If this thing existed in real life, you best believe that I’d have two of them parked in front of my crib and ready to attack at a moment’s notice. Or fly me to Nantucket should I need to get away from it all.

Sculpted in 1977 by artist Patricia Renick, the “Triceracopter: Hope for the Obsolescence of War” is supposed to show how “ancient” the notion of war has become.

Ironically it’s as appropriate now was it was in the 1970s.

Hopefully when scientists start cross breeding weapons with animals (even extinct ones!) it’ll turn out something like this.

Via: Gizmodo

No matter how thin or light you think that fancy HDTV you got over the holidays is, it’s still too thick and heavy.

Well, at least compared to  JVC’s upcoming 32 inch Prototype TV.

Weighing in at a waif-y 11 pounds, and measuring just over 7mm thick, this model will be the envy of all of the other chubby flatscreens on storeshelves and will most likely inspire all of the other TV manufacturers to put their future releases on a strict diet.

Let me start this off by saying that (from a consumer perspective) I think Microsoft is a great brand. Aside from the fact that I spent most of Christmas day trying to get my aunt’s Dell to work with Windows Vista, I really have no qualms with the company.

Plus they make Xbox, and as we all know, Xbox is pretty awesome.

But the only thing that consistently irks me about the software giant (see what I did there?) is that when it comes to naming their products, they fail.

Some would even say, epically.

(Note: I’m deading that series. It’s 2009 and time for um, change.)

Take the upcoming software battle that’s going to Microsoft’s Windows 7 vs. Apple’s Snow Leopard for example.

I’ve haven’t been privy to check out either of these platforms, but based solely on their names alone, I’m going to have so say that Apple’s Snow Leopard is going to kick Microsoft 7′s virtual ass, simply for the fact that it has a much cooler name. In fact, Apple’s big cat stance has been sonning Microsoft’s numerical offerings since they released OSX Cheetah in 2001.

You know what Microsoft released in 2001?

Windows XP.

To date, Apple’s OSX platform has released iterations dubbed “Puma,”  ”Panther,” and “Tiger.”

(Maybe Cougar will drop when Apple’s old and withered but still looking for nubile young creatives.)

Microsoft on the other hand, has dropped programs with imposing names like  ”Windows XP Professional x64 Edition” and “Windows Home Server.”

Which means that if Apple ever wanted to ether Microsoft’s chances of winning the operating system name game, they could just drop the biggest cat of all, OSX Lion, to which Microsoft could counter with the ever imposing, Windows 8.

Rather than releasing tee shirts with Common and mud colored versions of the Zune, Microsoft should dedicate their resources to stepping up their product name game.

The Audi R8 V10 will become the first commercially available (if you have $130,000 or so to drop) car to only have LED lights in all of its illumination components, including headlamps, turn signals and brake lights.

Audi’s eventual goal is to have the LED lights behave “smartly” by adapting to driving conditions.

Not since Honda Civic headlights were getting jacked in the mid-90′s has there been this much craze for roadway illumination.

As part of my civic duty to you, the readers of GIANTmag.com, I played a bunch of video games, so you didn’t have too. Please, hold your praises. So in honor of the long weekend, I compiled a list of what games to check out what games to buy or rent before you gobble down seven pounds of turkey. This way you’ll be thoroughly entertained while fighting off the effects of of tryptophan.

Need for Speed: Undercover

After hitting a few bumps in past iterations, Need For Speed pulls a 180 and shifts back into its former glory. Liberally borrowing (or outright stealing, depending on your affinity for the film) from the plot of The Fast and the Furious, Undercover puts you in the driver’s seat as an undercover cop on who’s out to stop an international ring of thieves. Along for the ride, is Maggie Q, who will serve as your partner and tutorial as you weave in and out of the mean streets of fictitious city that’s a composite of Los Angeles and San Francisco. Missions include evading the cops (always fun), delivering a stolen car in mint condition and check point races.

Undercover excels in what the made the original Need for Speed games great – pedal to floor, tire smoking, gear grinding racing. From stock cars like the Audi A4 and Ford Focus ST to exotics like the Mercedes SLR McLaren 722 Edition and Shelby GT 500, Undercover delivers a nice garage full of slick rides.

