Tuesday 30 April 2024

THE DREAMTIME

‘The Dreamtime’ series by So Yoon Lym is a collection of paintings of hyperrealistic braided hairstyles.

The name of the series is a reference to a European coined term to describe the pre-colonial aboriginal Australian way of life and viewpoint of the world. The acrylic paintings were inspired by the artist's time working as a teacher in a high school where she photographed students. So Yoon Lym used the name of this series and braids to draw parallels between immigrant culture in America and aboriginal existence. 

"The histories of my students as well as myself is such that we are all connected in that most of our ancestors did not originate from Europe. And so, in my representation of these hair and braid patterns, I am referencing patterns that are unique to an urban and often immigrant culture in America that in my imagination exists in very much in a planetary, aboriginal existence, with all the layers and references to immigration, migration, displacement, segregation and racism."

Friday 26 April 2024

LINKED UP 069

An Exclusive Look at Supreme’s Iconic Graphic Tee Archive
“For me, T-shirts are what allowed us to do what we do today as a brand,” says James Jebbia as Supreme prepares to release a new book documenting 30 years of groundbreaking - and occasionally controversial - T-shirt designs. (GQ)

So Far So Good
Nolan Zangas’ first solo book So Far So Good, published by Blurring Books, unveils 160 pages of unreleased personal work spanning the last five years of living in New York City. (office)

(sabukaru)

We love acquiring, hoarding, and displaying books even more than we love reading them. (The Walrus)

Alain Levitt’s Time Capsule of Early Aughts NYC (2000-2005) 
Photographer Alain Levitt's snapshots of early 2000s NYC offer a glimpse into the city's infectious and familiar hum which never quite seems to dissipate. (office)

Uncropped: James Hamilton on the Decay of Alt-Journalism and Street Photography
In the Wes Anderson-produced documentary Uncropped, the acclaimed culture photographer discusses his career and a changing landscape. 
(The Guardian)

Americana Fever Dream: GATA Meets Nadia Lee Cohen 
Nadia Lee Cohen has a knack for turning symbols of distinctly American bad taste: fast food, Sunday morning cartoons, and the seedy glamour of a Las Vegas Motel at 2 am, into something remarkably beautiful. (GATA)

Mad Fer It! The Young Musicians Flying the Flag for Britpop
Artists from Dua Lipa to Nia Archives are tapping the boisterous energy of mid-90s music - and even embracing the union jack. Can they avoid the genre’s laddish lows? (The Guardian)

How Parklife skewered the Nineties
The Britpop generation knew they were a joke. (UnHerd)

Long Game: Ghostface Killah’s The Pretty Toney Album 20 Years On
Often overlooked today, Ghostface's fourth solo LP marked the moment where the iconoclastic rapper became the first among Wu equals.
(The Quietus)

The Long, Hot Winter of St. Louis Drill
Since St. Louis’ biggest rap stars fell out of the spotlight, new generations have drawn from Chicago drill to make music that reflects the region’s deep political struggles. (No Bells)

"People Think I Hate Pop": Super-Producer AG Cook on Working With Beyoncé and Honouring His Friend Sophie 
As the boss of PC Music, the godfather of hyperpop confounded critics but won over Beyoncé and Charli XCX. Now, with a supersized new solo album, he’s continuing his mission to make pop more unpredictable.
(The Guardian)

Red-carpet original, people’s princess, media mogul on the rise... Amelia Dimoldenberg’s Chicken Shop Date rocketed her to the big time - but she won’t stop there. (Vogue)

Saturday 20 April 2024

AIR - ALL I NEED

Friday 19 April 2024

LINKED UP 068

Patti Astor, a co-founder of Fun Gallery, the famed New York space that introduced a range of graffiti artists to the wider art world, has died at 74.
(ARTnews)

A Hypnotic Portrait of New York on Edge
Miss Sara Rosen interviews photographer Wes Knoll about Fading Smile, a book that documents what growing up in New York authentically looks like through a decade-long survey of a community of kids whose lives and experiences are unavoidably interwoven, creating a universe where everybody seems to be one degree of separation from ruining someone else's life. (ANIMAL)

