Recent Posts
- And you were a Crow … The Parlor Mob
- Begin creating you own custom Wordpress Theme – Part 1
- Understanding Wordpress Themes
- Delivered with a level of passion and soul … Carlos Santana
- Love escalators? This could all change …
- The Butterfly and the Pig
- I Started Out With Nothin’ and I Still Got Most of it Left!
- The Growing Empire of Johnny Cupcakes…
- David Garibaldi Speed Painter
- Using Wordpress as a CMS
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- The Growing Empire of Johnny Cupcakes… (1 Comment)
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And you were a Crow … The Parlor Mob
Posted on Tuesday 23rd Feb 2010
I have recently come across a superb New Jersey band called “The Parlor Mob”. Named after a 19th Century gang with the same name I initially heard a song by them on the radio titled “Hard Times” and was straight away drawn to them. They are one of the few modern bands that I consider to play good old rock and roll music.
Forme
d back in 2004, the four-piece band consisting of guitarists Paul Ritchie and David Rosen drummer Sam Bey, bassist Nicholas Villapiano, and vocalist Mark Melicia released their debut album in 2008 called “And You Were A Crow” and my initial thoughts were Led Zeppelin.
Quite a statement you might be thinking? Well, I am a huge fan of Led Zeppelin and in my eyes there will only ever be one Led Zeppelin, however that doesn’t stop other bands adapting a similar style as many bands over the years have done.
The album has 12 excellent tracks with my personal favourite being the opening track “Hard Times”. The track starts with a short but intense drum blast from Sam Bey that is then backed up with powerful Angus Young type guitar riffs from Paul and David. Mark on vocals delivers an incredible shrieking performance that even the incredible Robert Plant would enjoy. The rest of the album follows suit, with lengthy guitar solos and piercing vocals.
The Parlor Mob experiment a lot with several different rock conventions such as Alternative and Blues Rock which can be heard on the superb track #3 titled “Everything You’re Breathing For”. I am not sure when or if they going to release any more albums but I hope they do as this album in years to come could become a classic.
For more information about the band check out their official website.
Posted in Music | No Comments »
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StumbleBegin creating you own custom Wordpress Theme – Part 1
Posted on Tuesday 16th Feb 2010
If you are looking to use Wordpress as a fully blown Content Management System you will have to learn how to create your own custom theme. I recommend reading the article I posted called “Understanding Wordpress Themes” first, as it will give you a good understanding of how themes work in Wordpress.
First off I suggest setting up a new testing Wordpress Installation if you all ready have a live website. This way you can experiment with your theme and it will not affect your live website. This is a pretty straightforward procedure; it is just a matter of creating a new folder in the root of your remote directory and uploading the latest version of Wordpress to this folder ensuring that you have entered all your database details in the “wp-config.php” file. The name of the folder is not too important but for the purpose of this article I have gave it the name “testing”. Once you have uploaded Wordpress you can complete the installation by loading it in your browser by entering the name of the new folder you created along with the location of the Wordpress installation file like so:
www.yourdomain.com/testing/wp-admin/install.php
When you are working with themes you only need to be concerned with the “wp-content/themes” directory on your remote installation as this is where your themes must be uploaded. I recommend using the default theme that is in this directory as a starting point, because it all ready has all the default page templates. So to get started you will need to get your files organised locally to make it as quick and simple as possible to upload your files.
When working with FTP clients I recommended at the beginning configuring the default local and remote directories. This greatly simplifies uploading theme files, as it will by default go to the correct directories when you login. When choosing your default local directory, select the newly created “testing” folder on your computer and when selecting the remote folder choose “wp-content/themes”.
I like to organise my local folders in a specific way to make it as simple and easy as possible to edit and upload the files. See below what my local setup would be when working with the new “testing” Wordpress website.
Local Site Map
- Testing (root)
- www (subfolder)
- images (folder)
- all mages used
- js (folder)
- 404.php
- archive.php
- comments.php
- footer.php
- header.php
- index.php
- page.php
- single.php
- style.css
- sidebar.php
- functions.php
- images (folder)
- source files (subfolder)
- photoshop (folder)
- any photoshop files
- other (folder)
- all other files
- photoshop (folder)
- www (subfolder)
As you can see above I only have the theme files locally as you never really need to touch any of the other files within Wordpress.
