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Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. The Boing Boing tv crew is taking this end-of-summer week off from production, so we're revisiting some of our favorite episodes from the last couple of months -- fun stuff you may have missed. Today, one of my personal all-time favorites: takenoko (竹の子), young bamboo shoots, with Joi Ito and original music by Ryuichi Sakamoto. -- XJ You may know Joi as a serial entrepreneur, a twittering globetrotter VC, a World of Warcraft junkie, or the CEO of Creative Commons, but he has a more traditional side, too. In this video, Ito welcomes us into his back yard in Japan, where he and his partner Mizuka teach us how to hunt for and prepare this traditional seasonal delicacy from a lush bamboo forest. The episode is accompanied by an original score composed by Grammy, Academy Award, and Golden Globe-winning composer, Ryuichi Sakamoto. The legendary electronic music pioneer is also an outspoken environmental advocate. His recent reforestation initiative, “More Trees,” supports the planting of trees around the world to help offset carbon emissions. To-date, 2 billion trees have been planted mostly through work with country governments including Turkey, Ethiopia and Mexico. Link to English-language PDF with more info on the project. Sakamoto co-founded the seminal synthpop trio Yellow Magic Orchestra, and has scored or contributed to movie soundtracks including The Last Emperor, Merry Christmas Mister Lawrence, Babel, and the work of director Pedro Almodóvar. Boing Boing tv thanks him for generously contributing this beautiful, evocative score. After the jump -- Joi Ito's family recipe for yummy takenoko just like mom used to make. Special thanks to the Ito family for sharing their traditions with us. Here's Joi's blog post about his background with Ryuichi, and here's Joi's post from today about how this video came together.

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. Team Boing Boing tv was live and in effect all weekend long at the first Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival in San Francisco's Golden Gate park. The event was a blast, and we interviewed many amazing artists here. BBtv's UK-based music correspondent Russell Porter hopped across the pond to join us for hijinks and great music, the first of which is this conversation with David Hinds, the frontman of legendary roots reggae band STEEL PULSE.

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. Last week, eight American citizens were detained in Beijing for participating in pro-Tibetan sovereignty protests near the site of the 2008 Olympics, with Students for a Free Tibet. Two videobloggers who documented those protest and guerrilla art installations evaded detention, and spoke to Boing Boing TV on Friday Beijing time about why they were there, what they witnessed, and why it mattered. Jay Dedman and Ryanne Hodson of Ryanishungry.com spoke to us over Skype from a hostel in Beijing. One of the actions they documented in photo and video was the hanging of an "LED throwies" light banner, below, which read "FREE TIBET." We agreed to hold this Boing Boing tv episode until after we received word that they'd safely left the country. They have returned home, so I am posting the piece today. Correction: Yesterday, we posted news that 6 Americans who'd been detained were now released and on their way to Los Angeles. Turns out that in fact, a total of 8 were detained -- the last two, from a later protest, a photograph of which is posted below (Thanks, NF and Students for a Free Tibet). Previously on Boing Boing blog: * UPDATE: US citizens detained in Beijing over Tibet protests are released, returning home. * Beijing and Tibet: GRL's James Powderly, Brian of "Alive in Baghdad, 4 other US citizens receive 10-day jail sentence * Beijing update: New detentions, 6 US protesters missing, Tibetan protesters in Tibet reportedly shot dead. * Beijing: "Alive in Baghdad" videoblogger among US citizens detained in pro-Tibet protests * Beijing: Five US activists detained after lighting up "Free Tibet" LED Throwies banner near Olympics site* GRL's James Powderly detained in Beijing for planning pro-Tibet "L.A.S.E.R. Stencil" art protest Related episodes of Boing Boing tv: * BBtv WORLD (Tibet): Inside Lhasa * Vlog (Xeni): Tibet report - monks forced to participate in staged videos. * Vlog (Xeni): Tibet's uprising and the internet

