SAVE TANGO - Brave Approach

Throughout the 1990s and early 2000s Tango changed advertising forever with their quirky TV ads. In the current

climate where less and less people are drinking carbonated soft drinks, opting for smoothies, water and more healthier

beverages... how should a brand answer the problem? Well most brands have either brought out a health drink with fresh fruit,

or changed their positioning with new logos and approach. Tango on the other hand know of their huge fan base in the

UK, how they touched people with the ads that became cult classics, so they have gone for an obvious but brave response, 

all in Tango stylee. If you have heritage, use it! Check out the campaign... 

See more classics on YouTube, here is a couple of of the more later gems...

DECO - Friday 19th / Premier... TIM SWEENEY + 24:hours

Locomotives Group return to form with their premier new night, DECO. On the night 24:hours Sound-System will

be joined by Tim Sweeney (DFA / Beats In Space) NYC. + there is Michael Mayer, head honcho @ Kompakt Records (DE)...

so all types of beats and electronic is catered for ;-) Holidays start Friday. Miss it miss out...

SOLO ALBUM - Karin Dreijer Andersson

Karin Dreijer Andersson of cult Swedish electronic group The Knife is set to release a solo album in March 09.

Recording under the name Fever Ray, the first track was released digitally on Monday, titled 'If I Had A Heart'

Looking forward to hearing this, will it be as good as The Knife? Probably not, but that's not the point is it.

There is also bound to be plenty of good remixes on the single releases as well, Van Rivers & The Subliminal Kid

have co-produced half the record, but I'm looking forward to see who else will add their skills to the project.

Full story...

MAKE SPENDING FUN

In these dark times brands need to focus on concepts like fun and happiness, or relate spending to fun times in

someway. It will remind people of the good times :-) building a stronger connection with the consumer...

You know an ad is impactful and has touched people somehow when it has a spoof...

BARNEY BUBBLES - The Life And Work Of...

Just in time for xmas comes this book about the very underground, or under-hyped graphic artist Barney Bubbles,

who sadly committed suicide back in 1983. A much admired designer by most of the UKs current industry legends

and design heros. I became aware of his name 3 or 4 years back and was intrigued I hadn't heard of him... which

fuelled me to find out more. He mainly worked within the music industry, and in the late 70s started to work entirely

anonymously, or under many layers of pseudonyms. Which probably explains why little is known about him. 

I must put this on the xmas list for Santa, or pick it up from Magma...

VBS - Scandinavia

Since launching the magazine, all those years ago now, Vice have always been ahead of the game in one form

or another. Creating visual styles or tone of voice and introducing trends to a generation. When VBS was first

launched some years back, there wasn't much around like it, maybe Heavy.com... which has really gone in some

other direction now. A couple of weeks back I was invited to a cosy little breakfast seminar focusing on their plans

for a Scandinavian version, which seems a good idea with fresh concepts to focus on.

What is great about VBS is the content, raw documentaries about unknown scenes or news and current affair topics

which delve deeper or give a more honest reporting style, appealing more to the youth of today. The only thing that

is missing is an RSS feed but there is a newsletter, looking forward to the new content. Check it...

WHOPPER VIRGINS - Leave Them Alone I Say

Skateboard legend, turned documentary maker - Stacy Peralta makes this piece for Burger King. Oh dear :-(

After making such amazing documentaries such as Dogtown and Z-Boys, Riding Giants and his latest... 

Made in America, I find it hard to understand him using his skills like this, cha-ching I guess. But then again it

is a bit interesting watching people eat a burger for the first time. It reminds me of an odd situation I had in China,

where a youth in his early 20s asked if he could watch me eat with a knife and fork, as he said he had never seen

it done before. Really weird to have someone watching you eat that closely I can tell you.

INNOVATIVE BRANDS - Will Save The Day

The economic circumstances of the Great Depression in the 1930s were bleak, but they produced a number of 

surprising innovations, among them Disney’s now-ubiquitous rodent - Mickey Mouse. Now is the time for clients 

to absorb and act on the new fun ideas being created by agencies, bringing people together in happy experiences 

is the answer as consumers are desperate to be uplifted, diverted and released from their anxiety for the future.