… so far you should have:
Created a testing Wordpress website on your host
Configured your FTP clients local and remote directories
Organised your local folders to suit working with Wordpress
Footnotes
When we are talking about Local and Remote Directories, the difference between these two is any file that is on your local directory means that the file is on your computer and any file that is on the remote directory is on your web host or server.
If you would like any further help with what I have talked about so far leave me a comment and I will get back to you as soon as possible.
Posted in Tutorials | No Comments »
Understanding Wordpress Themes
Posted on Monday 15th Feb 2010
If you are a newbie to Wordpress and are wanting to customise the design and layout of your website, you will firstly have to understand how Wordpress themes work. This is a very important part to learn as it will allow you to fully utilise the power that Wordpress possesses.
Every Wordpress website is controlled by a specific set of files that work together to generate the front end user interface, which is basically what you see when you load the website up in your browser. These files consist of a stylesheet and various template files that make up your website theme. In the most basic form a theme could consist of the following files:
header.php
index.php
single.php
page.php
archive.php
404.php
comments.php
search.php
footer.php
style.css
All these are standard theme files therefore Wordpress will recognise these as templates and use them accordingly. Wordpress retrieves these template files depending on the action the user has performed on the website. For example if the user does a search, the “search.php” template will be called, if they load the comments page, the “comments.php” template will be called and if they request an archive item, yes you guessed it, the “archive.php” will be called.
However, it is possible to add your own custom templates to the theme so that you are able to control individual pages of your website. Controlling individual pages is extremely important when using Wordpress as a Content Management System, as you might want to use a different layout or call specific content to these pages. An example of custom template files could be a blog page or a news page. For my own website I have the following template files:
index.php
single.php (I have multiple single templates files setup)
page.php
archive.php
404.php
comments.php
search.php
blog.php (custom template)
portfolio.php (custom template)
category.php (custom template)
As you can see above I have created several customised template pages so that my content can be displayed on my website exactly how I want. To create a custom template for your website you will have to define this as a template by adding a specific PHP tag to the top of the file. See below for an example.
<?php
/* Template Name: portfolio */
?>
To define a new theme a specific comment must be placed at the top of the stylesheet. What these comments do, is give the theme a unique name, which enable Wordpress to identify it as an actual theme. Below shows the comment used on the stylesheet within the default Wordpress theme.
Theme Name: WordPress Default
Theme URI: http://wordpress.org/
Description: The default WordPress theme based on the famous <a href=”http://binarybonsai.com/kubrick/”>Kubrick</a>.
Version: 1.6
Author: Michael Heilemann
Author URI: http://binarybonsai.com/
Tags: blue, custom header, fixed width, two columns, widgets
*/
All your theme files are located in subdirectories residing in “wp-content/themes”.
I have tried to explain as clearly as think I can how Wordpress themes work and I hope that someone finds this post useful. If you would like additional information or help on understanding Wordpress themes please leave a comment and I will respond as soon as possible.
In my next “Tutorial” post I will discuss theme development further by showing how to begin creating your own custom Wordpress Theme.
Posted in Tutorials | 1 Comment »
Delivered with a level of passion and soul … Carlos Santana
Posted on Saturday 13th Feb 2010
Today I was having a look around at the various websites of the artists that I like, to see who I thought had the best. One of the best that I had come across was the website of the legendary Latin blues man Carlos Santana. However I use”Latin Blues” lightly as he has an ever evolving sound that can wander into many other genres.
Anyone who has listened to his music will know the visionary type of music that he plays and this is heavily referenced on his website, through the use of eccentric colours, images and patterns. When you first enter the website straight away you can see that the use of media is a very dominant part of the design as it used to convey the artistic personality of Carlos. This is reinforced by the very slight rotation in the background of the website which adds that little extra touch of class.
Santana is not only renowned for his humanitarian work but also is responsible for an incredible project titled “Architects of a new Dawn”. Sounds interesting doesn’t it? Well, the aim or vision of this project is to bring people from all walks of life together to create a new, positive change in our world.
Santana states on the “Architects of a new Dawn” website:
“As the title implies, my vision for AOAND is a multi-tiered media company whose approach to building a new reality for the planet is based on inspiration, creativity, love & forgiveness. This is where my passion lies, and I wish to bring it forth by combining music, sacred thoughts and inspirational media.”