Though it won’t go down as the best racing game in the NFS franchise, Undercover does have some grand moments as it delivers over the top racing and come action packed chases.

*RENT IT*

Need for Speed: Undercover is available now for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Left 4 Dead

Just like a trip the beach, a good bottle of shiraz, and cold bloody revenge, Left 4 Dead is a first person shooter best enjoyed with friends. The plot is simple: it’s the zombie apocalypse (when isn’t it the zombie apocalypse?) and you’re one of the last four surviving humans with enough gall and guts to wield a .22 and buck the undead back into…well, being dead again.

Set over four thrilling well paced campaigns, L4D, presents co-op gaming at its best. Playing with up to three other friends, you’ll need to strategize, collaborate and time your attacks  in order beat back the what can often feel like an overwhelming horde of corpses who want to eat your brains.

Amazingly lit and immaculately paced, Left 4 Dead excels when played with others. If you’re going to play alone, you may want to rent it and just rifle through the campaign. If you’ve got some dedicated zombie killers at your disposable, then *BUY IT*.

Left 4 Dead  is available now exclusively for Xbox 360.

Tomb Raider: Underworld

Sure the movies sucked, but Angelina Jolie was a rather smokin’ Lara Croft. Not to mention, Underworld was that vampire flick where Kate Beckinsale was all leather-suited out, so how could those those two non-exclusive elements not combine to form an a awesome video game? Reaching? Yeah, lil’ bit. Actually, lots.

Tomb Raider: Underworld is a welcome break from the monotony of first person shooters that have flooded the market these past two months.

(Seriously, game developers, how many things can you expect us to shoot?)

Though it boasts a healthy mix of platforming and puzzle solving, Underworld sadly resumes some of the more trouble elements that have plagued past installments of the franchise such as awkward cameras angles, convoluted story line and poor voice acting. However if you can get past those elements, Tomb Raider: Underworld presents a good weekend of CGI-spelunking.

*RENT IT*

Tomb Raider: Underworld is available now for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Hitting ESC Toys eBay shop this Friday November 28, will be Muraida “Midnight Snack.”

Going on sale at 12am, this gruesome vinyl figure will not only strike fear into the hearts of those who cross him, but also make sure (that when strategically placed in front of your fridge), no one raids your week-old Thanksgiving leftovers.

In celebration of their 60th anniversary, sportswear brand adidas threw a massive house party last week in Brooklyn’s hipster hotspot neighborhood of Williamsburg.

Fans of the “brand with the three stripes” filed into to the converted parking garage for free booze, loud sounds and fancy gift bags. During 2009, adidas will continue to celebrate their 60 years of brand heritage through the re-release of signature sneaker models, track jackets and other apparel. Check out what you missed below:

In video games, licensing is a double-edged sword. Using actual properties like sports franchises (Madden ‘09), car manufacturers (Need for Speed: Undercover) and even arms dealers (any Tom Clancy game) allows for a realistic and branded gaming experience. On the other hand, the companies whose products are being featured have a fair amount of say on how their product is represented, and as such, there are certain restrictions as it pertains to use (Grand Theft Auto IV).

Which is why Midway’s second installment in their football of frenzy series, Blitz II: The League, is so much fun to play – but only if you can look past some hurdles. While most licensed football video games skip the gruesome theatrics of players enduring a crushed collarbone or a busted spine, Blitz II makes delivering and receiving injuries the crux of its gameplay.

A taking on the role of an All-Star worthy player, Blitz II puts you in world where nothing is off limits. At the start of the game you’ll run through the usual treats that major league athletes enjoy – being courted by an agent, big deal signing, seductive winks from future ex-girlfriends. These anecdotes are a running theme throughout the game, they’re often executed merely as a humorous gag rather than compelling addition to the story line, rendering them almost obsolete.

Thankfully, Blitz II‘s bone shattering gameplay makes up for what it lacks in the narrative. Whether you’re fresh off the bench or a seasoned pro at playing football games, the easy to navigate control scheme will have you field ready in very little time. During a game, you’ll be able to injure your opponents with moves that would get any real player benched in an instant. Isolate your opponent’s body part and inflict damage to make sure that he’s not going to be a problem on the field later on.