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. Boing Boing tv is live and in full effect at the Outside Lands Music and Arts fest in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park. The gates haven't opened yet, but when they do, some 180,000 people are expected to pour in over three days to see bands like Radiohead, Beck, Wilco, Primus, Tom Petty, Manu Chao, Black Keys, Ben Harper, and dozens of others, plus some cool tech-art experiments we'll be digging into. I'm here with our UK-based music correspondent Russell Porter, and the entire BBtv crew over the next 4 days. We're posting this episode from inside a giant rock star tour bus *very* generously loaned to us by friends of the blog (thanks Wayneco and Bre!). We ran around yesterday in a golf cart with the guy who created Outside Lands, Rick Farman of Superfly Productions. We spoke with him for this episode about the idea behind this festival, and what it takes to put together something this huge and complex. Events like this are a virtual world of sorts -- only with lots of real live breathing humans. We're parked about 100 feet away from the main stage. It feels strange to be so close to something so big before the gates open. All night long, production vehicles and golf carts full of loading guys buzzed around; as I type this there's an eerie quiet before the opening chords explode. This is going to be fun. Tech notes: the tall eucalyptus trees next to our bus (this is a gorgeous park, remember!) are blocking our satellite dish, so no WiFi in the bus right now -- instead, we're jacked into EVDO cards on MacBooks, on which BBtv editor Wes and segment producer Derek edited this piece last night. I'm pleasantly surprised at upload speeds on this card (it's a Verizon Rev-A). Stay tuned for more video from the BBtv bus at Outside Lands!

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. Klaus Pierre, a French/German actor-waiter-whatever, aspires against all odds to become America's next great action hero. Today, in the final chapter of our observational documentary of this Hollywood hopeful, we witness his final challenge -- the American immigration system. His green card has run out, and that is a dilemma no amount of drop-kicks or ninja-punches can solve. Goodbye Klaus. Auf wiedersehn or whatever. Ciao. See you on the laptop screen. Previous Klaus Pierre episodes on BBtv: Klaus Pierre, French-German Action Hero, works out. Klaus Pierre: Big Party Klaus Pierre: Super Pretty Action Hero Star Klaus Pierre: The Beach Klaus Pierre: Red Carpet Botox Dreams Klaus Pierre: Pirate Musical of Epic Fail Klaus Pierre: Savate Klaus Pierre: Coffee Shop. Klaus Pierre: Swordfighting Point Break and heartbreak

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. Today's episode of Boing Boing tv is a new installment of our "BBtv World" series, in which we bring you first-person accounts of life around the world. In this episode, I travel to Lhasa during an annual Tibetan Buddhist festival. ~ ~ ~ ~ The first thing that hits you when you arrive in Lhasa is just how close to the heavens you are. Literally. The average elevation in Tibet is 16,000 feet. The fact that this place is known as the “Roof of the World" makes sense as your newcomer lungs and blood struggle to adjust to the altitude. Beijing says Tibet is historically part of China, not a sovereign nation. China’s army invaded Tibet in 1950. Years of bloody conflict followed. In 1959, Tibet’s traditional spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, fled into exile in India. China has governed over Tibet since then. During the fourth lunar month in the Tibetan calendar, ethnic Tibetans celebrate the annual festival of Saga Dawa. Tibetan Buddhists believe that on the full moon in this month, in various years of his life, the Buddha was born, achieved enlightenment, and died. A large armed police presence surrounded the festival during the year I shot the footage you'll see in this episode. When we asked one pilgrim why, she said “Because when too many Tibetans gather in one place, they are afraid we’ll rise up.” In 2008, Saga Dawa fell on the heels of a violent government crackdown on pro-independence protesters throughout Tibet, during the run-up to the Olympics. Thousands of armed troops filled Lhasa and outlying towns, and large numbers of "suspects" were rounded up and jailed. Widespread reports of human rights abuses filtered out, despite a virtual communications blackout. This year’s Saga Dawa festival also fell near the anniversary of the Tiananmen democracy protests, and authorities cited fears that this would inspire more protest in Tibet. While first-person accounts were hard to come by, there were many reports of ethnic Tibetans being blocked from the traditional pilgimage route around Lhasa in the name of state security. Previously on Boing Boing tv: * Vlog (Xeni): Tibet report - monks forced to participate in staged videos. * Vlog (Xeni): Tibet's uprising and the internet Previously on Boing Boing blog: * Hacking the Himalayas (Xeni Tech / NPR) * Tradition vs. Change in 'Lhasa Vegas'

