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 VJ Loops |
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DmT ...:::Digital Media Therapy on to 2012:::... |
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VJ Kyle Lyons- Multimedia Artist
Here you will find up to date information on past, present and future performances. Also to the left you will see a photo gallery with numerous pictures. Click on the gallery to open and view the other pictures.
Name: Kyle Lyons
Born: 19, January 1977 Buffalo, New York
VJ Alias: VJ DMT or D.M.T. aka Digital Media Therapy with psytrance acts. Kyle Lyons for all others.
Current Location: Valencia, Spain
Style of Visuals: Will cater visuals to any event. I Enjoy working with abstract, psychedelic, vectorial and organic content. I have mixed with all style and genres of electronic music including techno, house, break beat, electro, minimal, progressive, trance, drum-n-bass, hip hop, and many more
I use custom and appropriated content from my website www.vjloops.tv. My partner and I also use Adobe Flash programming/animation (custom) to create custom titles and animations done specifically for the event. If you want branding exposure for DJS, Logos, Sponsors or Corporate events then utilize the power of a VJ to capture the attention of the audience with original and unique animations with your branding or logos.
Current Projects:.
www.vjloops.tv
Pascal Kleiman DJ-VJ
Current Hardware:.
VIXID VJ16-4
Edirol V4
Mac Book Pro
Dell XPS
Canon 400D
Sony mini-DV video camera NTSC
Canon mini-DV video camera PAL
Kramer HD Scaler
Kramer VGA Splitter
Optoma 1800 Lumen DLP Projector
Bitstream 3X Midi Controller-I love this thing!!!
All kit and my services are available for hire and travel worldwide. Serious Inquiries Only bookings@vjloops.tv
Current Software:.
Modul8 2.5.4
Motion Dive with controller
XNTH visual software synth
Vegas Video 5
Particle Illusion
Adobe Photoshop
Adobe Flash
Quick Time Pro
I can be contacted via email at vjdmt@yahoo.com
Why Digital Media Therapy? Kyle Lyons has performed in the US, Canada, Spain, Portugal, France, UK, Holland, Italy, Sweden, Israel, Germany and Greece. Visiting and performing in these countries has given him the ability to read the crowd and perform in just about any setting or situation. Whether its a desert party in Israel or a corporate event with MTV Kyle can enhance your event and add that special visual touch. Sight is one of the senses that is often overlooked at events these days. Utilization of a VJ is growing rapidly, why not take advantage of this experience?
DMT BIO now in FRENCH:
DMT alias Digital Media Therapy est un concept visuel base sur le mix video intelligent. Un riche contenu en video ainsi qu un equipement informatique et video de derniere generation placent DMT comme un facteur essentiel pour motiver et hypnotiser la foule au rythme du DJ. Avec des precedentes prestations aux US, Canada, Spain, Portugal, France, Holland, Italy, Sweden Israel, Germany and Greece vous pouvez etre sûrs que DMT vous fera vibrer.
DMT BIO now in SPANISH:
¿Por qué Digital Media Therapy?Con una carrera extensa en el mundo de los video jockeys y habiendo actuado en diferentes lugares de todo el mundo -US, Canada, Spain, Portugal, France, Holland, Italy, Sweden Israel, Germany and Greece. (y con apariciones planeadas para más eventos en el futuro)- DMT es la elección acertada. El equipo de DMT puede mejorar su evento y añadirle un toque especial. La vista es uno de los sentidos que a menudo pasa desapercibido en los eventos. Contar con un VJ está ahora a la orden del día, ¿por qué no sacarle partido a esta experiencia?
DMT BIO now in ITALIAN:
Perche DMT? Perche DMT e una squadra di VJs con esperienza a US, Canada, Spain, Portugal, France, Holland, Italy, Sweden Israel, Germany and Greece e tanti altri posto nell mondo. La squadra di DMT possono aggiungere un elemento speciale in qualche evento, e loro realizzano che la visione e uno degli sensi che e trascurato spesso. Con DMT, tutta la esperienza cambiera!