But while Blitz II excels in flat out fun football, it drops the ball when it comes to visuals. Characters are rendered very stiffly, resulting in an unnatural and unrealistic look for a game where the players should be able to bend a move freely.

In short, Blitz II is for the die-hard football gaming fan who thinks that Madden is too soft and want some more gore in their game. If you can look past the awkward animation and lackluster storyline, then Blitz II: The League is the title for you. If not, you can always hope that they’re will eventually be a Mortal Kombat football themed game.

Blitz II: The League is available now for PlayStation 3 and XBOX 360.

If you’re like me, the you enjoy the high octane thrills of whipping a car around a darkly lit suburban street completely legal track at breakneck law-abiding speeds. If you’re also like me, and live in the sprawl of gridlock that is New York City, then your dreams of becoming the next  Speed Racer are probably manifested during late nigh sessions of Midnight Club: Los Angeles.

Luckily, (if you’re in the Tri-state area) you can indulge your need for speed by racing go-karts at the Gran Prix New York, just as Editor-In-Chief Emil Wilbekin, Features Editor Mary HK Choi and myself did today.

(Check out the awesomeness in the gallery below).

Located in Mount Kisco, New York (about 40 minutes north of NYC) the 120,000 square foot indoor racing venue boasts two tracks, room for 1,200 people and a fully stocked bar and restaurant. Student membership is $30 annually and $20 per race.

To find out more, check out Gran Prix New York’s website here.

If there’s on thing that can be said about the Locust Horde, the antagonists in the Gears of War franchise, it’s that they’re persistent. Not content with wreaking havoc on a small scale, these technologically advanced bloodthirsty aliens have progressed to the point where they can now sink entire cities into the underbelly of the Earth.

Lucky for humanity, we’ve got Marcus Fenix and Dominic Santiago.

Picking up the story from a few months after the original, futuristic third-person shooter Gears of War 2 finds Marcus and Dom suiting up, packing heat and heading underground to bring the war to the Locust Horde. Think of it as a retaliatory strike.

Improving on game elements from the original such as cover combat, weapon systems and revival, Gears of War 2 preserves crucial components of gameplay that players are used to, but also refines them, and thus creates new ways to approach combat.

In terms of cover combat – which was the defining element of  Gears of War – the system has been tweaked to allow you to huddle closer to barricades or even pick up a wounded enemy and use them as a shield as you blast your way forward, allowing for newer approaches in close combat situations.

Playing through the game, you’ll amass a decent arsenal, which includes the some other worldly weapons such as a mortar cannon which literally makes it rain metal and Gorgon Burst Pistol, which unloads lead in quick bursts. You’ll need to master some of these if you want to figure out new ways to deal with baddies.

Of course Gears of War 2 wouldn’t named “one of the most anticipated games of 2008″ by nearly every fana and critic if it wasn’t for its complex and robust co-op multiplayer options. There are 10 new multiplayer maps in the game, and different game options include classics like Execution, Assassination, and Annex and a PC option what was featured in the original title, King of the Hill.

Overall, Gears of War 2 differentiates itself enough from its predecessor by adding refined elements and fixing the quirky difficulty issues. By Combining engaging objectives, a visceral combat system, impressive AI and a multi-facted multiplayer system, it’s definitively a must have title for fans of the franchise.

Or those who just really like to shoot things.

Gears of War 2 is available now exclusively for XBOX 360

As one of the launch titles for Play Station 3, Resistance: Fall of Man set the bar for what fans could expect in the early stages of the console. Due to its multi-faceted story and compelling, heart pounding, and frenzied gameplay, the title was met with critical acclaim. When Resistance 2 was announced, fans could only imagine what lay in store for the epic first person shooter and how Insomniac Games could improve upon the original.

Set in an alternate reality in the 1950′s, you’ll reprise the role of R:FOM‘s protagonist Nathan Hale, a soldier who while stationed in England, defeated an invading a technologically advanced alien force known as the Chimera. Hale is infected with a Chimeran virus that allows him to heal his wounds over time.