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. Astronaut and space hero Dr. Buzz Aldrin speaks with Xeni about his belief that America -- and that means you! -- must return to the moon, and soon. His nonprofit, Sharespace.org, seeks to provide "affordable space travel opportunities for all." Buzz believes that commercial space vacations should not be available only to the wealthy elite. Editor's note: the comment trolls really are taking over around here. One of them invades this very BBtv episode. Teresa, why doesn't disemvowelling work in video? We'll have to get our hamster-engineers right on that. (cameo by BBtv Production Assistant Rob Bergsma)

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. Boing Boing tv's UK-based music correspondent Russell Porter interviews singer-songwriter Candie Payne. The "atmospheric" chanteuse hails from Liverpool, and her brand of indie-pop draws fans the world over.

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. A short film by monochrom about a man who dies, is reborn, and sprouts gills. Created by Harald Homolka List, Johannes Grenzfurthner, Evelyn Fürlinger (link to monochrom site for this film, here are other short films from them in German). Previous work from monochrom on Boing Boing tv: * Monochrom: Economic Recession Wisdom from Sock Puppets. * Monochrom's "Kiki, Bubu, and the Self" * Nazi Petting Zoo * Fisch Interview * Orwell's 1984 deconstructed by puppets * Monochrom's Marxist sock puppets * Monochrom: MyFaceSpace, the musical * Monochrom: Campfire at Will * Monochrom: Falco Stairs * Monochrom: Bar code artist Scott Blake / Falco stencil memorial * Human USB Hack / Very Simple Motor * Mark's Curie Engine / Monochrom's love song for Lessig

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. Klaus Pierre, a French/German actor-waiter-whatever, aspires against all odds to become America's next great action hero. In today's episode, he heads to the hills above Hollywood, where scrub brush and aspiring starlets bask in the sun, to work out with a really mean personal trainer. Warning: episode contains cucumber masks masques and pushups. Previous Klaus Pierre episodes on BBtv: Klaus Pierre: Big Party Klaus Pierre: Super Pretty Action Hero Star Klaus Pierre: The Beach Klaus Pierre: Red Carpet Botox Dreams Klaus Pierre: Pirate Musical of Epic Fail Klaus Pierre: Savate Klaus Pierre: Coffee Shop. Klaus Pierre: Swordfighting Point Break and heartbreak

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. BBtv guest teen haxxor correspondent 5t311a teaches us how to do guerilla t-shirt silkscreening, as described in Cory Doctorow's novel Little Brother, and as detailed in a recent series of Instructables posts. (Thanks, Charis Tobias!)

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. Boing Boing tv's retro-tech correspondent Todd Lappin of Telstar Logistics submerges us in WWII history on the supersized submarine USS Pampanito. This Balao-class ship was built in 1943, and today one of her younger volunteer caretakers schools us on all the gadgets, gizmos, and old-school technology that kept this baby cruising to Pearl Harbor and back. Did you know that subs like this couldn't submerge for more than 24 hours back then, because they'd run out of battery life? Think of it like this, Gen-Y-ers, that's like when your iPhone 3G slides into "red" mode, because you've been twittering too much. Only with people inside. And big guns to shoot bad guys. Pampanito trivia: she's named after this little fishie, prized as a seafood delicacy. Wait, a sushi ingredient? Doesn't sound like a great idea for a WWII military ship! Shot for BBtv by Eddie Codel, during the Long Now Foundation's Mechanicrawl. Previously on BBtv: * Multi-millenial Mechanical clocks (Long Now Mechanicrawl pt. 1) * WWII Boatpunk: Aboard the SS Jeremiah O'Brien, with Todd Lappin (pt. 2) PS: extra-special thanks to Scott Beale of Laughing Squid for hooking BBtv up with Eddie Codel!

