These colorful shuriken (retractable ninja stars) by YouTuber ProudPaperOfficial are surprisingly easy to make. Read the rest

Ninja and Yo-Landi of Die Antwoord take you behind the scenes of the making of "Fatty Boom Boom."

Art by Dave Kloc for Meltdown Comics

I'll be hosting an event with our friends at Meltdown Comics tomorrow night, Tuesday November 13, 2012: an evening with Ninja and Yo-Landi of the South African band Die Antwoord.

The zef ones will be present, signing a beautiful limited-edition Die Antwoord/Meltdown poster by artist Dave Kloc (9-10pm), and screening a bunch of their videos and short films (10-1130pm, this part is sold out).

More details here. Read the rest

Contains explict content. A vivid, psychedelic, comedy-horror-parody short film from South Africa's finest freaks. Hey, is that Lady Gaga making a cameo?

Video Link. "Baby's On Fire," from the Die Antwoord album TEN$ION. Video directed by NINJA and Terence Neale. DP: Alexis Zabe. (thanks, Yo-Landi and Ninja!). Read the rest

Well look what just spilled onto the internet. An unreleased Die Antwoord track, performed live on the current tour, but not included on TEN$ION. The leaked track, "Money and Da Power," features a sample that will be familiar to fans of the movie The Godfather.

Download MP3, or listen on Soundcloud. Uploaded by a user named Lemmiwinks.

Photo: An iPhone snap I took in LA this January of Die Antwoord's Ninja and Yo-Landi goofing around on the trampoline of David Choe, whose life recently changed. Read the rest

[Video Link]

A video for "I Fink U Freeky," from Die Antwoord's new release "TEN$ION." Co-directed by the band and Johannesburg, South Africa-based photographer Roger Ballen (the first of what I hope may be many more collaborations between them). Read the rest

[Video Link] This just hit the internet today. TEN$ION, the South African band's new album scheduled out February 7, will be their first release since breaking up with Interscope.

 

Die Antwoord leave Interscope, will release "TEN$ION" on their own ... Die Antwoord: "Fok Julle Naaiers" (music video) - Boing Boing A farewell to Leon Botha from Die Antwoord's Ninja and Yo-Landi ... In memoriam: Leon Botha, South African artist, DJ, and wonderful ... Die Antwoord: "Rich Bitch" (video) - Boing Boing Die Antwoord's US debut at Coachella: interview, photo gallery ... Read the rest

Due out February, 2012. This will be the first independent release for the much-Boinged band since they split from Interscope. The business story behind this one is fascinating... Read the rest

Above, a snapshot I took of Ninja and Yo-Landi of Die Antwoord during a recent visit to Los Angeles. In this photo, they are hanging out in the studio of LA-based artist David Choe. Die Antwoord will release their second album Ten$ion soon, and tour dates will kick off in early 2012. They've said goodbye to Interscope, and will soon announce details of an interesting new independent plan for music release and distribution—and a number of other projects.

* Shot with an iPhone 4s, btw. I'm always stunned at how well it performs in poor lighting conditions, and how well it performs compared to earlier editions.

 

Die Antwoord leave Interscope, will release "TEN$ION" on their own ... Die Antwoord: "Fok Julle Naaiers" (music video) - Boing Boing A farewell to Leon Botha from Die Antwoord's Ninja and Yo-Landi ... Die Antwoord, S. African zef-rap, and Progeria survivor Leon Botha ... Afrikaans rap-rave: Die Antwoord, "Zef Side [Beat Boy]" - Boing Boing Die Antwoord's newfound Internet fame: your love don't pay my ... Die Antwoord to sign with Interscope, Neill Blomkamp to direct next ... Read the rest

[Video Link]

The song, and the video, which apparently led to Die Antwoord's divorce from Interscope to go independent. This will be the first single to be released off their soon-to-be-self-released album TEN$ION.

Warning: If you are afraid of spiders or scorpions, you should not watch this video. Read the rest

[UPDATE: Here's the video that led to the "divorce."—XJ]

Anyone can not sign with a major label (see there? you just did it yourself!), but to sign with one and then sign off abruptly when the label tells you your work needs to be reworked for more mainstream appeal? That's news.

And that, according to those close to the matter, is what just happened between South Africa's Die Antwoord and Interscope/Universal Music Group.