Picking up where the original game ends, Hale is rescued by a Black Ops team and quickly learns that there are more like him, infected with the Chimera virus and joins a  team to defend the United States from an impending Chimeran invasion.

Resistance 2‘s scope is massively bigger than its predecessor. Levels are more than twice the size of the original. Enemies have also grown to new heights, some so large in scale, they  tower over buildings. In fact, in addition to the run of the mill gun wielding monsters you’ll have to gun down, you’ll encounter aliens whose powers outshine their ability to buck shots. Some can disappear, some simply mob you while others…well, you’ll have to play the game for those surprises.

Graphically, Resistance 2 is a sight to behold. When you’re not making mince meat out of adversaries, there’s so much to take in, from the serene forests to the devastated cities which truly show the processing power of the PS3. The single player campaign should take seasoned player roughly 10-12 hours to complete, but the game’s real appeal comes from it’s massive multiplayer online campaign which can handle up to 60 players in one game and co-op mode, where players can work together to thwart the threat together.

For fans of the first person shooter genre, Resistance 2 sets a new benchmark. While the single player campaign is probably the game’s weakest element, in terms of gameplay length, it does its duty by adding insight to the lore of the franchise. Online is where the game truly excels, creating an experience that’s so massively entertaining and engaging, its potential has to yet to be seen in the realm of conventional gaming.

Resistance 2 is available now exclusively for PlayStation 3.

Presented in full 1080p hi-def resolution, the greatest one-on-one fighting title of all time gets a primere-skinning, allowing for Ryu and Ken to throw crystal clear hadoukens and Chun-Li to execute blinding spinning kicks.

The game features 17 playable characters including fan favorites like Guile and Blanka and new comers like Cammy and Akuma. Players will be able to fight against the computer, other players on the same console and against anyone in the world via online.

Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix will be released for PlayStation Network and XBOX LIVE Arcade. No official release date has been announced.

Japanese technology may excel at making things more compact, but Mitsubishi is bucking that notion with their new 65″ LaserVue HDTV.

Retailing for $7,000, the set utilizes laser technology and consumes less power than conventional LCD and plasma screen TVs. Of course if you get this big-big screen, you’ll need a  wall big enough to mount it on.

Then again, if you’re dropping seven stacks on a 65″ flat panel, your crib can probably handle it, right?

Source

With the release of their supercar the R8 and the refined A4 and A5/S5, it’s clear to see that the German automaker is aiming to revamp the meaning of the word of “sleek.”  Check out the official sketches of their proposed new line up below, which includes the A5 Cabrio, A5 Sportback, A7 and the next iteration of the A8.

Source: Auto Blog

In an ongoing effort to keep your iPhone 3G game fresh, Incase has released the Slider Case Metallic Pack. Available in Gun Metal, Silver, Copper, or Gold finishes, these durable two-part hard shell plastic cases cover the back and sides of the iPhone, and allow access to smart phone’s touchscreen.

Cases retail individually for $34.95 and are available now at Incase’s site and select Apple retailers.

Aside from the ability to anger cops and the ban-all-video games right wing groups, there’s another thing that Rockstar Games’ Midnight Club: Los Angeles shares with the company’s other hit Grand Theft Auto IV – RAGE (as in, Rockstar Advanced Game Engine).

Running on RAGE, MC: LA is able to deliver a next-gen racing title that’s a visceral racing experience that takes place in an open world rendition of Los Angeles.

As with most racing games, the plot centers around you trying to prove to the underground racing community that you’ve got “it,” while taking on rival racers and their crews in a effort to bolster your rep and ultimately become the street king of the City of Angels.

Along the way, you’ll get being the wheel of rides from the tuner, muscle, exotic and bikes classes, whose ranks respectively include: Mazda’s 2008 RX-8, a Dodge’s 1970 Challenger R/T, Aston Martin’s 2008 DB9 Vanquish and Kawasaki’s 2008 Ninja ZX14. Like its predecessor Midnight Club: Dub Edition, MC:LA’s customization options are almost limitless, allowing a racer to trick out anything from rim sizes and type, to painting individual panels of a car in different colors and upgrade performance and body style. Then, there’s the vinyl editor, which can be used to create or modify any sticker. But MC:LA’s real thrills come from revving past the redline in races, which due to solid controls are .