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. Boing Boing tv's UK-based music correspondent Russell Porter interviews -- and coaxes an epic street performance from -- Beardyman, the human beatbox from Brighton. This dude is a totally unassuming normal guy who can flip a switch in his brain to make crazy perfect funky human beatbox sounds come out of his mouth. The ladies dig it, as you'll see around 08:13, when he lets loose on the mic with a flock of blonde birds surrounding him. I blogged about Beardyman in 2007 when this crazy cooking video hit the 'tubes. If you're in the mood for still more of him doing his thing, below is a popular YouTube video in which Beardyman shows up at some stuffy academic conference, and poses as a lecturer before breaking out into beats.

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. In this final installment of our TCHO Chocolate trilogy, Xeni and Pesco go on a magical mystery taste test tour -- think Willy Wonka meets The Trip. Former NASA software developer Timothy Childs founded the tech-minded chocolate company, and was joined by WIRED co-founder Louis Rosetto. In previous BBtv episodes we learned about the hacked-together, home-tinkered machines and high-tech wizardry that keep their factory humming. Today we dive in to the genetics of chocolate plants, and the hedonics -- the tasting experience -- of the finished product, where science meets sensuality meets sugar. Oh hell, who are we kidding, you guys? We sat around and GOT HIGH on neuroactive cocoa alkaloids. We freebased theobromine and we LIKED IT. We liked it a LOT. Warning: this episode is NSFC (not safe for chocoholics). Previously on Boing Boing tv: * TCHO, part 1: chocolate origins. * TCHO, part 2: magical machines, mysterious molecules. Related: read a feature about TCHO by David Pescovitz in the current issue of MAKE Magazine, Timothy and the Chocolate Factory. Here are some iPhone snapshots from Xeni on Flickr: TCHO, Boing Boing tv. (Special thanks to Amy Critchett, and Wayne & Breanna)

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. BBtv guest correspondent and blog pal Todd Lappin of Telstar Logistics takes us inside a steam-powered World War II "Liberty Ship," the SS Jeremiah O'Brien. We marvel (!) at the cool old retro-technology that kept this behemoth boat running to and from the beaches of Normandy, and we meet the volunteer caretakers -- obsessive nerds just like us, only with white hair! -- who keep her ship-shape today. Did you know that shipyards in the San Francisco Bay Area once churned out Liberty Ships like this in 4 days or less, during the heat of the war? Watch and learn, li'l skippers. Todd has a rockin' photoset of images from the ship, too. Shot for BBtv by Eddie Codel, during the Long Now Foundation's Mechanicrawl. Previously: Multi-millenial Mechanical clocks - Long Now "Mechanicrawl" pt. 1

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. Today on BBtv, Austrian art collective monochrom return with a new episode of their subversive puppet show: "Kiki and Bubu and the Good Plan." Our socked crusaders explore the connections between Michael Bay, the military-entertainment complex, Web 2.0 business cocktail parties, and the impending collapse of the American economy. * BBtv: Monochrom's "Kiki, Bubu, and the Self" * Nazi Petting Zoo * Fisch Interview * Orwell's 1984 deconstructed by puppets * Monochrom's Marxist sock puppets * Monochrom: MyFaceSpace, the musical * Monochrom: Campfire at Will * Monochrom: Falco Stairs * Monochrom: Bar code artist Scott Blake / Falco stencil memorial * Human USB Hack / Very Simple Motor * Mark's Curie Engine / Monochrom's love song for Lessig Update: monochrom's own "director's cut" of today's episode is here.

