On October 16th, the world will know. The speculation will be over. Parents’ nightmares about their children’s nightmares will come true, or not. Film executives will be rethinking, whichever way it pans out. It is widely expected to be seminal.

Meanwhile, the creative crew behind Spike Jonze’s film adaptation of Where The Wild Things Are are taking their mind off the furore, perhaps, by blogging. No corporate control, no enforced plugs. Just cool, enthusiastic people who know, enthusiastically blogging cool stuff you should know.

—Chris Noble, 23 July 2009

If you are a dedicated part-time photographer who has heard of the internet, you must blog. The blog must consist of photos of things you see, do and find, with captions.

Nuno Oliveira is no different. Unlike most, though, his blog benefits from his location, the endlessly photogenic city of LA, having one camera or another to hand at all times, design skills, and the ability to capture moments that, seconds later, would make a lesser photographer think, “I wished I’d photographed that.”

—Chris Noble, 20 July 2009

The ever-elusive, never-exclusive street/graffiti artist Banksy has an extensive show on at the normally generic City Museum in his home town of Bristol, England. Interspersed with the standard exhibits are a hundred-odd Banksy trademarks, mostly stabs at the establishment. Old masters, government, everyday life and ignored injustices are all poked at with Banksy’s ingenious execution and devastatingly wry style which rarely fails to shake common perceptions.
This is a rare event, so don’t go waiting for one to come to a town near you as it may never happen.

—Chris Noble, 07 July 2009

Since February 2007, Canadian-born Tyler Brûlé—the luminary who plastered the world with Wallpaper* magazine and the branding work of agency Winkreative—has been quietly pushing out Monocle, a grown-up magazine covering “global affairs, business, culture and design”. Brûlé‘s track record of aesthetically superior* production stays fast, as Monocle is equal parts eye- and brain-candy.
Pieces range from handy tips for failing countries to fashion pages—or you could turn to the pull-out manga-style comic in the back, featuring a heroic, ass-kicking Japanese / Scandinavian industrial designer. Of course.

—Chris Noble, 03 July 2009

Larry Harmon started the fiercely independent Genetic Disorder zine in 1987. Larry is one of the underground’s great unsung wordsmiths, and GD is his main vehicle. Issue #19 is out right now, and it proves my hyperbole on its own. His detailed researching and reporting of the odd tales of SoCal are required reading for any self-respecting punk—as well as those just interested in a point of view you’re not likely to find anywhere else.

—Roy Christopher, 03 July 2009

Owners of the ground-breaking Canon EOS 5D Mark II will be buttons-at-the-ready on June 2nd. Not shutter-buttons though, download buttons: Canon have paid heed to owners and have written new firmware which will give much more manual control over the camera’s already amazing, but not that flexible, full HD video-shooting capabilities.

—Chris Noble, 29 May 2009