The types of races you’ll take on include simple time trials, point-to-point races, and highway races. As you burn rubber from the outskirts of Beverly Hills to the glitzy streets of West Hollywood, you’ll encounter every street racers biggest foe, the police. Though the police aren’t overwhelming difficult in MC:LA, but they can prove to be a nuisance, as they’ll try to ram you off the road and total out your ride so they can arrest you. However there are some instances when 5-0 pulls over you that you can make a mad dash back into your car and leave them in dust and earn rep points.

But while you may be able to escape the long arm of the law with ease, you won’t be able to do the same with other racers. MC: LA’s overall difficulty is a few notches higher than previous installments, which may prove frustrating for first time players and casual veterans of the franchise. But like learning to drive a stick-shift, if you practice a little, you’ll be able to master the courses. If that still proves to be too difficult, you can hop online and through multiplayer play against up to 16 other players in a variety of games.

Midnight Club: Los Angeles is available now for PlayStation 3 and XBOX 360.

In related news: Midnight Club: Los Angeles and Jordan Brand have teamed up for a limited edition sneaker. Check it out here.

If you’re in the market for a new digital camera, you may want to check out latest installment in Canon’s G series, the 14.7 Megapixel PowerShot G10.

Amateur and professional shutterbugs will not only relish the G10′s 3″ LCD menu screen, but also its DIGIC 4 image processor, which improves signal processing speed and outputs higher picture quality.

The G10 is also smaller in size than a typical camera of its caliber, essentially putting the power of a high performance unit to the body that’s relatively the size of a point-and-shoot.

Available now at Canon retailers, the G1O retails for approximately $500, and comes with a battery, charger, neck strap, USB and A/V interface cables, Canon Digital Solutions Software CD, and a 1-year limited warranty.

In a world overrun with first person shooters and hack-and-slash games, comes one title that dares to be…different. That is to say, Media Molecule’s LittleBigPlanet is perhaps the most fun game you’ll play all year that doesn’t involve gunning down bloodthirsty aliens or taking on the role of an easily agitated non-descript Eastern European man on a violent quest for revenge.

LBP throws you into seemingly psychotropic induced re-imaging of the world, which looks like it was pulled from the most creative recesses of Tim Burton’s brain. You take on the roll of a “Sackboy,” an androgynously charming creature who hops, jumps and plops himself into precarious situations. LBP’s single player campaign clocks in at about seven hours, and is best enjoyed playing with up to three other friends.

But it’s the online multiplayer component where this quirky little platformer truly shines. Playing through the single player campaign, you unlock elements from throughout the game, which allows you to build your over levels and customize your Sackboy in a variety of different ways. Utilizing the level building tools, LBP allows anyone of any skill set to pick up a controller and create a level as complex or as simple, as they’d like. From constructing seesaws with real world physics applications, to platforming levels, and including enemies with surprisingly smart AI, creation is the cornerstone of LittleBigPlanet.

Once a level is created, it can be uploaded to the PlayStation Network, where it can be played and rated by other users. LBP allows level customization to the Nth degree with the ability to add music, respawning points and use templates to build upon or strip away and reinterpret. Which means that one can create a level completely from scratch or build a classic, well known setting – like a level from another videogame, setting in a movie, or the set of a music video.

Ultimately, LittleBigPlanet is a breath of fresh air in a market that’s oversaturated with more-of -the same-games. Despite the short single player campaign, it does benefit from an well-executed online multiplayer option, making it one the best games you’ve ever put into your PlayStation 3.

LittleBigPlanet will be available exclusively for PlayStation 3 on October 27, 2008.

Since Sony dropped their first iteration of the PlayStation Portable dropped in 2005, on-the-go gaming hasn’t been the same. Crisp graphics, compelling titles and multimedia features all made the unit a must have for hardcore gamers, and even casual players on the side. With the third generation of the handheld console, the PSP-3000, Sony has further refined the device, adding features to both display and overall functionality.

First up, the PSP-3000 is lighter than both previous models, and boasts a richer LCD display with more prominent color display and anti-reflection screen.

