INVESTIGATIVE REPORTS

2008-04-21T02:46:00.000-07:00

AGGHHH!

The saga continues. Bear with us...

2008-04-15T16:38:00.001-07:00

LIKE NO OTHER.

New Sony Bravia commercial. They never fail.

Beautiful

2008-04-12T18:59:00.000-07:00

WHAT THE FUCK.

Dude, Yahoo just suspended our hosting! What a trainwreck, my bills are paid son. Not sure how this happened exactly. Sorry for the difficulties, Everything will have to be solved in the next day or so...

-HASSAN

2008-04-12T12:59:00.000-07:00

SPEAK EASY

So we're almost Two Weeks deep at The Crosby and its been pretty amazing! heres a little recap on what went down the first week. We've got some fresh stuff planned for the future. Well keep you tuned in!

The night before we opened was, "training/ you're here, so you might as well help out day!"
haa' we trapped you! now pick up that Menu Board!

Special Order from Josh the sous chef. sometimes we like to flip it up for you, so don't be surprised when you start seeing some other stuff floating around. Watch out for Arons Flour less chocolate cake aka, "Sexual Chocolate," coming soon!

Mr Randy Watson... damn that boy can sing!

View from the Bar. Yes we serve beer and wine for now, but the Amaaazing MJ is working on an exclusive soju cocktails menu which will be available soon!

Lets not forget. those Boomboxes are actually part of the sound system!

yeah its sort of a small kitchen but they hold it down proper! the Hardest working cats this side of the universe!

The Gaslamp Killer Killed it! Every first Thursday we have the GLK & Kutmah out to rip you to shreds with some Dirty, electronic, Drum Heavy, Rare, Deadly Beats!

pLo and Teebs representing M.H.D! don't sleep on these dudes. they Rocked the house on their premier Thursday night. Make sure to check the whole crew out every other Thursday night for more Dirty, electronic, Drum Heavy, Rare, Deadly Beats!

Our very first live performer ever at The Crosby. Nosaj Thing! Destroyed it on Saturday. Saturday nights is headliner night. once we get in the groove of things, well have different artist perform every week. well keep you posted on shows.

We've been pretty loungy earlier in the week. come by if you feel the need to get away, chill, mooch off free internet, grab a beer, enjoy a candle lit date, do homework, or be like Matt Goldman and cut out limited edition OBEY bike wheel covers to meet deadlines..

All in a days work..

See you soon..

2008-04-09T10:25:00.000-07:00

FRIDAY

This will be awesome. Good friends will be spinning records as always. I love this place.

I'm changing this blog to Barracuda Reports. Oh yeah, and I owe Miguel and Israel a car wash for being awesome.

2008-04-04T13:10:00.000-07:00

DRESS RIGHT.

This video is from a little while back when Apartment 3 held the Obey Clothing edition of Dress Right. I got a chance to be one of the runway models for the show. Vimby did some coverage on the event, peep the video below. I'm in there somewhere getting semi-hyphy.

You can also peep all the photos I took from this night right HERE.

2008-04-03T20:52:00.000-07:00

COME THROUGH.

Barracuda never fails you with the awesome deals on awesome gear. It's pretty apparent by now this is my favorite store in LA. Stop by this weekend for some food, drinks, music, and probably the world's best patio sale. Stussy, Cassette, Insight, Mike & Chris, Umbro by Kim Jones, Schmoove, Spring Court, PHCY, Kazuo, Jeremy Scott, and Y-3 are just a few of the brands they carry. Which means, yes, these will be 50-70% off.

Which means, yes, this is of epic proportions.

Don't forget, CASH ONLY! So hit up the ATM on the way...

See you there.

2008-03-31T04:51:00.000-07:00

LOST AND FOUND.

Justice VMA Afterparty.
9-10-07. Las Vegas, NV.

Click HERE.

Photos by Hassan Rahim.

2008-03-30T09:00:00.000-07:00

Hello Investigators

I did a post a few days ago about The Crosby but I realized I forgot to introduce myself. My names Chris, "boorring..." but you may have heard of a mysterious experiment in music called, "FREE THE ROBOTS" (myspace.com/freetherobots). I'm that guy. I reside in the ruins of Orange County known as Santa Ana. a place that I chose as my stomping and building grounds.

whats my connection with this here blog?

well Me and Vgrnts go waay back to the days i used to work at the Subject Matter Galley (R.I.P.). Vgrnts, my friend Phil, and myself were the local creeps who spent hours Lurking, Skating parking lots, Freestyling and building on some next shit. with all the interesting shit we come across on a daily basis we figured we might as well share it with you. Now that i got that out of the way, Stay tuned for more Reports and Rambles.

2008-03-27T20:38:00.000-07:00

THIS FRIDAY.

Barracuda grand opening. Tomorrow. Don't fuck this one up.

Be there.

2008-03-27T09:23:00.000-07:00

Reporting from Santa Ana

So I know some of you have been waiting for something fresh in the Southland. Well after over a year on the grind, I'm proud to finally announce that this wait will soon be over. This is not a Joke' We open in April!!

This is the Crosby. A Restaurant, Bar, Lounge, Bookstore among other things. If ever you feel you need a break from the same old stuff, our doors will be open. We're located in the artist village of Santa Ana aka Downtown Orange County. bet you didn't know their was a downtown in the OC. Its pretty much the last piece of the County that the Irvine company doesn't have their grubby hands on. thats why we call it home. We've got a lot of things planned so stay tuned!

-el Robot
(thisisthecrosby.com)

2008-03-24T10:12:00.000-07:00

MIAMI HEAT.

Duuuuuuuudddeeeee. So Jen from Mean Red Productions hits me up at the very last minute (this was literally finished minutes ago) to do a flyer for their RIDICULOUS Winter Music Conference showcase. This is fresh out the oven, folks.

2008-03-24T08:04:00.000-07:00

EH.

Not so sure I'm down with this...

In commemoration of the Eiffel Tower's 120th anniversary, the Frenchies decided to ADD A HUMONGOUS KEVLAR OBSERVATION DECK TO THE TOP.

Whatever dudes.

2008-03-24T07:12:00.000-07:00

Here we go. Once again folks, this post is dedicated to all the material shit I don't have, used to have, wish to have, and/or may never have.

Raf Simons Vandal Boots

Subscription to Self Service Magazine

Tiger style fatalities

1982 BMW 633 (w/ peanut butter guts)

Million-dollar luxury Downtown LA loft

Bookshelf staircase for million-dollar luxury Downtown LA loft

Touch of Death

Sigh.

2008-03-24T06:57:00.000-07:00

WORK IT.

Our dude Matt Goldman has been getting lots of buzz lately...

Kind of a big deal around these parts, Matt (handsome young man up there on the right) is an artist/graphic designer/promoter/hustler/that dude. He throws this party, this other party, this one too, designs all the flyers for all of them, designs for these guys, and yeah. Let's not post his whole resume on here.

But yeah congrats.

2008-03-21T20:07:00.000-07:00

ILLMATIC.

My man Freeway AKA Andrew Freeborn has been cooking something up for a little while...

Always a master of the hustle, he had been collecting/slanging vintage gear for quite a minute, and decided to say fuck the middleman and start an online shop. He's stocking everything from vintage Bally's, Starter jackets and caps, Sports Specialties, London Fog, and all that is gangster in the world of vintage dopeness.

Click the pic below:

2008-03-21T14:38:00.000-07:00

CONGRATS.

Introducing The Hundreds San Francisco.