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. Today on Boing Boing tv, Xeni is joined by astronaut and American hero Buzz Aldrin, Virgin Galactic founder Sir Richard Branson, Scaled Composites founder Burt Rutan, and other space luminaries for an exploration of private space travel -- the technology, the science, and the human experience. We fly to the Mojave spaceport to witness the unveiling of WhiteKnightTwo carrier aircraft that will carry SpaceShipTwo and passengers on Virgin Galactic suborbital space flights. Related: All about "Eve": Virgin Galactic mothership unveiled.

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. Boing Boing tv's UK-based music correspondent Russell Porter interviews the young experimental jazz band EMPIRICAL, from London. Today's episode includes an extended musical interlude, to ensure the mellowest possible Monday for all the peeps out there in BBtv-land. The band's "influences" roster says it the best: Louis Armstrong, Roy Eldridge, Fats Navarro, Clifford Brown, Booker Little, Miles Davis, Wynton Marsalis, Johnny Hodges, Charlie Parker, Sonny Rollins, Wayne Shorter, John Coltrane, Ornette Coleman, Steve Coleman, Branford Marsalis, Ray Brown, Jimmy Garrison, Bob Hurst, Ron Carter, Paul Chambers, Philly Joe Jones, Elvin Jones, Tony Williams, Ben Riley, Thelonious Monk, Jason Moran, Wynton Kelly, Keith Jarrat, Herbie Hancock, Ali Farka Toure, Oumou Sangare and to many others to list. Previous PORTER REPORT episodes on BBtv: Russell Porter: Hot 8 Brass Band of New Orleans, pt. 1 Hot 8 Brass Band, pt. 2 Russell Porter: Transgressive and rockfeedback.com, pt. 2 Russell Porter roundtable: Transgressive Records, rockfeedback.com, pt. 1 Russell Porter with Alice Russell, pt. 2 Russell Porter with Alice Russell Russell Porter and Cadence Weapon, pt. 1. Russell Porter and Cadence Weapon, pt. 2. Russell Porter with George Pringle Russell Porter with The Young Knives pt 1 Russell Porter with The Young Knives pt 2 Russell Porter with The Futureheads Russell Porter with The Guillotines Russell Porter with Peggy Sue and the Pirates Russell Porter with Dockers MC Russell Porter with Dan le Sac vs. Scroobius Pip

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. Recently on Boing Boing tv, we aired an animated music video by Bill Barminski and Christopher Louie for the Pinker Tones' song "S.E.X.Y. R.O.B.O.T" We loved the band's vibe, and couldn't get enough of the song, so we reached out to this Barcelona-based electronica duo for more. Today on BBtv, a remix of that song, with an alternate video featuring actual real live sexy robots (director: David Lopez). And in part two of today's show, another delightful and new video for their song "Working Bees" (director: The Magical Thinking studio). You can catch the Pinker Tones on tour throughout the USA, including spots on the WARPED tour. (Special thanks to Paul Dryden of Nacional Records)

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. BBtv WORLD is our recently-launched series on Boing Boing tv featuring first-person views of life around the globe. This third episode in our series is the last of a three-part report I filed from a K'iche Maya community in Guatemala. Few foreigners come to this village at 10,000 feet in the highlands. Most glimpses we have of remote indigenous communities like this are through the lenses of outsiders -- like myself. But how better to see their story than through the eyes of the people themselves? Before I left the US for this pueblo a few weeks ago, we asked two companies that produce small, inexpensive, USB camcorders -- Pure Digital (makers of the Flip) and RCA (makers of the Small Wonder) -- to donate a few devices. I brought them to the village, so that some of the adults and young people here could explore what is possible with the tools of video storytelling in their own hands. Today's BBtv WORLD is the result: stories shot by the K'iche people in this village. The world they see around them, through their own eyes and in their own language. Some of what the children shot really surprised me. They caught on right away, faster even than the adults, and quickly taught each other how to record and play back video. Some of them seemed to transform into instant YouTube stars -- new alter-egos showed up out of nowhere. One boy we'd come to know as quiet and well-mannered over the course of many previous visits here shot himself throwing gang signs against the sunlight, like shadow puppets, while he walked a path that leads to a Mayan altar. Another girl who was very shy with us in person recorded video of herself making outrageous silly faces, and speaking in a boisterous, confident voice to her new handheld lens. When I downloaded the footage from their devices, I felt as if I were seeing this place, and these people, for the first time. LINK TO VIDEO on Boing Boing blog.

