at long last...

just picked up this multi-region multi-format DVD player off ebay. it plays all of the following formats:

Playback Media: CD, CD-R/CD-RW, Video CD/SVCD, DVD, DVD-R/-RW, DivX, DVD+R/+RW

Compression formats: MPEG1, MPEG2, DivX 3.11, DivX 4.x, DivX 5.x, DivX 6.0, DivX Ultra

so this means i don't need to unplug my laptop from the studio and move it into the lounge every time i want to play a movie. plus we can play carole's region 2 DVDs now AND if i download a movie i can burn a quick data disc onto a DVD-RW and play it, then erase the disc for the next movie i want to see. we had a system like this when we were living in glasgow and it was kick-ass, but it's been a pain in the ass to find a region-free DVD player in north america.

in other news, i put together my first full length 'test-press' of my new mix. i've got the structure of the mix down, with all the tunes in the right places. now i've just got to get my Zombootie remix mastered and then start going over the whole mix with a fine-tooth comb and tweak little bits of it here and there. the cool thing about ableton is that i can basically remix tracks as i mix them in. while that leaves a lot more options open it also increases the amount of details i need to finalize when i do a studio recording. at the end of the day, it's like every other creative thing i do: at some point i just need to cut myself off and say "this is done, release it" otherwise i would just keep fidgeting with details forever. anyway, if everything goes as planned i should hopefully be able to release this mix at some point during next week! i should probably stop saying that, given that it always takes way longer than i expect...