Holy shit dude. They sorta kinda like seriously took it to the next level by opening a retail location inside a mining cave. Wow. Word the fuck up.

But seriously, congratulations to Bobby and Ben on opening their second retail location. Bobby was actually one of the first dudes I met when I moved to LA a little over a year ago. He's seriously one of the most hardworking, generous people I've met so far, and their success is definitely well deserved.

Peep the world famous Hundreds website HERE.

2008-03-20T19:59:00.001-07:00

SIX WORDS.

Maybe the best SXSW review so far. Paul Ford reviews 763 mp3's from SXSW artists:

"I recently downloaded the SXSW 2008 torrent file, which contains nearly 48 continuous hours of music from 763 acts appearing this week at the South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas (these bands elected to give away MP3s; they represent less than half of the total number of acts). I found myself wondering how to locate the songs worth hearing, and imagined that others were having the same problem.

Thus, the 763 reviews you’ll find below. For brevity, I kept each to exactly six words. Clicking on a band’s name takes you to its web site; clicking on the ▶ button takes you to the SXSW page for the band where you can listen to or download the song.

I realize that I have potentially hurt the feelings of nearly 3,000 musicians, for which I apologize. By no means should you ever stop writing and recording music."

CLICK HERE.

2008-03-20T19:12:00.000-07:00

PHOTOGENIC.

The work of Australian/New York-based photographer Jay Harrison.

Mainly a fashion photographer, but the dude seems to have a great eye for anything that surrounds him. Lots of females of course.

Peep his website HERE.

2008-03-18T14:17:00.000-07:00

DEAR DIARY.

One of the best websites with no words whatsoever: The online photo diary of Hedi Slimane.

Click HERE.

2008-03-18T01:39:00.000-07:00

FUTURISM.

Taz Arnold (Sa-Ra) swung by the Hush Hush House today to discuss some secret upcoming projects in the near future.

Taz is the type of person you can just sit down with for hours on end, having the most intellectual conversation together. Whether it's the origin of man, the uprising of a subculture, all forms of music, the past, the present, or the future, you can expect nothing less than a creative visual opinion backed by tons of knowledge and insight.

Peep Sa-Ra's MySpace page HERE, and be on the lookout for some groundbreaking projects in the VERY near future...

Photos by Hassan Rahim.

2008-03-17T01:45:00.000-07:00

MY NEW FAVORITE SHOES.

Introducing 3:33 Footwear. The brainchild of pro skater Andrew Reynolds, they are simple and efficient for everyday wear with just enough steez. Reynolds has a great style on and off the board.

I need these in my life.

Watch the vid for a little insight on where the name "3:33" came from:

2008-03-17T00:07:00.000-07:00

UNTITLED.

Anti-war protest rally.
3/15/08. Los Angeles, CA.

Photos by Hassan Rahim.

2008-03-14T22:18:00.000-07:00

UNTITLED.

Short Stop w/ Cosmic Kids.
3/12/08. Echo Park, CA.

Photos by Hassan Rahim.

2008-03-14T18:59:00.000-07:00

FREEZE FRAME.

This shit is amazing. Hundreds of people got together in Grand Central Station and froze in place for about 5 minutes. Power in numbers dude.

I want to be a part of something like this in LA. Let's make it happen.

2008-03-14T18:00:00.000-07:00

WAR IS OVER.

Fight the powers that be. Rally on Hollywood and Vine tomorrow at Noon. More info HERE.

Photos by Hassan Rahim.

2008-03-13T06:55:00.000-07:00

KING OF (NUDE) PHOTO.

Terry Richardson has a new magazine. I can't even post most of the pictures on here...

Simply titled Richardson Mag, it seems to have some old content mixed with new content, as well as work from other artists/photographers alike.. I know the weed editorial is from yeaarrsss ago, so who knows how old the other stuff is. Either way, it's full of ridiculous. Like everywhere you click.

Enjoy. I'm sure you will.

2008-03-12T17:54:00.000-07:00

ROLLIN AND SCRATCHIN.

DJ Shadow and Cut Chemist live at the Hollywood Bowl.

I was so pissed that I missed this show, but apparently they are making a DVD, and that was the first few minutes of it.

Luckily we got to see Cut Chemist at Star Shoes (RIP) that night for an afterparty, which they obviously didn't promote for shit because we were the only people there. Good stuff.

2008-03-12T17:33:00.000-07:00

HOW WE GOT HERE.

Who else to better explain in less than 4 minutes how the fuck we came to exist.

I love the History Channel.

2008-03-12T17:02:00.000-07:00

PLAY BALL.

Here are some of the best basketball commercials of all time. These were the golden years.

2008-03-12T03:16:00.000-07:00

MIDNITE TACOS.

Vendors rule all that is the mexican food world in Los Angeles. Whether it be a high-class catering truck serving everything from burgers to burritos, tostadas to twinkies, chips to cherries, and everything in between, or a broke-down pushcart with a strict selection of corn on the cob smothered in butter and wagon-wheel-shaped chips drenched in lime and hot sauce, they run the streets. Nobody in my neighborhood actually eats at resturants everyday.

And I don't see why we should.

What's better than the convenience of walking out your front door and being welcome to a delicious carne asada burrito, maybe a few tacos, a nice imported bottle of Jarritos, and the lovely smile of the ladies serving it up?

Photos by Hassan Rahim.

2008-03-10T17:45:00.000-07:00

LOST AND FOUND.

Dazed and confused: Park City, Utah.

Photos by Hassan Rahim.

2008-03-10T16:58:00.000-07:00

CEREMONIAL.

Opening Ceremony teamed up with indie actress and hot chick role model Chloe Sevigny to design her own one-time line within the company, under one condition: Every item in the collection must be something she would personally want to own.

Check the entire lookbook HERE.

2008-03-08T07:45:00.000-08:00

SHE HEARTS YOU.

Cosby Dotted Cardi modeled by Alexa Farr. Photos by Hassan Rahim.

2008-03-07T20:00:00.000-08:00

AMIGOS AND BURRITOS.

Hopped on the bus late last night to do a little photoshoot over at Cosby Clothing's new headquarters. Zack's been steady shredddiiinnggggggg...

Baby Zack (Serious steez check on that RUN DMC shirt):

Zack and I used to live together a year ago on Vermont and Melrose next to El Gran Burrito, (the best Mexican food spot in the fucking U-NI-VERSE), so after taking some photos we shot down to our old hood with his girlfriend Keyla to take care of business...

Hey, remember that interview I did with Zack last year? You can read that HERE.

Otherwise Cosby's online store is now up and running HERE, so you can support our delicious taco habits by purchasing some nice clothing.

Annndddd you can expect those Spring photos we took to be up sometime next week.

Solid.

2008-03-06T04:15:00.000-08:00

OUT TO TAX.

It's still surreal to me sometimes to sit back and think that these 4 dudes (5 including Micah James) in my immediate circle of friends are about to be one of the biggest things to hit rap music in years.

Introducing The '87 Stickup Kids.

This month's URB Magazine next 100 issue:

I'm not even gonna waste my breath in any lousy attempt to hype them up; the crew speaks for themselves. Not only do they throw one of the best live shows you've been to, they're currently in the studio recording their new mixtape "The Summer Of '87" due sometime this summer (2008 that is).

And they're about to get theirs. Period.

Hip Hop is alive.

2008-03-04T18:45:00.000-08:00

OUT AND ABOUT.

How considerate of us... here's some shit for you to do:

Vegas peeps:

And if yer going to Texas next week:

2008-03-04T18:14:00.000-08:00

IN THE HOOD.

