The HighLife

The lady is versatile.  Whether it's painting, sculpture, jewelry, installations, or video, Annaliese Rittershaus is comfortable in any medium she's working with.  She's definitely got a style all onto herself.  Check out more of her work at annaliese.tv.

little airplane from Annaliese Rittershaus on Vimeo.

annaliese.tv

"Style is an expression of individualism mixed with charisma. Fashion is something that comes after style." - John Fairchild

Style. Some of us think we have it.  Some of us wish we had it.  Some of us have no clue.  Fortunately, a few are blessed with it. Style is James Dean in 'Rebel without a Cause'.  Fashion is the American kids still jocking his style today.  Got style questions? Wily Wiley has got answers.  Ms. Wiley's insight on all things style, plus tips on apparel, fashion, flats vs heels, darks vs pastels, etc., are essential reading for the stylish and non-stylish alike. 

















wilywiley.blogpspot.com

Bitter:Sweet with De-Phazz in between. All-purpose music.

The very first On Point post on THL was a feature on artist Fish McGill.  He's been doing his thing since then, but most recently is putting on a workshop that essentially asks the question.  What lies beneath?

Robot G.U.T.S.
2/1/10 - 2/3/10 6:00PM-10:00PM
Reception 2/4/10 6:00-10:00PM
Massachusetts College of Art & Design
Brant Gallery - 3rd Floor South Hall
621 Huntington Avenue Boston MA

"You are invited to join the installation & creation of a twelve foot Robot drawing on Monday-Thursday evenings in the Brant gallery in South Hall. Come help work on a giant drawing of a Robot's guts and gears on the a portion of the gallery walls through out the week.

Lessons on creating stencils and how to make wheat paste will be demonstrated on Thursday afternoon in the gallery followed by a Robot Birthday Party reception. Come and answer the age old question, "What is inside a Robot anyway?"; The collaborative drawing project will shine light on this subject. Computers, cell phones, weiner dogs, rocket parts, you name it and it is in there." ... No, seriously, "you name it and it is in there."

Are you sitting comfortably?  Now let's begin.  Or more so, close out 2009.  It's seems that everyone is really eager to throw out 2009 with the bath water.  I personally beg to differ.  A common malady of our current web 2.0 generation is ridiculously short memory spans, and if some of us were to actually consider the entirety of '09 we'd find something to cheer about.  So here's my thanks to 09.  The year that connected all of us much closer than we are even yet to realize; giving way to the rise of social media, unreal NYC all night dance parties, the disco ball at Santos party House, pastel colored sunglasses, the most ridiculous Bonnaroo ever, Pretty Lights, Phish coming back, the most amazing concert i've ever been to with The Roots and Antibalas @ the Red Bull Soundclash, rocking out underneath the McGrath Bridge, free Chester French and Wale concert in Harvard Square, Jesse Dee, The Bodega Girls, Show Dem Camp, Blackjoy, Shepard Fairey at the ICA, dance parties at the ICA... i could keep going but it'd take too long.  So if you're of the opinion that this year wasn't that great, you probably weren't trying hard enough. 





As we proceed into the new year, the Highlife crew would like to thank you all for your support.  This enterprise has been a leap of faith from the beginning, and it wouldn't be possible without all of you out there.  The scary thing about leaps of faith is that you don't how or if you'll land.  But you have to jump anyway.  That said, our resolution for 2010 is to make the impossible possible.  Keep watching this space.

Jumpoff On Point 2009


Happy New Year!!!

It seems I'm in a Tar Heel state mood...  Aside from a select few artists, the art of storytelling has mostly been neglected not only by hiphop but by most genres of music in general.  It's one thing to write a song that is layered in meaning and abstract in delivery, but it's even more revealing to tell a story that is real and uncompromising.  It's exactly the latter sort of storytelling that makes this North Carolina native so intriguing.  The first signee to RocNation, he's released two mixtapes since last year, The Come Up and The Warm Up, and they're both sick!  Simply not your average hiphop.  Definitely check out the ode to his home state, "Carolina on my Mind" from The Come Up, but most especially the crazy good "Dreams" from The Warm Up.  That's it for now but keep in mind, if he's only just warming up y'all better be ready for game time.  This is J. Cole.