DMT BIO now in KOREAN:
왜 디지털 미디아 세라피일까? 세계적으로 미국, 캐나다, 스페인, 프랑스 그리고 이탈리아에서 연주가 다시 시작됨과 함께, 앞으로 미래에서 더욱 계획될 이벤트들인 DMT는 올바른 선택이다. DMT팀은 당신의 성과를 올려주고 특별한 손길을 더해줄 수 있다. 요즈음 감각들 중 하나인 시각은 자주 중요하지 않은 것으로 여겨진다. VJ의 이용이 빠르게 증가하는데 왜 이 기회를 이용하지 않는걸까?
DMT BIO now in LINGALA:
Po ya nini therapie ya digitale? Na mosala y mokili lokola poto mobimba, DMT eza choix ya bino. Ngai moko na koki ko lakiso bino denge na koki e monana denga ba salaka ba effect especiale. Mikolo oyo malamu e monana kitoko. Simba mosala nde e monana sembe sembe.
DMT BIO now in CHINESE:
为什么要用数字媒体治疗？数字治疗(DMT) 最佳的选择，在美国、加拿大、西班牙、法国和意大利都有很多例子和计划（全球范围的发展）。DMT组织能够增加你 的业务和更多的信息。
前景 一种在事情发生前经常用到的感觉，VJ的优化正在迅速发展，为什么不体验一下他的优点呢？
DMT BIO now in JAPANESE:
デジタルメディアセラピー？ アメリカをはじめ、カナダ、スペイン、フランス、イタリアで活躍中のDigital Media Therapy(DMT)！ DMTチームはあなたのイベントを更に特別なものに仕上げます！ビジュアルエフェクトはこれからのイベントには欠かせない！大活躍の私達VJ,使ってみなきゃ損でしょ？
DMT BIO now in DUTCH:
Waarom Digital Media Therapy? Het DMT team heeft een internationale bio bestaande uit optredens in de VS, Canada, Portugal, Spanje, Frankrijk, Italië en Nederland en heeft een constante agenda met events gepland in de toekomst. DMT is de goede keuze. Het DMT team kan uw event opwaarderen en is net dat ingrediënt wat het speciaal maakt. Visualisatie is een van de onderdelen die vaak bij events over het hoofd wordt gezien. Tegenwoordig wordt er steeds meer gebruik gemaakt van VJ’s, waarom zou u hier ook niet uw voordeel uit halen??
DMT BIO in HEBREW:
למה תרפיה במדיה ולופים של v.j's? קייל ליונס הופיע בארה"ב, קנדה, ספרד, פורטוגל, צרפת, הולנד, אילטיה וישראל. ביקור והופעה במדינות הללו העניקו לו יכולת לקרוא את הקהל ולהופיע כמעט על רקע כל תפאורה. בין אם מדובר במסיבת מדבר בישראל או באירוע תאגידי עם MTV, צוות DMT/VJ Loops יכול להעצים את האירוע שלך ולהוסיף לו נגיעה מיוחדת. ראיה היא אחד מן החושים אשר פעמים רבות מתעלמים ממנו באירועים בימינו . השימוש ב VJ גדל בקצב מהיר. מדוע לא לקחת חלק בחוויה זו?
DMT BIO in ALBANIAN:
Pse Digital Media Therapy? Kyle Lyons ka performuar ne The USA, Canada, Spain, Portugal, France, Germany, Greece, Holland, Italy, Israel and Sweden. Vizita dhe shfaqejet në keto qytet ka dhën Kyle dhe grupi të tij aftësi për me lexu publikun dhe me shfaq qysh duhet,si gjdo mjet. Qoftëse është shkretir party në Israel apo i përbashkt neja me MTV,The DMT & VJ LOOPS gurpi mundet ta zmadhoj ndenjën dhe ta shton atë në prekje speciale. Shikimi është njëri prej saksive që shpesh shiqohet me venendje ne ndenjat e sotme.Shfrytzimi i VJ është rritja e shpejt,pse nuk marrim dobi prej ksaj experience?
