New desktop in the friends section straight from one of my more consistent twistedsun.net friend posters Fabian. Click the image below to head over and check it out.

Some of you may have noticed slowdowns in traffic in the past day or so. This is most likely because of earthquakes in asia that have caused some serious damage to lines connecting them to the rest of the world. My host is in Hong Kong at the moment which would explain the slowdown. Sorry for any delays in accessing the site. Things seem to be moving along a little better than before so thats good to see.

It's frightening to think that this great network that now holds so much of the worlds communications together is so fragile when it comes to natural disasters and the like.

Read more here.

(Sorry for getting this up later than I wanted to guys!)

So the contest is now over and a winner has been drawn from a tiny bowl and I made a video of the big moment. I am looking a little ragged because I just woke up and because I am in a rush to get going because I woke up late. So pardon my rough appearances and somewhat terse message to you all but here it is, the winner is.... (sorry, the audio came out really quiet for some reason or another...)



Congratulations to Michu of Germany I believe and your valiant struggle to become the winner of my simple little contest! I will be in touch to get you your winnings.

But wait, there is more!

Because I am feeling for those of you who did not make it out of that tiny bowl alive I decided yesterday to give everyone who entered a gift for showing support of the site here by entering. You all will get a 5x7 print of your favorite desktop image!

I will get to mailing all of those who entered as soon as I have the chance to talk with you about the little details and whatnot so be on the lookout for an email from me soon.

Thanks to everyone once again and have a great day/night.

Update2: OK I am closing the entries now and I am going to set up the drawing and get it underway. I should have a winner posted in an hour or so, thanks to everyone who entered!

Update: I will hold off the drawing until the last moment of christmas at the far most western point of the world. I will post again when I will be closing the entries. By the way, Happy Christmas, Joyeux Noël, vrolijke Kerstmis, frohe Weihnachten, メリークリスマス, 즐거운 성탄, Feliz Navidad, веселое рождество, 圣诞快乐, Buon Natale, God jul, Mutlu noeller... !



Something like a contest, like a chance to win big* here at twistedsun.net. It's nearly christmas and people all around the world celebrate the holiday in their own way and I have decided to celebrate the holidays by giving something away.

As most of you regulars here know, I love music and I love to share it with others almost as much as I enjoy listening to it myself. So, that said, here is the deal. I have decided to give a free iTunes gift certificate worth 10... no, im feeling generous, make that 20 US dollars. Im not sure how it works if I give one to someone outside of the states but I will make it work somehow. (I wish that bleep.com, warpmart, or boomkat had gift certificates because I would like to give you an option but iTunes is simply the easiest way to go music wise. )

So at any rate, heres what you have to do to get in on the action. I was thinking of some way to make this fair and give everyone a chance so I am going to put the comment system to use. Leave a comment on this post and tell me your favorite desktop here on twistedsun.net. (I'm curious, what can I say). Just leave the name of your favorite as the comment and whatever holiday wishes you care to make to the world. Make sure your name is entered properly as well as your email (the email will not be seen by the public) I will take all of the names, put them in a hat (or something of the sort) and draw the winner. I will even make a video of the drawing and post it. The winner will be announced December 25th so check back here then to see who won!

Its that simple, so get to it!

*note that the term big is relative and the winings may or may not live up to the expectations found when you thing of something that is "big"

PS - I've decided to add another option to the prize, Now you can choose between the gift certificate or a print of your choice from those available on my store page. So if you win the drawing you now have that option as well... Hopefully enough people will enter to make for a nice fair drawing!

A lot of great shareware is out there and this holiday developers are all pooling together and giving 20 percent discounts to lots and lots of software, its a great idea and its amazing how many developers have jumped in on the holiday savings game, so if there was ever an app you had your eye on check here and you just might find it at a discounted price. There is a lot of software here that I didnt even know existed and ive had fun discovering new apps out there. Anyways, check it out!

Heres a link

The new site that I mentioned starting a while back is getting clsoer to becoming a reality. I think I may have settled on a new site name to go with and I am working out exactly what I will be moving around to make it work. So far I'm thinking that the desktop section of twistedsun.net will be moved to this new site which may seem like a bold move and the only other option would be to move everything else and keep the desktops here but I'm ready for a change and hopefully moving them to their own dedicated site will work out in the end.

The idea in moving the section would be to allow myself to hopefully start more of a comunity with the project. The new page will most likely be using wordpress which will allow me to invite other people to make entries as well. In other words I wold like to invite a handfull of other photographers from around the world to participate in the site and add their own work to the site. This will, of course, be kind of tricky because it appears as though most photographers that I truly think would be fitting to be part of the project may be to attched to their own work or to afraid to let it go for this use at a big enough resolution to make them work as desktops. I understand this but also feel as though the resolution I am currently offering these images are not at all big enough to make decent prints from which would halt other uses of them. This and by compressing the desktops into .zip files you can stop people from easily adding the images as backgrounds to their web pages and eating up all of the bandwith around here which was a frustrating problem before I started doing it this way.

Sorry, im getting off topic. Imagine a site where multiple photographers submit desktops and descriptions and stories from around the world rather than just little ol' me. I feel as though it would offer a unique site that is more than a desktop sharing community, more than just a photoblog, more than just a collection of desktops from different artists. A place a little more personal where you will hopefully find little stories or thoughts to go along with the photos posted. Maybe I am too hopeful here but I may as well shoot for the stars right?

