We just got a mini theremin in at the shop and, since I’m a first-timer, I’m having some fun with it. Have you ever used one? You might know it from the Beach Boys’ ‘Good Vibrations,’ but it turns out the sounds on that track don’t come from a theremin at all, but something called an electro-theremin, which creates a similar effect but is easier to play. There’s a great summary of the instrument’s history and cultural significance on The Rising Storm, including some useful links, songs, and recommendations for further study, if you happen to be into that sort of thing.

At any rate, the whole thing on paper is pretty technical and a little boring, so here instead is a Saturday-morning wake-up clip of The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion on Australian morning TV which is almost certainly the most fun one can have with a theremin without actually having one at one’s disposal.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cbwxLGohUM0

Watch him shove the cameraman away from the amp as he goes for the theremin — there’s a good reason for that, which is that the cameraman and his equipment will cause interference with the instrument. As for Mr. Spencer knocking over the drums, busting down the sign, climbing all over the rest of the studio (including what kind of looks like the set of a cooking show) and generally scaring everyone, from audience to camera crew, half to death — there’s a good explanation for that, too, which is that The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion kicks all sorts of ass.

For further proof, here’s an anecdote re: this performance from the crackpot minds behind Wooooo Magazine:

In 1997 the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion came out to Melbourne Australia and played some shows. On a hot friday night at the Prince of Wales Hotel they played a show that froze everyone’s blood. It was religious. Then they went to the bar and drank with the regulars/lurkers (us) until about 3am. The next morning they went to a local TV show and performed live. They could not have had more than 4 hours sleep, if they slept at all.

As of yesterday, the Kitsune Noir Desktop Wallpaper Project is a full year old. From Bobby’s description upon the project’s launch on March 5, 2008:

First and foremost I decided that I wanted this project to be something that was free. Well, free doesn’t leave a whole lot of options that don’t include me going into debt, so I had to be creative. What I decided to do was start a project based off the of the Radiohead desktop wallpapers I created last year in honor of In Rainbows coming out.

But this time around, I decided to write all of my favorite artists and designers, many of which you’ve seen featured on this blog, and see if they’d contribute a wallpaper. As it turns out, my favorite artists and designers happen to be some of the nicest people out there, and so many of them were more than happy to help and be a part of this project…

We’re lucky Bobby knows so many nice folks — although I’m sure it’s not a matter of luck. So, out of appreciation for one of the most consistently inspiring (and free!) services in the blog jungle, here are a few favorites from this past year. Follow the image to pick up the wallpaper through Kitsune Noir (for any manner of desktop sizes, along with iPhones, PSPs, et al.) and click the banners for links to each artist’s site/info.

*bonus, from Bobby’s description: “Right now she’s illustrating three comics for independent publishers and working on projects with Image and DC Comics” (!) And also, “…the anime influence, sort of reminds me of James Jean but doesn’t feel like a ripoff.” My thoughts exactly.

Browse them all here, and stay tuned to Kitsune Noir for a new entry every Wednesday.

…especially in the hands of James Jean, who was recently commissioned by Lance Armstrong to create a mural for Livestrong, Armstrong’s foundation dedicated to cancer treatment and prevention. This is the first in a series of street art installations for Livestrong dubbed ‘Open Roads.’

Jean hit Venice Beach in Los Angeles with a grip of yellow chalk this past Saturday and this was the result:

Photos come from Supertouch, who also report that Jean’s mural “inspired over 600 passers-by to pick up chalk themselves and break loose with their own impromptu ‘street art.”

Bird-Electron Japan released just yesterday urn-looking pottery speakers (via AV Watch Impress). These Japanese pottery objects were made most likely for another purpose, but Bird-Electron went ahead and installed large 50mm drivers in each urn for, probably, some distinctive sound reproduction. Interesting interior decorative idea, these will be selling in Japan for 9,980 Yen (about $110 USD) a pair. Other speakers released by Bird-Electron include these Gourd Speakers. Sure is a different experience listening to your favorite tunes from vegetables.

Seen on Selectism, via the Colette newsletter: Stockholm perfume house Byredo will release a cologne in collaboration with Fantastic Man. The scent will include notes of incense, bergamot, vetiver, lavender and patchouli. Selectism reports that the fragrance will be a Colette exclusive, available March 9th, although a press release from last year had reported plans to release in New York, presumably at Barneys.

So, once again, Monocle seems to be leading a sort of revolution in publishing. Even the big boys, like Newsweek, are hitching up to their cart with their planned re-design. It remains to be seen if the kind of branding that works for Monocle will translate to the publishing giants, but Fantastic Man certainly fits the mold.

Oh, that’s right — the Colette newsletter also includes a sneak peek of the new issue, featuring Bret Easton Ellis on the cover working on what appears to be a Diet Coke. This should be good — if any magazine can steer away from the lazy “coke diet to Diet Coke” profile of the Less than Zero/American Psycho author long enough to mine for something more interesting, it’s Fantastic Man.

That said, here’s a clip from the movie adaptation of Easton Ellis’ Rules of Attraction, just for fun. Parental discretion advised.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gK9-7-20TAg&feature=related 540]

French label Kitsuné has tapped Phoenix to curate the second in a series of mixes they’ve dubbed Tabloid, out on March 23.

Tabloid No. 1, released last year, was a summer-y list of the new-and-hip compiled by Kitsuné-signed dance-punk duo Digitalism. Phoenix’s contribution, by contrast, is more of a true old-school, vinyl-hoarding music-lovers list, mixing new standards with old classics reaching back to the fifties and sixties.

This is a smart move for a label like Kitsuné known for promoting so-called ‘blog-house’ artists, a term for the digital era that speaks to the here-and-gone quality of dancey new singles and artists that rapidly make the Internet rounds and are just as quickly tossed-aside. There’s no question of staying power here. Tabloid by Phoenix looks like a chronic mixtape-maker’s list; a real High Fidelity list.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9uImDLvX0Bk&feature=related

I hadn’t heard of Phoenix until singer Thomas Mars’ girlfriend found a spot for the band’s infectious single ‘Too Young‘ in her movie Lost in Translation. And even though we in the U.S. may not have known about Phoenix until Miss Coppola (or, more recently, Entourage) introduced us, the tracklist shows these boys  were raised on American pop and R&B. Opening with Kiss, closing with Lou Reed and sandwiching D’Angelo in the middle — yeah, they definitely know what they’re doing.

Check here for a few tracks, including their Elvis Costello entry once nominated by Radiohead as a song they would have shot into space on the Voyager Space Probe to sum up human life.