The reason that I bring AOAND up is because you get the impression from his own website that he is very positive and forward thinking man and that if we all participate together we can create something spectacular.
I initially thought of one of my favourite albums by Santana, which is “Supernatural” when I was on the website due to the similar style of cover art used. This album features a lot collaborations with various artists such as Eagle Eye Cherry, Lauryn Hill and Rob Thomas. I especially like the Rob Thomas collaboration which you can view on uTube video below.
I highly recommend checking his website out, I doubt you will be disappointed.
Posted in Music | No Comments »
Love escalators? This could all change …
Posted on Friday 12th Feb 2010
Came across this video while stumbling on my lunch break. An interesting concept, but could get annoying after a while!
Posted in Videos | 2 Comments »
The Butterfly and the Pig
Posted on Thursday 11th Feb 2010
Is there a better way to spend your weekend than chilling back, having a beer while listening to good old rock n’ roll? Well over the past few weekends this is how I have been spending mine, at the originally named “The Butterfly and the Pig”.
I have been living in Glasgow now for almost six months and I am kicking myself that I have only started going here as it has quickly become one of my favourite weekend hangout spots. When you first arrive at “The Butterfly and the Pig” and peer down at the old style basement bar you will not initially be aware of the treasure that lies beneath you. I was guilty of this so this is my chance to make up for it.
When you ascend down the stairs and enter “The Butterfly and the Pig” you will straight away be grabbed by the atmosphere through the great music and the big crowd that has gathered. As you make your way to the bar you will be struck by the old fashioned eccentric decor from the mismatched furniture to the music note plastered walls. You really are given a sense that you have stepped back in time and you could easily imagine Chuck Berry, Little Richard or Carl Perkins sitting at the bar sipping on, as John Lee Hooker once sang “One Bourbon, One Scotch and One Beer”.
The music is what really sets it apart for me from every other bar I have been to so far in Glasgow. As of now I have only been on either a Friday or Saturday night with the latter being my favourite. Their house band “The MeatMen” play every Saturday night and I highly recommend coming to see them. “The MeatMen” are a four piece band that play classics by greats such as Chuck Berry, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins. Check out there Myspace below.
www.myspace.com/themeatmenglasgow
It doesn’t stop there as the bathrooms are decorated in a similar style to the rest of the bar, with dark green and red tiles covering each wall. In a border type fashion several of the tiles have the outline of a Butterfly and Pig on them which I thought was an especially nice touch. The huge old fashioned sink and over hanging taps again reinforce the genre.
Located near the heart of the City center, the bar lies on Bath Street and I highly recommend anyone who enjoys good music, good atmosphere and best of all a good time to pay “The Butterfly and the Pig” a visit when they can. Their website is currently under construction but here is the link below for when they get it up and running.
Posted in Random | No Comments »
I Started Out With Nothin’ and I Still Got Most of it Left!
Posted on Tuesday 9th Feb 2010
These past few days at work I have been listening a lot to a guy called Seasick Steve on Spotify. I really like this guys style, it so different and original from everyone at the moment.
I first became aware of Seasick Steve on Later with Jools Holland a couple of years back. I was amazed how he could create the deep southern blues sound with some of the most peculiar instruments you will ever see. These include a “Three-String Trance Wonder”, “One-Stringed Diddley Bow”, “Mississippi Drum Machine” and the “Morris Minor Guitar”. I’m not going to go into detail on these but there is always a little known search engine called Google!
I will however provide some thoughts on his music and I highly recommend his album titled, “I Started Out With Nothin’ and I Still Got Most of it Left”. Isn’t this just one of the best album names you have ever heard?
The self confessed hobo who has come from a poor background has not forgotten who or what he is through his fame, he just loves to play the blues. This in my eyes is a great trait for anyone and I think the above album title reflects this.
Check the album out at his official website below.
Posted in Music | No Comments »
The Growing Empire of Johnny Cupcakes…
Posted on Tuesday 9th Feb 2010
Originally started as a joke back in 2001 by Johnny Earle, this clothing brand is now known by Millions over the world. The brands symbol is a skull and crossbones, with a cupcake replacing the skull. Have a look at the uTube video below to see his awesome shop.