Carbon Based Lifeforms Live at Ozora Festival 2017

Here's something blissful for your daily flow. A couple hours of Carbon Based Lifeforms, playing at the Ozora Festival last year in Hungary. I can't embed the video, so you'll have to scurry over to Youtube to watch it. But it'll be worth it. Trust me... I'm a doctor (Okay, not that kind of doctor, but still a kind of doctor). Here's a link to the groovy sounds (get 'em while they're contained within the massive information rich network of the interwebs!):

Carbon Based Lifeforms at Ozora Festival

Data & Picard by Pogo

Ah, some days I wake upon this world and find myself in a funk of uncertainty and overcome with the unrelenting bafflement of a society full of trite opinions and intellectually simple considerations of mostly insignificant things. But, then, there are days when the awesome sauce is flowing freely in the world and something like this gem falls into my life. Friends, fans, and fellow Star Trek lovers, "Data & Picard" by Pogo is here to make your day:

Was that good for you? I hope so. Want to learn more about Pogo (Nick Bertke)? Check out these links for more:

Website   Bandcamp   Twitter

Cheers folks. Go forth and do your good works!

Luca Stricagnoli's new video for Now We Are Free

I love Luca Stricagnoli's music! He's a fantastic guitar player, using all of his fingers to strike up beautiful tunes on his guitars. I've previously shared his covers of Thunderstruck and Sweet Child O' Mine. Now, Stricagnoli has a new album out, featuring some of his own original music as well as come more of his covers. I thought I'd share one of his new videos here. For your aural enjoyment, here is Luca Stricagnoli with Meg Pfeiffer covering "Now We Are Free", a song that Hans Zimmer composed for the film Gladiator:

Stairway to Heaven played skillfully on koto and shakuhachi - a stellar performance

"No stairway. Denied."

...Well not in this awesome video from performers Keiko Hisamoto, Masako Watanabe, Miromu Motonaga, and Kizan Kawamura, where they play two koto (stringed instruments and the national instrument of Japan) and two shakuhachi (Japanese end-blown flutes). 

I can always jam out to some Stairway to Heaven, and this version is definitely incredible and well-performed:

Groove like the sci-fi nerd you are with these sci-fi and ambient sound videos

Gates to Elysium, by Christian Hecker

Getting lost in layers of thought about what else there may be is one of the fun parts of science fiction!

As I've been getting my Ph.D. dissertation closer and closer to being finished, I've been slowly meandering through watching sci-fi (like Star Trek Voyager), listening to music (like metal instrumental and electronic groove music), and finding ambient sounds to groove with in the background while I write. I recently shared a post with a video that had 10 hours of ambient noise mixed with the sounds of an Arctic icebreaker. I've played that video as background a few times now while writing and it's been awesome, but now I've found something else that is definitely pretty groovy.

The Youtube channel for crysknife007, who also goes by Cheesy Nirvosa at Bandcamp, is full of ambient music tracks that are awesome for background noise. But, what's even better, he's put together a whole bunch of tracks that feature ambient sounds from science fiction television shows and movies! Like this one, which features 24 hours (yup, one full day) of the ambient sounds of the starship Enterprise-D from The Next Generation: 

Or, this one, with 12 hours of the engine sounds of the starship Serenity from Firefly:

These ambient sound videos are great for background noise for focusing on work or even for just relaxing. Also, I've found that playing some of these along with some soft background music is really helpful in getting my mind into the writing zone. 

Let's say that living on a spaceship isn't exactly your thing, well why not then enjoy the sounds of a police call booth that's both a spaceship and timeship and a living being, with this video of ambient sounds from the TARDIS from Dr. Who:

It's definitely worth taking a look at the stuff over on crysknife007's page. He's got a bundle of tracks with background ambient sounds from various sci-fi shows and movies, but also a lot more. For instance, he's got some tracks featuring the sonified data from the EM fields collected by our spacecraft around Europa as well as from the Voyager spacecraft. Here's one more that's pretty freaking cool:

If you're a sci-fi nerd like me then you're probably already digging it, but just for a little more enticement, check out crysknife007's biography of himself from Bandcamp:

Crysknife007 specializes in extended ambient space and spaceship sounds. He also enjoys working with other scifi soundscapes.

Also known as Cheesy Nirvosa, his homefried beats break from traditional cycles and regularity. The sound aims more for confusion than melody, often favoring some that sounds particularly out of place than a tune which syncopates expectedly. 

The Soothing Sounds of an Arctic Icebreaker - 10 Hours of Background Noise

Here's something you didn't know that you need in your life, but you'll be totally happy to discover. The Youtube page Relax Sleep ASMR has recently uploaded a video that contains ten hours of white noise and the sounds of an Arctic icebreaker ship. It's absolutely glorious. Last night I put on some instrumental metal music along with this while writing and it really helped my mind to focus solely on the writing. You can check out the 10 hour long video below or at the Youtube page, but, whatever you do, definitely bookmark this one.

Billie Jean, smoothly done, by Alexandr Misko

Alexandr Misko, a young musician from Russia, has been bouncing about the interwebs lately with some of his acoustic arrangements for some well-known covers. For instance, I just caught his take on Michael Jackson's Billie Jean and it is pretty damned slick. Definitely worth a listen, my friends. Check it out:

If you dig that, then you might also like some of the tunes from his album that came out last year, "The Songs of Adolescence".

Another Brick in the Wall on the Gayageum

This is so awesome, it must be shared!

