As we've previously mentioned, our pal Scott Hansen a.k.a Iso50 has quite the penchant for producing premium prints. Okay, now that we've got all of the alliteration out of our system we can tell you that he's also one hell of a musician, serving as the sole soundsmith behind the band Tycho, which “creates rolling sonic landscapes that extend off into the horizon and blends swirling melodies into vaguely triumphant arcs that crisscross between stuttering beats and vocal samples”. Hansen's musical tendencies seem to compliment his artistic ones so it certainly makes sense that they be displayed in concert with one another at an actual concert. If you find yourself in Chicago on February 23rd, you may want to check out both of his talents in action at Chill Out Momi at Millenium Park. There he'll be taking the stage as Tycho, with his visuals will also being part of the display. The show also includes music by Jonah Sharp and more visuals provided by Video Janitor with specials guests Ramp Chicago. If you can't make it you can always check out Scott's print work at his Iso50 shop.

A spring record preview, simple enough. But, dear God, everyone and their step-mom are putting out a record between now and June. Maybe in the way that terrible Christmas movies get dumped on us in November and December, musicians and their production teams are squeezing out records this spring so that you can blare them from your car once the sun comes out for longer than eight hours.

In a series of heads-ups, we'd like to offer a preview of the tastiest of the spring bounty. And while sometimes it is nice to make a giant lent calendar up to the release of Mariah's new jam, we'll start with immediacy so you know to start saving up. Here's some for February, ranked in order of the amount of ants it puts in our pants.

1. Estelle — Shine: This woman is fierce. This London-bred hip hop songstress' sophomore release from John Legend's Homeschool Records label is going to annihilate. Here's a hint: go to YouTube and watch her video for “Wait A Minute (Just a Touch).” Shine, dropping on 2/12, will feature the production and guests from R&B royalty: Will.I.Am (Wait. “Royalty?” Hmm.), Swizz Beats, Mark Ronson, Cee-lo, Kanye and Wyclef. The last being her future tour partner. This woman's voice is powerful and captivating, and she uses it for good with raps and vocal flights that will command you to bob your head and maybe even get up and dance. Seriously, you'll have no choice.

2. Goldfrapp — Seventh Tree: We've been patient. We deserve this. If Black Cherry, the 2004 release featuring the mega-hits “Train,” “Strict Machine” and “Twist,” wasn't enough, in 2006 we were given Supernature. Alison Goldfrapp is a woman who loves her synths, neon, and new gave glam, and can you blame her? Anyone drunk enough to be on a dance floor when “Strict Machine” kicks in knows that this combination is damn near genius. Now, Seventh Tree is probably going to be a little bit weird. We'd expect nothing less. She and her bandmate Will Gregory are reporting a more ambient and downbeat vibe this time around, akin to the sexiness that is Air. A trip-hop record from Goldfrapp? Yes, please! (2/26)

3. Hot Chip — Made In The Dark: Alright, honestly, we've listened to it. And it is good. Very good. 2006's The Warning was pure magic, from “And I Was A Boy From School” to “So Glad To See You,” it was utterly listenable. But we wouldn't want The Warning V 2.0 in 2008. No we want to see Hot Chip flex their creative muscles; and that they did. Made In The Dark is a bit choppier, a bit more electro-dance, a bit harder and a bit weirder. The first single, “Ready For The Floor,” is a good indication of the joy to be reaped from Made in the months to come. (2/5)

4. Vampire Weekend — Vampire Weekend: Looks like we have another buzz-worthy web superstar on our hands here. The full-length debut of these Columbia boys promises to be swept to the rafters of critic lists in the family of Clap Your Hands and Beirut. Naturally, these four white boys are highly inspired by African popular music and specialize in what they call the “Upper West Side Soweto.” A tested single has been stamped with approval by Rolling Stone, the infectious “Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa” was named to their top 100 tracks of 2007. Big things are in store for these New York gents, big things like a massive national tour plus some dates in the UK culminating in a Coachella finale. (1/29)

5. Jason Collett — Here’s To Being Here: And then for the Asthmatic Kitty/Arts & Crafts devotees, we have Jason, a charmer on his guitar and vocal delivery. A sometime member of Broken Social Scene, Collett delivered Idols of Exile in 2005, his third solo effort. It's one of those warmers, it grows on you, and soon you like those four songs more than the first three you liked. “Hangover Days” really charmed the pants off suckers for Canadian indie pop, with the angelic and delightful presence of a one Miss Emily Haines, as did “We All Lose One Another” and “I'll Bring The Sun.” Leslie Feist and Amy Milan lend a hand, too, not so shabby. Idols is sun-drenched alt-country with clappers and heart-hurting romantic lyricism. Perfect for a taste of oncoming warmth. (2/5)

Honorable mentions for February: Foxy Brown, Jack Johnson, Lightspeed Champion, Shelby Lynne (2/5), Nada Surf, Michael Jackson re-issue, Lil Wayne (2/12), Bon Iver, Mountain Goats, Crystal Castles (2/19), Beach House, Janet Jackson, plus Los Campesinos! and Nas (2/26).

