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Updating SongMatrix

One of my favorite CircuitPython projects I've done is SongMatrix. Using a microphone on a Raspberry Pi, it records the song playing in the background, uploads a sample to shazamio, uploads the song and artist to AdafruitIO via MQTT, and an S3 MatrixPortal listens for the MQTT update and displays it on an LED matrix.

I don't run it all the time, but I do like to use it when I'm listening to a new album to learn the song names. I know a lot of music and can sometimes tell you the name of the artist or the album within seconds of a song starting, but not so much the song title.

I'm using a 2.5mm pitch LED Matrix and I have not found a lot of 3D printed cases for either one or two LED matrices. That is, until a few months ago when I came across the Transit Tracker project from EastsideUrbanism.

It uses two LED matrices in a beautiful 3D printed cases that hold both of them and the S3 MatrixPortal and screws together. I printed it out months ago but couldn't get SongMatrix to work with 2 matrices.

In theory, I should be able to update the MatrixPortal library by changing: matrix = Matrix(width=64, height=32, bit_depth=3) to matrix = Matrix(width=128, height=32, bit_depth=3) But no joy. I started over with some simple test programs, and I could get a 128x32 matrix to work without a problem, but as soon as I tried in my original program it did not work.

Next I tried to replace the MatrixPortal library by using the pins directly. Success! But now it doesn't scroll across the matrix, it's just a static display. It turns out that using ScrollingLabel only scrolls when the character count is larger than the max_character when setting the text:

title_scroll = ScrollingLabel(
    terminalio.FONT,
    text=song_title_scroll,
    max_characters=20,
    color=0xff0000,
    animate_time=0.3
)

To get it scrolling, I just did a len on the string returned from AdafruitIO and added a string of spaces to get over the 20 character limit to scroll it.

But the weirdest part? The original program scrolled the text with less than 10 characters. I tried to recreate it with a basic ScrollingLabel example, and of course I couldn't get it to work. Don't believe me? You can see the original scrolling the band Metric which shouldn't be scrolling on the project's GitHub page.

What I'm Watching - Q2 2025

Continuing on my journey to catalog everything I'm watching, here's what I watched in the second quarter of 2025. Highlights included kicking off April getting ready for Andor S2 by re-watching the Star Wars Prequels, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Andor S1. I celebrated the life of Gene Hackman with Night Moves, The Royal Tenenbaums, and Runaway Jury. Other movies I enjoyed included The Long Good Friday, Tombstone, and starting to watch the classic Sean Connery Bond films on 4K UHD.

Legend:

  • The Criterion Channel = *
  • 4K UHD = +
  • AppleTV+ = ^
  • Netflix = ~

April

  • Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace (1999)+
  • Star Wars Episode 2: Attack of the Clones (2002)+
  • Star Wars Episode 3: Revenge of the Sith (2005)+
  • White Lotus S3
  • The Cleaner (2024)
  • Obi-Wan Kenobi+
  • Vanilla Sky (2001)*
  • Fringe S2
  • Mickey 17 (2025)
  • Andor S1+
  • Sneakers (1992)+
  • SportsNight S1

May

  • A Working Man (2025)
  • Showgirls (1995)*
  • Tombstone (1993)+
  • Strange Days (1995)*
  • The Long Good Friday (1980)*
  • Shutter Island (2010)*
  • Rosemary’s Baby (1968)*
  • The Insider (1999)*
  • Blue Steel (1990)*+
  • Andor S2
  • Rogue One (2016)+
  • Fountain of Youth (2025)^
  • The Handmaid’s Tale S6
  • Shampoo (1975)*

June

  • The Righteous Gemstones S4
  • Fringe S3
  • Sinners (2025)
  • The Taking of Pelham 123 (1974)*
  • The Accountant 2 (2025)
  • Coogan’s Bluff (1968)*
  • L.A. Confidential (1997)*
  • Night Moves (1975)*
  • Runaway Jury (2003)~
  • Predator: Killer of Killers (2025)
  • The Last of Us S2
  • Dr. No (1962)+
  • Heathers (1988)*
  • Havoc (2025)~
  • The Studio S1^
  • The Fog (1980)*
  • Sports Night S2
  • Lethal Weapon (1987)+
  • Deep Cover (2025)
  • From Russia With Love (1963)+
  • Shrinking S2^
  • The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)
  • Paper Moon (1973)*
  • in movies, tv
  • 2 min read

