Amelia’s Magazine | The High Wire – The Sleep Tape – Album Review

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Is it really such a curse to receive the praise of Chris Martin? Does supporting one of the world’s biggest bands on an arena tour constitute something to be embarrassed about? Is success off the back of somebody else’s recommendation, visit this especially when that person is about as cool as blue rinse, clinic to be played down or avoided? If you answer in the affirmative to any of these questions then chances are you’re part of that group who chose to emphasise this part of the High Wire‘s back story over more trivial things like, say, their music. I will not be doing that, because it’s asinine; anyone who thinks that success this way should only be talked about as being of questionable worth is, as far as can be determined, an ass.

What we have here in The Sleep Tape, the band’s debut album, is an assured group of songs that melds droopy acoustic harmonies with a milder form of feedback than found with bands like My Bloody Valentine (but we’re talking *really* mild here – this stuff won’t ever cause anyone to aurally hallucinate). This is not really shoegaze as I’m used to it, though it’s a record that dreams like Slowdive, or hazy-pop group Galaxie 500, or even like psych-rockers Mercury Rev in places – it’s not cruel of me, whatsoever, to say that it’s called a ‘sleep tape’ for a reason.

This is narcolepsy, this is fatigue, this is a yawn and a stretch. It is deliberately designed to be so very sleepy. It is not boring, because those things aren’t synonymous with boredom. They are synonymous with, of any single word, ‘contentment’. This record feels very content. If this summer turns out to be a hot one (and I damn well hope that it is) then I want to spend at least one night falling asleep on a beach with these songs wrapped around me.

Their opening gambit, ‘The Midnight Bell’, is a slow 4/4 drumbeat accompanied by chimes, harmonies borrowed from the Byrds and what sounds like an acoustic guitar plugged into a reverb pedal. This is the format for pretty much every song here, but it’s to the High Wire’s credit that this doesn’t tire or bore, mostly because every few songs there’s something of a change in the air and along comes a thumping tune like ‘Odds & Evens’ to break the spell. It’s the highlight track, that one, and it’s obvious why it was chosen as the lead single – whilst this is hardly radical music to terrify and alarm most listeners, it is still slightly odd by many usual standards, and ‘Odds & Evens’ is exactly the way to lure in the punters.

It’s the closest thing to rockin’ out on The Sleep Tape, but there are other highlights – like ‘It’s No Secret’, where the male/female vocal overlap really comes into its own. The refrain, “yesterday/yes, I was kissing somebody new/but my baby/I wish I was kissing you,” loops around a country-tinged ballad where it’s not sure who’s been wronged, or who wishes for a second chance. That gender ambiguity drives the dreaming, the sense of sleep – everything’s a whisper in the ear from someplace just out of sight.

As the ‘Bodyclocks’ comes around and ends the album with that same refracted nursery chime that opened it, I can safely surmise that, if the High Wire have gone from three friends to this within two years, then their next record must be eagerly anticipated. It’s just so accomplished, so pretty! I commend Chris Martin, and I recommend listening to this woozy summer package, but please – pay attention. It’s worth not falling asleep listening to this.

Categories ,album, ,album review, ,Coldplay, ,debut, ,Dream-pop, ,dreamy, ,feedback, ,high wire, ,ian steadman, ,indie my bloody valentine, ,london, ,sleep tape, ,The High Wire, ,the sleep tape

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Amelia’s Magazine | The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart

Watching their electric performance at The Garage, information pills I immediately understood why all the major music publications are getting their knickers in a twist over The Pains of Being Pure At Heart. With the recent release of their debut album, more about The Pains have quickly amassed a devoted fan base and garnered raptuous reviews for their perfectly pitched shoe gazing dream pop. If I hadn’t met them, I might have assumed that they were the sort of band who believed their own hype – and why wouldn’t they? Having sat down with Kip and Peggy earlier in the day I instantly realised that while they weren’t oblivious to the attention, they were unfettered by it. Letting the press get on with their excitable reactions, the band just want to play the music that they love.

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The new album has practically been lauded as the second coming by heavy weights like The NY Times and NME, did you expect such an immediate and positive reaction?

Peggy – Definitely not, I just think about the bands that play music like us that we have always admired, and most of them were were not that comercially well known, and not always that critically received either, so playing the kind of music we play… we didn’t have our hopes up high. But we were really happy with the record though, we really enjoyed making it, but we had no sense that anything beyond us being happy would happen. I always liked bands that I discovered on my own, I wouldn’t hear them on commercial radio or MTV.

Kip- There are a couple of bands that reached a bigger audience like Sonic Youth or Nirvana, but most of the indie pop bands of the 90′s were limited to a narrow community.

So you were expecting that the album would spread by word of mouth, and instead you were plunged straight into a media frenzy. Were you ready for this?

