Sorgatron.com is dead! Long Live Sorgatron.com!

Blogger. It's been fun. You taught me I didn't have to do everything the hard way from the ground up. But it's time we start blogging other people.

It's time. Time for this blog to grow up. If you haven't caught on my Twitter or Facebook, I have been attempting to resolve some issues with some .com switches for Sorgatron.com (and hence, SorgatronMedia.com, coming soon). It's just a template I found for now, but this will definitely give me the freedom to expand what I can do with my blog, and how it is presented.

So if you are reading this on your little RSS reader, you need to check out.....

The NEW RSS Link!!!!

Video Games Live

[caption id="attachment_582" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Video Games Live at Heinz Hall"][/caption]

Sometimes, you find you need some culture. Sometimes you can't settle for something dry playing down in the cultural district that will just boil down to staring at the brass section recollecting on your glory days as a trombonist in pep band.

So this past week, Chachi reminded me of this Video Games Live coming to the Heinz Hall this weekend. We snatched out tickets and headed down in our snazziest attire. But, alas, we were duped. Walking into Heinz Hall, you can't be helped but to look around in awe at the architecture and chandeliers. And the elves. And wizards. And Kratos from God of War. (How did they let him in without a shirt on? And how was that bus ride?) We walked around a bit scoping the Guitar Hero competition and hung out in the Plaza with it's large waterfall that I would see through the gates when I was a wee lad in college from my bus stop in front of it, wondering about the fancy people. And here I was, standing in here next to a guy with a Nintendo controller for a belt buckle...

The show was amazing. From our second level seats, we could see everything. We were treated to videos before the show and during intermission of a Moonwalker tribute to the late Michael Jackson, Pac-Man chase through NYC, and more. The Pittsburgh Symphony was backed by the Mendelssohn Choir, led by Jack Wall, who co-produced the show with Tommy Tallarico. I've been a fan of Tallarico since the days of Electric Playground on G4 when I finally started getting it. This guy has worked on some classics like MDK, Earthworm Jim, and Tony Hawk. The set was accompanied by synced video and lights in a rock concert-style vibe. The audience was encouraged to cheer for games and moments on screan and performed, as apposed to the usual fair at a classy joint like this. We were treated to a Final Fantasy piano solo, as well as a performance of the popular blindfolded Mario by Martin Leung. More medleys included Metal Gear, Civilization, Zelda, Mario Brothers, World of Warcraft, and even a retro retrospective that started the evening. Twice we have some interesting interactive segments. One girl played Space Invaders as the Symphony played along with the speed of the game. The second saw the Guitar Hero contest winner playing Aerosmith's "Sweet Emotion" as the symphony, choir, and Tallarico on guitar played along. The God of War and Halo sessions gave me chills. The night ended with an encore performance including "One Winged Angel" from Final Fantasy 7 set to Cos Play (including plenty of asian girls. Rawr) and Leung rejoining to do organ for Castlevania with the symphony.


This was a great celebration of what many of the geeks of this generation grew up with and the demonstration of video games as art instead of just violent toys. (though when Tallarico mentioned that as his cause, one excited audience member yelled "kill 'em!" in response to the critics). If this is coming to your town, it will be well worth the money to head out for the night to see this.

I think the Silent one put it best...

TheSilentNinja: Just got back from Video Games Live. The Silent Ninja approves. Would have been worth the $100 seats if I could afford them.

I put a small video together from our pre-show observations:

WPAJ Interview: Jered of (hed) pe

Finally, we have posted our interview with hed pe from way back in April on the New World Orphans stop at Club Diesel in Pittsburgh. You can check out the video below, or the audio version here.



Make sure you don't miss any future interviews! Subscribe to the video or the audio feeds on iTunes!

Worth Saving: The Loyalsock Story (Part One)

One of my recent bigger independent projects has been posted live, and I thought I'd share. For several months, I have been helping with the PennFuture Podcast, editing interviews and videos for the group. It's been an educational experience hearing about what the state is doing for the environment. Somehow, I find myself tied into groups such as this and, previously, the Sarah Heinz House and their sustainable expansion documentary.

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Pennsylvania has many outstanding and beautiful rivers, streams and creeks, and few are as well-loved and supported as Loyalsock Creek. The Loyalsock runs through Sullivan and Lycoming Counties into the West Branch of the Susquehanna, eventually down to the Chesapeake Bay itself.

Loyalsock Creek is used for trout fishing and white water kayaking. The Loyalsock Trail is a wilderness trail that runs along it, providing opportunities for hiking. Worlds End State Park is located on the Loyalsock in Sullivan County.