What I'm Watching - Q1 2025

Each year, the director Steven Soderbergh releases a list of all the movies and TV shows he's watching. It's a fascinating look at what he's interested in and can give a clue to future projects. I've also wanted to do something similar, and this year I'm finally keeping track of everything I'm watching. Mr. Soderbergh's list is a daily breakdown - I'm not going into that much detail, but with the exception of sports, I kept track of all the movies and TV shows I watched.

This past February was my birthday, and I treated myself to a subscription to The Criterion Channel. Criterion started as a home video company in 1984 that focuses on licensing, restoring and distributing "important classic and contemporary films". In 2019, Criterion launched a streaming service that offers a curated selection of Criterion's catalog. For only $99 a year, you get access to classic movies from the last one hundred years of cinema, including some modern classics, such as Minority Report or Down With Love. I'm really enjoying streaming the classics and broadening my knowledge of cinema history.

Even with the two podcasts and my electronics hobby, I watch a lot of TV and movies. TV Shows listed are the month I finished watching the season. Movies are in bold. This list includes physical releases, streaming, and re-watches.

January

  • Interstellar (2015)
  • The Thing (1982)
  • Se7en (1995)
  • The Day of the Jackal S1
  • Red One (2024)
  • Star Wars Skeleton Crew
  • Brilliant Minds
  • Marvel’s What If… S2
  • Better Off Dead (1985)
  • Dune: Prophecy S1
  • Juror #2 (2024)
  • Star Trek: Section 31 (2025)
  • Kill Bill Volume 1 (2003)
  • Kill Bill Volume 2 (2204)
  • The Substance (2024)
  • The Departed (2006)
  • Gattaca (1997)

February

  • To Die For (1995)
  • Moonstruck (1987)
  • Vertigo (1958)
  • Down With Love (2003)
  • Batman Begins (2005)
  • The Dark Knight (2008)
  • The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
  • The Gorge (2025)
  • Constantine (2005)
  • North by Northwest (1959)
  • Minority Report (2002)
  • Companion (2024)
  • The Last Starfighter (1984)
  • Conclave (2024)
  • Severance S1
  • High Potential S1
  • Crossing Delancey (1988)
  • Crimson Tide (1995)

March

  • Love Hurts (2025)
  • Demolition Man (1993)
  • Anora (2024)
  • Thief (1981)
  • Landman S1
  • It Could Happen to You (1996)
  • Manhunter (1986)
  • Glory (1989)
  • Heat (1995)
  • A Scanner Darkly (2006)
  • Severance S2
  • Welcome Home, Roxy Carmichael (1990)
  • The Killers (1964)
  • Once Upon a Time in the West (1969)
  • Mythic Quest S4
  • Reacher S4
  • Red River (1948)
  • Adolescents
  • An Affair to Remember (1957)
  • The Princess Bride (1987)
  • Ghost (1990)
  • A Face in the Crowd (1957)
  • in music
  • 1 min read

Favorite Albums of 2024

Like last year and the year before, here’s the list in no particular order:

  • The Staves - All Now: The trio of sisters returned as a duo on their latest album. The melodies are still sweet and the songs are catchy.
  • Japandroids - Fate & Alcohol: The duo return and it's exactly what you expect: loud and fast. It's their fourth and final album and I will miss them deeply.
  • Passage du Desir - Johnny Blue Skies: Sturgill Simpson returns under a new name and his fusion of rock, country, and bluegrass does not disappoint.
  • Waxahatchee - Tigers Blood: This alt-country gem is on a lot of end of year lists for good reason.

Favorite Find: Blade Runner soundtrack by Vangelis. I was floored when I received the weekly email newsletter from my local record store with this album in the restocks section. I had a different version in my wantlist on Discogs for years, and somehow missed this version, which seems to be fairly common. I rushed to Down in the Valley and picked it up right away.