On the sound side, the PSP-3000 has a built in microphone allowing for talking points during multi-player game sessions, or making phone calls over the Skype network.

Available now at Sony Style in the Rachet and Clank: Size Matters pack, the PSP-3000 retails for $199 and comes with a UMD copy of National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets and a 1GB memory stick.

Revolutionary rocker Tom Morello (Oct/Nov ’08) has been at the helm of politically charged music since he co-founded Rage Against the Machine in the early 1990′s. Renowned for his unorthodox guitar playing style, and penchant for performing in some of the world’s biggest arenas, his sophomore solo album The Fabled City (Epic) finds him unplugged, though rocking just as hard. Here, Morello talks about his latest album, the political climate in America and what we really to do in order to make real change.

GIANT: Can you talk about your alter-ego as the Nightwatchman for people who don’t know about your first solo outing?

Tom Morello: About six years ago as an antidote for my arena rocking with Audioslave, I began writing folk music and playing and signing acoustic songs at open mic nights around at clubs around Los Angeles. I developed a body of material that felt to me as honest and as hard hitting as anything as I had done in any of my electric bands. Then I began playing these songs at countless union rallies and anti-war protests and from the tear gassings at the FTAA protest in Miami to the tear gassings at the G8 protest in Rostok, Germany, the Nightwatchman was there singing his songs of hope and retribution. Then a year ago, April, I released a record, A One Man Revolution which was produced by Brendan O’Brien who had previously produced Rage Against the Machine, Audioslave, Bruce Springsteen, and Pearl Jam and toured the world on that record. And this new record, The Fabled City, which comes out September 30 and the reason that this record has come out under the name Tom Morello: The Nightwatchman is because I’ve incorporated much more of my rocking musical nature into this, and sort of combined my rock work as the Daywatchman with my acoustic work as The Nightwatchman.

You’re definitely known for being politically outspoken and having radical left wing views. What are your thoughts on this upcoming Presidential election?

Well, as the half Kenyan Harvard graduate from Illinois who’s not running for president this year, I think I have a unique perspective. And my perspective is this: I think it’s a shame that we only have these two political parties to choose from. I worked for a United States senator Allen Cranston for two years as his scheduling secretary and even though his views, his personal views were very progressive, he spent most of his time calling up rich guys and asking them for money.

And that money doesn’t come for free. While clearly in this election, one candidate is better than the other one, I still don’t think that you can ever put your hopes in elected officials. The way that change, positive, progressive, radical of revolutionary change has always occurred from below. Not above. So no matter who is elected, I don’t think that alleviates anyone’s responsibility to continue to struggle and organize and fight for human rights, economic justice and a more fair and decent world.

Now if you were in this position and had to outline a plan for “change,” what steps would you take?

Well, it depends on the specific issue. But the first thing would be to end this horrible, immoral war in Iraq and Afghanistan and to hold accountable the war criminals who began it and have committed torture in its name. I think that you can’t move forward with free, just and human rights driven society without holding the criminals responsible who are in office right now. The people who are in office right now are responsible for war crimes. With regards to issues of economic injustice; we live in a country with a huge GNP, and yet there are people without homes, there are people who are hungry, there are children who are malnourished. I think that’s just a crime. I think that there needs to be a basic commitment on the part of society to make sure that no one will go hungry at night, that everyone will have a home and that no one will live in poverty while other people float around on their yachts. That seems like a good starting point.

Switching gears back to your project. One of the things that took people back with the first Nightwatchman album was that you were signing on the record.

Yeah. [laughs]

People have always known you as an experimental guitarist, and here you are signing. What was that like? Was that something that you had to convince listeners that you were as capable of as you were at guitar?

Well it’s certainly something people had to get used to. I mean, it’s audacious! I’m the guy in Guitar Hero 3 [laughs]. I’ve always felt that music, in order to resonate, needs to be inherently dangerous. I think not only is the Nightwatchman music both musically and politically dangerous, it think its something’s that’s dangerous for me as an artist to step outside of a very comfortable zone from being an electric guitar hero and follow in the footsteps of other musical heroes. It’s not following in the footsteps of Jimmy Page and Jimmy Hendrix, it’s following in the footsteps of Paul Robeson, and Woody Guthrie and early Bob Dylan and not being afraid to rely on three chords and the truth as opposed to rely on shredding guitar solos. Having said that, on this record and upcoming tour, I’ve loosened the reins quite a bit and this record is much more expansive musically and it includes grooves and riffs and guitar solos and the upcoming tour I’m playing it’s going to be pretty much 50/50 electric guitar and acoustic guitar.