Jonathan Sands identifies three ‘home truths’ that will see consultancies through the recession:
1 - cash management is vital, and can make up for lack of profits while minimising redundancies.
2 - loyalty and empathy for existing clients will be more appreciated now than ever, as companies struggle across the board.

3 - innovation will be more important in gaining market share than throwing large amounts of money at problems.

Full story here...

(I met Mickey Mouse in 1984, didn't like him much, bit square and boring. You just wanna kick him and run off ;-)

24:HRS - 3rd Anniversary - Kim Ann Foxman

This weekend 24:hours celebrate their 3rd anniversary in Stockholm.

On Saturday with special guest via Hawaii/NYC - Kim Ann Foxman of Hercules & Love Affair.

And on Friday we have the kick-off with our special guest from the UK - Mo Morris (A Mountain Of One)

Lovely ;-)

PETER SAVILLE - Arkitip

Arkitip go from strength to strength with their guest collaborations, this time with design legend Peter Saville...

HONDA - Pushing Fun Ideas

Honda have been leading the brands about ideas way of communication for sometime now. I like the fact that

they're continuing to push the ideas in honest ways, their last few ads have been more like a behind the scenes, or

created in a making of execution and style. It's this honesty and emphasis on experimenting with fun ideas, attaching

themselves to concepts which make them stand out. In this one they are also creating something fun for the public 

to enjoy and experience. More content on the YouTube page, Honda Musical Road...

HEINZ - Talk To The Plant

More brands about ideas, this time for Heinz ketchup...

A really nice simple idea and execution here. But the voices could be better, these feel a bit OS9. 

JEN STARK - Paper Sculptures

Check out the lovely colour paper sculptures of Jen Stark, making waves at the moment...

keep an eye out, I'm sure her work will start popping up in other creative fields soon.

XMAS - I Want

This is a very handy product for the urban Boy Scouts. Not only can you listen to music on your way to work...

but the extra feature means other commuters will soon get out of your way and let you on the train / bus first if you show

them your nice shinny MP3 player. Unfortunately it's a prototype :-( but there is plenty of info online if you search.

POWER - adidas Football Ad

Great new ad/viral for adidas football. Raw, honest and simple!

OOH LA LA - Paris Vogue 2009 Calendar

Nice stocking filler for your Dad this Xmas. Kinda racy...

Shot by the great Terry Richardson.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY - Paul Rand

Paul Rand - August 15, 1914 – November 26, 1996. Arguably America's greatest graphic designer of the 20th century.

He revolutionized the advertising world with his simple communicative designs, and was among the first to embrace

the international style of design that emerged in Europe during the 50s and 60s. His corporate identity work is most

recognizable, and he is largely credited with convincing businesses of the importance of design.

GONZO - The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson

Last night I caught this great documentary. Best known for Fear and Loathing, but there is so much more to him and

his writing, the likes of which is really lacking these days. It was also great to see the illustrations of Ralph Steadman

blown up and in detail on the big screen. This film is a must see, full of funny little stories and insight into a true rebel.

DAMIEN HIRST - & Levi's

Nice collaboration! Via Cali...

NEWS BY IMAGES - The BIG Picture

I've been a regular subscriber, viewer of Boston.com for some time now. These days I find it hard to keep up with

world news and current affairs outside my industry, I'm probably not missing much though. What's good about

this site is mainly the size and quality of the documentary photography from world events and happenings. By adding

this function and service they have increased their repeat traffic dramatically, big is better! The space images are my favourites :-)

XMAS 2008 - John Lewis, With Love From Me To You

Xmas is coming, which means an onslaught of cliché ads trying to tap into your emotions. With the current trend and

direction of advertising rightly getting more emotional, humanistic and from the heart, the level of ads should be high. 

But I guess there will be a lot of the same ideas, but when they're created they will feel original and fresh.