Swung across the street to Brooklyn Projects' Echo Park headquarers earlier today to say what's up to our boy Danny (you may know him from his band EXCEL). They just recieved their Spring '08 Obey gear (ladies too), as well as the Obey X Fuji fixie. Don't be a sleeper.

If you were around earlier last year, Shepard actually teamed up with Saber to do the wall in Brooklyn Projects' alley:

Peep the Obey Clothing website for more.

Brooklyn Projects Echo Park
2125 W. Sunset Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90026
+21 3 483 03 22

2008-03-04T03:16:00.000-08:00

JUKEBOXIN.

On rotation:

Justice VS. Soulwax - Disco Sirens (Exclusive Annie Mac Radio Rip)

Digitalism - ZDRLT (Rewind)

Goldfrapp - Slide In (DFA Remix)

Holy Ghost! - Hold On

Panthers - Goblin City (Holy Ghost! Disco Dub)

M.I.A. - Paper Planes (DFA Remix) (Recommended)

LCD Soundsystem - Big Ideas (Recommended)

Billie Holiday - You Let Me Down (Free The Robots Remix) (Highly Recommended)

As you can see DFA Records is constantly killing it. I think most of the smart kids are starting to see where this dance music scene is going... had to bust a steez check on that ass.

So yeah, those should keep you busy for a little while.

2008-03-04T02:11:00.000-08:00

FOUR CAPITAL LETTERS.

Justice's new video for DVNO uses some of the best logo creation/adaptation ever. Props again to Ed Banger's in-house designer/creative director SO ME for holding it down constantly.

Their album is way overplayed in LA these days (maybe if they didn't do 5 parties a night everytime they're in town?), but still remains a classic as far as electro/house music production goes.

UPDATE: Someone just sent me this video from Skeet's blog:

Apparently they took an amazing concept with amazing logos and made it into an amazing video.

Amazing.

2008-03-03T22:40:00.000-08:00

MICHEL GONDRY VS. NICKELODEON.

So here's the trailer for Michel Gondry's new feature film, Be Kind Rewind:

But remember The Amanda Show from Nickelodeon about 8 years ago?

I know the plots are similar, but Michel's film takes the concept of shooting your own movies and turns it into a success story based upon the actual creativity of the video store guys (as opposed to the Amanda Show, which takes the same concept of making your own version of a movie but leaving the customer upset rather than satisfied).

Plus it's Nickelodeon. Say those two names together. Nickelodeon. Michel Gondry. Nickelodeon. Michel Gondry. He's the shit PERIOD. So you be the judge dude.

But seriously. NICK-O-FUCK-ING-LO-DE-ON.

2008-03-03T16:47:00.000-08:00

TAKEOVER.

This is probably the most retarded lineup to hit Texas.

AND OH YEAH! This goes with the Dress Right post, but peep the Obey Spring 2008 Lookbook. We shot it at Dance Right late last year, right before the party people started to pack the spot.

Click the urinal:

2008-03-03T16:10:00.000-08:00

PARROT ENEMY #1.

You should already know who this dude is. The bird is getting so big he had to get a new nest. Click the beak below to see peep his new website.

DISCLAIMER: The views shared on the Arab Parrot are NOT necessarily those of VGRNTS COLLECTIVE.

2008-03-03T15:12:00.000-08:00

OBEY SPRING 2008.

Click below for this past Thursday's Dress Right fashion show, held monthly at Apartment 3 in Downtown LA.

Beezies everywhere, free Obey Clothing giftbags, good music as always, and OPEN BAR. Plus it directly coincides with Dance Right, Obey's weekly nightspot (and Dress Right's official afterparty) just a few blocks up from the fashion show at La Cita.

Look at that hotness... You already regret not going.

2008-02-29T02:52:00.000-08:00

ABOVE THE CLOUDS.

There's a first time for everything I suppose.

2008-02-24T23:04:00.000-08:00

AWOL.

One month is a long time. Bet you thought we just got lazy on you.

Nooo sir.

Here's a handful of excuses regarding what exactly went down (in chronological order):

Experienced temporary technichal difficulties at the studios,

Acuired new time capturing mechanism courtesy Romeo Trinidad himself,

Renovated headquarters,

Traveled back to '87 to document some stickup kids,

Shot a music video in the desert with some Frenchies,

A little bit of this,

A little bit of that,

Big Fun met Sudden Death,

Fought death himself,

...aaaanndddd that's about it. Feel free to hit me on my beeper for any further questions.

2008-01-17T22:01:00.000-08:00

NUFF SAID.

Period.

2008-01-17T21:20:00.000-08:00

CASTING CALL.

Everybody,

I will be casting dancers for a music video to be shot in late January. If you are my friend on MySpace you may have heard about this already. Here is the info:

+The artist is Yelle, and the song is "Tristesse Joie (Rolf Honey Remix)".

CLICK TO DOWNLOAD:
Yelle - Tristesse Joie (Rolf Honey Remix)

+The video will be shot January 31st in the desert.

+The video will be shot and directed by Bastien Lattanzio.

+Reebok is paying for the video, so all of the dancers will be wearing Reeboks.

+Need to know how to dance, period. Hip Hop/Freestyle steez, but not too b-boy/breakdance. We need that fancy footwork!

+Currently looking for 1 (one) female and 1 (one) male dancer until further notice.

All dancers interested please inquire for more information (including how to audition and how much we are paying): vgrnts@vgrnts.com

Thanks!

2008-01-17T19:33:00.000-08:00

FLOSS.

Throughout the early 1980's, Styling Garage was one of the world's most renowned auto tuning and customizing shops. Based in Germany, and catering to the biggest Hollywood actors, Arabian sultans, sheiks, and wealthy upper-echelon auto enthusiasts all over the place, they basically specialized in taking the most luxury of luxury whips and tweaking them in every corner and crevice to create what most people only fantasized about driving.

The 80's were the epitome of having a luxury vehicle. Just imagine... everything from gullwing doors, color TVs with VCRs, one of those brick-sized cellular phones, shit even a refrigerator... all covered in cherry red leather and wood grain... MMMMMM.

Just close your eyes and smell the money.

For some reason, even when I see a car like this driving around nowadays, all I can think is drug money. There was a time period when I was in 4th grade that I lived at my Grandma's house in Santa Ana, and I remember my 30+ year old uncle Robbie lived there with his son, who to me was my younger cousin known simply as "Lil' Robbie". My grandma was always tired of him bringing his homies to the house, drinking 40's and smoking blunts in the backyard while they barbequed listening to NWA, Dr. Dre, Egyptian Lover, Jimi Hendrix... basically everything my Grandma didn't want me to listen to, all on his 4-foot-tall speaker system he "got from a friend".

I don't know exactly what he did for a living, but I do know he had the illest BMW 3-Series on the block with metallic paint and chrome everywhere, and Lil' Robbie always went back to school with a fresh pair of kicks and clean gear to match.

ALL he ever did was work on his and his homies' cars in the driveway. That was all they cared about. Getting whatever late model BMW/Benz/Lexus/Infiniti, stripping the paint, ripping the guts out, and making it the sickest car on the block.

I remember getting home from school one day, and Robbie pulls up in the most ridiculous, beat up Mercedes, covered in primer spots and dirt. I even think the windshield may have been cracked. After inquiring about where he got it exactly and how much it cost him, the only response I recieved was him showing me this photo of Egyptian Lover and saying, "See that car outside? It's going to look exactly like this in 3 weeks."