For the longest time, the easiest way to keep track of what was happening on your block was to spend an entire day positioned at your front door gazing alertly through your favorite pair of binoculars, giving you precious little time to handle personal matters and frankly making your neighbors a little nervous. Thanks to the advent of Everyblock, a site dedicated to giving you the most local version of the lowdown, you can put those binoculars down and think about skipping your neighborhood watch shift. The site which currently only covers the hood happenings in San Francisco, New York, and Chicago alerts residential readers on matters ranging from building code violations and business reviews to crime reports…and that's just the tip of the iceberg. The site also offers a forum for lost and found items and a missed connections section. It's like if Craigslist came right up to your front door.

Last year, Diesel sent frequent collaborator and bare-body-parts-loving photographer Terry Richardson on a worldwide jaunt for their From Rio to Hong Kong exhibit, which is yep, already over by now. But while he was in Rio de Janeiro shooting the show’s inclusions, Diesel’s Brazilian team pegged the idea to put a book together of just the photos he took of the Cariocas in the Wonderful City. Rio, Cidade Maravilhosa features some of Rio’s celebrities like actress Camila Pitanga mixed in with smooching drag queens, frolicking beach boys and girls at Ipanema’s Posto 9 section of beach, and rowdy baile funk partygoers — probably the only time that all these different groups can be found in such close proximity to each other at the same time, the same place, and in perfect T&A harmony. But the bad news: The book’s currently only available at Diesel stores in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, but according to Rio bookseller Travessa, it’ll hit a fine bookstore near you (check Colette and stores in L.A.) eventually. Cruise by some of the photos at RG Vogue’s site here, Globo’s here and watch a trailer for the book here.

The Munich Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Ludwig Wicki will be bringing the award winning score to Lord of The Rings into the concert hall in a few months for a handful of lucky folks. Howard Shore’s amazing score will be played by this incredible orchestra as the 3-hour film is projected live, alongside the musicians (very bad ass). The music of LOTR (yes my precious, I’m a fan), is considered among film music’s most complex and comprehensive work. If you’re in Munich this Spring, grab your tickets here for the shows which will surely sell out the 26th and 27th of March 2008. Rumor is this will happen stateside as well, presumably in NYC very soon. Thanks Jordan!

One of the best panels at Davos was The Future of Mobile Technology, a casual discussion with a star studded lineup of panelists. SK Telecom CEO Kim Shin-Bae, Eric Schmidt, CEO of Google, FCC Chairman Kevin Martin, Sony CEO (and funnest guy ever) Sir Howard Stringer, NBC’s Jeff Zucker, and China Mobile CEO Wang Jianzhou.
A couple of interesting (and some mind blowing) things:

• China Mobile adds 6 million subscribers a month to its base of 317 Million. An audience member asked if they had plans to expand outside China, and Mr Wang essentially answered, why — there’s a long way to go in China. SMS is bread and butter to them, on New Years day users sent more than 5 billion text messages.

• SK Telecom also owns a record label, advertising agency, and several other Korean assets. They’re incredibly integrated.

• Google’s Eric Schmidt is always interesting to hear — he’s calm and calculated. He discussed Google’s Android a bit, and thinks advertising on mobile will reach a tipping point over the next few years.

• Hilarious and fun-loving Sony CEO and Chairman Sir Howard Stringer (I had dinner with him the night before) joked when someone asked him about the new Sony OLED screens, that “making a profit on consumer electronics is one of our goals.” They’re suffering a tough time across many of their businesses.

• It was very surprising to hear no discussion of health concerns around mobile devices, and when I asked FCC Chairman Kevin Martin about it — he misunderstood my question thinking I was asking about using mobile technology FOR health benefits. Funny.

Mike from TechCrunch plopped himself front and center and has an awesome roundup of the discussion I didn’t cover here.