DMT BIO in SWEDISH:
Varför Digital Media Therapy? Kyle Lyons har uppträtt I USA, Kanada, Spanien, Portugal, Frankrike, Holland,, Germany, Greece, Italien, Israel och Sverige. Genom att ha besökt och uppträtt i dessa länder har han skaffat sig förmågan att läsa publiken och kan uppträda i princip på vilket arrangemang och under vilken sättning som helst. Vare det sig är en ökenfest i Israel eller ett företagsevent med MTV kan vi på DMT förbättra ditt event och tillföra det där som förändrar hela festens karaktär. Synen är den del av våra sinnen som ofta glöms bort under events nuförtiden. Användandet av en visual jockey är snabbt växande, varför inte utnyttja denna upplevelse?
DMT BIO in SERBIAN:
Зашто Дигитал Медиа Терапија? Кајл Лајонс је наступао у Америци, Канади, Шпанији, Португалу, Француској, Данској, Италији и Израелу. Посета и наступи у овим земљама су му дали знање и искуство да може да оцени посетиоце и наступа у било каквој околности. Било да је то пустиња у Израелу или наступ ма МТВу, ДМТ тим ће да побољша ваш наступ додајући њихов специјални додир. Чуло вида је веома често заборављено код многих наступа. Користити ВЈ-еја постаје веома популарно. Зашто да и ви не искористите прилику да пробате ово?
DMT BIO in Macedonian:
Зошто Digital Media Therapy? Kyle Lyons има настапувано во Америка, Канада, Шпанија, Португалија, Франција, Холандија, Италија и Израел. Посетувајќи ги и настапувајќи во овие земји му дадоа таква можност да може да ја
"прочита" публиката во било кој амбиент на забави. Било дали е тоа пустинска журка во Израел или заедничка забава на MTV, тимот на DMT можат да го разубават вашиот настан, додавајки му специјален допир. Видикот е еден од чувствата кој се повеке се гледа во денешницата. Употребата на VJ расте многу брзо, зошто да не се земе малку предност на ова доживување ?
DMT BIO in Russian:
Почему Digital Media Therapy? Kyle Lyons выступал в США, Канаде, Испании, Португалии, Франции, Голландии, Италии, Швеции и Израиле. Посещение этих стран и исполнение в них, дало ему возможность изучить аудиторию во всеможных проявлених её настроения и почувствовать её. Будь то мероприятие в пустыне Израиля или корпоративное мероприятие MTV, Kyle может в любом из них найти и показать наиболее выгодные стороны заказчика, привнося в атмосферу свой визуальный контент. Зрительное восприятие является одним из доминирующих человеческих чувств, это зачастую упускается из виду в ходе проводимых мероприятий. Практика использования ви-джея и его мастерства как передовое и необходимое наполнение стоящего мероприятия быстро растет, так почему бы Вам не воспользоваться этим опытом и не быть на шаг впереди?
You are Vistor Number #
I now accept deposits and payments with PayPal. 50% of booking fee is required before performance. sales_dept@vjloops.tv
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| New blog about audio-visuals 2009-06-16 12:11:38 |
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Myself along with Hamageddon and Sean from VJ Vault will be hosting a new blog with more in depth news about all that is AV.
http://www.vjvault.com/blog
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| Got Stroopwafels????? 2009-05-20 22:01:27 |
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The VJ Loops project seems to be eatting up most of my freetime as well as my new joint venture with Sean from VJ Vault. Our latest project VJ Network is our 24/7 streaming online VJ TV channel. Still in it's beta phase. More on that in the near future. Since I do manage to get out and get the one off gig here and there I guess I should give a report. My last performance put me along side DJ Pascal Kleiman in Eindhoven, Holland.
Pascal and I were invited to perform at ElectroCute club night taking place at Club Effenaar.
This would be my first time in Eindhoven which was about an 1 hour and 30 minutes from the airport. Suprisingly the weather was great and upon arriving to Amsterdam International Airport (Schipol) you get the surge of excitment that can only come from being inside this massive airport. After all it's an international hub and your gateway to all the big cities around the world. I shudder at the thought of spending time in most airports and I have been to quite a few in my travels. Schipol is like a city inside a city. The shopping, restaurants and deco make for an interesting few hours spent during a typical layover.
