The houses of HBOs popular series Game of Thrones get modern ad campaigns created in their character’s images in Shutterstock’s Game of Brands. The show is based on a struggle for power among the Great Houses of Westeros, where different families fight for absolute supremacy before a looming zombie attack from the very north of their world during the Iron Age. Shutterstock asks, ”what if the families that rule these houses were around in the present day, running modern corporations instead of prepping for battle?” The campaigns were created using stock images from Shutterstock, including icons that became components for logo designs. We loved the solutions presented by Mondayne for capturing the essence of these families.

The Lannisters’ investment firm promises to make sure their clients get to keep “the lion’s share.”

The steel dragons of the Targaryen clan still control the skies.

Who better than the warriors to protect J-Lo from a Flying Miguel. (We joke, Miguel is CS fam and Circus SXSW alumni)

The Starks outfit the adventurers heading North for some fun in the snow. Outbackers be sure to pack one of those new stone spearheads. You never know what things lurk in the night.

From the top of the world Arryn holds their position as the communication center.

You can see the original stock images Shutterstock provided Mondayne to create the campaigns here.

You can find out more about the design firm behind the project, Mondayne, here.

You can find out more about the project and see some additional images here.

Did you know that 1 out of 7 human beings in this world have a facebook account? That’s insane considering that less than 30 years ago (about the time Nas came out with Illmatic), folks didn’t even know what the internet was and only a select group of people had cell phones.  Now with all this information, where and how does facebook store everything? Here’s how:

A pioneer for his time and tagged “King of Records” by his friends for his huge collection and knowledge of music, Rodion Ladislau Rosca and his band “Rodion G.A.” hail from Romania. Under constant threat of censorship from the occupying Soviets, Rodion G.A. performed their music at festivals, restaurants, and clubs in the 70′s and 80′s and even made a New Years Eve appearance on television to ring in 1980.

Rodion G.A. broke up in 1987 after the death of Rosca’s mother, and he thought he would never return.  The music was most likely lost forever.  However, this release all became possible thanks to a blogger and filmmaker Luca Sorin who tracked down Rosca and posted some of the songs to his website which got the attention of a group of Romanian producers called “Future Nuggets.”  It also looks like all of this attention is going to bring about the band’s first live performance in 25 years!

In the amazing interview video below, Rosca explains how he created some of his music with techniques that were never thought of at the time.  It really does seem ahead of its time with his great use of electronic sounds, drum machines, and psychedelic themes. You can hear a preview track “Cantec Fulger” on SoundCloud and I think you’ll agree it’s like nothing you’ve heard before.

“The Lost Tapes” will be released on Strut Records and drops May 28th.

-Chris

Roc Nation DJ/Producer Reflex releases “Body So Tight”, a 808 heavy record featuring Childish Gambino. Reflex is currently working on his debut EP due out later this year.

Checkout “Body So Tight” below and you can learn more about Reflex here.

Jesse Ruins, started by Nobuyuki Sakuma as a solo endeavor, has since expanded and is now known worldwide. Jesse Ruins released an already sold-out cassette with Cuz Me Pain, an independent label in Tokyo, and then proceeded to join in Cuz Me Pain’s first compilation LP the same year. In 2011, Nah joined Sukama as the second member in Jesse Ruins. Music blogs such as Gorilla vs Bear, The Guardian and many others picked up on Jesse Ruins’ unique sound and were hooked. This led the band to release their first 7″ with Double Denim Records. In December 2011, the band signed to Captured Tracks and released an EP. Most recently, the support drummer, Yosuke Tuchida, became an official member of Jesse Ruins. Jesse Ruins is releasing their debut LP A Film today.

Checkout their debut album, A Film, below and you can download it here.

[Photo from Honestly Yum]

It’s picnic season – here’s a couple easy recipes for a perfect outdoor meal.  (Honestly Yum)

Snapshots from the good, non-cancelled days of Googa Mooga. (Eater)

Introducing the new Star Trek beer – Vulcan Ale! (Grub Street NY)

Is Urban Outfitters opening a bar in Williamsburg? (Refinery29)

…And another food critic leaves Village Voice.  Hmm… (New York Times)

How to make the coolest (no pun intended) fruity striped ice cubes.  (Oh Joy)

10 ways to use a muffin pan – for something other than making muffins! (The Kitchn)

16 summer beers for you to try this season. (Paste Magazine)

This is what foor serving sizes really look like. (HuffPost Food)

A Chelsea water tower has been transformed into an exclusive speakeasy.  (Gothamist)

More reasons to visit Staten Island – two new breweries! (NY Daily News)

Awards Reception, Photo By Matteo Prandoni/BFAnyc.com

Architizer‘s sole aim is to get architects and designers actual commissions. What? Yes, They want to make you famous and rich! They do this by connecting architects to peers, fans, and potential clients through their site, and has become the largest and fastest-growing database of architecture online. Architizer, a spin off of design firm HWKN,  runs competitions, list jobs, and hosts offline events all over the world. And for the blog that boasts the most relevant content on the Internet their awards show, The A+ Awards, had the responsibility of presenting an event with categories and recipients of the highest caliber. And they did.

The awards were selected by a jury of +200 members including designers, engineers, and cultural thought leaders, and a Popular Choice Award selected by Architizer’s 1,000,000+ users. 87 winners later, a comprehensive list of current leaders and innovators in design emerge.

Design firm Snarkitecture; and Society Awards, designers of the MTV Moonmen; teamed up to create this elegant cube that reveals more than 8 sharp corners.

