Zen and the Art of the Credit Crisis

The credit crisis and downward spiral of the economy can be a drag. But put some pictures or music to it and it can be downright fun.

Let’s turn that frown upside down!

For your weekend viewing pleasure, a few artistic interpretations of the current hole we find ourselves in.

First, the “Credit Crisis Visualized,”a California grad student’s animation project that does a pretty good job of breaking down how we all fell into this gigantic hole.

Meanwhile, German composer Johannes Kreidler created a creepily upbeat soundtrackfor the economic crisis by feeding recent stock and other data charts into Microsoft’s Songsmith music-generating software. It starts with a Lehman Brothers stock chart and ironic karaoke-style bouncy ball, before transitioning to cheery renditions of Bank of America , General Motors and other tanking stocks. Then, it veers off to other data points including Iraq War deaths and porn-industry growth.

It’s so cheery against these grim data points that Gizmodo said, “If this doesn’t put a smile on your face, you’re probably not closing your eyes hard enough …”

Here, Kreidler explains to the Seattle Times that he took some creative licensein creating the soundtrack.

If he'd consulted me, I would've tacked on a dramatic chipmunk at the end for ominous effect.

For members of the short-attention span theater — hey, who has time these days? — YouTube user CheeseBoy86 created a video titled, “Economic Recession Unfolds in 5 Minutes” set to the rock anthem “World Falls Away” by Seether.

Sometimes, you just gotta rock it out to find your zen center.

And finally, a video you can sing along to when you’re rappin’ like a stone-cold gangsta in your socks this weekend:

“I Want My Bailout Money” by Michael Adams.

Everbody, rap it with me:

I want my bailout money
Sweet green cash just dripping with honey
Gotta keep this economy running
I need another hit of my bailout money!

I don't know about you, but I feel totally zen.

What is the sound of one 401(k) collapsing?

Questions? Comments? Write to [e-mail].