Listening to the album, there’s a lot more rock influence and heavier grooves, especially like the song “The Lights Are On in Spidertown.”

Yeah, yeah, yeah! That’s the thing too. I felt a lot more comfortable. After touring a year behind the One Man Revolution record, the shows had a lot of inherent excitement in them that I wanted to capture in this record. In playing on the Justice tour, I brought out a thing called the Freedom Fighter Orchestra, which is this rotisserie of talented musicians and I’m going to bring them out on this Nightwatchmen tour as well and really open up the boundaries of really going for it on the electric guitar as well as playing the creepy political acoustic songs.

A lot of people don’t know this or maybe they don’t make the connection with your name, you’ve done a lot of work production work in film, you’ve done a lot of production work with other musician’s albums. What’s that process like for you to go in and score a movie or produce on someone else’s album?

It’s a very different process. The one thing that I enjoy about being in a band or doing solo stuff is that you’re the bottom line when it comes to creative control. When it comes to film, there’s a film company, and a director and a music supervisor, so it’s been fun lending my guitar work or my scoring to movies but I really prefer being an artist you, know. I like it better when the buck stops with me!

Your arsenal of guitars symbolizes the different set of personalities for you and your playing style. What’s the thought process behind designing your instruments such as the Sendero Luminoso or Arm the Homeless guitar?

Sure, sure. With both my acoustic and electric guitars, personality counts for a more than vintage. I think there’s maybe one guitar in my collection that cost more than $300. The “Arm the Homeless” guitar was something that was Frankensteined together through the years. It was an expensive custom made guitar and it was horrible, and through the years I’ve stripped away everything except the basic block of wood and customized it and that’s been my go to guitar throughout my electric guitar history. With the Sendero Luminoso guitar, I wanted to the ability to do Drop D tuning, which is the tuning that’s heard on the songs like “Killing in the Name,” “Freedom” and “Testify” and I couldn’t do that with “Arm The Homeless” because it has a locking but on it. So at the time, I had a roommate who had a [Fender] Telecaster, and I traded him an amp head for that Telecaster and it just happened to be the one that he had and I wrote “Sendero Luminoso” on it and the next thing you know, that became the main guitar for a lot of the Rage Against the Machine hits. I like that because it’s got single coil pickups so it doesn’t sound like that traditional heavy metal sound. It has buoyancy to it to help it play those riffs. With the Nightwatchmen work, thing that’s different about this acoustic guitar work from other artists is that it’s played on a nylon string guitar as opposed to a steel string guitar. The songs that I wrote that project on is my girlfriend’s cheap nylon string guitar that was just laying around the house but it didn’t have a pick up in it so I called the guitar company Galvador that makes these inexpensive nylon string acoustic guitars and they were willing to send me over one (laughs) and they were able to send me over one and so I plugged it in and I wrote “Whatever It Takes” on it and that’s been The Nightwatchman sound from day one.

You’ve been called the “DJ” of the bands and projects that you’re involved in. How do you shape these sounds?

That came from the early days of Rage Against the Machine where we were combining hard rock, punk rock and hip-hop and my playing was an amalgamation of artists like Jimmy Hendrix and Randy Rhodes but then also Dr. Dre and Jam Master Jay and also trying to incorporate the sounds and textures of in both hip-hop and techno like with Crystal Method and The Prodigy. But using an electrical guitar to try an approximate those sounds. And it really got me thinking outside of the box and that’s where I really found my own voice on the instrument.

There’s a lot that’s riding on this upcoming election from rising gas prices to the global wars that are going on. What do you see as the immediate change that can happen with whomever takes office and how realistic are your expectations?

