd collections more than ever and I have for sure expanded the musical genres that I listen to and appreciate. Growing up in the 80s, listening to heavy metal, rock, new wave, goth and punk music, I never pictured myself enjoying jazz, classical, or folk but in the past ten years these styles of music along with electronic and experimental have become the main types of music I've been listening to. So, it is no surprise to me that a huge portion of the music I have acquired over this decade has been released by one label, Rune Grammofon.

Begun in 1998 by Rune Kristoffersen (formerly of the Norwegian duo Fra Lippo Lippi) the label to date, has nearly 100 releases in its catalog. Primarily focusing on Norwegian artists the labels range of musical genres is very diverse; from the first release 1-3 by jazz quartet Supersilent, to drummer Thomas Strønen, eclectic female quartet Spunk, guitarist Jono El Grande, and composers such as Arne Nordheim and Fartein Valen to rock bands Bushman's Revenge and Motorpsycho and the folksy leanings of Susanna and the Magical Orchestra. The most recent release, Bandwidth, is a three disc set by the improv ensemble Circulasione Totale Orchestra, which was recorded live at various jazz festivals.

As the music industry and corporate record labels struggle to maintain the sales figures of there past, I feel that Rune Grammofon along with labels like Raster Noton, Mille Plateaux, Southern Lord, Constellation and others are doing something unique to smaller labels and that is to actually care about what they are releasing. This care goes into everything from the bands chosen to the design and packaging of the albums. There is a diversity and freshness on these labels that may challenge some listeners at first but with an open mind I think most music lovers will find new favorite songs, albums and musicians among them.

Bushman's Revenge

Food

Scorch Trio

In The Country

Spunk

For those of you that are interested in hearing a selection of what is available from Rune Grammofon there are a few great options. The first is the new sampler cd, Runeology 4, available free through website along with any purchase over 100 NOK, or there is the beautifully packaged Money Will Ruin Everything 2 double cd and book, which givings some insight into the music and man behind the label, as well as highlighting the talents of Kim Hiorthøy, who has provided all the graphic design for the label since its inception. There are also sites such as Thrill Jockey and Music Online where audio samples and digital downloads are availble, but for the full experience and pleasure of this music I highly recommend buying the music in physical form, which can be done through the Rune website or in the US through Forced Exposure. Something worth mentioning as well is that a few of the releases are available in compact disc or vinyl formats. In most cases the vinyl releases also come with a code to download a complimentary digital version of the release. All the vinyl released through the label is super high quality and many of the releases are limited to 500 copies, not to mention that the larger format really allows you to appreciate Hiorthøy's art. Finally, Rune Grammofon started a new vinyl only label, The Last Record Company in 2009 which has gone to even greater lengths to produce limited, super-high quality and beautiful records.

Money Will Ruin Everything 2

Konstantin Grcic: Designing for Today

One person that I feel has always pushed the limits of design through form, materials, and concepts is the Munich based designer Konstantin Grcic. From his early designs, like the May day lamp for Flos to his unforgettable Chair One series to his most recent 360 (both produced by Magis) which challenges the way we think an office chair should look and perform. While Grcic has received a lot of attention in Europe and more recently in Japan, he has been somewhat over looked in the USA, but that is about to change with the opening of his first American solo exhibition at the Art Institute of Chicago Konstantin Grcic: Decisive Design which opened last week and runs until January 24, 2010.

This may be a perfect excuse to visit the Windy City in the dead of winter.

An Instrument of Today

It's not everyday that a brand new type of musical instrument is introduced to the world. However, Eigenlabs, based in Devon, has done just that with their release of the Eigenharp Alpha and Pico, instruments that combine multiple physical ultra-sensitive keys, a strip controller, and a breath pipe with proprietary software. All of this provides almost endless sound possibilities from piano and synths to cello and clarinet as well as being able to tap into second-party soft instruments. It's also possible to program the Eigenharp or double up on live sounds while you're playing. The software is in its early stages, so I'm sure there will be improvements and additional features/capabilities as time moves forward, but for now there is plenty to keep anyone busy.

It should also be noted that both Eigenharps currently only operate with Apple computers, but the company is looking to support Windows computers sometime in 2010.

Eigenharp Alpha (approximately £4000/$6600/€4400)

Eigenharp Pico (approximately £350/$575/€400)

The Pico has just made it onto my holiday wish list!

Links:

Engadget's comprehensive review of the Eigenharp

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Eigenlabs company website

National Museum of the XXI Century Arts (MAXXI)

To begin this blog, I would like to draw your attention to the new National Museum of the XXI Century Arts in Rome, designed by Zaha Hadid Architects.

I think this building is a wonderful example of the great things that can currently be done with form, space and materials in todays architecture. As a tribute to the museum, the building itself will be the only thing on display for the time being. It is also worth noting that even as we approach the second decade of the twenty-first century, women are still hugely under represented when it comes to architecture and design on an international scale, so it is nice that Hadid was able to get this project built.

Here is the New York Times article about MAXXI - the new art museum in Rome by Zaha Hadid Architects.

Introduction

What is the Twenty First Movement?

This blog is to be a place for people to come to find out what is happening in culturally in our modern, twenty-first century, world. It is meant to redefine terms like modern and contemporary which are so often attributed to art, music, design and writings that were created fifty or even one hundred years ago; establishing them as things that have been created in our time.

I invite you to comment and contribute your thoughts on design, art, music, writing, philosophy that is currently shaping our world.