I haven't seen or heard from Uncle Robbie or Lil' Robbie in years, but wherever you are, keep doing your thang, Uncle Robbie...

Keep doing your thang.

2008-01-13T02:56:00.000-08:00

WOW.

No comment.

2008-01-11T00:20:00.001-08:00

GENIUS.

Hats off to JBS Underwear. This ad campaign needs no further explanation.

To tell you the truth, I always thought those Hanes ads with Michael Jordan were shitty anyways. Plus you could totally read through the blank expression on his face everytime he said whatever stupid punchline they wrote him.

Enthusiasm is just so key in certain situations.

(The opposite) sex sells.

2008-01-10T23:24:00.000-08:00

WRAPPED.

Format Magazine finished up an in-depth retrospective on some of 2007's best of the bests in the whole fashion-sneaker-design-film-music-shred category. This website is a daily check for me; they are always on point when it comes to updates and content.

New York based graphic designer Dust La Rock took cover of the top 10 album covers of 2007:

MWM chose the top 10 artists/designers of 2007 (Alex Trochut made #3):

And DC based rapper WALE held down the top 10 sneakers of 2007:

View the entire wrap-up HERE.

2008-01-08T02:21:00.000-08:00

TWO THOUSAND EIGHT.

Just four-hundred-and-thirty-four days ago was the moment I made the move from Santa Ana, California to the ever illustrious capital of the West we call Los Angeles. Not that Santa Ana wasn't a capital in itself to begin with; the Greater Los Angeles Area consists of Los Angeles, Long Beach, and Santa Ana, the main three cities officially responsible for the agglomeration "Southland". I mean, Eureka takes credit for being the "official" capital, but we all know where the real gold diggers are. (UPDATE: Sacramento is the capital of California, and I obviously didn't finish grade school.)

I definitely can't say I started 2007 with any type of game plan, nonetheless a head start. As the last half of 2006's final trimester approached its destined moment of truth, it seemed as though the unhappy ending of a once passionately chased dream had reversed its way through the space-time continuum to destroy the very life it was destined to blossom.

I ended the year with one of the biggest moves I'd make in my 19-some-odd years: the decision to get up, pack a lunch, and move my ass to LA. Merriam-Webster defines the word "singular" in many ways, almost all of them describing the path I chose, but the most accurate one is: "departing from general usage or expectation." Every parent/guardian has expectations of their children, but how much can they expect from a child that raised him or her self?

The past few paragraphs have the potential to become the introduction to my life story as an adult, but instead of getting extra epic on all ya'll I decided to give a brief (very long) 2007 photo retrospective. Each and every photo has its own story behind it, and holds a special place in the bottom of my heart.

Enjoy.

Time flies.

2008-01-08T02:00:00.000-08:00

2007-12-23T03:22:00.000-08:00

I'M ALL EARS.

Whatever happened to the beautiful process of slow progression? You know, an ear catching intro, transitioning into a steady flow of constant buildup, leading to an unpredictable breakdown, reaching a highly anticipated climax, fading into a breathtaking conclusion...?

I mean, I know it's almost 2008 now, everyone is seemingly straight-to-the-point with everything... but what the fuck?

Death In Vegas - Help Yourself

Radiohead - There There

M83 - Lower Your Eyelids To Die With The Sun

Odd Nosdam - Untitled Three (W/ Jessica Baliff)

The Three Degrees - Maybe (Recommended)

In other music news (or pasts), Radiohead does Ceremony.

Photo via INQMND.

2007-12-18T03:35:00.000-08:00

LOVE THIS.

Epic enough?

Para One - Dundun Dun (Recommended)

Para One - Dundun Dun (Boys Noize Remix)

Para One - Dundun Dun (MSTRKRFT Remix)

Even better remixes. In other news, Para One also killed it at the TTC show last Wednesday at the Viper Room. I snuck a few video clips with Glenjamn's camera:

France is on a roll right now.

2007-12-18T02:12:00.000-08:00

SHRED.

Barcelona based graphic designer Alex Trochut just updated his website with some more goodies. Like, really good goodies. Really.

Really though.

2007-12-18T01:09:00.000-08:00

Introducing Silver Spoon Attire. Based in London and New York, these guys came out of nowhere with a Fall/Winter '07 line featuring some of the illest jackets I've seen in years, and will have a full cut and sew line by Spring '08. Amazing construction and high quality leathers.

Enjoy.

Steady crushin'.

PS: This post is dedicated to the tragic loss of my favorite Obey leather jacket, which occurred about 2 weeks ago. Last seen wearing it in this photo with my friend Nancy:

Sorry Mike T.

2007-12-13T23:31:00.001-08:00

PARTYTIME.

This is a project the couple of us have been keeping semi low-key for the most part, but now it's official.

LOOSE WEDNESDAYS AT THE VINE BAR.

RSVP is strongly suggested.

2007-12-07T00:19:00.000-08:00

BANKSY IN BETHLEHEM.

This is a new level of epic.

2007-12-06T05:38:00.000-08:00

KEEP YOUR HEART, THREE STACKS.

REST IN PEACE PIMP C, 1/2 of UGK.

Dude passed away early Wednesday morning literally a few blocks from my job. Cause of death is still undetermined.

Read more HERE.

2007-11-29T16:00:00.000-08:00

DISCLAIMER:

The following two flyers are kind of a big deal.

Shep just got back from London. Ruined everything. Now he's already got another show. What the hell dude. Never not working.

ANNDDDDDDD Mike T. and Roams (Obey Clothing) are in Hong Kong again.

More on the Obey Clothing Blog.

2007-11-29T15:23:00.000-08:00

LOYAL MUMBLE.

My boys Royal Rumble (Kyle + Russ + Dan), who have been heating up LA parties the entire year so far (not an ironic overstatement; they literally set the speakers on fire at Neighborhood Festival), busted this Kid Sister refix a while back:

Kid Sister - Damn Girl (Royal Rumble Hall Of Fame Remix)

And in relation to the concept of taking someone else's shit and completely flipping it something of your own, here are some songs M.I.A. paid tribute to lyrically on her new album Kala:

M.I.A. - Bamboo Banger (2007)

The Modern Lovers - Roadrunner (1976)

M.I.A. - 20 Dollar (2007)

The Pixies - Where Is My Mind (1988)

Gotta go get this album if you've been sleepin. Or better yet, go see her live.

I think I'm gonna propose to her next time she's in LA.

2007-11-28T16:46:00.001-08:00

TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE.

This is really bad photoshopping turned into an internet rumor phenomenon.

Come onnnn.

2007-11-26T14:21:00.000-08:00

HEROES.

The art direction, design, and illustration work of Non-Format.

This is the best website I've been on in a really long time. I have seen these guys' projects repeatedly for the past few years, and have never been able to track down exactly who the fuck was responsible for all this amazing work until recently.

Their style is somewhat reminiscent of Surface To Air at times, really simple and minimalistic yet with that months-of-perfection touch to it. It's pretty apparent they have well thought out ideas, as opposed to lots of designers that sit in front of a computer with a blank screen and make something from scratch.

Speaking of Surface To Air, nothing can ever compete with their crackpipe chandlier:

Insanity.

2007-11-22T15:18:00.000-08:00

FACE TO FACE.

Tuesday night marked Holly Stanton's (temporary) return to California. First we went to the Salvador Dali exhibit at LACMA, then attemtped to develop 2 rolls of film dating back to when I was 15 (they were expired), then rounded up the crew like good old times.

