random website friday: weburbanist.

Sometimes you’re in the mood to wander the ‘net aimlessly but you’re not feeling Perez and all the usual suspects. Say you’re in the mood for something intellectual and architectural, yet completely random, with some culture and a good dollop of modern art thrown in. When you’re in that mood (and who isn’t, really?) that’s when you need to head to WebUrbanist.

This site is the shit. There hasn’t been a single visit where I haven’t come across something unexpected. For instance, right now the latest posts are on shopdropping (the subversive art of reverse shoplifting), the 3 most bizarre micronations in the world, the 7 smallest hotel rooms in the world, and urban camouflage.

If you’re saying “shopdrop who?” and “micronation what?” and “urban camowhazzit?” then that’s precisely why you need to go there. Now. Go now.

declare independence: björk + michel gondry

Most people think Björk is bat shit crazy. I’m not here to either dispute or confirm that. Personally, I’ve had a soft spot in my heart for her ever since I fell in love with Post. Anyone who tries to claim they weren’t even a little moved by the soul-wrenching performance she surprised everyone with in Dancer In The Dark is just being an asshole.

Like her or hate her, she’s undeniably on the forefront of all things artistic: beats, live performance, digital instrumentation (check out The Reactable that she blew people’s minds with on her 2007 tour), and definitely videos. Her visual interpretations of her songs are just as undeniably unique and uncompromising as the music itself. This is in no small part to her long artistic mind-melding with French director Michel Gondry. Which would help explain why a lot of her videos are like 4-minute dream sequences that Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind left on the cutting room floor.

This much-heralded collab continues with the latest single from Volta. I like this video, but I don’t love it. But, as with all things Björk, it’s most definitely worth talking about: