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Showing posts from 2017

The Shoes That Saved Christmas

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“ We were enamored with Air Jordans. Michael Jordan was larger than life — he was Superman to me. My entire design background and ethos came from the ‘90s. ” - Virgil Abloh Collaborations come and go, and their memory barely lasts beyond the release date, however the hype for ' The Ten ' collection was almost inescapable and genuinely felt like something special was going down. For fans of Nike and Virgil Abloh , this collaboration will continue to be discussed until the end of the year at least, and likely will be eulogised in many 'Best Of 2017' polls and publications cementing it's place in sneaker history. ' The Ten ' consisted of the following styles - Air Jordan 1, Blazer, Air Presto, Air Max 90, HyperDunk, Zoom VaporFly, VaporMax, Air Force 1 and Air Max 97 . Some classics and some new kids on the block. Initially this didn't interest me at all, but the more background I saw and read around the process of picking these styles and rema...

TATTOO at the NHMLA

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" I'm super excited and honored to be a part of this very important exhibition 5,000 years in the making. " - Chuey Quintanar Last time I was in LA I got to experience Venice Beach, walk on Santa Monica pier and even caught a glimpse of MADIBA , the Nelson Mandela tribute by David Flores . I also managed to visit my favourite tattoo crew at Deer's Eye studio in Santa Fe Springs.  I'll be in LA again for a few days next month and though it's a business trip I'm hoping to catch up with a couple friends when I'm not working, and get across to the Natural History Museum to see TATTOO .  Tattoo explores more than 5,000 years of history, culture, and art connected to ink through specially commissioned, tattooed silicone forms; hand-drawn art; videos of tattoo ceremonies; interview footage of luminary practitioners; and the technology and tools of the trade—all while also spotlighting the vibrant tattoo scene in L.A.   “ As a Museum...

Dälek at The Underworld

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“Endangered Philosophies is a very introspective record about very external forces. This isn't about one listen... it's about your evolving perception when you immerse yourself in the layers of sound and words. Endangered Philosophies is a record about the RIGHT NOW and yet will resonate differently each time it is listened to, in a word....timeless." - MC Dälek Tonight  Dälek  (pronounced DIE-uh-leck)  will  be at The Underworld in Camden playing tracks from their eighth album  Endangered Philosophies.  They are champions of a very unique experimental-hip-hop-rock-noise sound with intense sociopolitical lyrics. It wouldn't surprise me if you hadn't heard of them before, but I guarantee  you'll not forget them once you've plugged in. I saw them at the Oslo in Hackney a couple years back and they played a variety of songs from their twenty year catalogue alongside tracks from  Asphalt For Eden .  After the gig I remember ...

A Bathing Ape Pirate Store (online)

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https://bapepirate.com/ This morning I was pleasantly surprised at the announcement of an online version of the  A Bathing Ape Pirate Store .  The good news is that items that were once only available if a Pirate Store pop-up opened in your city, are now available online. The bad news is no overseas shipping, yet. So it's possible to cop but you'll need to get onto your Japanese friends or a proxy if you see something you like. Don't know if this means an end to physical Pirate stores, I guess time will tell.  Coincidentally this news comes just a few days after OG London Bapehead (amongst many other things)  Mark Whitfield   posted pics of an exclusive Pirate Store crewneck and hoodie  featuring my most coveted Bape logo  on his Instagram page. Over the years  Nigo  has paid homage to many styles and subcultures via his logos, and for me the Ape Crossbones logo best represents rock 'n roll / heavy metal music. Easy to see ...

Stranger Things 2

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The kids from Hawkins are back in Season Two of the Netflix original Stranger Things. To celebrate this the guys at  Stylecreep  are  offering an additional 10% off   with the coupon "STRANGER" .   They also enlisted  UK artist  Rebel YĂĽth to illustrate a   look book  featuring a multitude of brands worn by the cast.  Though I wish he had put  Will Byers  in flannel, would have been perfect. Following on from my post on tartan I felt it would be iniquitous to not do a feature on flannel. And despite the fact that it was 20 degrees earlier this week, layering season is upon us. Originating from  Wales in the 17th century and worn mainly by farmers and blue-collar workers, it came to be adopted by alternative music fans  in the 90s and is a present day staple in both luxury fashion and street wear.  T he fabric is interwoven between subcultures  and genres and i t continues to be a favourite of arti...