Well, I definitely think in this next political election America is going to get the president it deserves. If after eight years of Republicans in office and of George Bush’s economic and military crimes, if the people of the United States elect a Republican, then seriously, I can’t help you [laughs]. Having said that, just because a Democrat – if Barack gets elected, that doesn’t mean that its going to be all unicorns and rainbows from here on out. Democratic administrations have committed war crimes of their own and I think that can’t ever sit back and allow elected officials to change the world for you. Change really has to come from and be generated by the intellect, the creativity and the power from the people, like the people who are reading your magazine. I will say this though; racism is as American as baseball, apple pie and Nascar and if the United States were to elect a semi-progressive African American it would be definitely be a step towards civilization. But, like I said, that’s just one piece of the puzzle. The rest of it has to be done by you and me.

The Fabled City is in stores now.

Dropping just in time for the holiday season, toy maker Hasbro is releasing it’s big kid, big ticket item in the form of a 2 1/2 foot long Millennium Falcon. In addition to exterior styling which includes movable radar dish and spring loaded firing missiles, the top can be removed to expose the ship’s various crew quarters.

Sufficed to say, this massive plastic reproduction of the famed ship that that ferried Luke, Leia, C-3PO and R2-D2 away from Darth Vader’s fleet of Star Destroyers, is a must have for Star Wars fans on either side of The Force. Complete with Han Solo and his first mate Chewbacca, Hasbro’s Millennium Falcon runs $150, which is a small price to pay for the famed vessel that “made the Kessel run in less than twelve parsecs.”

There’s a pivotal scene in The Happening in which Mark Walhberg’s character Elliot turns to the camera, and with a sense self-referencing deprecation says, “This can’t be happening.” Whether he’s referring to the impending doom that may befall him on screen or is breaking the fourth wall to assess why he actually took the lead role in director M. Night Shyamalan’s latest failed attempt at a thriller is still a mystery to me, although I’m willing to hedge my bets on the later.

Set in Philadelphia, The Happening, tells the story of a “mysterious condition” that causes normal, every day people to commit suicide. Some leap from buildings, some bash their heads into a wall until they crack their skulls open and others simply put a bullet in their heads.

Following the lives of high school teacher Elliot, his wife Alma (Zooey Deschanel) and Jess, (Ashlyn Sanchez) who becomes the couple’s ward her fathe Julian (John Leguizamo), succumbs to the mysterious ailment, the trio assess the situation and journey westward with other Philly residents where they’re told that this epidemic isn’t…um, happening. Ultimately the film is a hodge-podge of poorly cut together scene filled with Wahlberg and company running in the fields and being scared of the wind.

Literally.

Unlike the rest of Shyamalan’s films, his signature “twist” is told during the beginning of the second act, which of course prompts one to wonder why they’re still watching the film. Surely it can’t be because of Deschanel’s acting, which is as compelling as watching a tree sway in the wind.

Although The Happening isn’t Shyamalan’s worst film, (that honor goes to Lady in the Water), it certainly is his stupidest, in the sense that it’s devoid of any semblance of thought, reality and relentlessly insults the intelligence of anyone who watches it. The Happening’s only saving grace is that Shyamalan didn’t find a way to write himself into the story.*

*Although Ethan Alter says that he’s does manage to inject his voice into a scene.

Guitar Hero 3 is one of the best games to ever hit consoles simply for the fact that it takes little talent to master and after about a week the average player is convinced that he or she is the next incarnation of Jimi Hendrix.

Sadly, dreams of rocking a stage to the sounds of thousands to screaming fans are thrown out the window when you realize that the standard Guitar Hero controller is the Vern Troyer equivalent of a real guitar and fans, pixelated  or not , can’t take you seriously if your shred stick isn’t up to par.

Enter the Starpex by Peak. Built to mirror Fender’s iconic Stratocaster guitar, the Starpex is a full sized Guitar Hero 3 controller for PlayStation 2 and PS3 (sorry Xbox fanboys). In addition to functioning as the standard Guitar Hero controller, the Starpex also boasts an extra set of controller buttons up the neck for “soloing,” wireless connection and is made from wood giving it a  weighty, realistic feel.

Available this holiday season, the Starpex by Peak will set you back about $180, which all things considered, is a small price for video game fame.