Dash Snow’s Confrontational Collages Grace Celine
The transgressive artist’s text works gain new life in Celine’s latest collaboration of art and couture. (Sotheby's)

Orlando Whitfield was a student when he became best friends with Inigo Philbrick, ‘the art world’s Bernie Madoff’. He talks about how their decade of hustling would lead one to a breakdown - and the other to jail.
(The Guardian)

They are East End legends and two of the capital’s greatest living artists - here they share their favourite spots from an artists pub to the station at the centre of the universe. (Evening Standard)

How British Workwear Took Over Men's Wardrobes
A flourishing cottage industry of independent British labels has hit the post-Covid menswear sweet spot. (Esquire)

The Humble Item That’s Become a Restaurant Status Symbol
Why is every server wearing a chore coat? (NYT)


As one-third of the production team Organized Noize, he nurtured the careers of Outkast, Goodie Mob and Future from the confines of his mother’s basement, known as the Dungeon. (NYT) 

The Strange World of… South African Drill
As South African electronic music infiltrates the international pop sphere, Lior Phillips highlights the country’s take on drill as a fascinating example of the country’s ability to remake genres in its own image. (The Quietus)

Jenkem Mix 140: The Bunt
Our favourite Canadian duo take over the Jenkem mix this week, fresh off their feature on the Nine Club and return to the airwaves for Season 19 of their show. (Jenkem)

SNAKE Q&A 026: Sam Valenti IV/Ghostly
The Ghostly label founder on a Suede poster, CD longboxes, and arcade ephemera. (SNAKE)

Thursday 18 April 2024

ALAIN LEVITT: STREETS TALKING*

“In the early 2000s, New York's economic landscape created a world in which one could survive off of little. Artists, skaters, graffiti writers, poets and musicians inhabited the city, organically creating style and culture in a way that permeated into the life of the neighborhood. Common streets became legendary as the 14 block radius of downtown New York housed a thriving underground scene flourishing in a carefree time of unhindered creativity. 

At this time Alain Levitt was hanging out in the Lower East Side on a daily basis with a small film camera on his person. Spending the early 2000s living amongst the people, Alain shot the downtown New York Scene during an era that laid the foundations for events and people that went on to deeply influence the world of skate, graffiti, art and culture. His debut book NYC: 2000-2005 is a collection of these photos.”

(Courtesy of Living Proof)

Wednesday 17 April 2024

A.R.E. WEAPONS - FUCK WHAT YOU LIKE

A.R.E. Weapons forever!

Monday 15 April 2024

RATKING - CANAL

Friday 12 April 2024

LINKED UP 067

Bait, Ting, Certi: How UK Rap Changed the Language of the Nation
Fuelled by music fandom and social media, young British people’s slang is evolving to include words with pidgin, patois and Arabic roots - even where strong regional English dialects exist. (The Guardian)

"I Want to Bring the Party up North": Nia Archives on Unleashing a Yorkshire Rave Revolution
She had to go her own way to get her 90s indie-infused drum’n’bass bangers heard. Now, after opening for Beyoncé, the performer is about to release her first album, a "quintessentially British record". (The Guardian)

The A-Z Guide to Stone Island
A timeline of culture, silhouette, and materials of a nonpareil brand. 
(SSENSE)

The History of Preppy Style (and Why It’s Still Going Strong)
From square-jawed Princeton boys to the Lo Lifes smashing in windows on Madison Avenue, the story of Ivy and prep is the story of modern America.
(Gentleman's Journal)

The Celebrities Have Returned to Chateau Marmont
We follow the path of Hollywood’s most notorious to uncover the hotel’s enduring glamour. (NYLON)

The comedian’s new HBO show, Jerrod Carmichael Reality Show, is unlike anything ever seen on TV. It’s bold and brave, but what are the consequences? (Esquire)