Peggy- It wasn’t the goal of the band. You know, “everyone is going to love us!” We were just friends that started playing music and this is the kind of music that we like and have bonded over. I think if we had set out to get commercial success we wouldn’t sound the way that we do.

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Kip- Where we come from, our backrounds in music, there is not really a strong tradition of bands expecting good things to happen. Perhaps American bands are more self depricating (laugh) but there is this built in expectation that if you do something that you love, it might not be well received by others, but you’ll be happy because you will be proud of it.

Peggy – And you’re happy with the five people that appreciated it! (laughs) I feel like I was that person that would always appreciate a certain band and I would have been totally satisfied with that kind of response for us.

Kip- Growing up, most of the bands that I liked, I didn’t know anyone else who liked them.

Did that give it a special resonance – liking a band, and knowing that no-one else knows them?

Peggy – I wouldn’t admit that…… but I secretly enjoy it!

Kip – I would have liked to have known other people who were into the same bands as me growing up. I felt quite isolated that way; I would sit at home playing computer solitaire, listening to an album over and over again, but it’s cool now that we are travelling more and meeting people who had similar backrounds.

What is the Pains’ backround?

Peggy – I’ve been in bands since I was 13, but none of them that ever went on tour. This is the first band where I’ve got to travel.

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Kip – I was in a similar situation, but none of them had graduated above playing in a basement. So this is very different from anything I’ve ever been in – one band that I was in, our goal was to play at this house we knew that had really cool house parties! (laughs)

Can you account for the reasons why the Pains have become so successful?

Kip – We started small, we were playing together for a while before anything happened, it’s easy to lose sight of that because once the album came out things changed a bit, but we were around for a couple of years and met with plenty of challenges, so it doesn’t feel to us like it is an overnight thing, but it may seem that way from an outsiders perspective. I’m grateful for the way that it turned out because it allowed us to mess up for a bit without other people watching! (laughs) We had a relatively decent period of obscurity while we refined what we do….. and also, the reason is luck!

Peggy – And being in the right place at the right time.

Peggy, Is it true that the band formed in part to play at your birthday party?

Peggy – Yes! I remember it was my birthday and I had only invited like, four people; because I only have four friends! (laughs).

Kip – It was at this big warehouse and it was basically an elaborate plot to try and get Manhattan Love Suicides to play, and so if we threw the party, we could play first and then we could say that we played with them. So we had a month to get ready.

It sounds like it was a natural way in which the band came together….

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Kip- It was the best way. If the last seven months have taught us anything; we are always together, and if there were people that didn’t get along, it would be hellish, but we were friends for a long time before we picked up an instrument. This made the whole experience fun and much less stressful then for bands who get formed by putting ads in a paper saying ‘drummer needed’.

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Peggy – The fact that we are friends and the fact that we have stayed friends is almost more lucky than anything else.

So there haven’t been any falling outs on tour then?

Peggy (emphatically) No!

Kip – This is our first experience of doing this, we don’t have a glut of expectations, we’re just appreciative of the opportunity and are excited by it all; and when you are excited and enjoying it, it’s hard to get upset about things.

Peggy – Touring can be really hard and gruelling, and I feel like if it were with any other people it would really suck, but it ends up being fun anyway.

What have been some highlights for you in the last few months?

Peggy – Playing Primavera was really amazing, that was the first big festival we ever played, and I didn’t know what to expect. I mean, I don’t like crowds (laughs) so I thought, today might be weird or awkward, but it ended up being really life affirming and it was the biggest adrenalin rush ever.

Kip- ABC news showed up at our practice place to hear us play. The fellow who does the news is on TV saying (in deep, authoratative voice), “And now, a report from Brooklyn” (laughs), and him saying our band name on televsion… I sent that to my grandparents, I think that this was the moment where my family realised that even though they didn’t quite understand what was going on with us, we were doing something worthwhile.

Which country has had the best crowds at your gigs? Apart from Britain obviously!

Kip – Obviously!

Peggy – I thought Germany was really positive, we played three shows in Germany and they were really enthusiastic.

Kip – Sweden was pretty amazing, that country has a strong tradition of appreciating bands like ours and even though Swedes are normally really reserved, the enthusiasm we saw there predated even us having a record out – we had released our EP and if we had played in New York, maybe 40 people would have come, and we would know 37 of them, and then we went to Sweden and all of a sudden we were playing really big shows and I had no idea that a band like ours could find an audience like that. But most of the places that we have travelled to have been positive experiences.

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You’ve got some more touring to do, and then what do you have planned?

Kip- We have an EP coming out this fall, we recorded four songs before we went to Europe in May, and after the tour we are going back to practicing and working on the new record. But every step of the process is exciting and I try not to think too far into the future, because then you miss out on what is happening in the present.