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. Klaus Pierre, a French/German actor-waiter-whatever, aspires against all odds to become America's next great action hero. In today's episode, he attempts to conquer the greatest challenge ever -- his first big Hollywood party. Drinks, hijinks, and embarassing dance moves ensue. Previous Klaus Pierre episodes on BBtv: Klaus Pierre: Super Pretty Action Hero Star Klaus Pierre: The Beach Klaus Pierre: Red Carpet Botox Dreams Klaus Pierre: Pirate Musical of Epic Fail Klaus Pierre: Savate Klaus Pierre: Coffee Shop. Klaus Pierre: Swordfighting Point Break and heartbreak

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. What would Japan look like through the eyes of a drifter camped in a shantytown near one of Tokyo's trendiest zones? Today on Boing Boing tv, we debut Dowa Mondai: Assimilation Issues, an experimental short film by Bob Jaroc which attempts to provide an answer. The director explains: In the run up to the launch of the 2006 av album Greedy Baby, Plaid (Ed Handley) and myself were on tour in Japan. On a day off in Tokyo I visited a small shantytown in Shibuya I had seen from a train the day before, tucked away in a kids playground. My translator Nick Stone and myself introduced ourselves to a friendly group of people and negotiated permission to pry into their lives and film, in exchange for some food/ cigarettes and wine. My intentions for the piece were to stay clear of making a patronizing "cry/be angry for the homeless people" thing or a romanticized view of that life. I wanted to distill the experiences of the people who took the time to talk to me and question myself why I ended up going there in search of something to film. This was filmed on Kodak vision2 200 super 8 stock with a Beaulieu 6008pro. The neg was cut into 1000 strips and was given away with the 1st 1000 copies of Greedy Baby. Dowa Mondai: Assimilation Issues was made from those rushes/recordings. The short was shot, directed, and edited by Bob Jaroc, with music from Ed Handley (Plaid). Jaroc's past work includes work with other recording artists such as The Go Team and Leila. He has collaborated with artists Chris Dorley Brown, Blast Theory and Zoë Walker and Neil Bromwich. Jaroc has appeared at the Queen Elizabeth hall, the Los Angeles Natural History Musem and the London IMAX, and he is currently working with the dance company Random Dance on a piece that will be headline the main stage at the UK festival The Big Chill. More selected shorts by Jaroc here. Plaid, whose music you hear in the piece, recently remixed a song by Bats for Lashes featured previously on Boing Boing; the 12" of that remix will be out soon. (special thanks to David Pescovitz)

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. In episode 2 of our new BBtv WORLD series, Xeni reports in from a K'iche Maya village in the Guatemalan highlands, and we step inside a traditional Mayan steam bath, or "tuj." This pueblo began as a settlement camp for "environmental refugees" -- people who became displaced after mudslides and floods caused by Hurricane Mitch made their ancestral village unsafe. Survivors packed what belongings they could on their backs and walked miles to a bare patch of cold, windy mountaintop nicknamed "Alaska" for its extreme microclimate. Nearly ten years after the disaster and the subsequent loss of their homes, these people are still struggling for survival. Their traditions are a source of strength, and today we experience one of them -- a small brick hut filled with hot volcanic rocks, steam, and herb branches gathered from nearby mountains. WATCH THIS EPISODE ON BOINGBOING.NET. (Or, download MP4 here) Previously on BBtv WORLD: Episode 1: El Molinero (Guatemala) (image: Xeni Jardin)

