I bought a Teenage Engineering K.O. II

My old Canon EOS 5D Mark II camera and EF 135mm f2/8 Soft Focus lens combination does not make for a great astrophotography tool, but I did what I could by combining and cleaning up two photos I took outside my house last night of the lunar eclipse in the southeast sky.

I know very little about this device and only recently even heard that it existed; however, what I have learned is that at some point Teenage Engineering and Kayne West collaborated to release a small audio player for the Jesus Is King album but the audio gadget was never released. Apparently thousands of these devices were produced and then, when the release was cancelled, sold to third-party resellers like New Republic from whom I purchased my own copy.

The player doesn’t just offer an expensive and over-engineered method of playing Kanye’s album: each of the four buttons and faders on the device corresponds to certain elements of each song (commonly called “stems”), allowing the listener to customize the sound of each track. Each stem can be played independently or in concert with other stems, greatly changing the way a track sounds. Additionally, some common Teenage Engineering audio effects were included within the device to further alter each track.

What makes this even more interesting to me is the community of fans who spent hours looking through the device to learn how it works who eventually discovered how to add new music to the memory. Now instead of it just being a Kanye West concept, this device has become a small four-track audio player that can be connected and even synchronized with other Teenage Engineering devices. The online tool I used allowed me to take a four-track WAV file I made in Audacity from compiled public domain and Creative Commons audio files I found on FreeSound.org to use as background audio on music I produce on the EP-133 I just bought.

Maybe I’m late to this, but it seems as if maybe America has never been the great country its history books has proclaimed it to be. In fact, we might even be the villain of the story. No wonder so many men in the United States think about Rome regularly: we might be its next iteration.

Moon Channel

Ka-Pow: America, Propaganda, and the Illusion of Soft Power

The United States is the best at soft power. Everyone’s wearing our blue jeans and listening to our rock music. America is the envy of the world: all other nations wish they were us, and we are happy to share our glory and superior way of life with them. That’s why everyone loves us.

Right?

Or is there something more to that notion? What comes first, the soft power influence, or the hard power coercion? Can speaking softly work without the threat (and gratuitous use) of the big stick? Let’s find out together.

Benn Jordan

The Richest Country Is Pretty Mid Now

“Leveragism” is a term I made up, and it describes what the American economy is increasingly heading towards. As you will see, this is really bad news.

PBS Origins

How America’s Foundation was Built on Propaganda

What is the true meaning of the 4th of July and American independence? This special episode of A People’s History of Native America argues that the 4th of July’s roots are further from patriotism and closer to propaganda. Rather than independence, this day represents the centuries-long seizure and ethnic cleansing of Native American land. By looking at the history surrounding the American Revolution, we will uncover that Native Americans were an unexpected threat to the founders’ vision for their future country and plans for Westward expansion.

A People’s History of Native America explores the current social climate in Native America and the factors that have shaped contemporary circumstances.

Laugh and learn with comedian Tai Leclaire and experts as they chronicle the accurate history with humor and brevity.

A People’s History of Native America is proudly brought to you by Mahebe Media.

Tom Nicholas

Capitalism is Dead. This is What Comes Next.

Capitalism is dead. Killed by its own biggest fans. That’s the thesis of economist and author Yanis Varoufakis. In his book Technofeudalism, he argues that markets and profits have been replaced by digital fiefdoms and economic rents.

I met up with Yanis while he was in London promoting his new book Raise Your Soul to ask him about the cloudalists, Trump 2.0, and how to survive in a world which appears to be ever lurching to the right.