Daneformation

2011-10-21T12:07:00.000-07:00

TechnologyGreetings,Wow. It's been a while posting on this blog. Recently, I've been busy promoting my first book on my other blog. It's great to be back. Today I had to send me documents out using what used to be called a "Post Office." Remember those? Me neither. Anyway, before heading out I jumped on the Canada Post website. There I discovered that the online version to Canada's Postal is a

2010-12-30T14:10:00.000-08:00

Crowd controlWith New Year's literally around the corner I've been thinking about crowd control at the various events that will be held -- or rather -- the lack of crowd control. If you're going to a large outdoor event you'll probably be stuck behind barricades meant for vehicles, a club will have you on the wrong side of a velvet rope -- unless you're connected. Lines are drawn and manipulated

2010-12-01T11:38:00.000-08:00

FashionThis week I was informed of an anthology for writing on hospital rights. Unfortunately, I learned of the anthology with days to spare. While piecing together a series of poems and creative non-fiction I decided to look for a different angle, medical fashion. That led me to blueskyscrubs.com. Looking at their cotton scrubs I came to the realization that any environment can become a place

2010-11-25T19:04:00.000-08:00

TechnologySo I was online window shopping at www.become.com and a few things grabbed my attention. First, to keep relevant, Car audio receivers have seen some major changes. Think about it. There’s almost no reason for CD changers anymore. If you own CDs you leave them at home, convert the songs to MP3s and put them on your digital player or your cell phone. You would think that newer car audio

2010-08-12T02:32:00.000-07:00

PersonalI should be honest. I haven't been keeping up with this blog for a while. Why? It's summer. Even my favorite bloggers from Faster Zombies are on vacation and They're friggin Zombies!!!So why now? I've been sick all day, finally started to feel better and couldn't get any sleep. That combined with writing Creative Wring MFA program applications, a minor beef with my editor just before she

2010-06-10T19:45:00.000-07:00

Basketball - Toronto RaptorsSince I last posted I've been online checking out who is rumoured to be connected to the Raptors with the upcoming draft. I'm pretty bummed. They still haven't had a private workout with Jordan Crawford. To back up what I believe his potential is here's a quote from a new article by Draft Express:•Jordan Crawford is an interesting case to analyze, as he is efficient in

2010-05-15T09:58:00.000-07:00

Wow, it's been a while. Probably because I currently have no Internet and can't get my network card to work OR because it took me a month longer then I expected to get my Youtube page running and video edited between computer crashes. Basketball - RaptorsThis time last year I explained that the missing link for the Raptors was an athletic long three that played above the rim. Their answer was to

2010-02-16T15:29:00.000-08:00

Updating my blog while on the road. I'm in between gigs 2 and 3 in Ottawa so far so good. Really enjoyed the second show at a small spot in Ottawa called the Umi cafe. A friend of mine Sergio is one of the owners. Video of the tour by next month's blog - I promise. NEETsDon't know what a NEET is? Neither did I. Then I realized that I was frighteningly close to becoming one. I'm a writer. That

2010-01-13T16:20:00.000-08:00

Wow. It's been a while since I updated this blog. Initially it was completely intentional in an attempt to promote 2019. In November gigs picked up, then, in December I was contacted by a book publisher who may (crossing fingers) publish my first book. Finally Christmas week I was busy dealing with credit card fraud. None of this was an excuse. If you've been waiting, my bad.2019 - post, results

2009-08-27T20:10:00.000-07:00

2019 - Official downloadI've been talking smack about this and the Souljahras mixtape for a few months. You can download the whole thing here or grab the individual tracks:01 Intro02 Bonaparte Complex03 Tear Gas Canister04 Sing the Blues05 Look at This06 Interlude07 A God Appears2019 is a hip-hop project that is loosely based on the plot line of Katsuhiro Otomo's "Akira". Each track features at

2009-06-29T19:53:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the lack of updates. I've had fun with gigs a new chapbook released an autograph session for said book a minor health scare and gigs in T-dot and Ottawa.Lots to talk about.NBA DraftLet's grade the first 12 picks.1. Clippers - Blake Griffin: This was the only obvious pick of the draft. The sad thing is with the incompetent staff that the Clippers have players who get injured there never

2009-05-29T09:30:00.000-07:00

Anime-AkiraThat's right Akira is hitting US shores as a real-action film in 2011 produced by...Leanardo Di Caprio. Originally, this folm was slated to be released this year, but wiser minds intervened at least Japan got to see a new Blu-Ray version this year before this potential debacle was released.On good Akira news the bikes are finally starting to emerge. The race to build and patent these

2009-05-10T21:39:00.000-07:00

NBA - Playoffs- pick from NBA.comI love this photo. Nothing says cougar love for virile athletic young men more than this. Very surprised more media didn't run with it during the first round. Top teams of the first round of the playoffs4. The Atlanta Hawks - A lot of Bermudians find there way down to Atlanta so maybe its no surprise that I'm a long time fan of the team. As a biased observer, I am

2009-04-10T10:30:00.000-07:00

Dane Swan - ProjectsBurning Effigy Press will be releasing "Narcotics//Flora" by Dane Swan tentatively May 31st. The release will be held at Toronto's Savanah Room. More importantly, SoulJahRas (Soulfistikato and yours truly) will begin doing shows this Summer June 4th in Peterborough if you can suggest any stages/venues in Canada let our agent know at souljahras@gmail.com. Here's a sneak peak

2009-03-16T12:21:00.000-07:00

LiteratureIt is clear that Canada's literature industry is greatly flawed. Case in point, Toronto poet and spoken-word performer Truth Is. Perhaps, instead of being leaches suckling on the neck of Canada's various arts funding organizations Canada's publishing houses should make a concerted effort to go outside their boundaries and work with uncultivated talents like Truth. What perhaps is most