RZA + MATHEMATICS: 'The Saga Continues'

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" For anybody that's a hip hop fan, you going to enjoy it ." DJ Mathematics on Shade45 w/DJ Kay Slay This is not an official Wu-Tang Clan album, it's a collection of songs executive produced by the RZA and crafted by DJ Mathematics . If you don't think that makes a difference, just re-read the quote at the start of this post.  It's being touted as a hip hop album not a Wu album and that speaks volumes. I read a review on Pitchfork that stated - " Mathematics knows the Wu-Tang blueprint well and is more than capable of executing; he supplies their staples: sample-heavy soul, knocking drums, and the usual snippets from martial arts cinema ." I wanted to see how it fared against other DJ Mathematics albums, and honestly it's as Wu sounding as it gets. Arguably only  Redman and Method Man shine on The Saga Continues , with requisite efforts from other Clan members like Ghostface ,  Raekwon, Inspectah Deck, GZA  and Cappadonna . Ulti...

Chaos to Couture

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The Tartan Clan Although I was born in America, I have plenty of UK lineage including a great grandmother that was Scottish. I've never been to Scotland myself, I did date a girl from Ayr for a short time if that counts for anything. And the closest I've come to wearing tartan was to a Halloween party at church when I was around eleven when my mother put me in one of her skirts and said "You're going as a Scottish person".  Do yer dinger ! Most people, myself included could be forgiven for only equating Tartan with Scotland, however I learned this week that the  fabric has a history dating back thou sands of miles and years, long before the Highland clan association.  I suspect that even more will only know of it's modern role in fashion.  The design, particularly the Royal Stewart   has been prevalent in fashion ever since  British punks along with Vivienne Westwood  ( the Queen of punk fashion )  re-appropriated t artan  as a f...

TOMMY JEANS 90S AOP CREW SWEAT

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My love of Tommy blossomed in the 90s and I have very fond memories of visiting the Sloane Street store whenever possible. As part of the Tommy Jeans 4.0 release the stand out item for me is the TOMMY JEANS 90S AOP CREW SWEAT . T he sailing jackets and fleece tops are a close second but this is gloriously outrageous.  I was also shown a photo recently of a button shirt with this pattern worn by Mercedes Formula 1 driver  Lewis Hamilton  and thought this is just insane.  My wife's impression was a little different, " Oh that's ugly! "  I received a couple different email newsletters about this collection today and already pieces are selling out, including this sweat. You can find it in the UK at End Clothing , Urban Outfitters  and of course  Tommy directly. As much as I love this I can't honestly imagine myself wearing it, that's if I could afford it to start with. Still, it's an enjoyable trip down memory lane to when I was that bit bold...

Unlucky 13 - The International London Tattoo Convention 2017

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Today the 13th edition of the International London Tattoo Convention  begins and it's the first I've missed since 2008. Held once again at the Tobacco Docks and boasting over 400 international artists as well as live acts like the Fuel Girls and artists like Cam Rackam . Each year it's touted as bigger and better than ever, and that's likely apart from one exception. The crew from Deer's Eye Studio in LA won't be in attendance.  If I'm honest as much as I like the atmosphere, the entertainment, the food and booze, really the reason I keep going is to see the guys. In previous years I've had the honour of meeting some of the World's greatest artists, including legends like Jack Rudy who will be in attendance and I believe tattooing this weekend. A small part of me does wish I was going but not enough to do anything about it. This weekend I have plans which I would have gotten out of had they travelled but for whatever reason the show mus...

"Whatchu' Talkin' 'Bout Wednesday" - Storm Watkins

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"Music remains my first love..." - Storm Watkins I've yet to come across another musician with the prodigious output of Baltimore native and recently appointed CEO of All Gold Kings,  Storm Watkins .  I've listened to his work for a handful of years now and still feel like I have barely scratched the surface. We spoke about doing an  interview with which I was hoping to capture the essence of an independent artist in 2017, and what  I ended up discovering was more about the kind of music artists like Storm are creating and why it's so important. I suggest you head to his Bandcamp page and download everything you can whilst you enjoy this interview. The Interview Top 3 beat makers? "Easy..  J.Dilla, Charles Hamilton, Jerrell Lofton " How have they inspired you? "Dilla showed me that you can be as soulful as The Funk Brothers from Motown but still be as gritty & hiphop as ever. Charles showed me that there is n...