Rarely does a new musical artist grab me by the heart and stop me in my tracks. Stockholm’s young and gorgeous Lykke Li wins the prize– I’m floored. Talented, humble, delicate, and even dare I say visionary. Her music is eerie, warming, and thought provoking– and so incredibly mature for such a young person. Be sure to listen to Window Blues, and Little Bit– two of my favorites. Her new album Youth Novels isn’t available online in the Americas yet but you can grab it, shipped to your mailbox here.

You can however nab the Little Bit EP on iTunes pictured, or enjoy several other tracks on her full-of-content Myspace page for free. Looks like she’s on tour through England, western Europe and all over Scandinavia over the next few months. I’ll be making one of her shows and will probably be patiently waiting outside on one knee to propose. I love you Lykke Li.

Our pal Stinger, the Netherlands-based designer behind Zeptonn Labs, has finally dropped his latest book project, Black & White Freedrawings. So named thanks to the no restrictions given, no holds barred approach to the 160 drawings held inside, the book offers over 132 eco-friendly pages of collab-y art between Stinger and house favorites like Jesse Hora, Undoboy, and Shin Tanaka.

If you were wise enough to get your hands on a copy of Stingermania, you already know that Stinger’s books are more fun than a water slide in the summertime. However, unlike his other publications, there are only 450 copies of the first edition of Black & White Freedrawings, and the heavy beast is unbearably pricey to ship internationally (75 bucksies). In fact, unless you do happen to live in Europe, your chances of ever touching this book are slim to none– which is a crappy thought, especially for those of us who are about to give away one of the only copies of the book to ever touch American soil (that happens to come with some very nice giclee prints as well)… Sigh.

Yes, we’ve got one. For you, from Zeptonn. And you can have it if you are the first person to correctly answer the following question: what philosopher initially inspired Stinger to get his Master’s degree in Philosophy? Leave your answer in a comment to this post, yo.

Now… we’ve seen beautiful suits come from Italy, but the Germans have put quite the suit on this new BMW concept car. It’s called the GINA Light Visionary Model. With a mantra of “let the material do the talking,” the design gurus at BMW came up with a design that includes a lycra, shape-shifting exoskeleton that moves to expose individual functions only when they’re needed. The designers were not as interested in answering the question of how cars will look in the future as they were to conduct an exploration into the creative freedom the future designs will offer. Word is, that Patrick Bateman is going to be test driving this one, so those of you in the Financial District, be on the lookout.

Via Gizmodo

Merda! Filho da puta! If you’re at all into learning foreign languages, you know the best way to blend-in like a native is to learn all the bad words in the local language that would shame your mother into regretting she ever gave birth to you if she ever heard you saying them. Still, in a quest to become better educated, Sao Paulo design agency Grïngo (just so you know, to be called a gringo here isn’t meant to be derogatory) has put together a teaching site of dirty phrases and single words recorded with webcams by users all over the world speaking various no-nos in their native language… like “wanker” in German and “big sh!t” in French. It’s so ridiculous it’s funny, because the site seems like it’s been afflicted with Tourette’s Syndrome. While watching these moments of hilarity, keep in mind that this comes from the same agency that CocaCola Brazil hired to do their 2008 campaigns. Sounds like a f!cking great move. Go ahead, add your word to the growing dictionary, and then go wash that mouth out with soap you naughty word-sayer you.

Ladybugs are known for being lucky and making your garden look great. Element Skateboards are known for pumping out slick-looking boards for pro and amateur skateboarders alike. And now the two have been brought together for a new line of iPod docks by Element. The docks feature speakers that open like the wings of a ladybug and while some of the docks - available at Vestalife’s online shop are standard, but spiffier, iPod docks that play music, charge your iPod, etc. - others are one-off art pieces available on eBay that are for merely sitting there and looking good.

Either way, all proceeds from the docks designed by thirteen Element/VestaLife artists - including Aaron Martinez, Craig Metzger, and Dan Severson - help kids attend their Element YMCA Skateboard Camp that otherwise couldn’t afford it. So, while they may not give you any extra boost of luck when you try to land more nollies or kickflips, at least you’ll make someone else feel lucky this summer.

A large amount of creative people out there spend a healthy portion of their day with eyes glued to their desktops. Sometimes it’s nice to be able to daydream though the daily doldrums and pretend you’re somewhere else. Since 2005, the folks behind the Desktopography project have done their part in helping to make the daydreams of creatives a tad bit more tangible. Each year, the project — founded by Pete Harrison — releases a multitude of downloadable nature and topological themed wallpapers with edits from selected designers, as a way to bring a spark to otherwise two dimensional computer screens. So far for 2008, there have been 38 astonishing images added to the already impressive library of 75 from the previous three years. If your work station needs some sprucing up, we highly recommend a trip over to their site.