Pascal and I were greeted by our promoter Monte who worked with Mirwais. The two were responsible for hosting ElectroCute night and also the promoters of Latin Brutality, a succesful Latin and Electro music collective in Eindhoven.. Monte drove us to Eindhoven to Club Effenaar so we could do our sound and visual check.
photo credit: Rob Hart
photo credit: Bart van Overbeeke
Upon arriving at the club we were greeted with friendly and professional staff. I can't stress enough how Holland has always exceeded my expectations with hospitality, professionalism and talented people. After an hour and an error free setup we headed to the restuarant located inside the club. I will admit I didn't expect the quality to be that good but I was too quick to judge. The food was excellent! If your in town do yourself a favor and stop by for a drink or make a dinner reservation.restaurant@effenaar.nl or call: 040-239 36 57
photo credit: Bart van Overbeeke
Earlier in the week I had contacted a few local visual artists via VJ Forums to see if they wanted to meet up for a drink or stop by the club. It's a good way put faces to the online names. One of my VJ Loops artists named Ivo Slaats who performs under the name STIVO for STV Visuals said he would come meet me at the club and hang out. MJ from the VJ Forums and a visual mapping guru said he would be working as an LJ (lighting technician) on the second stage at Effenaar. Small world eh!
Since high baggage fees were commonplace I kindly asked Ivo if he wouldn't mind bringing his V4. What can I say more Dutch hospitality! Stivo drove to Eindhoven with his kit and met up with Pascal and I in the restaurant for a quick chat before he set up his gear. I decided to share the stage with Stivo inviting him to VJ along side me for the night. Afterall he was bringing a pivotal piece of kit crucial to the VJ. Thanks Stivo!!!
Here are a few pics from the night.
VJ Stivo working the V4 Video Mixer and the MAudio Triggerfinger. A great companion for his Modul8 software. The 16 pads allow you to select your loops on the fly with a quick tap.
VJ Kyle Lyons and STIVO on the mini cam while the DJ Diablo jumps like a madman around the stage.
DJ Don Diablo (Holland) local dj superstar
Picture left to right: VJ Kyle Lyons, VJ Stivo, DJ Larry Tee (USA)
Above: DJ Larry Tee (USA)
Pictured left to right: Our MC, VJ Stivo & DJ Pascal Kleiman in front of Stivo's cutom test pattern.
DJ Pascal Kleiman with Larry Tee visuals in the background.
Our MC for the evening. Didn't catch his name.
DJ Larry Tee spinssssssss
VJ STIVO ZOOOOM
After a long night and lots of Heinikens Pascal and I headed back to our hotel. Stivo invited us out to a boat party on Sunday afternoon. Pascal and I not having been to any boat parties ever were more than eager to spend a Sunday afternoon crusing the canals on a party boat listening to some grooves.
On the line-up was one of Stivos close friends Jeroen Effing.
Our host and one of the DJs Omeo with Pascal Kleiman
DJ Omeo inside his make shift DJ booth that he constructed in the the ships lifeboat.
Typical scene along the canal. We headed towards belgium but from what I was told turned around after seeing local police patrols. Better to be safe than sorry. :)
A not so typical scene along the canal, none the less it was interesting to look at.
A nice set of red locks which brought back memories of my hometown Lockport, New York which was famous for it's 3 sets of locks along the Erie Canal.
I have no idea!
DJ Jeroen Effing on the decks.
DJ Pascal Kleiman
Dutch people sure know how to party! This boat was pushing a 4 color laser!
So as the boat ride ended so did our adventure in Holland. We slept and prepared our bags to head to Schipol for some last minute duty free shopping. Pascal and I managed to spend an obscene amount of money on trinkets and food. Dutch cheese by far one of the best I have ever tasted and delicious caramel waffles known as Stroopwafels that we buy in bulk everytime we visit. One has to stock up as you never know when your next visit may be.