Here are some of the lovely faces from throughout the night:

All photos taken on Glenjamn's Tiger.

2007-11-21T05:59:00.000-08:00

IF YOU THINK.

"Nothing is yours. And if I think everything belongs to me. How wrong I'll be; none of us have anything."

"There's a place I have never explored. Another world we have yet to conquer. And until then none of us have anything."

Trish Keenan = love. For more background and influence, listen to this. James Cargill and Trish Keenan are the modern day Joseph Byrd and Dorothy Moskowitz.

"I repeat myself. I believe that through this unconscious repitition, I have been leaking messages to myself for years. Two words have come up again and again for me. These two words feature in a number of my songs and I have not realized it until now. The words are 'let go.' I have been telling myself to let go for years. So much so I am claiming ownership of them. They are my words. I refuse to let go of them. They are going to be my reminders to let go. Perhaps my epitaph.

The lyrics of 'Tender Buttons' were generated through automatic writing. They are my free falling thoughts. I believe that words have their own life. That if you throw words together randomly, they naturally make sense. Language just wants to be understood." -Trish Keenan regarding Broadcast's lyrics

Broadcast - Look Outside (2000, Warp Records) (Recommended)

The United States Of America - Coming Down (1968, Columbia Records) (Recommended)

2007-11-19T18:30:00.000-08:00

LOOSE.

So Nate Day, Wendy City, Glenjamn and myself have all joined forces and are throwing a new Wednesday night party called LOOSE! at the Vine Bar... (!!!)

The party kicks off December 19th, and Nate just finished up a new mixtape to start it off right (Hosted by VGRNTS).

Nate Day - Loose Like Pineapple Juice:

1. CLUB MUZIK--??
2. SIRENS --DEBONAIR SAMIR
3. KILL EM IN THE CLUB-- SCOTTIE B/KING TUT
4. PICK EM UP
5. XR2--MIA
6. THE BOMB--BUCKETHEADS
7. AROUND THE WORLD (NINTENDO EDIT)- DAFT PUNK
8. AMERICA (BRODINSKI RMX) - THE SHOES
9. ZDARLIGHT - DIGITALISM
10. LALA LAND- GREEN VELVET
11. STAGE DIVING -- THE TOXIC AVENGER
12. PHANTOM (SOULWAX NITE VERSION) --JUSTICE
13. ANGELROCK-- LA RIOTS AND ATLANTIC CONNECTION
<---WE ARE ROCKSTARS --DOES IT OFFEND YOU YEAH??(TEASE)
14. COCETTE (HYSTEREO MIX) --TEENAGE BAD GIRL
15. THROUGH A KEYHOLE(SOLID GROOVE MIX) -- WALTER MEEGO
16. ALIVE -- DAFT PUNK
17. STRESS EXCUSE-- NATE DAY VS. EVERYONE
<---SMACK MY BITCH UP --THE PRODIGY (TEASE)

Click to download: http://www.sendspace.com/file/e0sahz

So until we kick it off on December 19th, we decided to cut the turkey a day early and throw a little pre-Thanksgiving event with the one and only DJ Pubes:

Remember the Pubes interview? I advise you read it if you haven't... Most of you may not really know what you're fucking with when you come out to his parties. Pubes is currently looking at 25 to life for murdering the dancefloor at the last Rockognized that just went down this Saturday. Those that came are currently being summoned as witnesses to the crime, and know exactly what went down.

++SNIPPET: DJ Pubes @ Rockognized (Courtesy of Hassanjamn)

Cobrasnake took some photos at Rockognized:

Don't say we didn't warn you.

2007-11-18T22:20:00.000-08:00

MICHAEL.

...Jackson, that is. What happened dude? You used to be kinda badass. Not only did you have the best music videos, you had your OWN MOVIE.

Michael Jackson - Speed Demon

Michael Jackson - Leave Me Alone

Michael Jackson Live at Motown 25th Anniversary (This is the first time the public saw the Moonwalk)

We all miss the black Michael Jackson, but I think I miss the half-black Michael a little more.

2007-11-15T20:04:00.000-08:00

UR NOT IN FASHION.

This past Friday I had the priviledge of taking part in a runway fashion show for UNIF Clothing. The theme was based on late 80's to early 90's surf gear, really loud and colorful. It took place on the upper level of a sewing building in Downtown LA, which actually turned out to be a really sick loft space. Lots of beautiful people, good music, and a fun time.

Here are some of the runway photos:

UNIF was the last brand to go up, which worked out perfectly because we got to see firsthand what works and what doesn't work on the runway. I am really glad we didn't have to go earlier, I would have been skeered as fuck to be the first dude. I guess the people before us kind of "broke it in" so to say. Plus the UNIF mixtape was off the hook, so the crowd was ultra pumped. Probably the only brand that got the crowd to cheer after each model. There was an insane product toss afterwards too. And the girls were AMAZING. All around good shit. Special thanks to Eric and Chris from UNIF/Stampd' LA!

UNIF Myspace
Stampd' LA Myspace

2007-11-15T09:18:00.000-08:00

I'M ALL EARS.

Just some favorites this week:

DJ Mehdi - Signatune (Thomas Bangalter Edit)

Daft Punk - Oh Yeah (Soulwax Edit)

Tepr - Minuit Jacuzzi (Data Remix)

LCD Soundsystem - Get Innocuous (Soulwax Remix) (Recommended)

Sometimes remixes are just a little better than the original song.

2007-11-12T13:43:00.000-08:00

MR. TOLEDANO WILL SEE YOU NOW.

The photography of Philip Toledano.

No explanation needed, this guy's work speaks for itself. Some of these photographs may look familiar right away, most likely because they're in any major magazine you've picked up at a news stand in the past few years.

2007-11-12T13:21:00.000-08:00

AROUND THE WORLD.

Here is a visitor map of today's hits from around the globe. The internet is bigger than you think!

Here's a closer view of today's visitors from the States. Most of the hits on this site are from Los Angeles (for the foreigners, that would be the clusterfuck of red dots in the bottom left), but I was surprised to see where a lot of the others were coming from.

2007-11-09T16:54:00.000-08:00

Went to Vans World HQ over in Cypress, CA for the day. Vans has an AMAZINGLY FUCKING HUGE office, it was so insane to see firsthand how big this company is. Tons of cool stuff, lots of original artwork dating back to the 60's and 70's. I even ran into artist Taka Hayashi.

Too bad Cypress is the most boring city ever, and I'd probably lose my mind quickly if I had to be there for anything more than 12 hours. Which I guess works perfectly for an office environment with hundreds of employees all under one building? Right? Hmmmm...

The storm clouds are taking over the L.A. sky once again. And everybody loves rainy day music...

Feist - Mushaboom (k-os mix) (Recommended)

Bjork - I Miss You (Sunshine Mix)

Handsome Boy Modeling School - The Truth

What do these 3 songs have in common...?

2007-11-04T00:56:00.000-07:00

FIRE IN LONDON.

Aside from creating the world's largest propaganda phenomenon, running a design studio & clothing company, DJing around the globe, and inspiring other artists worlwide on the daily, Shepard Fairey just held one of his largest exhibitions yet in the heart of London.

Ol' Johnny Fur was the official photographer for the night and most of the trip. Here's from his perspective:

So after a few photoshoots with the Obey UK fam, some previews of the new line, and a VERY successful opening reception (EVERY PIECE SOLD), the dudes skidded over to Paris to enjoy the rest of the weekend.

Here's some more pics of the crew terrorizing Europe:

More photos on the BLOG!