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. Boing Boing tv guest correspondent Todd Lappin (R) and cameraninja Eddie Codel (L) trek to the Long Now Foundation's first-ever Mechanicrawl event, and bring back tales of early analog computing, fantastic timepieces, and impossibly eccentric mechanical things. First, Todd speaks with the Long Now Foundation's Alexander Rose about a 10,000-year mechanical clock dreamed up by supercomputer designer Danny Hillis. Next, we listen to a prototype chime mechanism that will ring ten bells in a different sequence each day over the next 10,000 years. Brian Eno and Danny Hillis came up with the algorithm, and a team of tinkerers crafted the contraption to tap out time on a series of Tibetan bowl gongs. Todd has a photoset with snapshots from the Mechanicrawl adventures. See also this previous Laughing Squid post. (Special thanks to Karen Marcelo for image shown in video still)

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. Today Boing Boing tv presents part two of our UK-based music correspondent Russell Porter's interview with the legendary Hot 8 Brass Band, from New Orleans. Band leader Bennie "Big Peter" Pete explains the history of second line, the roots of New Orleans jazz, and what it took to survive as jazz band in the French Quarter. Today's episode is a little longer than usual, so we can include an extended musical number live from the streets of Brighton -- the Hot 8 Brass Band performing their Louisiana-style cover of Marvin Gaye's "Sexual Healing." The band is currently on tour throughout the USA. Enjoy! Previous PORTER REPORT episodes on BBtv: Russell Porter: Hot 8 Brass Band of New Orleans, pt. 1 Russell Porter: Transgressive and rockfeedback.com, pt. 2 Russell Porter roundtable: Transgressive Records, rockfeedback.com, pt. 1 Russell Porter with Alice Russell, pt. 2 Russell Porter with Alice Russell Russell Porter and Cadence Weapon, pt. 1. Russell Porter and Cadence Weapon, pt. 2. Russell Porter with George Pringle Russell Porter with The Young Knives pt 1 Russell Porter with The Young Knives pt 2 Russell Porter with The Futureheads Russell Porter with The Guillotines Russell Porter with Peggy Sue and the Pirates Russell Porter with Dockers MC Russell Porter with Dan le Sac vs. Scroobius Pip

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. Today on Boing Boing tv, we are proud to share the sneak-preview of a television pilot, the AQUABATS! SUPERSHOW!, a live-action and animation program featuring the popular superhero ska band, The Aquabats (MySpace). Jon Berrett of Yo Gabba Gabba explains: This spring the Aquabats completed a pilot for a new television show based on the misadventures of rock and roll's greatest super dude men. The Aquabats have been a band for over a decade, have toured the world, and put out 5 full length studio albums. The AQUABATS! SUPERSHOW! TELEVISION PILOT will have a special screening at the San Diego House of Blues show on July 25th, 2008 [during Comic-Con].. If you already have tickets, you are STOKED! The excerpt we are world-premiering on BBtv today is an animated portion of the show's first episode, and includes angry mushrooms, vengeful unicorn princesses, and a subterranean paradise with lakes of hot pink lava. The AQUABATS! SUPERSHOW! also includes live performance and real-world hijinks. We think it's pretty awesome. (Huge thanks from all of us at Boing Boing to Jon Berrett and the crew at Yo Gabba Gabba, and to The Aquabats for allowing Boing Boing to share this first with the non-subterranean world!)

