Music CHIEF – Righteous Chords & Lustful Urges

June 11, 2010 - 11:01 am

Chief

Chief’s music is excellent for those bleak city days in your cramped apartment when you just want to block the world out, uncork a few bottles of heavily-bodied red wine (not the cheap kind) with your significant other and just go wherever the vibes take you. In the above scenario, if you could trade the cramped apartment for a rustic cabin and a crackling fire place, you’ll be doing real good, my friend.  Their sound has a classic, southern rock feel which is naturally soothing on one hand, but there is a definite visceral and lustful underpinning to their chords, melodies and textured vocals that can’t be denied. This makes the band even harder to decipher being that the foursome’s backgrounds are rooted in the bustling locales of NYC & LA.

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Music Marco Polo: Boom Bap from the T. Dot

May 26, 2010 - 10:21 am

Marco.Polo5

Toronto beat maker Marco Polo likes his hip-hop beats to sound a certain kind of way, and that’s exactly how he makes them; raw, dusty, sample-heavy and with hardboiled drums that could bust the inner sanctums of even the most sturdy, fortified speakers. So when he tells you that his inspiration comes from that Golden era of rap that produced classic rappers like Q-Tip, Kool G. Rap and KRS-One, it really comes as no surprise.

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Fashion Sabit NYC: Tanoshinde, Zeal & Passion

April 26, 2010 - 11:48 pm

sabit - lead picture

The word, “Tanoshinde” in Japanese means “Enjoyment” – and it’s a recurring theme when you speak with the owner/designer Shoichi Amemiya of the NYC /Japanese street-style apparel brand, Sabit. He presides over his Manhattan Fashion District showroom like a fashionable, Obi Wan Kenobi, and every Zen-infused word from his mouth shows  his true love and gratitude for the 5-year brand he’s built from the ground up.

“My brand is based on a Japanese fashion style called Amecaji ,” he begins. “Ame- stands for American, and –Caji means casual. It basically means American Casual or American Heritage. For example, there might be a brand that decides to make A2-Flight Jackets based exactly on the ones used by American pilots in World War II. Or another Japanese brand might decide to make denim based on Levi’s 501 jeans styles from 1950. It might not be the same thing but it’s an exact replica – so Sabit takes inspiration from this style of clothing with different spins and twists.”

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Fashion Silver Lining Opticians: Famously Framed

April 23, 2010 - 10:57 am


Silver Lining

In a cultural zeitgeist so obsessed with celebrities and Hollywood, most shops would just die to have one or two highly visible stars frequent their stores to create some much-coveted retail buzz. Silver Lining Opticians in Soho, NYC doesn’t have that problem. Some of their satisfied customers include marquee names like Jeezy, Diddy, Dustin Hoffman, Yves Saint Laurent designer Stefano Pilati, photographer Mario Sorrenti, Black Eyed Peas, Talib Kweli and so many more.

The independent, highly curated, vintage and contemporary designer eyewear store located on Thompson street in Soho was opened in 2007, but the owners have been dealing in luxury eyewear since 2005. The store was started by two partners:  Erik Sacher (a licensed optician) and Jordan Silver (a longtime eyewear industry veteran). Jordan offers the following about his initiation into the eyeglass business.

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Music New York City 2ND Annual Gold Rush Awards: Artistic Relaxation

March 30, 2010 - 10:58 am

Salt n Pepa live at Red Bull Space

Another Thursday night in NYC, and yes, another fully-catered art event to attend – and of course, another chance to mingle with Gotham’s elite, indie and cool kid population. Sometimes us New Yorkers tend to forget how good our lives really are; not to trample on the nightlife scene of other cities, but in NYC, it’s truly an embarrassment of riches.

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Music Araab Muzik: Sonic Objects and Ill Elements

March 26, 2010 - 12:32 am

Diplo gives the salute

It’s often debated whether a person’s genes or surroundings decide their outcome in life, but in the case of young producer Araab Muzik, the music has always been part and parcel of his DNA.
“ I started making beats when I was 10. I was playing the drums when I was only 3-yrs-old and I learnt the piano soon after that,” he begins. “My mother is a singer as well – she has two albums out herself – so I’ve definitely been blessed with the gift of music since birth.”

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Event Sweet 16 : Ugly Betty Edition

March 19, 2010 - 3:17 pm

Sweet 16 with Mark Indelicato of Ugly Betty

This past weekend, while the monsoon Nor’easter was wreaking havoc, flooding basements, whipping up 40mph gusts and uprooting century-old trees all through NYC’s five boroughs, the scene at Soho’s Red Bull Space was quite different. It was the Sweet 16 Birthday event for actor Mark Indelicato, the sweet-faced kid who plays Ugly Betty’s nephew on the popular ABC Primetime show, and there were several cool elements at play.

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Music Kings of Convenience – The Norse Code

October 23, 2009 - 2:39 pm

Kings of Convenience

The Kings of Convenience might hail from Norway, but vicious and violent Vikings these lads are certainly not. This sterling duo makes serene, electro-acoustic music that soothes troubled emotions and eases the tension of even the most stressed-out parietal lobes. For their third LP, Declaration of Dependence, the Nordic bandmates (Eirik Boe and Erlend Oye) delve even deeper into their signature niche and create an LP loaded with yearning, idyllic pursuits and sublime lyricism & instrumentation.

“What we do together is very important for us,” Erlend says. “When you’re in your 30s, you want to make decisions that are set in stone. You want to accept how – and who – you are.”

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Music Tyondai Braxton’s Orchestral Conversations

October 14, 2009 - 10:17 am

Tyondai Braxton

There are some musicians you talk to who make it known right from the beginning that they’re dead serious about their art. Tyondai Braxton, lead singer of NYC-based Battles and producer/writer/composer behind the new solo album Central Market is undeniably one of those serious ones.

“My brother Donari is a brilliant writer and a big influence on my own work,” he begins.” We bounce ideas off of each other and he’s one of the most creative and insightful people I’ve ever met. His newest novel The Invisible Alphabet has just been completed. My sister Keayr is a television producer for a slew of major networks. She’s brilliant and has the most unyielding work ethic I’ve ever seen. My mother Nickie Braxton is a glass blower, costume designer and violinist herself. Don’t know what to say about the woman other than she’s the most amazing person in my life. And then there is my father, Anthony. He is everything that people say he is, a genius, a virtuoso and an incredible human being.”

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Music Chromeo – Dusty Crates & Dope Tapes

September 22, 2009 - 12:41 pm

Chromeo

When you need a precise demolition crew of beatmakers and disc jockeys to absolutely smash a party, there are a few cats in the game better than the Montreal tag-team of Dave 1 and P-Thugg, collectively known as Chromeo. Their mastery of early ‘80s disco tracks and funky synth beats have earned them a special and coveted spot in today’s music scene. It’s really no surprise that the peeps at !K7 records recently reached out and asked them to curate a compilation for their popular DJ-Kick series (a project formally helmed by the likes of Hot Chip and Tiga).

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