"Is She Sure?" How the Breeders Joined Olivia Rodrigo’s Guts Tour
The ’90s alt-rock icons hit the Madison Square Garden stage for the first time Friday night, after the 21-year-old pop star invited them to join her on the road. (NYT)


Sometimes We Explode
An oral history of Ratking’s So It Goes album release party. (No Bells)

Thursday Ends a 13-Year Break From New Music With a Pointed Song
‘Application for Release From the Dream,’ which the band released Friday, marks the beginning of a fresh era for a group that helped bring emo to the mainstream. (NYT)

In Conversation: Sergio Vega of Quicksand
He's spent over three decades holding it down for one of hardcore's most influential bands. If Sergio Vega is more committed than ever, it's because he knows: His is a rare and special position. (Anti-Matter)

Saturday 6 April 2024

PREP-SCHOOL GANGSTERS

“Prep-School Gangsters” was a seminal article penned by Nancy Jo Sales in December 1996 for New York Magazine. It told the tale of a group of New York City rich kids who fetishized hip-hop, wore North Face jackets, did graffiti, committed petty crimes, and sold weed to their private school classmates.

Read the article here.

Friday 5 April 2024

LINKED UP 066

Flowdan is a giant in the U.K. underground. As part of Roll Deep, he steered the influential grime crew to murkier places. Alongside The Bug, he pushed dub and dancehall to its limits with his uncompromising flows. In February, he became the first ever British MC to win a Grammy for 'Rumble'. Where does the east Londoner go from here? (Crack)

Nia Archives: "I Don’t Think There’s Anything Wrong With Being Patriotic"
London-via-Bradford dance music star Nia Archives is spreading her junglist sound across the nation. (Evening Standard)

The Timeless Wisdom of Vegyn
London superproducer Vegyn breaks down the creation of his new album, The Road To Hell Is Paved With Good Intentions(Alt Press)

5 Records With Militarie Gun’s Ian Shelton
Militarie Gun’s Ian Shelton digs deep into the albums that influenced his latest record, including Guided By Voices, the Strokes, and more. (Discogs)


Wolfgang Tillmans on Swapping His Camera for a Microphone
His student band was a catastrophe but the Turner prize-winning artist decided to release his music after Frank Ocean appropriated one of his experimental songs. So is his uplifting new album pop - or art?
(The Guardian)

Pharrell and Chad Hugo in Legal Battle Over Neptunes Trademark
The two co-founded the songwriting and production duo in 1992. 
(Hypebeast)

How to Make (and Destroy) the Best Magazine in the World
At the tail end of the year 2000, artist Scott King was asked to redesign Sleazenation. Despite hating the magazine, the draw of previous star art director Stephen Male, combined with hubris, made him take the job. For the latest issue of WIP Magazine, he explains how he overhauled the entire publication, while setting it up for failure. (Carhartt WIP)



SNAKE Q&A 025: Zack Wuerthner/Shining Life
The deepest and best publicly available hardcore shirt collection in the world. (SNAKE)

Who Are the Skaters Resurrecting Rock Climbing in Upper Manhattan?
We met up with Joel Popoteur, an employee at Supreme and long-time skater to learn about his outdoor movement. (Jenkem)

Visuals: Lev Tanju
Read on to find out about the homegrown visuals Palace Skateboards founder Lev Tanju selected, and the reasons why they are important to him… (Slam City Skates)

Without Place, Without Time
In L.A. for Sterling Ruby & OTW by Vans. (032c)

Lauren Halsey Introduces the Elite Art World to South Central L.A.
The red-hot 36-year-old artist has achieved global success with a very local approach: applying imaginative, laserlike focus to a few square blocks of her hometown. In doing so, she renders and reflects what it’s actually like to live and work in - and never, ever leave - South Central Los Angeles. (GQ)

Monday 1 April 2024

HEEL TURN

HEEL TURN, the new album from El Paso, Texas duo Lesser Care, is a perfect mix of Cold Cave, New Order, and The Cure. Great artwork too! Check it out here.