Leave it to the Dutch to make waffles the perfect size to fit over a cup of coffee, tea or hot chocoloate. Can't say I've seen this done with any other deserts. Heating up your Stroopwafels on your steamy beverage before makes them so much better! mmmmmmm
After stocking up on delcious food items we headed to another cool shop. The Gadgets shop!
By far one of my favorite shops. It's chock full of things you know you probably don't need but want. Maybe I'm just suffering from some gadget OCD. I ended up buying a green laser pointer and a cat shaped pencil sharpener for my girlfriend. The green laser is by far my favorite because not only is green my favorite color but it gives off a kaleidoscopic light show. Retinas watch out!
The "Cat" pencil sharpner pictured below makes a wonderful screeching meow when a pencil is inserted into its anal cavity. Notice the included kitty liter shavings tray. Ahh the joys of sharpening a pencil. The perfect gift for a girlfriend who loves cats. Don't you agree?
So back in Valencia and waiting for yet another chapter of my forthcoming autobiography about my adventures and experiences as a multimedia performance artist! I will use these random blog entries as an audio visual outline that will hopefully be printed someday. I hope people enjoy reading this as much as I enjoy writing/experiencing them.
Kyle......
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| New VJ Loops page online-updated and improved!!! 2009-02-25 15:29:12 |
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VJ Loops is delighted to announce the new launch of our website. A year in the making with a huge visual overhaul and a slick new preview system will make your visit an enjoyable experience. Don't take my word for it check it out!
VJ LOOPS
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| My new guitar! 2009-01-17 10:07:28 |
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Another stroll through the streets of Valencia and I stumbled upon this perfectly working Chinese made "Fun Years" guitar by the trash. Who in thier right mind would want to discard this wonderful sounding toy! Around the corner from my house I decided to use the economic crisis as an excuse to jam out with the local accordian player.
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| Interview in www.vj.tv 2008-12-08 04:54:56 |
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Check out my interview on VJ TV
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| DJ Magazine's "Top 20 VJ" results are in!!! 2008-11-12 09:46:41 |
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Hi it brings me great pleasure to announce the results for this years "Top 20 VJ" awards by DJ Magazine. For the last few years I have been campaigning for a coveted spot in DJ Magazine as one of the worlds best VJ's.
This year I was awarded the #13 spot among the top 20. I alone can't take credit and must publically thank all of the voters who helped to push me into the ranks. THANK YOU!!!
You can view the entire list with scanned images here at my Flickr page
http://www.flickr.com/photos/vjdmt/sets/72157608507782085/
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| Green Hippos, VJ's and Drunken Nights in London 2008-10-25 05:45:12 |
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Back in May a company by the name of Green Hippo located in London posted a job for a sales position within their company.
The job required travel to foreign territories, setting up displays at conventions, trade shows and demos. Having previous experience in shows and sales are a primary requirement. So I figured with my past sales record with VJ Loops and visual artist performance background I thought I would give it a shot. I sent in my cover letter and resume and in July I received an email from James Heron one of the original founders and top salesmen of Green Hippo. He gave me his number and said to give him a call. I called James shortly after and we spoke for a good amount time on the phone which ended with James extending an invite to interview at their London head quarters. To top it off, James said they would fly me in and put me up at a hotel nearby. As you can imagine feelings of happiness surged through my body. It was a great feeling to know that a company of this caliber would consider me for an interview let alone fly me in and put me up for a night. I was eager and nervous at the same time. I haven't interviewed for a job in years as I have been self employed with VJ Loops and touring as a visual artist for the last 9 years. So the dates were set and I was packing my bags for London.
Arriving in London I had to fend for myself. I had been in London only once before but not nearly long enough to know my way around the city. I extended my stay a few extra days so I would be in London from August 5th until August 11th. I wanted to take advantage of the free trip. As usual on any journey I embark on I packed my VJ rig just in case I got lucky and managed to find a gig or two. I tried to touch base with several VJ artists from the London VJ Forums and hoped to crash on a few couches. I didn't have much money as *Ryan Unfair charged me for the extra weight I was carrying on the flight.