This documentary features the people of the area who have worked ceaselessly to clean up the Loyalsock and are fiercely protecting it now. You’ll hear the pride in their voices as they talk about the recovery of the Loyalsock from damage from the coal industry and bad development, and exactly how important this waterway is to the quality of their lives.
And, of course, you’ll learn about the importance of cleaning all the streams and rivers upstream if we are ever to have a healthy Chesapeake Bay.

In Part two, which will be available on July 17, you’ll learn about the new threats to the Loyalsock, and what local citizens, working together, are doing to protect it.

Direct download: PennFuture_Podcast1-H.264_800Kbps.mov
Category: Water Quality -- posted at: 1:30 PM

Brokencyde "I'm Not a Fan...But the Kids Like It"

For the last week, I've had a copy of Brokencyde's "I'm Not a Fan...But the Kids Like It". In that time, I've had the chance to review it, digest it, comprehend, and all around search my own soul over the CD. Having never heard of this group, I had no idea what to expect. The cover seemed to reflect some sort of Neo-Hillbilly feel that somehow reminded me of Southern Culture on the Skids. So when I finally proberly ripped and stuck it on my iPhone for a gentle walk, I was amazed at what I found.

My first impression would be towards the area of Hollywood Undead in the singing side. Or then something mixed with what I would hear slamming at a club downtown. But with screaming. Then some screaming set in. And then Daddy X of Kottonmouth Kings fame and E-40 popped up on the album.

The music experience is one of the most interesting musical hybrids I've heard in a while, and fits in with the "something different" we all seem to be looking to the underground music scene for. This album is like Twitter. It's the style of music you never knew you needed in your collection. While the press describes this album as "crunkcore" the first thing that came to my head was "club screamo". Nothing real intellectual. Sometimes not even intellegible. But it gets your head bobbing. And your parents will never understand it. Which seems to be the goal.

This is the sort of thing that I'm liking from this new Break the Silence imprint that seems to have emerged to give us new Unwritten Law and Eyes Set to Kill (that we'll hear about soon). But check this one out and dig it.

The Great TV Experiment Part 4: A New Way

On June 12, I saw history. After the amazing Stanley Cup victory our Penguins pulled off, I was watching WPXI, and knew the transition was at midnight. So about two minutes before, I switched to the analog feed. And watched it dissappear.

And in the wake of this final transition, we saw an increase in our channel selection. More stations like CW 19 and WBGN started becoming available. Presumably due to more powerful, dedicated signals starting to broadcast.

It's been a few weeks since I last updated on how this "Great TV Experiment" was going. I've learned along the way, and seen others follow in my footsteps, or at least deeply consider it. And twice last week, I was asked "so how's it going?"

Really, I don't think I've noticed. Somehow, I watch just as much television as I did before, though more varied, and my watching feels more mobile. In this last week, I've been rather sick and avoided any holiday festivities, instead resting and exploring my outlets with Netflix and PlayOn. This was a godsend with the networks showing "paid programming" and other indigestable content during the off hours. Instead, I trucked through Seasons 1 and 2 of the IT Crowd, and Season 2 of Dexter and a few movies queued up.

Even over the last few days, I've found myself picking up on other series, throwing on Seaquest, something I've watched ages ago in its first run, to doze off a nap to. I've been watching the recently discovered Avatar series for something a little different, and to see what all of the fuss is about that they decided to do a movie trilogy about it.

And when I decide not to fuss with the Xbox to get my on demand going, I'm content with the Simpsons/Family Guy reruns in the early evening and the random documentary on PBS. I love Rick Sebak's documentaries and caught a fantastic behind the scenes for Art Wofle's show. A bonus for my aspiring production background. Even got thrown to see Neil Patrick Harris on Sesame Street Sunday morning....

So in the long run, I think I've successfully shifted my viewing habits. The plus side is that now I'm no longer tied to my one television with a DVR to catch up on my television watching, and can "take" my viewing to my office and get some work done.

I'm on 12 Seconds!

For a while, I've wanted to have something handy to do video. Finally, my new iPhone fits the bill. I've also been rather jealous of my friends with their flip phones and blackberrys that have been playing with services such as Qik and 12 Seconds.

So look forward for some play time with this new toy...

sorgatron on 12seconds.tv

A side note. Some may have noticed some .com irregularities and a lack of updates. I'm attempting to setup a new domain/host/wordpress to migrate this blog to. Done with this Blogger stuff. Just need some room to grow.