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. Continuing in the Blade Runner theme of our most recent Boing Boing tv episode, today BB Gadgets editor Joel Johnson speaks with artist and futurist Syd Mead about this rare treasure -- the only one in the world! -- spotted during a BBtv shoot in Mead's home and studio. So what is that, Joel? A one-of-a-kind official LEGO version of Mead's "Spinner" flying car from Blade Runner, presented to Syd by LEGO when he attended a design summit in Billund. Syd let me pick it up and swoop it around my head like a child. LEGO and Blade Runner, two great tastes that taste great together. More on the story in this episode, and more iPhone snapshots from the shoot here. If you like this BBtv episode, you might want to pick up: BLADE RUNNER: THE FINAL CUT [Amazon] VISUAL FUTURIST: The Art Artwork courtesy of Syd Mead Inc.)

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. The 1982 cyberpunk cinema classic Blade Runner remains one of the most influential science fiction movies of all time, and tops many a nerd's favorite films list. Today on Boing Boing tv, Boing Boing Gadgets editor Joel Johnson visits the studio of artist and futurist Syd Mead, who designed the film's dystopian look and feel. We learn about the "erotic machine" he dreamed for the replicant Zhora (this breast-shaped dreampod was cut from the script when director Ridley Scott ran out of dough), the 1 2 3 *4* alternate opening scenes designed by Syd (one of them, which involved shoveling dead bodies, was deemed "too Holocaust"), what really lights up those building facades, and many more secrets. Syd explains he envisioned the world of Blade Runner as a place "you wouldn't want to be for too long," and describes the challenges of designing for "a love story with moralistic underpinnings... if we could actually make people, would we treat them like dishwashers? Just use them up and throw them away?" If you like this episode, you might want to pick up: BLADE RUNNER: THE FINAL CUT [Amazon] VISUAL FUTURIST: The Art Artwork courtesy of Syd Mead Inc.)

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. On behalf of all my Boing Boing and Boing Boing tv colleagues, I'm excited and proud to announce the debut of a new series within our daily video program: BBtv World. This ongoing series will feature first-person glimpses of life around the world, told through the lenses and voices of Boing Boing editors, guest collaborators -- and through the people in these places, their own stories, their own way. When we can, we want to place the camera directly in the hands -- literally -- of the people whose lives, cultures, and lands we're visiting. We're kicking this off with an episode I shot during a recent visit in a K'iche Maya village in the highlands of Guatemala, where I go a few times a year to work on sustainable development projects with an international project managed with local indigenous leaders. "El Molinero," the title of this debut piece, refers to the corn mill where young girls go every day to grind soaked, hulled corn ("nixtamal") into soft dough for tortillas or tamales (in K'iche, "k'osh"). The old machine -- hacked together by local craftsman from various components -- is extremely loud, spews smelly fuel exhaust, and like many aspects of daily life and work here, is dangerous. The K'iche girls you see in this episode helped me shoot some of what you see. In future episodes, they'll tell their stories themselves, and we'll visit other places -- Tibet, Africa, Mexico, China, India, and Japan, to name a few of the destinations planned. WATCH THIS VIDEO ON BOINGBOING.NET.

Can't see the video? Watch this video now in a browser or download this video now. Today on Boing Boing tv, Xeni and Pesco dive deeper into the magical chocolate factory founded by a NASA software developer. In this installment of BBtv's 3-part series on TCHO Chocolate, we learn more about the hacked-together, home-tinkered machines and high-tech wizardry that keep the factory running. The philosophy is "scrappy, not crappy," as founder Timothy Childs explains. TCHO's R&D lab contains such diverse components as Space Shuttle tape, a modded RONCO turkey oven, stone grinders used in Indian restaurants, and deconstructed space heater parts from the local hardware store. Next, we zoom in to the molecular-level science behind this most delicious confection. Science buffs, rejoice! This episode is as fun for your eyes and brain as the "obsessively good" chocolate is for your mouth -- Polymorph fun for the whole family. Warning: this episode is NSFC (not safe for chocoholics). Previously on Boing Boing tv:* TCHO, part 1: chocolate origins. Related: read a feature about TCHO