*<strong>Note to reader</strong>: should read Ryan Air- A low cost airline company that charges you for any weight over 15 kilos. I was a good customer that day. On my flight over I gave them €165 in what they call excess baggage fees.
<Rant>Ryan Air is a great airline if you travel with the clothes on your back and nothing else as there are fees for carrying bags and extra fees for anything over the 15kg weight allowance. So the advertised low airfares are quickly inflated with hidden costs. Caveat Emptor! </Rant>
So while in London my first "Couch Surfing" host would be a very talented VJ by the name of MENO. We had met through our mutual friend Dubassy. After a talk on the phone, Meno and I decided to meet at a local VJ meet up going on that night at T-Bar. The VJ London meet-up was hosted by Dr. Mo a fellow VJ that I also admire and respect for his fantastic stop motion video work. At this particular meeting I met some local London VJ's from VJ Forums. You communicate with these people online and read their posts in the forums and finally putting faces to the online personas was really nice. It takes away the coldness and misconceptions that the internet portrays. Also there were a few new characters. The names that stuck out the most for me were Zambari, Dr. Mo, Mowgli, Bopa, Prick Image, Deep Visual, Meno and Pixel Pusher. Spending a few minutes with each of them you quickly realize what cool, unique and distinct artistic personalities each person has. Each with knowledge to share! Pixel Pusher another American living in Europe invited me to an open slot at Immersion. It’s another monthly visual meet up with performances along side live audio experimental noise glitch musicians. It would be taking place at the Flea Pit a few days later. It seems that London is indeed the visual hotspot in Europe.
So Meno and I made our way around and did some introductions. Dr. Mo insisted that I set up my gear and I would have to say the biggest icebreaker for visual artists is VJ toys. I brought my Vixid unit that I had just recently acquired from Gary of Analog Recycling.
This unit is the latest video mixer packed with powerful features that will give any VJ goose bumps. Gary from Deep Visual famous for his excellent YouTube video tutorials on just about everything from video mapping to hardware and things in-between was kind enough to give us a few tips. He gave us a few video feedback tricks with the Vixid and a mini DV camera. Dr. Mo was floating about documenting the evening with his digital photo/video camera which he edited and uploaded to Vimeo. This pretty much sums up the night. Click link to visit Vimeo to view video.
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London VJ Meeting - 6th of August 2008 from VJ Dr. Mo on Vimeo.
After a night of drinks, visuals and good conversations Meno and I made our way back to his cyber techno visual artist warehouse loft. This place was so cool. The top floor had a flat that was shared by several roommates from different walks of life. A few artists, an IT tech, a writer and a gourmet chef shared the creative living space. Below the flat was a huge warehouse that was used by several artists for various creative endeavors. It was a truly unique space and I was envious.
The following day I had my interview with Green Hippo. I put on my best (only) suit and headed through the overcrowded and overheated subway to Wood Green which was north of London. All the while making sure to MIND THE GAP!
Upon arrival to the Green Hippo headquarters I was promptly greeted by James and introduced to the team. After a few handshakes and hellos James, a few key staff and I headed to the conference room for the interview. I admit I was nervous and I wasn’t sure how the following hour would turn out. To my relief it was really relaxed but professional. I was able to answer their questions and convey my thoughts in a professional manner. Keep in mind I haven’t been to an interview in years. After some questions I did realize some of my weaknesses and I made sure to make mental notes for future interviews. Personally I think my weak points in this case were my inexperience with sales. Although I have years of experience running VJ Loops and online e-commerce I felt that maybe Green Hippo was looking for a more professional sales background. James did mention that my resume was unique in the fact that I work with digital content and distribution as well as perform as a visual artist. All of these factors did entice them to fly me in which was good.
As the evening came near and the work day ending James and a few of the staff invited me out for drinks at the local pub. After a few rounds of drinks and some delectable snacks, Nobbys Nuts being my favorite we talked and joked for a few hours.
It was nice as the Hippos paid for everything. A relief after suffering baggage fees from Ryan Air. The alcohol was taking its effect and you could see the social barriers being broken down and everyone seemed more relaxed and gregarious. After a few rounds James invited the staff and I to an Indian cuisine restaurant. That day I tasted my first Indian beer called Cobra.