You motherfuckers better not come back with food poisoning again... (THAT MEANS YOU ROAMS!)

2007-11-02T23:02:00.001-07:00

STACK BRICKS.

This is in response to the previous post paying homage to the seemingly endless creative endeavors of Michel Gondry. I was recently watching my Michel Gondry Director's Label DVD, which includes the making of The White Stripes music video "Fell In Love With A Girl":

As well as the final product:

I originally wanted to write this post after recently coming across what seems like a new ad campaign/marketing concept from Lego:

Simply titled "3 Bricks", the goal of the ad series is to suggest to the consumer that the final product of any Lego project is limitless, no matter the size, color, or amount of bricks provided. Every human mind is different, and just the way a psychologist uses ink blots to determine one's train of thought, these ads suggest that it's not necessarily what's provided to you, but what you make of it.

This is definitely a new form of marketing on the part of Lego, being that their most success has been shown by marketing kits that always had some general theme behind them. Whether it be space travel, vikings, a simulation of city life, or a promotion for a certain movie or product (I.E. Star Wars, Bob The Builder), Lego has always taken the color palette, characters, accessories, and packaging of their building kits and designed them to fit one particular theme.

Not too sure how their new ad campaign will play out, but if you ask me, they're pretty fucking bummed they didn't make some sick White Stripes Lego kits.

In other news, Jack and Meg are pretty much over, it judging by their new White Stripes Lomography camera sets:

And in other-other news, I have been Craigslisting frantically to locate a huge random box of assorted Lego pieces for an upcoming design project, being that my little sister was the sole beneficiary of all my childhood toys and refuses to part ways with them under any circumstances. I'll keep you posted.

UPDATE: I just came across this amazing video:

Grand Theft Auto: Lego City

SOOO good.

2007-11-02T14:54:00.000-07:00

Today marks the day I reached the 80GB mark in my iTunes library. Lots of full albums, lots of singles, lots of covers, lots of originals... just lots of shit. Out of 16,573 songs and 43.1 days worth of music to choose from, this is the weird mood I'm in today.

Serge Gainsbourg - La Chanson de Slogan (avec Jane Birkin)

Alain Goraguer - Le Bracelet

Claudine Longet - Un Homme Et Un Femme

Blonde Redhead - En Particulier

Sophia Loren - De Jour En Jour

Stereo Total - Liebe Zu Dritt (This is actually in German)

Edith Piaf - La Vie En Rose (Recommended)

Film recommendation: La Planète Sauvage (Fantastic Planet). Someone uploaded the entire movie on YouTube, which you can watch RIGHT HERE.

Part 1 of Fantastic Planet (English Version)

THIS MOVIE IS HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

2007-11-02T14:16:00.000-07:00

TYPO.

Amazing illustration and typography works by Alex Trochut out of Barcelona. I don't know how the fuck this guy does it exactly...

...but it's some buttery shit.

2007-11-01T15:58:00.000-07:00

ALWAYS DREAMING, BUT NEVER SLEEPING.

Here's why Michel Gondry is a genius:

Michel solving a Rubik's cube with his feet

And how he did it

Dream sequence from "The Science Of Sleep"

Clip from "Eternal Sunshine of The Spotless Mind"

Michel Gondry HP Commercial

Go watch The Science Of Sleep (Charlotte Gainsbourg is in this movie)

2007-11-01T15:29:00.001-07:00

Looks like some serious shit is about to go down this Sunday.

Apparently Peaches recently remixed Tone Loc, and they are performing together at The Avalon for Delicious Vinyl's 20th anniversary.

Download the track:

Tone Loc - Wild Thing (Peaches Remix) (Radio edit)

It's a free event, just make sure to RSVP HERE.

2007-11-01T15:16:00.000-07:00

Went to the Grn Apple Tree headquarters yesterday to drop off some secret files. Luis is one of the friendliest people I have met this year. We discussed various topics like the actual business aspects of being a graphic designer, imitators, musical inspiration in relation to design, the competitive juxtaposition of similar styles, and some of their future projects coming out soon. These guys are definitely good at what they do, and have been doing it for a long time. I don't need to say "keep your eye out for their upcoming projects", they are of such magnitude that you wont be able to miss them.

This is going to be kind of an epic sale. The new Grn Apple Tree gear is so off the hook (Thanks Luis and Cody), and nowhere on earth have I seen Hysteric Glamour have a sample sale. Kill City has been making some really good denim from what I've seen also. Don't sleep.

2007-10-29T06:26:00.000-07:00

BITERS OR BORROWERS?

Sampling our forefathers has been a vital part in making modern music what it is today. Ideally, would music be what is is today without the creations of those before us? Is there even such thing as a true innovator anymore? Since the beginning of Hip Hop, as well as all mainstream and subculture genres of music, some of our favorite artists have "borrowed", sampled, been inspired by, and blatantly copied the original creators of the work they call their own. Is this unfair? Where is the line between "borrowing an idea" and ripping someone off drawn?

I could rant on and on for days about the concept of inspiration versus imitation, but in reality there is no line, no true boundary. Aside from the legal aspects, the comparison of the two is only drawn by one's own opinion, and I can personally say many of my designs, styles, and even theories have been inspired in one way or another by those before me. Whether it's a drum kick, a millisecond of a bleep, or a full-on 30 second loop, you'd be surprised where many of your favorite songs have borrowed their beats and hooks from.

This post is somewhat of a response to the many Daft Punk, Justice, and Kanye West fans that have recently felt betrayed from a few particular YouTube videos merely exposing the samples they used on their albums. You've obviously been hiding under a rock in the middle of buttfuck for 25 years. Here are the videos:

Kanye West samples from "Graduation"

Various Daft Punk Samples

Justice Samples from "†"

You decide.

2007-10-26T15:28:00.000-07:00

MIXED UP.

So, the homie Barry from Philly , aka DJ Avid, teamed up with his homie Snacks from Philly (how rad, I want a homie named Snacks) to make the most amazing mixtape.

Snacks back in Philly had been burning what he called "Skanky Floozy" cds for about a year. Basically all the songs on these discs were classic party tracks, that were performed by ladies and were also somewhat scandalous in nature. Before even hearing it the tracklist itself was enough proof that this one's a heater:

01: Stacey Q - Two of Hearts
02: Sheila E. - The Glamorous Life
03: Debbie Deb - Lookout Weekend
04: Expose Feat. Amanda Blank - Come Go With Me Remix
05: Klymaxx - The Men All Pause
06: Vanity 6 - Nasty Girl
07: The Cover Girls - Show Me
08: Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam W/Full Force - Let The Beat Hit Em
09: The Pointer Sisters - Automatic
10: Samantha Fox - Touch Me
11: Nu Shooz Feat. Lil Kim - I Can't Wait Remix
12: Mary Jane Girls - All Night Long
13: Carrie Lucas - Show Me Where Your Coming From
14: Expose - Let Me Be The One
15: Sweet Sensation - Sincerely Yours
16: Teena Marie - Square Biz
17: Sheila E. - A Love Bizarre
18: Pebbles - Mercedes Boy
19: Shannon - Let The Music Play
20: Teena Marie - Behind The Groove
21: Trinere And Friends - How Can We Be Wrong
22: Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam W/Full Force - I Wonder If I Take You Home
23: Cherrelle Feat. Alexander ONeal - Saturday Love
24: Rebbie Jackson - Centipede
25: Skyy - Call Me
26: The Jets - Crush On You
27: Mary Jane Girls - Candyman
28: Klymaxx - Meeting In The Ladies Room

Download it rightttt heerreeee:

http://www.zshare.net/download/45853065093d56/ (NEW LINK, FASTER DOWNLOAD)

I've been bumping this shit all week. Thanks Barry!