Other parts of twistedsun will stay in place, at least for now, like the podcast and this blog and probably the archive of desktops that are currently available when I switch over. So all of this out in the open, what to you guys think? Your input is always appreciated and helpful so lets hear it!

ps- I will reveal the name of the site when I know that its the right one which I am still considering so be patient.

For those of you who may not have noticed, there are new things afoot around here. The desktops page has sprouted a new image and the podcast page has grown another episode with some really great music. Click around and see whats new!

You simply must take a couple of minutes and watch these amazing music videos from Cornelius. I have seen videos of his in the past with his dvd/cd release containing music videos for most all of the songs from his album point and they were all amazing in their own right but he has some new videos that are really just incredible and have to be seen. I wont try to describe them, just watch, you wont be disappointed. I can't wait to get my hands on his new album which has been out in Japan but has yet to make its way anywhere else...

I have no clue why I would post this but here is a photo of a new park in town. It's nice but due to all of the politics surrounding its construction I'm having trouble enjoying it as much as i'd like. It would take a while to explain so I will just leave it at that.

It's that time again kids, fire up those ears and get ready for some new tunes. I have been listening to a few really good albums recently and as with anything involving music here on the site I can't wait to share so here we go...


Tussle - Telescope Mind

So some of you may not be as into electronic music as I am but you know you love music that gets your body moving from time to time and so today I present to you a solution which is a band called Tussle. I have been loving these guys for a few years now it seems and they just released their second full length album and it is sooooo very good. Here you will find a four piece group with bass and live drums leading the way to the dance floor or bedroom floor depending on where you may be at the time. You will find a touch of electronic in there along with some funk and dub influences. All in all you can't go wrong with this music when you need a pick me up or something to toss on during your next late night dance session. Artists website link.


Quinoline Yellow - uchel001 & Colour Index 47005

So now that you acoustic lovers got your groove on with Tussle I have something for the fans of real electronic music. You know, the stuff that is fueling the indie rock, hip hop, and pop music community right now. The kind of music being made by musicians that are pushing music somewhere different and new and although the instruments are electronic the soul of the musician can still be found in every note. Quinoline Yellow is doing a great job of keeping a classic IDM sound within his tracks that you remember hearing years ago when you were just discovering how good the Richard D. James album and/or lp5 really was. Those of you who know what I am referring to will surely know what I mean when you hear Quinoline Yellow. These two ep's are both similar and I am not really all that sure why they were not released as one full album but I have been enjoying listening to them recently. Any of you who have manage to sit through my rambling review here and are even a little interested should head over to bleep using the link below and see what you have been missing out on.




Marsen Jules - Les Fleurs

This is another electronic music album but not one for head nodding. This one will be more well suited for a rainy day. The album is full of beautiful melodic ambientish music that will add a nice somber touch to any grey day. Full of strings, bells, and echoing reverbs it leaves you with that feeling you feel after taking a nice lung filling deep breath of cool winter air. Really nice stuff. Artist site link.


Laura Gibson - If You Come To Greet Me

Taking a break from the electronic albums for a minute here we find ourselves with this wonderful bit of song-writing from a new Hush Records artist named Laura Gibson. This album is full of sweet fragile songs just waiting to be played during a quiet night at home. Artist site link.


Califone -Roots & Crowns

Califone have been friends with my ears from the first moment Heroin King Blues hit my eardrums. One of my favorite albums from last year. I have since picked up copies of their older albums which furthered my love of their music. In this new release they dont disappoint. I think that Roots and Crowns one of their best albums to date. I love the play between found sound and their wonderful style of instrumentation (if that makes any sense to anyone other than me). The album is full of dirty blues songs in my opinion and the production of t he album really adds a warmth and rawness to the songs. I recently had the chance to catch their live show which was a great one that I would relive if given the chance. This is not one to pass by, and at least check out the tracks 'The Orchids' and 'Black Metal Valentine'. Artist site link.


The Blow - Paper Television

What can I say about the blow? I first heard them when they released the album Poor Aim: Love songs and have been a fan since. This time around they have taken the production to a completely electronic level and I think they pulled it off really well. I bought this album on vinyl only and so most of my listening time is at home and it is the most commonly placed piece of vinyl on my turntable. I'm not sure what to say to describe it so I suggest checking out for yourself, just think, female vocals of an indie rock variety over IDMish beats. Artist site link.


Venetian Snares - Hospitality

To top (or bottom) off the list this time around I will end with something a bit more chaotic than the other albums on the list. Venetian Snares has released album after album of crazy in your face break core electronic music and as with any artist that releases albums and eps as frequently as Venetian Snares some are better than others. This album is one of the better ones that I have heard from him as of late and bridges gaps between his last couple releases really well. Venetian Snares is perfect music for blasting in the car stereo as you speed down the interstate. Artist site link.

Note: I feel that from time to time I should mention this. A public service announcement. I think online music/mp3 sellers and sites are all fine and great and I use them sometimes because of the convenience of them but whenever possible I buy music directly from the artist at a show or through their website or their labels website. This gives the bands the biggest cut of it and they deserve it don't they? So if there is music that you really enjoy and listen to please try and buy from the artist when possible.

Note2: Done you just hate the RIAA? Thats all, I had to throw it in there.

I got some business cards finally, they are the mini cards printed by a company that uses photos from your flikr account which is great and very simple. They really are pretty tiny but I really live them. I chose 5 different photos for my 100 card set but you can get up to a full one hundred different cards which is really cool. The printing quality is great and I would highly suggest these to anyone looking for some nice cards that stand out from the normal ones. Here are a couple photos of them.