Can a vinyl toy take a stand against Generation iPod? Ask DJ Shadow and Cut Chemist, the turntablism legends who have created a roto-molded plaything to keep the flame alive for a world long gone by.
this audio or video is no longer available"We conceived it as a throwback to a pre-digital era,"
Shadow explains on his official site, which is exclusively selling the Juke-Bot in a limited-edition run restricted to 500 toys. “There's something about a jukebox doing battle with pesky iPods that seems to resonate with people. It's a kind of protest against the technology rat-race, particularly where music is concerned."
Of course, the philosophy skews strange for a couple of digital wizards who have made nice careers for themselves out of media and tech. Same goes for Meat Beat Manifesto's VFX genius Ben Stokes, whose conceptual art functioned as a springboard for Juke-Bot designer Paul Insect and producers and sculptors Klim Kozinevich and Scott Wetterschneider of Bigshot Toyworks.
But it's still pretty cool, all things considered.
Speaking of cool, Shadow and Cut are teaming up with the brain-teasing DJ Spooky, recent author of Sound Unbound, for a show at McCarren Park Pool on July 17. Spooky will be tackling the afterparty and remixing the Stax back catalog as ably as he did the Trojan vaults over the last couple of years.
It's times like these I wish I lived in Brooklyn.
Photo: DJShadow.com
See Also:
- DJ Spooky Unleashes the Sound
- DJ Spooky: How a Tiny Caribbean Island Birthed the Mashup
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- Sonic Immunity: Q&A With Meat Beat Manifesto's Jack Dangers
- Meat Beat Doses the World With New Manifesto, Autoimmune
- Is Hip-Hop Over?
- Barack Obama's Victory Soundtrack
- The RZAview: An Experiment in Hip Hop Journalism
- Rob Swift Helps Make Turntablism Ill All Over Again