The City and the Storm, Iwan Baan

Another unique feature of the A+ Awards is how the honorees aren’t all recognized for design. Iwan Baan, the photographer behind New York magazine’s now-iconic Hurricane Sandy cover, took the Relevancy Award for highlighting human engagement with architecture through his pictures.

Jury Winner, Best Single Family Residential: Daeyang Gallery and  House, Seoul, Korea, by Steven Holl, is inspired by a 1967 sketch for a music score by the composer Istvan Anhalt, “Symphony of Modules,” which was discovered in a book by John Cage titled “Notations.”

Carrasco International Airport, Rafael Vinoly Architects

Jury and Popular Winner, Airports: The curve of Rafael Vinoly Architects‘ Carrasco International’s monolithic roof is inspired by the rolling dunes along Uruguay’s coastline.

Jury Winner, Residential Interiors: Skyhouse, the house in the sky, located at the top of one of the earliest surviving skyscrapers in New York City is a four story penthouse designed by David Hoston Architects. Coincidentally the jury selected the same project we did for our Best of 2012.

Congratulations to all of the winners and firms that were mentioned. These awards were given to you by your industry. You can find out more about the awards and organizers here.

The summer is here and on the streets or on the beach the bucket hat can have you walking with both form and function. Before Hip Hop artists started wearing bucket hats, fisherman actually wore them for it’s purpose, but there’s no reason why we can remix the hat to where it’s at now. Keep reading for the top 5 rated bucket hats of the season.

NORSE PROJECTS DENIM BUCKET HAT

BK CIRCUS FLORAL BUCKET HAT

MANASTASH CHECK HAT

BAU x Mitchell & Ness Bucket Hat

BODEGA SS13 REVERSIBLE BUCKET HAT

With his luscious tenor and seductive lyrics, San Francisco singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist 8th Grader (AKA, Jayson Martinovich) injects a unique and fresh R&B sensibility to his singular brand of nu-soul. His decadent vocals caress Afro-Cuban polyrhythms, Rhodes piano, and elements of Chillwave. With nods to Prince, Frank Ocean, George Michael and Janet Jackson, 8th Grader fills a nameless void somewhere in between pop and R&B. Currently creating a stir amongst the music blogs, 8th Grader has been gaining acclaim from fans and critics alike with his signature R&B meets Nu-Soul flare.

[Photo by nycloveaffair]

So, what’s the deal, Googa Mooga?  The music and food festival hybrid is a mere two years old, but has been having a difficult time getting on its feet due to a couple setbacks that have started to give the event a bad rep.

Despite last year’s hiccups, I was a huge supporter of Googa Mooga and really looking forward to the 2013 version especially after witnessing the turnaround from 2012′s Saturday meltdown (long lines, angry festival-goers, not enough food, so on) to Sunday’s clear improvement, but unfortunately, I never made it this year.  I was on my way there Sunday at around 1 pm, already in Prospect Park and getting soaked, when I found out the event was canceled.  Which confused me for a number of reasons.  

At 11:17 am, while it was raining, an email went out to ticketholders stating that more Sunday tickets were available – at about 1 pm was when I found out it was canceled (an email went out to ticketholders at 2:05 pm).  What a tease to the ones who headed down for the newly released tickets right?  First of all, that’s a pretty long window between cancellation and formally letting everyone know – on my way back out of the park there were still dozens of people making their way through the pouring rain to get to Googa Mooga.

Secondly, if you say you’re a “rain or shine” event, shouldn’t you check with the park to make sure that a rainy event is okay?  I’m a little surprised that Superfly, the entertainment company responsible for putting on Googa Mooga, didn’t seem to take this into consideration, especially since they’ve been able to pull off significantly larger events such as Bonnaroo.

My main concern is with the vendors – I’m sure this year there was a great push to the vendors with tons of hard work on their part to make sure there was enough food to go around for everyone, only for it to become a waste on Sunday. [Note: most of these vendors are offering discounts to Sunday ticketholders - even if you're not one, go out and support the vendors on this list anyway!]

One positive thing I have to say for Googa Mooga though, is that they are really good at fixing their mistakes – and more specifically, issuing refunds.  VIP ticketholders last year were issued refunds ($249.50 to be exact) for what was said to be a disappointing experience.  In light of this year’s cancellation, Brokelyn recently stated that Sunday drink tickets as well as Sunday VIP passes will be refunded.  It’s still early to tell but I’m wondering if there will be some sort of reimbursement for those who bought Friday/Sunday tickets, as the free admission for Sunday was incentive to buy Friday concert tickets.

What’s next for Googa Mooga?  Though there seem to be so many haters, I am still confident that a food and music festival of this caliber can be pulled off – maybe not at Prospect Park, and definitely with a lot of changes, but I think foodies all over the city are interested in seeing what goes down with the Great Googa Mooga.

HANI ZAHRA is a five-­piece band from Brooklyn, NY. Founded in 2012 behind front man Hani Zahra (Vocals), this dynamic group of musicians consists of Jared Dymbort (Lead Guitar), Angelica Olstad (Keyboards/Synth), Adrian Morgan (Bass), and Ilya Kuperman (Drums). Their sound has been categorized as indie psychedelic pop and is unique in their use of keyboards, synthesizers and traditional vocal harmonies.

Checkout their single “Cannibal Crime (Wait Wait Wait)” below, from their album Along The Lines which you can download here.

BROOKLYN: Brooklyn Ave & Prospect Pl

BROOKLYN: Broadway & Woodbine St

BROOKLYN: Broadway & Gates Av

BROOKLYN: Church Av & Stratford

QUEENS: Ozone Park