PLAYING WITH FIRE: EVOLUTION '09

Today's video is from Martin Darbyshir (aka HYPERBREED®) a digital media artist. He shared with BURNcast this video saying:

"Given the chance, I like to immerse myself in rich digital media content creation, manipulation, collaboration, production & post-production. The main goal of my work is, (and always has been) to bring attention to the talented artists and individuals around me whose work I most value and respect. Online media exposure can be used as a powerful tool for breaking through from the underground to the wider mainstream media.

I try to spend the majority of my time/energy focusing on those around me who are in most need of, and most deserving of the exposure that HYPERBREED® MEDIA can provide. I am fascinated by the relationship between the mainstream media and the digital underground that lies beneath the surface of our constant awareness. Everything we're bombarded with originates from and stems from the underground.

For example, when new music becomes popular enough; it is absorbed into the collective consciousness of our media saturated culture... but it came from a place where nobody had ever heard, or possibly ever even imagined it. I endeavor to tap into the veins that connect the underground to the mainstream and amplify them - primarily in the form of streaming video.

The internet is the vehicle for this amplification. I hope to do this in a way that challenges people's views on society, shapes their ideas, stimulates their imaginations, inspires and captivates them."

My aim is not necessarily to show you something you've never seen before (all ideas are borrowed from somewhere) ...rather, I strive to show you something you HAVE seen before, but in way that you never imagined.

My Playa Adventure - Burning Man 2009

BURNcast.TV receives a lot of video submissions from participants like you but this one really takes the cake. It's so ebullient, it reminds me of what first drew me to Burning Man in the first place. This video was was submitted by Rob (no-playa name) who said:

"This is a video that is SO GOOD. I'm Rob from Camp Pendant--best little camp that you most likely never heard of. This video is from Nick at The Dilated Peoples camp. Let me say two things. One: Dilated Peoples needs to be experienced to get it; look for them next year (you will thank me later). Two. This is THE BEST Burning Man video that I have seen. EVER. (IMHO)."

For the record, the song featured here is a remix of Imogen Heap's "Hide and Seek". Love your artists. Buy their music!

If *you* have a video please share it with BURNcast here.

BURNcast.TV #55 - Cellphones on the Playa

Earlier this week I featured a video that was shot at Burning Man on an iPhone. Today I'm sharing a video I took the day after the Man burned in '09.

Let me set this up: some members of the community (drink!) embraced the idea of cellphone connectivity on the playa while others did not. My friend Flaux was one who did not. Prior to turning on my video camera she had just expressed her opinion about this but unfortunately the moment had passed and she wouldn't do a second "take".

In the first half of this video my camp mates and I were all cracked out in the late afternoon from the heat and labor involved in striking our camp so we were taking a break. If it seems kinda quiet in our neighborhood: it was. This is probably a side of Burning Man you don't normally see. Not that it's a secret. It's just that, well it's not very exciting and doesn't make for good "picture" like flames or large scale art installations can.

Several hours later after Flaux and her boyfriend had finished packing the car, Flaux realized she had lost her car keys somewhere in the her gear and had to call AAA from her cellphone. In light of her predicament, I thought I'd ask her what she felt about cellphones on the playa. As it turned out, the locksmith was unable to cut a new key for her vehicle so she had to be towed all the way to Reno.

Tip: Get the AAA Premium membership. Flaux was glad she had it!

Burning Man 2009 by Glenn Lym

Burning Man 2009 from Glenn Robert Lym on Vimeo.

This week on BURNcast.TV we'll be covering the topic of "Cellphones @ Burning Man" which was percolating as a rumor for many months leading up to the event at last year's burn.

In fact, come early August '09, the BM blog posted that coverage was available in Gerlach. John Curley wrote: "Isn’t that weird? You can check your email; you can get calls, you can send texts. … Hey, that’s not why we came here, is it?"

Or is it?

The first time I went to Burning Man I specifically went with the intention to break up with my boyfriend and I needed to force myself to take a time out by not (obsessively) calling the guy. So I thought camping in remote Black Rock Desert of Nevada would be perfect.

I was right. As things turned out I was unable to call my ex for over a week unless I wanted to drive all the way back to Fernley where there was cell coverage but meh...I was having way too much fun to shlepp the hell out there. I returned from Black Rock City having put closure on the relationship and the strength to forge ahead having been transformed by my experiences at Burning Man.

I believe the ability to disconnect from all that you know and do in your default life is what makes for an optimum experience at Burning Man. So to me, cellphones on the playa are just not cool.

Badger, had this to say about the issue last year on a Tribe discussion thread:

"Count me in as one who thinks it sucks. Also count me in as one who no longer really gives a shit. If you think group interaction with strangers is on the wane now just wait until phone reception becomes playa wide - which it currently will not be. If you've ever been to any of the larger music festivals - especially in Europe - you'll see just how caught up everyone is describing how much fun they're having while they talk into their phones describing how much fun they're having."

I think Badger has a pretty good point. But then again, if you've ever been to Coachella (where cellphone connectivity diminishes as attendance swells) I just felt that demand on the playa would totally exceed ability. And, once again, I was right!