Narcissi by Anatomy of the Sacred

Digging this tune. "Narcissi" by Anatomy of the Sacred has an ethereal background with a powerful guitar rhythm and strong vocals. Definitely fits in with Anatomy of the Sacred's description of themselves from their website:

Female-fronted symphonic metal duo Anatomy of the Sacred makes elegant, soulful music ablaze with powerhouse vocals, orchestral melodies and radiant harmonies draped over driving and resounding rhythms. Skilled songwriters, composers and artists Brenda Michelle Robinson (vocals) and Shane Krout (bass, guitar, vocals) experiment with opulent textures and unleash lyrics that float atop a sophisticated, intricately-woven tapestry overflowing with plush layers of electric guitar and bass... 

I also love the video. Two versions of what may be one woman, maybe out of place in time, maybe out of place in other ways, and the Magician. Definitely watch it and see what you think. However, I have to admit, one reason I love it is because my sister plays the Young Magician's Assistant. Check it out:

"Hallelujah" cover by Pentatonix is incredible!

Leonard Cohen's song "Hallelujah" is lyrically deep and moving and has been covered many times. The Jeff Buckley version of the song is easily my favorite. However, I just heard the cover of this great song by Pentatonix and knew I had to share it. The video is chilling, with the singers standing in a desert landscape, as they melodiously belt out Cohen's words. If you like "Hallelujah", then you'll probably like this video:

Jamie Dupuis' Cover of Comfortably Numb on the Harp Guitar is Exactly What You Need to Listen to Right Now

Okay cosmobiologists, music lovers, chilled souls, and all around fun-lovers... Check this out. 

The harp guitar is a fantastic instrument, especially in the hands of someone as skilled as Jamie Dupuis. In this cover, Dupuis takes on Pink Floyd's Comfortably Numb and it is absolutely beautiful. Get your minds ready to hear something incredible!

Gimme Some Shelter from All of This Accounting!

AbGradCon 2016 was a success! The conference was a lot of fun and we heard about lots of great science that graduate students and early career scientists in various disciplines of astrobiology are conducting. We also had some really fun events that went along with the conference.

Sadly, for me, now comes the time when I have to crunch the numbers, compile receipts, and submit financial reports for everything from the conference. Definitely not looking forward to it, but it has to be done, so here's some of what I'm listening to as I run the numbers today: Gimme Shelter from The Rolling Stones!

Lindsey Stirling's video for The Arena

This video is everything a post-apocalyptic nerd is after. It has awesome costumes, dancing, fighting, cars that appear to have been beat and rebuilt, dramatic flare, shoulder pads bedecked in sparkling silver plates, and some guy wearing Wind In His Hair's chest piece... Give it a watch. If you like Lindsey Stirling's playing, then you'll love this new song. If you haven't heard of Lindsey Stirling before, then now's the time to give her a try:

Mark White on the Chapman Stick

The Chapman Stick is such a beautiful instrument. Ever since I first saw the character Gurney Halleck (played by Patrick Stewart) playing a modified version of the Chapman Stick in David Lynch's film version of Dune, I've been interested in these polyphonic, multi-stringed tapping instruments. I just heard some fantastic playing on a Chapman Stick by a guy named Mark White. Here's a sample of some of that playing for your listening pleasure:

Red is the Rose of Loch Lomond

River Boyne at Bru na Boinne, Ireland (credit: Jean Housen)

"Red is the Rose" is one of my favorite traditional Irish tunes. The Scottish song "The Bonnie Banks o' Loch Lomond" is very similar (uses the same tune, but different lyrics). I figured I'd share my current favorite versions of both songs here on A Cosmobiologist's Dream. Check it out below:


Red is the Rose by The High Kings:

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Loch Lomond by Peter Hollens:

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Loch Lomond, Scottland (credit: Hussain et al.)

"Enter Sandman" by SHEL, Delightfully Eerie

Colorado-born band SHEL, composed of four sisters, has a cover of Metallica's "Enter Sandman" that just blessed my ears with soothing, lullabylike sounds. One of my favorite Metallica tunes, "Enter Sandman" performed by SHEL is eerie and haunting and the video is superb. Check it out:

Another Brick in the Wall (Pt. II), played Medieval Style by Stary Olsa

Stary Olsa had come to the public eye recently by producing a Medieval-style cover of Metallica's One. There are now a bunch of videos of some of their awesome songs. The Medieval folk and rock cover band brings traditional instruments and sounds to some newer tunes. I just came across their cover of Pink Floyd's Another Brick in the Wall (Pt. II), and it is freaking awesome. Enjoy:

Nothing Else Matters, on Sitar

Here's an awesome version of Nothing Else Matters, as played along on the sitar by Ashish J. It's fantastic throughout, but definitely stay with it for the solo, you will not be disappointed.

Wow. "2 Gods 1 Guitar" by Laurier Lachance & Nathan Watling is Awesome

This is a sweet freaking cover of Eminem's Rap God:

FINGERS Mitchell Cullen

I'm a huge fan of didgeridoo music. Every now and then I'll search around the interwebs for some new awesome didg music. However, one didgeridoo player who I keep happening upon on Facebook and Twitter posts is FINGERS Mitchell Cullen. This young Australian multi-instrumentalist makes some fantastic music, blending together guitar and drums with didgeridoo (as well as other instruments). I highly recommend checking out his website and his music. Here's a sample:

FINGERS makes some awesome tunes. Definitely a young artist worth keeping your eye on in the coming years.