2007-10-24T17:08:00.000-07:00

From now until Halloween is seriously nothing but fun stuff. WOOO!

Chris and I (WHITE GIRLS) are going to be hosting this Middle Class party Friday night, with Free The Robots spinning. There are gonna be sexy girls dressed in toilet paper mummy costumes, and our goal is to get 'em nekkid on the dancefloor, then toilet paper the venue. Woooo!

LADIES: Halloween is your one excuse out of the year to dress as a slutty, like... anything. Pirate, bus driver, waitress, umpire, kitty cat, whatever. Be sure to stop by Girl's Costume Warehouse!

2007-10-22T16:26:00.000-07:00

SHORT AND CURLY.

Record collector, party rocker, drum player, disco connoisseur, spinner at LA Weekly's #1 voted dance party, and your favorite Los Angeles DJ's favorite Los Angeles DJ.

DJ Pubes gots the game locked in a cage getting shocked with a pole. Running a record collection of about 20,000+, he's got every right-click-save-as DJ in check by personally ripping all his music straight from vinyl for that authentic sound he's known for.

Originally from Jersey, he's been killing it out here for years now, and it apparently runs in the family (his older brother Mike is head designer at Obey Clothing). Here's a peek at what goes on inside his hairy ass dome:

Top 5 Records that cost you under 5 bucks:

That's tough to say, you find rare stuff worth a grip for under 5 alot. On the other side of it, alot of good records regularly cost under 5. Here's 5 I like, rare or not that cost under 5.

1. High Hopes - SOS Band
2. Abracadabra/Macho City - Steve Miller Band
3. The Bob Seger System
4. Cerrone - Brigaide Mondaine
5. Shocking Blue

Top 5 Ebay bid battles:

1. Early era Patagonia reverse pile jacket, my dad used to have the same one
2. Introducing Drago Ep (still can't get over the loss, first track is stuck in my head and I may never see that record again)
3. Men Of Respect True Bad Boy 12"
4. Philadelphia Eagles Zubaz size Med, most of the time when Eagles Zubaz show up on Ebay they are XXL with a pizza stain on them
5. Trying to negotiate the price on a mixer from some guy in Burbank who had listed the mixer along with his phone number. So I went to his house and offered sweet sweet cash. I have no shame in my eBay game.

Top 5 parties in 2007:

1. Dafterparty w/ Blu Jemz, Dark Alley, Mike B and myself
2. Rockognized #4
3. Ass & Titties w/ Low Budget
4. Dance Right with fromElsewhere guys. Everytime they are there I have a good time. The only time I can actually relax when I'm there is when they play. They know how to build the night.
5. I have some short term memory or something cause my mind is going blank. Maybe we'll leave one blank for an upcoming event that will be epic.

++Pubes live at Rockognized #4

Top 5 halloween costume ideas:

1. My old lady wants me to be Jen from Dark Crystal
2. Because I don't want to cut my beard I told her I'd be Jim Hensen and I'll tie strings to her costume so she looks like a puppet from Dark Crystal. I guess if I had Kermit the Frog puppet on my other hand it might make a little more sense.
3. Stevie Nicks and Lyndsey Buckingham, a costume for couples
4. Target is doing it big this season, my brother got a sweet keg costume.
5. If you're a lady you could always be a sexy ???? Generic costumes are where it's at though. I want to be a mummy or a pirate, maybe a wizard.

Top 5 ways to show affection to the ones you love:

1. A big 'ole kiss
2. Give them something that reminds you of them, maybe a nice swap meet find
3. Buy them drinks, get them drunk
4. Pat on the back and say you're my pal like Judge Smails in Caddy Shack
5. If it's a "special" one you love, you can do whatever Keith Sweat would do

Top 5 things about your big brother:

1. Pretty generous guy
2. They used to call him crack baby growing up
3. Looks identical to my dad at his age
4. First company to buy any of his freelance work was Hurley while he was still in college
5. He's my biggest supporter with DJing

++Pubes with Shepard Fairey at Dance Right

Top 5 annoying song requests while spinning:

Play something we can dance to!

1. Soulja Boy. Get over it LA, you are way too late on this song to get a free pass.
2. Play some Prince while playing Prince. I'm sure every DJ has a story like this.
3. Play some reggae in the middle of an uptempo dance night. I guess the song would have been something like Welcome to Jamrock. Don't get me wrong I like that song, just doesn't fit the night. Do people not realize a certain type of music is being played all night?
4. Any Girl Talk track. Unless you are 15 and a girl this is not acceptable!
5. One More Time - Daft Punk. Reminds me of meatheads at the Jersey Shore. I'm alright with Daft Punk but that song just blows.

Honorable mention: Them Jeans, Blu Jemz and I were doing a party and someone requested Elton John in the middle of a hip hop night. If the dude didn't fork over $100 this would have been annoying.

Here's a little crime scene evidence from some of his recent murder convictions:

DJ Pubes killing the decks live at Rockognized 2007 (as mentioned in "Top 5 parties"), courtesy of Glenjamn

DJ Pubes in Episode 1 of "Pube$ Was Here!" (featuring Don Nguyen)

::BONUS:: DJ Pubes live at SXSW 2007

The Pubelog
DJ Pubes Myspace
DJ Pubes Website (Coming soon)

2007-10-18T15:31:00.000-07:00

JOCK JAMS.

YEESSSSSSSS!!!

Zombie Nation - Kernkraft 400

2 Unlimited - Get Ready 4 This

C & C Music Factory - Gonna Make You Sweat

EMF - Unbelievable

Gary Glitter - Rock And Roll Part 2

I love the 90's.

2007-10-18T13:44:00.000-07:00

BE HERE.

Wipe last week's blood off your hard hat before you come. J-Logic was seriously hurting you. We asked him very nicely numerous times to show mercy but he really felt like leaving the crowd in pain. Like, really good sensual pain.

The one and only fromELSEWHERE crew. You already know what it is. We've been over this.

For now listen to these:

In Flagranti - Melodymaker (Recommended)

Klaxons - As Above, So Below (Justice Remix) (Recommended)

Black Devil Disco Club - On Just Foot (Dub Version) (Recommended)

I recommend all of them.

2007-10-17T04:13:00.000-07:00

ONE WORD.

SUPERSTUDIO.

Superstudio is the epitome of future-primitive design in the 20th century. It's so amazing to see how people imagined the world would be by the millenium. We made it through Nostradamus' vague and questionable prediction of the end of time in the year 2000. How will the world be 25 years from now? How will it be 50 years from now? Will we still be around? Will there really be flying cars and interactive robots with human personalities? The human imagination is endless.

2007-10-13T15:02:00.000-07:00

BIG FISH.

The homies at Barracuda on Melrose have launched their website, and the blog is in full effect. Here's some of the fun shit they do/see everyday, via Miguel's iPhone:

BARRACUDA
7600B Melrose Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90046
+323 852 71 79

Barracuda Website
Barracuda Myspace

2007-10-13T14:50:00.001-07:00

Google Video is the shit.

I just found Daft Punk's Electroma in it's entirety (74 minutes).

This movie is slow as fuck, but really trippy. Shrooms!

For full size click HERE.

2007-10-13T12:23:00.000-07:00

SHRED.

