Dustin Downing | ChinaShop

Fashion Featured Gallery The Heart and Sole of Spring Fashion: COEUR

November 2, 2011 - 11:26 am

Spring is coming, faster than you think. And earlier this month ChinaShop got an insight into what lies on the spring fashion horizon. As we stepped inside Coer, we were instantly surrounded by all sorts of trendy goodies including women’s fashion accessories, gifts, handbags, shoes, and more.

According to the show’s co-founder, Henri Myers, who helped to hand pick the brands in the showroom, COEUR is about evoking freshness in the LA market. “Pretty much all the designers here are brands that we find needed a bit of some type of visibility in LA here specifically. A lot of brands included in the show are from New York or elsewhere. They didn’t have showrooms or showroom reps or agents and we’re really providing a space that they can all be under one roof.” Myers explains that the name of the show, COEUR, means “heart” in French. “It’s about all the things that we love and introducing the things that we love to everyone else.”

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Featured Gallery Music Gang Gang Dance Makes Contact

by Dustin Downing

October 28, 2011 - 10:52 am

Gang Gang Dance didn’t so much play individual songs for their set closing down Filter’s Culture Collide festival… They just sort of started with a breathy rolling feedback infused with lead singer Liz Bougatsos tubthumping a Native American hand drum intro to “Glass Jar.” Which is not only the opening track from their most recent pop/world album, Eye Contact, but a tribute to their late vocalist who was struck and killed by lightning a few years back. Liz then began to fill that void with an airy but piercing voice that sounded as if it were being piped in from a hash shop easily within range of a NATO drone strike. Synth after layer of ghostly white synth soon began to pile on top of an ever funkier pulsating drum beat. A drum whose passport sounded like it must have stamps from far away destinations the likes of Ivory Coast, Bangalore and Japan, via connecting flights from DUMBO. This melodic Tower of Babel built until the very last crash of a triumphant high hat scattered it abroad upon the face of the parking lot confounding the wrap-up Tweets of all in attendance. Yo tambien.
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Featured Gallery Music Capturing “The Look” of Culture Collide

by Dustin Downing

October 13, 2011 - 10:15 am

SCREEEEeeeeeECH!!!, my tires squeal to a stop with what I hope is that cool reverse looking strobe effect you get on movies. “Holy shit! I gotta let you go there’s a clown outside,” I yell into the smog lit sky hoping enough of it would somehow bend around my face to terminate the conversation taking place inside that space age earwig The Man makes me wear whilst driving. It falls to the floor.

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Gallery Music Incubus Up Close and Personal

by Nicole Pajer and Dustin Downing

September 29, 2011 - 6:15 pm

It’s not every day that you get to see Incubus up close and personal, let alone on a rooftop with complimentary spicy whiskey, a taco bar, and a patio size Twister board game; we were fortunate enough to be invited to such a soiree. The event was part of 98.7 KYSR-FM’s Penthouse Concerts at the historic Hollywood Tower series.

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Gallery Music Rock’s Next Generation : School of Rock

by Nicole Pajer and Dustin Downing

September 21, 2011 - 9:21 am

While bouncing around and checking out live shows in Los Angeles, I caught wind of a School of Rock concert. It was explained to me as: “The house band from the School of Rock North Hollywood is performing and the kids are really good.” I have to admit, I was thinking middle school talent show and cute little kids playing off-key instruments but boy was I wrong…

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Gallery Music AWOLNATION Invades Jimmy Kimmel

by Nicole Pajer and Dustin Downing

September 13, 2011 - 8:21 am

Our journey to see AWOLNATION perform at Jimmy Kimmel began with standing in an alley to check in for credentials as a herd of paparazzi perked up. Fans began losing their minds while yelling out: “Elijah, Elijahhhhhhhh.” Elijah Wood passed by and the whole ordeal was repeated when Jennifer Morrison, Kimmel’s other guest star, strutted by. A man clad in a snazzy white suit wearing the AWOLNATION helmet walked around and snapped pictures with fans. The drummer from Fishbone was spotted stumbling around as the area in front of the outdoor stage began filling up. It was typical Hollywood chaos.

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Gallery Music Chasin’ the Fuse with Mickey Avalon

by Nicole Pajer and Dustin Downing

August 31, 2011 - 11:03 am

Mickey Avalon knows how to host an after party. The notorious rapper packed the Viper Room last week along with special guest Andre Legacy who joined him for his late night set. VIP tables were full, drinks were flowing, and a sexy lady danced around the stage as Mickey treated fans to favorites like “So Rich, So Pretty” and “Jane Fonda,” pausing to occasionally shower them in champagne.

Prior to the show, Avalon kicked it backstage with us as he raided our random prop box and played with tiaras, mustaches, and licked the fuses of toy bombs. He revealed that his childhood was similar to the television show “Weeds” and discussed accidentally punching a guy who was trying to high five him in the middle of a show. Avalon divulged his secrets of packing his audiences full of hot chicks (guys in bands take note) and laughed about “My Dick” being the butt of many “pee pee jokes.”

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Gallery Music Vampires Everywhere!… No Seriously

by Nicole Pajer and Dustin Downing

August 30, 2011 - 10:36 am

Michael Vampire is a living vampire. He’s pretty sure that since joining Vampires Everywhere!, his gothic band mates (Aaron Graves, Phillip Kross, Alexandre Rogue, David Darko) have become inspired to trade in their beach days for the underground lifestyle as well. In an interview with ChinaShop, Michael reveals his trials and tribulations of modern day blood drinking and explains how to be a “safe vampire.” In addition to picking Michael’s brain on the ways of vampirism, aggressive rock music, and strategies for avoiding the sun, we snapped a few pictures of a vampire couch cushion fight (which we may or may not have instigated). It’s not often that you have a room full of vampires at your disposal so when you do, an epic photo shoot is necessary!

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Gallery Music Semi Precious Weapons Set to Destroy

by Nicole Pajer and Dustin Downing

August 29, 2011 - 3:29 pm

Semi Precious Weapons is a band of many talents. Aside from front man Justin Tranter’s ability to practically put his leg behind his head in the middle of an interview, they are known for attracting an array of popular female supporters, such as Kate Moss. The band recently got off the road with Lady Gaga, who has been a fan of the band since before she was what Justin refers to as “The biggest star in the world.” Justin and co. make their own jewelry in a line called Fetty, which was started as a means to fund the band when broke and living in New York and has now hit the shelves of Barneys, Urban Outfitters, and Hot Topic. To top it all off, Semi Precious Weapons have an official goat, which they claim is a crabby creature that even has it’s own Twitter page.

Check out our recent interview with the band below:

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Music Highlights and Hullabaloo from the Sunset Strip Music Festival

by Nicole Pajer and Dustin Downing

August 25, 2011 - 8:14 am

This past weekend, The Sunset Strip transformed into a world where Vince Neil belted out lyrics in between bursts of pyrotechnics all the while sporting an American flag on the crotch of his pants, Tommy Lee strapped himself to his drum kit and looped around a roller coaster, and Bush’s Gavin Rossdale leapt from the stage to get up close and personal with a sea of thousands. Thanks to The 4th Annual Sunset Strip Music Festival, the streets of West Hollywood may never be the same…

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