  • in podcast
  • 1 min read

The Return of The CircuitPython Show

When I blogged earlier this year that The CircuitPython Show was over, I really thought it was over. But with the talk of #CircuitPython2025 kicking off, I started to give the podcast some thought again. And while I thought I had talked to most of the community members I wanted to talk to, there were still a few I hadn't reached out to yet.

But where it really intrigued me, was what if it wasn't just an interview show and I sprinkled topic based episodes in as well? I quickly brainstormed half a dozen ideas and realized there was more to do yet. I reached out to a number of potential guests and the reponse was overwhelmingly positive.

I'm excited to share that The CircuitPython Show will return in mid-January. It will still feature interviews with community members as well as topics including: how to design a PCB, building CircuitPython from source, creating games for CircuitPython, a panel interview about CircuitPython's new audio effects and filters, and more, with guests both new and returning.

Follow the show on Mastodon or Bluesky and find the show wherever you get your podcasts or visit The CircuitPython Show.

  • in podcast
  • 1 min read

One Door Closes, Another One Opens

I realized this week that I never blogged the end of The CircuitPython Show. The show came to end at the end of January earlier this year after 36 episodes. It had a good run and I still had the itch to podcast, so Tod Kurt and I resurrected The Bootloader this past March. We're on a monthly schedule and have done four episodes so far this year with topics ranging from makers and their cool projects or products to 3D printing and more. It also includes a healthy dose of CircuitPython news if you're missing the podcast. You can find it wherever you get your podcasts or visit The Bootloader.net.

Stay connected with The Bootloader and me - sign up for our newsletter launching next week here.

But don't take it from me. Here's LadyAda and pt from the July 3, 2024 episode of Ask an Engineer (fast forward to the 1:07 mark):

{{}}

  • in music
  • 1 min read

Fifteen Years of Record Collecting

My record collection

Fifteen years ago today on April 18th, 2009 I started my record collecting journey. It's an easy day for me to remember as it was the second annual Record Store Day. I still remember it like it was yesterday. That Saturday afternoon I'd pick up the turntable, so I headed out to the local record store, Down in the Valley, first. There I picked up Neko Case's Middle Cyclone on clear vinyl and a handful of used records, though I don't remember which ones I bought. I never imagined my collection would grow like it has.

I remember that people thought I was a bit crazy to get back into records. I wouldn't have imagined vinyl outselling CDs, but vinyl has for the last two years.

My records bring me great joy - I've built apps around them, cataloged them on Discogs, and I listen every day. There's nothing better than putting on a pair of quality headphones, closing your eyes, and spinning a record.

  • in music
  • 2 min read

Favorite Albums of 2023

My favorite album of 2023 isn’t in the picture as I’m waiting for the deluxe box set that comes out in early March, 2024. Peter Gabriel’s i/o, his first album of new music in over 20 years, came out in early December and I have literally listened to nothing but this. So much so that Apple updated its 2023 Replay and the record became my most played streaming album of the year in under a month.

Like last year, here’s the rest of the list in no particular order:

  • Jenny Lewis - Joy Y’all: Jenny Lewis was back with a strong effort. At just over 30 minutes the record was short and sweet but full of catchy songs.
  • Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit - Weathervanes: Jason Isbell self-produced this album and cranked the electric guitars a bit more than in past albums.
  • The Hold Steady - The Price of Progress: You either love or hate Craig Finn’s voice. But there is no denying he is a master storyteller.
  • Alex Lahey - The Answer is Always Yes: Alex Lahey’s third album is just a rockin’ good time.
  • boygenius - The Record: I don’t know what I can say that hasn’t already been said on every Best of 2023 list already. The supergroup of Julien Baker, Lucy Dacus, and Phoebe Bridgers followed up their debut EP with a wonderful album.
  • Angie McMahon - Light, Dark, Light Again: If it hadn’t been for Peter Gabriel, this would have been my album of the year. There was no sophomore slump for this singer / songwriter out of Australia. I really hope more people get to know her and her music.

