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Logistics, mechanics, acoustics
Homo sapiens

School outing

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We introduced the van to my 11-year-old son’s classmates and their families last weekend at a huge campout/gathering/party at El Capitan Resort up in Goleta.

Kids make the best xylophonists. They have sharp enough chops to make interesting sounds, even if it’s playing “Chopsticks” together, and what they lack in precision they make up for in boundless enthusiasm: “Omigodthisistheawesomestthingever! Youmadethis? Omigodthisissofreakin’cool!!!”

Love it.

Thanks to everyone who played – I hope we’ll see you all again before too long.

More photos after the jump … Continue reading School outing →

Homo sapiens, Vehicle

XyloVan at BarCamp

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(image courtesy of Jory Felice)
I had the supreme privilege of taking XyloVan to BarCampLA 8, an ad-hoc un-conference that I like to think of as an intellectual mosh pit, where tech, art, community and strategy thrash and get sweaty.

I set up in the upper lot, and told the stories of how I built it (one of these days I have to arrange all the posts on this blog into a single stack of step-by-step links), and gave helpful instruction on how to not get killed at Burning Man.

Many thanks to everyone who listened kindly and played energetically. You’re an inspiring community of fertile minds.

Can’t wait for the next BarCamp.


More pictures here, courtesy of Jane Lee:

Burner events, Events, Homo sapiens

XyloVan goes to Hollywood

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That was great – a little microburn without all the driving, heat and dust.

XyloVan trekked a massive 4.3 miles last night to the Egyptian Theater to help kick off the L.A. League of Arts Burning Man Film Series. We utterly devoured the fascinating first film in the series – Dust and Illusions.

Check it out wherever you can – it traces the community’s 30-year-deep roots from a coagulation of like-spirited artists up through its raucous early years, the watershed ’96 burn that spurred creation of Black Rock City and its rich, monstrous growth up to last year’s 51,454-strong burn. If the nostalgia and inspiration don’t grab you, the politics will – so many strong minds struggling to define the undefinable.

We had a blast setting up in the courtyard – many thanks to Beth and Athena for graciously making space for XyloVan, and to Dore and Cristina for sharing Calliope the Wonder Wagon and their judicious barge-guiding skills with us. Thanks to them, maneuvering XyloVan in and out of the 7-foot-wide alley through the courtyard was a joy rather than the nerve-shredding crunchfest it could have been.

Thanks, also, to the Krishnas for the wonderful food, spiritual generosity and musical interaction.

And thanks especially to all of you – happy burners, playful Angelenos and all the had-to-be-coaxed-but-wound-up-enjoying-it souls who made lovely music into the night.

Tons of photos after the jump – if you spot yourself there, drop a line in the comments and leave your name and link!
Continue reading XyloVan goes to Hollywood →

Homo sapiens

Bang on the van today!

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Egyptian_Theatre_Hollywood_7.jpgLast night was the Burnal Equinox – the precise halfway point between Burning Man festivals – it’s sort of the formal kickoff season for preparations for the 2011 burn.

On the off chance you don’t already know about it, Sunday’s festival kicks off a
film series in at the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood with a little BM culture
bath.

There’ll be a few theme camps and art cars in the courtyard all afternoon
(including XyloVan) – a lovely half-way-there dose of
playa.

At 7:30, there’s a showing of Dust and Illusions – 30 Years of History of Burning Man followed by
Q&A with the filmmakers and another hour or two of courtyard frolic.

DEETS after the jump.

See you there! Continue reading Bang on the van today! →

Homo sapiens, Vehicle

Walkin’ with buddies

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XyloVan doesn’t usually do requests – we like to show up where we think people will have fun with us. But Jim Hodgson, a Burner alum, asked us to park at the Down Syndrome of L.A. Buddy Walk last weekend, and it turned out to be a nice experience. We gave a lot of kids smiles – probably the polar/thematic/social/atmospheric opposite of the playa. Here are a few snaps:

Homo sapiens, L.A. Decom 2010

Xylovan at L.A. Burning Man Decompression Arts Festival

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We’ll be there – come by and say hi (hi!), bang on the van, rock out.

You and yours (alllll ages) deserve a tasty slab of dust-free Burning Man culture – Decom runs all day today, noon to midnight.

And a huuuge amount of art, music, playa couture, activities for all ages … It’s a very good thing.

We’re in a pretty noisy neighborhood – should be an interesting sound-mixing challenge. Nice neighbors, though.

Right about here.

Burning Man 2010, Homo sapiens

Packing up – and heading home

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Sunday started out nicely enough – then quickly deteriorated to a headlong death march as the wind picked up over 25 mph and brought half the playa with it in dust-cloud form.

Biomass was a tremendous help playing roof-monkey – we pulled in all the rigging and began loading up the bikes and lashing them down.

Hitgirl – not yet possessed of a proper playa work ethic at age 9, despite this being her fourth burn – supplied attitude and hijinks. Not much help to the rest of us.


Before too long we had the carport stripped to a skeleton, then broken down to bones and skin and packed away for travel.

What I didn’t take pictures of was the rest of the evening. We had planned to head out to the temple burn, but the dust was pretty much unrelenting, the crew was contrary, pissy and cold, and in the end we just hunkered in center camp, sharing a cooler-emptying smorgasbord with a family of Boston-to-CarsonCity transplants (and 17-time burners) and a fellow in a thoroughly gorgeous jester’s outfit who spoke in a twee fancy voice and devoured all our pickles.

Perfect end to an epic burn.

Exodus was 2 hours, and we were back in L.A. by mid-day Monday, the maiden voyage a ripping success.

Except for having murdered Hitgirl’s bike on Tuesday with the van. Fail.

Burning Man 2010, Homo sapiens, Video

Post-burn chilldown

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Here are a few clips from XyloVan’s final hours on the playa – from just before the burn on Saturday night to just afterwards – and then a bit from Sunday morning before we began packing in earnest.

Seeing all these people play again while I was editing the clips (and I mean play, as curious, rhythmic humans, not as professional musicians) – was deeply satisfying.

I’m in the first clip – and really very joyful, despite the glum exterior. Building this vehicle, bringing it out and igniting people’s passions with it has been simultaneously deeply fulfilling and raw, bareknuckled fun.

The second-to-last clip is one of my favorites, a view of the van from inside our camp, where you can hear – but not see – the people playing Keyboards 2 and 3 on the other side of the vehicle, as it glitters in the dark.