Things were going well and I felt really welcomed. So far London seemed like an ideal place to live and work.
After dinner and feeling quite inebriated James and I headed to the hotel where I would be staying. He also had booked a room for himself as he lived a few hours north of the Hippo headquarters. After checking in James and I parked ourselves at the bar and proceeded to chat over a few more drinks. We talked about the future of visuals, Green Hippo and VJ Loops. At this moment I planted the idea of a future collaboration between Green Hippo and VJ Loops. This was my PLAN B and ulterior motive if the job didn’t pan out. It made perfect sense. Green Hippo makes media servers which without content are just machines. VJ Loops creates and distributes content which will fit perfect in media servers. So James agreed that it could be beneficial for a future collaboration between our companies. After a long chat we decided to head to bed as we would be getting up early to head back to the Hippo HQ.
As morning hit so did the alcohol from the night before. Slightly hung over I met James in the lobby of the hotel we checked out and we made our way to the Green Hippo HQ. Today I would get my hands on demo of the Hippotizer.
Arriving at the office it seemed everyone was well adjusted to the night out before routine and everyone was busy keeping the Green Hippo gears oiled and working. For the rest of the workday I played with the Hippotizer and it was the first time I have ever had any experience working with a machine this powerful. It’s basically a super computer with superior graphics output and responds faster than any piece of visual hardware I have used. It was like using VJ software on steroids. I could easily mix and add effects to high quality video in real time. Also while hanging out in the Hippo HQ I was privy to see the other job applicants coming in for interviews. It looks like there was a lot of competition for the position.
After spending the day playing with the Hippotizer I decided to head out and make my way to the next destination, the Flea Pit in downtown London for the next VJ gig.
Tonight I would be playing a guest slot at Immersion hosted by Pixel Pusher. This is a bi-monthly VJ meet up featuring performances with some live audio experimental noise glitch music. I would be taking stage with Jamka and put my self created visuals to the test. I didn’t know what to expect and wasn’t sure if my style would fit the music but surprisingly it went really well and I received excellent feedback from several people. My organic and abstract stop motion style seemed to fit perfectly with Jamka’s music. You can see a few screenshots below.
Dr. Mo also made his visual cameo that evening and he gave me positive feedback on my visuals. He said “Kyle your stuff is really good!” I replied “Really, I don’t think it’s that good.” To which he replied “You’re just being modest!” This really made my day. To receive nice comments from the people who you view as your peers is definitely good for self esteem. I also managed to get a spot on Dr. Mo’s sofa that evening. So far I haven’t had to pay for a hotel or hostel while in London. Bonus!!!
In the morning Dr. Mo had already left for work by the time I woke up. So I packed my suitcase and prepared for the next step in my London adventure. I touched base with Meno again and he kindly offered a space on his couch for the remainder of my stay in London. I couldn’t be happier. Everyone I met so far has been extremely kind and generous. So I would head to Meno’s cyber techno visual artist warehouse loft later in the evening. With some time to kill I called Gary (Deep Visual) to see if he fancied meeting up that day. After a few tube rides I ended up meeting Gary by some theater in this nice rich district. We headed to a local restaurant and talked about all things visual. I realized we had a few things in common besides visuals. Our fondness of Asian culture was one of them. I can’t remember how it came about but Gary mentioned he had an authentic katana at his house. My fascination with Samurais and Ninjas go back as far as I can remember. I have always wanted a katana. Without evening thinking I blurted out “NO WAY, Can I see it?” To my surprise Gary said yes and invited me back to his house. That day I held a katana in my hands. I had to suppress the overwhelming joy but you could see a big grimace on my face. Gary and I chatted some more and I mentioned my quest for knowledge in motion graphics. I spoke to him about my attempts to learn Adobe After Effects and he offered a few tips. So we sat down and for the next hour he gave me a crash course on some key points in After Effects. Again I can’t stress enough at the warm welcome I received while in London. It was nice to be in a country where people speak your language and extend hospitality beyond anything I could imagine.