  • Dessa - Bury the Lede: Minneapolis poet / author / singer / rapper Dessa was back with Bury the Lede and did not disappoint.

  • Favorite repress / reissue: Prince and the New Power Generation - Diamond and Pearls: I almost regret not buying the deluxe box set of this album. The quality and the mix of this album, originally released in 1991, is hands down the best mixed album I heard all year. I listened to the original a few times before picking this up and was blown away the first time I put it on the turntable.

  • in music
  • 4 min read

White Whales

White whale (noun): The record you have spent a long time, sometimes years, searching for.

In the record community, each collector has a white whale, one or two records they’ve been searching for yet cannot find. Unlike Captain Ahab, our white whales didn’t take half our leg, though. (I have no idea if other collectible communities use this term, but wouldn’t be surprised.)

Thanks to Discogs, it’s not hard to find your white whale, so I would add “…at a reasonable cost” to the definition.

I started my record collection almost fifteen years ago, on Record Store Day #2. That was the day I bought a used turntable from Craigslist and the first records I bought as an adult at Down in the Valley. As my collection has grown, I’ve become much more pickier about the albums I buy. And in 2023, I got lucky and found both my white whales, from bands you probably haven’t heard of.

First up is Free Energy’s Stuck on Nothing. The debut album from this alternative power pop band from Philadelphia by way of Minneapolis that featured a few members from the defunct band, Hockey Night. Free Energy was signed to LCD Soundsystem’s record label, DFA, and Stuck On Nothing was produced by LCD Soundsystem’s James Murphy.

Two or three copies were for sale, all around $65 - $75, which was way more than I wanted to pay for the record. But then one popped up for $30, but it had a two inch tear in the jacket. Right after that, another showed up for $40 from a new seller and I jumped on it. Being a new seller, they didn’t have any customer ratings, so I would be taking a chance on not getting scammed, which has been happening more frequently on Discogs.

I took the chance and the record showed up quickly and the jacket was in great shape. The record was filthy - I’ve never seen a record so dusty. A trip through the spin clean and it was good as new.

Whatever happened to Free Energy? They released a second album in 2013 and then broke up. I saw them play on their final tour and it was the last show I saw at the Triple Rock (RIP). One of the members went on to have a Kickstarter campaign to make vegan jerky from eggplant.

My second white whale is the record Under the Blacklight by Rilo Kiley, featuring Jenny Lewis, one of my favorite singers..

The band was active from 1998 to 2011, famously getting their start thanks to Dave Foley of Kids in the Hall. Under the Blacklight would be their major label debut after 3 records as an indie. Released in 2007, it would be their final album.

This time I got lucky. Each Black Friday, Record Store Day does a smaller version of itself with special editions, new releases, and represses released for Black Friday. This year, Rilo Kiley’s Under the Blacklight was repressed with 6000 copies made going to all the local record stores around the country.

But would my record store have it? I’ve skipped the last four or five Record Store Days and Black Fridays. But after missing out on the Dee Gees (the Foo Fighters EP of Bee Gees cover songs) a couple years ago, I wasn’t going to miss a shot at my white whale.

Down in the Valley opens at 9:00 a.m. for Black Friday and tt took most of my will power not to leave after I woke up shortly after 5 a.m. I got there about 7:45 a.m. and I estimate I was 30th in line, which would grow to over a 100 by the time the store opened. About a half hour before the doors would open, an employee was going down the line randomly asking people what they want, and usually give them the bad news that it wouldn’t be available by the time they got in the store.

But not me - when I asked his response was “Oh, we have plenty of those!”, which helped make the wait go by a little faster. Once in the store at about ten minutes after opening, I picked up my copy of Under the Blacklight (in translucent purple) and also picked up the recent re-issue of Prince’s Diamonds and Pearls.

Now that I’ve acquired two of my most sought after records, it’s time to think about what I might search for next... and that would be 1989’s March by Michael Penn.

In front of my record player lay two albums, on the left Free Energy's Stuck on Nothing and on the right, Rilo Kiley's Under the Blacklight