So what does cellphones at Burning Man have to do with this video?

According to the videographer Glenn Lym this was shot with his iPhone and edited up to 16:9. No alteration was done to the sound. Most of the large explosions are real time without editing.

Oh snap!

Glenn's video is a pretty innovative way to put his cellphone to good use at Burning Man!

Can you hear me now???

This Weekend In Los Angeles: Collection! #)'(

This weekend if you're in Los Angeles the Mystikal Misfits camp has got it goin' on.

COLLECTION! A Mystikal Misfits Camp Fun-raiser Party

Help the Misfits bring the magic back to Black Rock City in 2010. The video featured above is when the camp reprezented at Los Angeles Decom last year.

Saturday, May 8th, 9:00 pm - 5:00 am
Mission:Control ~ Culver City
email maryckirmo@gmail.com for directions
$15 donation

New Member To Our Community (Drink!)

Ohhhhh happy day! It is with great pleasure to welcome to our world this community's newest member: the lovely Miss Luna Adele. DRINK!

Luna was born May 5, 2010, at 12:19 am and weighed in at a healthy 5 pounds 11.7 ounces and 19 inches long (that's 2.59 kg and 48.26 cm for those of you outside the US).

Luna's father Juddles has been a frequent guest on BURNcast. In an email announcing her arrival he wrote in to say: "Woo-wee-ooowww-wow! What an amazing experience. We laughed, we labored, we learned, we loved. And in the end, a healthy and happy new little life arrived. Simply amazing."

To Juddles and K, may the life of your daughter be as sunny and bright as a good day on the playa! As for yours, now it will be much more interesting and colorful! Luna is beautiful. Congratulations!

BURNcast Special Report: Interfuse Burning Man Regional 2010 with ^Rhino

This recording is from Rhino, one of the lead moderators on the Burning Man Tribe who submitted this report about Interfuse, the Midwest Regional Burn. Below are some photos from his Flickr album.

Thanks so much for your participation, Rhino! xoxo

R.I.P. Greg "The Philosopher" Tropea

Greg "The Philospher" Tropea of BRCPO has gone to the eternal playa having succumbed to pancreatic cancer at the age of 59. He got his moniker because he was a professor of philosophy at Cal State University, Chico. A memorial is scheduled for 7 p.m. May 10 in the Bell Memorial Union at Chico State.

When asked just a few days before his passing if he was scared to die Tropea responded, "No, I'm curious."

In a posting on Tribe, his friend Spicerack remembers "The Philosopher" thusly: "He is such a great man. Smart. Kind. Wise. Funny. Remarkable, really. He is the kind of person that makes you want to be a better person....I miss the Philosopher and know that he is still very much with us. The playa bonds are strong, there is sparkle and magic in the air, when we're there and when we're not. That twinkle is partly the sweat and thinking of a great man, The Philosopher...."

UberBob writes: "Philosopher contributed so much to me personally and to the BRCPO. He was the one who organized the "BRCPO Reprogramming Gulag" (which was the overflow camp at Bob's Rainforest for posties that couldn't fit in the small Center Camp plot). He was an expert mediator when thing started to split at the Post Office. When things finally did split, he became an invaluable resource for creating BRCPO 2.0. And I never heard him speak an unkind word about the folks in the other camp. In spite of all his challenges with his health, he remained a great example of everything we aspire to create on the playa. "

Something to think about...If you decided that there might be a God, how would you decide what to believe about God?

-- Greg Tropea

Home Video: Evolution: Burning Man 2009

This video was sent to me from Kevage, one of my campmates from 2009. I think (although I'm not 100% sure) he shot the footage from his cellphone. If you've got a video or slideshow to share, by all means bring it.

Well Wishes for @Danger_Ranger #burningman

Over the weekend at the Mad Mad May Day Burner Bazaar I met up with some folks in the community (drink!) who had nothing but love, love, love for Danger Ranger. Get better soon, dude!

Paul Addis Returns To The San Francisco Stage In The Premier of "Dystopian Veneer"

Paul Addis

It's been a pretty active week in the Burning Man community (drink!). With stories about Danger Ranger's accident, Mark Pincus Zynga/Tribe scandal and my involvement with the Mad Mad May Day Burner Bazaar event), somehow THEE story of the weekend almost got buried so I'm here to recover it.

After serving almost two years in Nevada State prison for destruction of property charges when he torched the Burning Man effigy in 2007, Paul Addis returned to the stage last Friday, 30 April 2010 debuting his new solo show, "Dystopian Veneer" at The Dark Room in San Francisco.

For those of you who missed it, a second show is set for 7 May and you can purchase your tickets here.

While Addis was not inclined to clear up the "cloud of disinformation" surrounding him in this short clip (presumably he was referring to the notoriety he received for the crime for which he served time) he did sit down and give a three hour interview with Steve Jones of the San Francisco Bay Guardian which was published earlier this week.

In this interview Addis tells what happened that fateful night of 28 August 2007 in Black Rock City. As always, the comments on this article are worthy of a read as well.

If anybody has saw the premier of Addis' show I'd love to hear your review. Leave a comment below or contact me at burncast/@/gmail.