2009-02-28T16:44:00.000-08:00

TechnologyAnother week, another technology becomes obsolete. I am the last person to be surprised that plasma monitors are going the way of the HD-DVD and the 8-Track. This technology was destined for failure when it was created. However, it was also a great cash grab that suckered well to do tech geeks out of thousands of dollars. The surprise should be the few years it has taken for uniformity

2009-02-19T21:30:00.000-08:00

Potpourri I haven't had the time to put together a post this week. A combination of working on a tour and writing a sponsor pack for an event I'm involved with.That said I thought that my girlfriend would be amused by this video post from CNN.Embedded video from CNN Video

2009-02-10T19:45:00.000-08:00

EnvironmentAfter viewing a documentary on Sour Gas and its effect on Alberta's rural communities my hope was to write a balanced report on the ERCB's actions. Unfortunately, the evidence and reports to the contrary are overwhelming. Their defenses read more like an organization funded by the oil companies than an organization meant to defend the citizens who are endangered by big oil. Maybe I am

2009-02-03T10:01:00.000-08:00

Voting - Urb magazine's Next 1000 I've been inundated with emails asking how to vote for me on the Urb website. So here you go:1. Go to my Urb 1000 page2. If you are not registered with Urb.com go to the bottom of the page and register3. Return to my artist page4. Press the star rating of your choice (5 stars out of 5!)According to Urb's Joshua Glazer there's a slight delay in the

2009-01-26T16:02:00.000-08:00

PoetryAt last week's inauguration of Barack Obama, Elizabeth Alexander read perhaps the most important poem of modern North American history. Titled Praise Song For the Day Professor Alexander uses an African form poem to reach a large audience on an auspicious day. Like all modern poetry there have been critics. Though many of the critiques are legitimate, it is important to realize a handful of

2009-01-22T15:34:00.000-08:00

Dane Swan (Dane Jah Ras) Artist NewsI recently was notified that I was selected for Urb Magazine's next 1000 list.Please go to my page, listen to the selected song and vote your mind.

2009-01-14T20:31:00.000-08:00

MMAThese last few weeks have been a gold mine of events in the mix martial arts world. However, I would also argue that the last two major events in Japan (Dynamite and Sengoku) have marked an end to Japan's dominance of mix art fights. To truly understand the Japanese love affair with mix martial arts you have to learn the history of Pancrase, the rise of Pride and the comical farce of

2009-01-05T21:16:00.000-08:00

MusicI'm sure that if you've gone to Friction or any other DJ gig I've had you're interested in where I learn about new music. Well the answer is pretty simple blogs.Here's a role call of blogs and sites you can check out:rcrd lbl (Join their mailing list to get new music sent to you daily)The Fader (the blog for the coolest mag I can think of)Palms Out Sounds (how can I put this, if you see

2009-01-02T15:09:00.000-08:00

The RelaunchWow, for those who have in the past been regulars to my blog thanks for your patience. New readers welcome to daneformation. With this relaunch, I decided to keep the name but change the definition of daneformation. Originally, the term daneformation was meant to infer that the information was primarily about myself. The new daneformation will be more about things that interest me,

2008-12-21T23:49:00.000-08:00

Wow, I expected to be back posting at least once a month by Spring. Unfortunately its been over a year since I posted last. I'll be relaunching soon. Expect a blog that highlights new music, my adventures and whatever else catches my senses. In the meantime, check this cool video I came across at Sputnik7.

2007-09-20T20:21:00.000-07:00

I'm changing the format of my Blog. I havent liked the whole diary it had become, even though itwas kind of therapeutic. I've left 4 or 5 of my favorite posts (editing together my DJ series).So what is Daneformation to become? a spoken word /lit blog? Music industry's demise blog?A how to write grants/ technical writing blog? Keep watching in the coming weeks for the answer.

2007-09-20T20:19:00.001-07:00

Series on DJing - posted originally in 2004 Post 1 Damn New Year's was dope, mad fun, and probably has gauranteed me a few gigs for this year. They moved me from the closing DJ to the 12:30 AM DJ slot, because the DJ before was on some lounge ish and the 12:30 dude only had Techno, or whatever. So I was moved up to link the rest of the night's

2005-08-18T06:47:00.000-07:00

I promised this series to my regulars a while ago and instead of dropping sections week by week my lazy butt is just going to paste it all right now...ladies and gents....picking up.How to pick upI’ve been promising this series since I ended my series on How to Be a Singer on this blog a year ago.I have even given little snippets of advice as teasers over the past year. Firstly, this is not a

2005-08-15T09:13:00.000-07:00

Quick run through of the battle...two 3 min routines....All the guys who placed top 3 in a dmc this year faced eachother in 3 rounds of the quarters SaturdayM kutz v teelo - M pretty easyDouble Up v Shub - Shub in a battle that featured 2 of my fav djs...E Flip v Praiz - Praiz easily outclassed, E Flip gets throughSunday early non dmc top3 competitors battled first to reach the quarterssecondly

2004-03-12T16:34:00.000-08:00

So what the hell do I know about singing? Apparently not much which is sadly more than most "singers". I dream of a world where whether people can sing or not, use correct technique or not, hit the right notes or not, they only call themselves singers if they were willing to put in the sacrifice. An Emcee would never call himself an emcee unless they made some sacrifice, ie., they at least

2003-08-10T17:07:00.000-07:00

ha check out these sites when you get bored 1 .....lots laughs 2 ....heres an old 1 my bro used to go to 3...race til the boss catches ya! 4...has some of these links on it...cool visuals and educational.... ..music news next week...peace!