After the free class from Gary he mentioned that there was a nice park near his home with a beautifully decorated Asian pagoda with Buddha statues. Since I was lugging around my camera and tripod I thought this would be a great opportunity for a photo shoot. We walked to the park and my eyes fell upon a massive pagoda that was painted with golden Buddhas.
It was beautiful! Thankful for the educational and inspirational afternoon I said goodbye to Gary and he left to run some errands. I spent the next few hours exploring the park and shooting photos. The bees were hard at work harvesting nectar.
The next few days were spent at Meno’s cyber techno visual artist warehouse loft. Meno had a vision mixer job at Field Day in Victoria Park on the August 9th which was one of many festivals going on in London that month.
I managed to get a production pass while I was there and spent my time shooting photos of the festival and having fun with Meno in the visual trailer.
I also hung out in the electronic music tent and snapped some shots during the sets of James Holden & Richie Hawtin aka Plastikman.
I remember idolizing Hawtin’s music back in 1995 and filling my record bin with all of his vinyl productions. Maybe it’s me and my old age but his style doesn’t satisfy my musical tastes anymore. Richie Hawtin’s set was also accompanied by some visual artist and to be honest I found it very boring, simple and visually unfulfilling. I suppose minimal music requires minimal art. I don’t know I just imagined a headline live PA artist like Richie Hawtin would have a more exciting visual show to enhance his music and persona. I am glad that I didn’t pay to see his set.
For my last night in London it only seemed appropriate that I had head to the pubs for yet another drinking adventure with my English cohorts. On this night Meno and some of his flat mates from the cyber techno visual artist warehouse loft were heading to a very nice pub to meet a few other friends who were celebrating a birthday. I had my camera and captured a few choice moments.
The girl below celebrated her birthday and one of her new toys, rubber ducky with a blue led light was soon making neat pictures with my camera.
The owner of the bar VAL, pictured below was kind enough to chat me up a bit and give me some history on the Palm Tree Pub.
After a long night of drinking and laughs we headed home. We dropped off some of our drinking companions and headed back for the Meno’s cyber techno visual artist warehouse loft. London was quiet that morning and Meno was louder.
After 6 long exciting fun filled days in the heart of London my adventure came to an end. New friends were made which were quickly converted to mates, as the saying goes. Valuable industry and visual contacts were plentiful. New knowledge was shared and insights into the London lifestyle were experienced first hand. It’s most definitely a lively city with a creative and outgoing crowd who know how to have fun and take the piss. As for the job at Green Hippo I was informed that it went to a more qualified candidate with Russian language skills, as this was a territory that the Hippos were interested in expanding in. Thanks to all who made my adventure possible!
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| New artist signs to VJ Loops and contest deadline extended. 2008-10-12 11:00:51 |
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Hi just a quick update. Last week I arrived back in Valencia, Spain after a 2 week long vacation in Reykjavik, Iceland. Besides the preconceived notions of freezing weather I was a bit surprised. Coming from Buffalo, New York where blizzards are like rain and the temperature dropping below 0 is a good day I figured I would finally meet my match in Iceland. Honestly I can say that in late September and early October the weather was extremely mild. About half sun and some rain and finally on the last day some snow with a front row seat to Icelands finest northern lights show. Truely amazing and moving to see pink, white and green gas dance across the sky on a clear night.... awww that came out so poetic. Anyways not to get too far off topic as I do intend to take this somewhere. During my stay in Iceland I stayed with my long time friend Dan. I convinced him to finish off a stock footage pack for VJ Loops of Iceland and it's natural wonders.
So without further ado VJ Loops is happy to welcome and announce the arrival of "Forces of Nature by Náttúra" only available at http://www.vjloops.tv
http://www.vjloops.tv/Product_view_113.html
More details about Iceland as soon as I catch up on all the missed work.
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| Top 20 VJ Awards 2008 2008-09-10 05:12:17 |
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Hi everyone. VJ Loops and myself are campaigning for this years "Top 20 VJ Awards" by DJ Magazine.
Please take a moment to vote.
http://www.vjloops.tv/vote
Your vote counts!!!
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