The zef-rockers have a new album in the can, TEN$ION. It was to be their second release on Interscope, and due out within the next few months. The band chose a track to lead with as a single, titled Fok Julle Naaiers ("Fuck you all," loosely). The label heard it, perceived it as too hard for a single, and according to our sources, wanted the entire record to be reworked for more pop appeal (think Gaga or Black-Eyed-Peas). Ninja and Yo-Landi would have none of it, and asked their attorneys (one of whom was Michael Jackson's former rep) to sever all ties with Interscope, forgoing a million dollar guarantee on the new record and choosing complete creative independence.

From the band's online diary:

So anyway... Interscope offered us a bunch of money again to release our new album TEN$ION.

But this time, they also tried to get involved with our music, to try and make us sound like everyone else out there at the moment.

So we said: 'U know what, rather hang on to your money, buy yourself something nice...we

Read the rest

Ninja and Yo-Landi of Die Antwoord share the following memorial to their friend Leon Botha, who died Sunday at age 26 of complications from progeria. (Translations: JOL - Party; CHOMMIE - Best friend).

Ninja and Yo-Landi write:

In 2008, before DIE ANTWOORD was known outside of Cape Town, we threw our 1st ZEF RAP-RAVE JOLS at a dodgy little club called the Purple Turtle in Long Street (CT). The line up was our chommie, DJ SOLARIZE (Leon Botha), our chommie JACK PAROW, DIE ANTWOORD and our other chommies, THE WEDDING DJ'S.

Only about 150 to 200 people pulled in to these fun little psycho jols, but everyone who came to each jol said afterwards this ZEF RAP-RAVE JOL was the 'the best night of their lives'.

This was Leon's 1st time ever to DJ in front of people.

Leon had the biggest collection of actual rap CD's Ninja and Yo-landi had ever seen in their lives.

They were all kept in original mint condition on giant CD racks that wrapped round his whole room!

His bedroom looked like a mixture between a hip-hop CD shop / dj studio and a Shoalin Monk art gallery, Leon had a deep love for creating his beautifully dark and mysterious paintings, and also a deep love for hip-hop DJ scratch-mixing.

When we asked Leon to drop a DJ set before DIE ANTWOORD'S 1st show he was crazy into it, and put a real slamming hard-core rap set together that got our 1st little Zuid Afrikaanse zeflings banging their brains out!

Read the rest

Instructables user Jayefuu likes the EpicWinFTW ninjabread cookie makers, but wanted to try his hand a DIY version. Now Jayefuu has shared the results, which are damned impressive.

Ninjabread Men

(Thanks, Fipi Lele!)

Female Ninja Attacks Foe with Weaponized Vajayjay Bubbles - Boing ... Monkey-Pirate-Robot-Ninja-Zombie: Rock Paper Scissors 9.0 - Boing ... Ninja Steve animated Fun with MPAA ratings: Non-stop Ninja Action! Is Steve Jobs a Ninja? Blood Bath Shower Gel and Ninja Coat Hooks Muggers chase victim into crowd of ass-kicking ninjas Read the rest

Three street-muggers in Sydney, Aus chased a visiting med student down an alley and took his iPod and phone. Unfortunately for them, the alley they chased him down was next to the local ninja martial arts school, and a student ninja was lurking in the shadows. He got his teacher, and five ninjas stole out into the night and kicked ninjed the muggers' asses.

Kaylan Soto, a sensei with 30 years' Ninjutsu training, and three of his students raced out of the dojo towards the startled attackers. All five crusaders were clad in the ninja's traditional, all black uniform.

''We would have been just a silhouette,'' one of the ninjas, Steve Ashley, said. ''It was probably the worst place in Sydney where they could have taken him.''

Mr Soto said it took the three assailants a few moments to realise what was going on. When they did, they shot off. ''You should have seen their faces when they saw us in ninja gear coming towards them,'' he said.

Men in black are the white knights of the night

(via Lowering the Bar)

(Image: super green ninja "with lasers", a Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike (2.0) image from gi's photostream)

Sunday irrelevance: ninja movie flowchart As expected, Ninja Assassin trailer looks awesome Ninja scare results in school lockdowns Shrine to bragging, deadly Internet "mall ninja" The legend of Mall Ninja Read the rest