Above is the new 2008 xmas TV spot for John Lewis... simple, engaging, humanistic & heartfelt... using a well known

classic love song to help the final push on a more reminiscent and subconscious level. Nice work Lowe London ;-)

Check out last years campaign below, which is probably a little more original because of it's execution...

A WILD COMBINATION - Arthur Russell

On Friday after work I caught a great little documentary about Arthur Russell, the musical innovator who sadly died in 92.

He crossed many musical boundaries, fusing styles by working on disco, folk, dance and more experimental projects.

There was also a face to face with the director after the film, which gave more insight into the making and Arthur himself.

It's just been released on DVD, so if you're a fan of music this is a must see!

STHLM FILM FESTIVAL - 20th Nov

Last night saw the opening for the 2008 Stockholm Film Festival. I love film festivals as it's rare that I actually go to

the cinema these days, far too easy to download the latest and pre-releases. But you tend to miss the whole experience

of the big screen, it's where the films were designed to be seen.

Last night I caught the first film of the festival, The Wrester by Darren Aronofsky which was a nice flick which had a

mixture of laughs and sadness. Mickey Rourke giving a stellar performance! Great opening credits as well!

I also opted for the Surprise Film, where you don't know what you're going to see until you film starts. I love this idea...

but this film was a huge disappointment to me, so enough about that. I'll keep the reviews coming, only the good stuff!

PHOTOGRAPHER - Carlos Serrao

Check out the lovely photography of Carlos Serrao. Simple, minimal with vivid colours...

all combine to a well polished effect. He has mostly been working within the world of sport.

For the best experience, go fullscreen and zoomed in, a really nice simple and effective site...

which let's the content do the talking, no extras here as focus is on the work.

NTI - Use Your Talent In The Right Way

This week and next, NTI (a high school in 10 cities throughout Sweden) launch and rollout their campaign.

The concept and production was all produced on a very short timeline with the help of photographer 

Alexander Crispin and Agent Bauer on production duties.

As well as appealing to kids aged 15, a big part of the brief was to appeal to their parents and also create awareness

to other schools and teachers. We had more edgy concepts and looks, but chose to go with a more traditional channel and

photography style, to appeal to such a vast and mixed target audience.

There is also a digital platform to the concept which will be implemented later in the year on a much larger scale ;-)

Click the images for more detail, note nothing has been added during retouch, what you see is what you get...

apart from the car camo. Click here to see images from the making of and behind the scenes...

PROJECT TRIANGLE - Classic Model

This is a classic, always good to keep in mind. Project Triangle...

Also check out some insight from Russell Davies on this topic...

SCRAMBLING EGGS - Random Blog

Now and again I come across a random blog I love because of the insight it portrays outside of my profession,

Scrambling Eggs is one of these blogs. I especially like this post about Cabman's shelters in London, which I've

taken coffee from before but didn't know the history behind, or even the amount of them. First I thought it was just 

a very old public toilet of some type, which I didn't dare venture into :-)

UVA - Xmas Lights

UVA create the Christmas lights for Covert Garden 2008. The light players still had to pitch but won it of course.

 

Individually controllable pixels encased within the tubes will display an ever-changing display of swirling snow, 

gently falling in organic real-world patterns, and providing possibly the only white Christmas London will see this 

year. Full visitor interactivity will come through handy touch screen panels so at certain times of the day, visitors 

can create their very own snow storms. 

Nice to see The Greater London Council running with UVA and putting a twist on tradition with a mix of technology and art. 

Must catch a look at the final thing next month. Full story...

MINORITY REPORT - Becomes Reality

Science fiction technology has always written the future (especially from TV/film) and now here comes a piece of

tech we've all been waiting for. Working with web and digital, the Minority Report computer and interface would pop 

up in conversation from time to time as reference. I'm ooking forward to using computers like this, but I guess we're

all have to workout a bit more on those arm muscles down the gym. More G-Speak information...

THIS IS SWEDEN - The Golden Years

Sweden – Heaven and Hell (1968)