Tonight is the premier for the world famous MASH video. MASH is a fixed gear bike crew from San Francisco, and have made themselves famous for being some of the craziest dudes to ride a fixed gear.

From bombing hills at 40+ MPH without brakes, to doing 3-block long wheelies, they have held it down for a few minutes now. Some of them were actually pro skaters at one point of time.

Anyways, there are 2 showings tonight. Here's the flyer:

You can see a few photos from their SF premier HERE, and here's a clip of the MASH crew in action if you're unfamiliar. This is the official trailer:

Special thanks to Anthony at Stussy for hooking up some extra tickets. Considering the overwhelming amount of bikes in those photos, I think I'm better off skating there tonight.

2007-10-12T22:33:00.000-07:00

FORECAST.

After getting off the bus today on my way home, I was at the crosswalk when a random guy comes up and says "It's gonna rain tonight." Before I could tell him how full of shit he was, he proceeds to say "I broke all my bones in a motocross accident a long time ago and still have a lot of sensitive hairline fractures, so the second the air pressure starts to change I could tell you exactly when and where it's going to start raining, and for how long." The only bone I've ever broken being my big toe in junior high, I decided to shutup and take his word for it.

SOOOO 30 minutes ago the clouds just flooded the sky and decided to send a big fuck you in advance to all the sun-loving Los Angeles residents anticipating a good day tomorrow. If I ever run into homeboy again, his new nickname's Doppler 7000.

Here's my rainy day soundtrack, from me to you:

Radiohead - Everything In It's Right Place

Prefuse 73 - Nuno

Broadcast - Echo's Answer

Bjork - Hidden Place

X-Ecutioners - DJ Premier In Deep Concentration

Digitalism - The Pulse (Recommended)

Whoever's responsible for this weather is gonna get smacked upon sight. Immediately.

UPDATE: Fat Joe and Lil' Wayne just came forward and took full responsiblilty:

2007-10-11T14:25:00.000-07:00

Been a long ass week. Came across this bootlegged video of Daft Punk playing a live show in Wisconsin a LONG time ago, and without their helmets.

Most of it sounds like random crazy noises, but if you know their music you can make out some of the songs being played, just at much higher tempos. This has to be at least 10 years ago.

Wisconsin loves to rave!

In related French guy music news, Justice was in LA recently and made an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live. Being that they are DJs/Producers as opposed to actual performers, they found a way to make a live television set a little more interesting than Laptops and CDJ's:

I think they used some of the random street performers on Hollywood Blvd that dress as celebrities. Those dudes are down for anything.

I didn't get to make it to their show at the Henry Fonda, so we went to Cinespace instead to celebrate my longtime friend Nancy's birthday. Chris (WHITE GIRLS) and I were wasted as fuck and luckily made it home ok, but only to come home and find So Me, Gaspard (Justice), SebastiAn, Franki and Travis (IHEARTCOMIX!), DJ AM, Trevor (Skeet Skeet), Royal Rumble, Ron (Cobrasnake), and about 30 other people in my living room (Not to mention my roommate Tyler, who is 1/2 of Young Americans). I had to ban some random fucker, who for the first time in history, actually tried to sell me a beer. In my own house. Come on.

Not many pics from the house party, but here's some of Ron's photos of the dudes at Burrito King across the street (whoever took them there should know the taco truck is 10x better than that shithole):

Everyone's favorite DJ couple. Gina and Dan at the crib:

The next morning we got a nice little notice from our landlord to either pay a $600 fee for disturbing the peace, or move out... IN 3 DAYS. Basically a bunch of bullshit, but I'll keep you posted on that whole situation. Ironically enough there actually used to be a monthly party held at the house called Hush Hush. This isn't the first time we've been in trouble for noise complaints, so we'll see if we can squeeze our way out of another one.

UPDATE: We JUST got another notice from the landlord, this one basically saying we have 30 days to get the fuck out. STAY TUNED!

2007-10-09T13:34:00.000-07:00

2007-10-06T12:06:00.001-07:00

NEVERMIND.

THIS dancefloor takes the cake.

And on something visually related, I was doing little research this morning on a company called Monome. They're based out of Philadelphia and make these insanely minimalist, completely adaptable/reconfigurable interfaces. This one is called The 256:

Bound only by one's creativity, the 256 has buttons that can be configured as toggles, radio groupings, sliders, or organized into more sophisticated systems to monitor and trigger sample playback positions, stream 1-bit video, interact with dynamic physical models, and play games. It's also gained wide notoriety lately from Daedelus's live shows.

This is Conway's Game Of Life being played on a 256:

And less towards the boring side, here's a clip I found on YouTube of Monome's 64 model being used with Ableton to make live beats:

These interfaces aren't specifically designed for music (though they're well suited for such) and have been used in lighting control, video mixing, and even neural network simulations.

Trip the fuck out.

2007-10-06T11:02:00.000-07:00

This can be added to the Amazing Music Videos post from last week. No running backwards underwater with shoes on, but probably the coolest puppetry ever.

Shit Disco - OK

Not a huge fan of Shit Disco, but gotta love the video concept. These guys were actually supposed to play Neighborhood Festival but word is bond one of them overdosed and was in the hospital (?).

If I had to guess it's the drummer.

2007-10-04T02:32:00.001-07:00

Tonight is the night big homie Blu Jemz tears apart our favorite Thursday night know as Dance Right.

Bring your hard hats.

2007-10-03T21:15:00.001-07:00

EPIC.

This has to be the most intense dancefloor ever.

2007-10-02T07:39:00.000-07:00

LOST & FOUND.

It's 7:41 AM, and I was going through my entire library of random photos, graphics, files, just everything. I really need to organize my shit soon, being that it's all located in ONE fucking folder on my computer, and it takes like 5 hours to load thumbnails. I have no idea why the hell I named half of my files what I did either. ONE benefit is that it sort of has the effect of a treasure chest. Or like a huge 60 GB rummage bin. After a little digging, I found a lot of old things that I forgot I even designed. Here is some of the stuff I came across:

This was a party flyer for The Hundreds and HUF for an event they threw at LAX around May last year with DJ Mike B. The concept of the graphic was based off one HUF previously released that depicted the "Tenderloin" district (one of the sketchiest parts of San Francisco), and my job was to create an LA version of that for The Hundreds. You can see the original graphic by HUF here.

I was actually 18 at the time and couldn't get into the club, so I ended up wandering around Hollywood (which back then I had NO geographical knowledge of) until the friend I came with (who got in without a problem) stumbled out the door hours later and proceeded to throw up all over his new kicks. Awesome.

This was technically the first real (meaning decent) computer graphic I ever made. It's a vector illustration of Scarlett Johansson that I did when I was 17, which I actually made entirely using Photoshop (technically disqualifying it from being a "vector" I suppose). It took me about 36 hours straight with no sleep, of which I wouldn't be surprised I contracted long-term brain damage from. I think I'll remake this one in Illustrator someday so it's a little less primitive. We'll see.

This one is kind of epic. I actually did a series of 4 or 5 of these prints when I was around 16, and I made them all with a fax machine. I had NO access to a computer, nonetheless one with Photoshop, so I was either painting or making collages all the time. My mom had a subscription to Elle Magazine, and I remember getting my ass beat for ripping out pages from it, as well as using all of the fax machine toner. I guess this one represents how much that hurt.

There are hundreds more pictures I could post, but quality over quantity has always meant a lot to me. We'll see where it takes me...

2007-10-01T23:01:00.000-07:00

This is what I missed out on while at Neighborhood on Saturday. Thank god for YouTube.