This New York based Venezuelan band released their first album in 1995; working on the strength of that album for two years until David Byrne (yeah, that David Byrne) discovered and signed them to his Luaka Bop label in 1997.  Since then, they have released four more albums.  The most recent being the Dimitri from Paris produced Super Pop Venezuela (2006).  Their sound glides effortlessly between disco, funk, acid jazz, salsa, and merengue.  Unlike many bands today, they don't seem to take themselves very seriously, which is awesome.  Read the scrolling captions in the video for Si Estuvieras Aqui and you'll understand.  But don't let the comedy fool you, they are a seriously talented band, that make seriously good music, that will seriously make you move.  This is Los Amigos Invisibles.

Si Estuvieras Aqui


Selecciones

Today, as we proceed with the globe trotting, we find ourselves in France.  Courtesy of the multi-national jet-setter better known as Dimitri from Paris.  His sound fuses heavy doses of disco and funk with electro, house, and jazz.   All combining to create a welcome atmosphere for that ever elusive social custom known as the dance party.   He was a DJ for Radio NRJ in 1986, and is credited for introducing the first house show broadcast in France.  To add to his swag, he also produced runway soundtracks for Chanel, YSL, Hermes.  You know, just your everyday tailor shops.  He's released a slew of mixes, compilations, and albums that have received wide critical acclaim.   Sacrebleu (1996),  A Night at the Playboy Mansion (2000), and Cruising Attitude (2003) might be all the nudging you need to finally get that disco ball you've always wanted.  Stay classy.  Voici Dimitri from Paris.

During my brief period of highlife convalescence I had the opportunity to explore new territory musically.  Discover new sounds if you will.  Pretty much an exercise in stretching my sonic proclivities beyond their current shores.  A lot of the music I came across is actually by artists from other countries; including this particular artist.  Dj/Producer Tomoyuki Tanaka, a.k.a. Fantastic Plastic Machine,  hails from Japan.  He played the bass, dj'ed, and recorded music in Japan through the 80's and early 90's.  Eventually releasing his first solo effort titled Fantastic Plastic Machine in 1997.  The sound is highly influenced by bossa nova, house, and 60s lounge music, making it almost seem theatrical at times.  He's released five more albums since his debut, and they're all solid.   Here's a little sample, but I highly recommend getting to know more of the Fantastic Plastic Machine.

I don't know how many truly sunshiny days we'll have left before the sun decides it only wants to do half of its job for the next 5 months, and since i can still hear birds chirping it seemed like a good day to break you off with some Zach Deputy.  He a South Carolina native that makes his way around these parts quite often.  His music is never down or sullen, surprisingly soulful, deeply funky, and just downright fun.  He's a one man band (a la Keller Williams), but you forget that once the music gets going. 

He played at the Wormtown sidestage off Shakedown Street at Bonnaroo this year, and i was literally drawn, like a moth to a flame, to the sound.  Phish had their glowstick war, he had the haystack hoedown.  Straight up ridiculousness! And trust me, that hay was not pristine.  There's a video of the Saturday latenight hoedown that i found.  Everyone in it is getting down, except that it's 6:30 am.  There was another dance party further up Shakedown that morning, and if i hadn't already been in one hoedown earlier in the night/morning you might have seen a dude attached to a gigantic 3ft in diameter pink balloon tied to a 20ft string bouncing along to the music in the back of the crowd.   True story.  Anyhoo, check out more of his music. We'll definitely keep you posted about upcoming shows.  It's an awesome live experience.  He's a pretty chill dude too... Here's to sunshine.  This is Zach Deputy (Sunshine, She Say, Haystack Hoedown)