After this I get Kip and Peggy to take part in my game of Lucky Dip, which involves picking questions out of the bag (my handbag, actually) Peggy picks the “What is the first record that you ever brought?” and proudly tells me that it was Madonna’s “Like A Prayer”, and then with less confidence, quietly adds that a purchase of Tiffany’s “I Think We’re Alone Now” was also made. “I was really into female performers at the time!” she cried. Kip gets the “What is on your rider?” question, and true to form, the down to earth bands requests are not unicorns, dwarfs and mounds of Class A’s, but bread, hummus, water and beer. ” We just need to make sure that we get fed around 5pm or we get a bit grumpy” Kip ventures, although I don’t think any explanation is needed when the sum contents of your rider can be placed in a Tesco’s 5 items or less basket.

“The Pains of Being Pure At Heart” is out now.

Categories ,Dream Pop, ,Gig, ,Indie, ,Live., ,Shoe Gaze

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Amelia’s Magazine | Two Thousand Trees festival

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Noah & The Whale may be the most obvious example of ‘morning music’ I could ever hope to find. Folk with the lyrical style of The Postal Service is a combination that seriously rivals corn flakes and ice cold milk in my opinion.

Tracks like ‘Rocks and Daggers’ and ‘Shape of My Heart’ are so damn catchy I reckon I could actually sing along to them in my sleep. I’ve been a fan of these tracks since the demos I heard them in their demo forms, site no rx but these new recordings seem to have a lot more life to them. With added vocals and different instruments used they take on a whole new, this more exciting, character.

The high point of the album has to be ‘5 Years Time’ though. It’s the recollection of a joyous daydream considering what a relationship could be like 5 years in the future. It springs along at the tempo of giddiness, with horns that are reminiscent of Beirut, making it sound like a declaration.

The album definitely isn’t all quite so memorable however, as many of the songs seem to merge into one. Towards the end of the album the pace slows and the songs seem to have less about them. They can pull off this style of songwriting as they show on tracks like ‘Give A Little Love’, but the last two tracks do come across being as being tucked away as if they were filler.

The Government, ailment along with the G8, has waged war on food wastage, and we’ve got to all confess to a bit of complicity here. Alright, so as a political task force the G8 is as effective as the East Dulwich Women’s Institute, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t do our bit, if for no other reason than we could save £420 a year (enough to save eight acres of rainforest).

Make a shopping list – okay, it sounds a bit anal and motherly, but it’ll help to stop those nasty impulse buys cluttering up your cupboards.

Use your freezer – effective rotating of your freezer will allow you to store food for a few extra days, helping to use everything before it goes brown/grey/green/other bad food colours…

Long-life foods – where possible buy things that won’t go off in a couple of days, then you’re more likely to get round to cooking with it before it makes a break for the bin.

Share and share alike – if you have leftovers you know you can’t possibly use, ask if a friend, relative or neighbour might like them – better yet, invite them over!

Oh, and though I’m never one to promote big business, M&S has pledged to power six of their Simply Food shops with renewable energy from a machine that turns food waste into electricity. Wouldn’t necessarily suggest you try this one at home…

For more info click on lovefoodhatewaste.

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When half a band becomes half of a new band a comparison will be inevitable made. So who am I to buck the trend? In the interest of research I decided to play a track by Televised Crimewave formed with two alumni of Black Wire (Daniel Wilson and Tom Greatorex) and two fresh faces (Rob Bootle and Bat Neck, seek who I was informed by a ‘source’ is so called because he has a tattoo of a bat on his neck) at the same time as a Black Wire track. One thing is obvious immediately; Televised Crimewave are pretty much Black Wire but they lack in the guitar department.

Not only do Televised Crimewave owe a debt to Black Wire, health but with a mission to pursue old (but not forgotten) passions, they also owe a bit of pocket change to punk. Most notably on Fire and Flowers, with a hey ho-esque chorus that sounds very distinctly familiar. Hmm, I wonder where they got that from.

But tributes and similarities aside, televised Crimewave’s songs have a rousing sense of urgency. It’s a bit like music to have electric shock therapy to, if that was ever necessary. I like to say it’s psychedelic garage pop at its best, but it’s not. Televised Crimewave are pushing a sound that is rather tired and they seem to be holding back, they never quite reach the crescendo their music deserves.

When Dolly the Sheep was cloned it was hailed as a medical marvel. When Black Wire were cloned the results aren’t so marvellous. Perhaps Televised Crimewave could change their name to Dolly. Although, then they may get parallels drawn to that lovely lady who sings about working crap jobs. Televised Crimewave are worth a listen, but for those not sobbing into our pillows about Black Wire demise, a listen is all you need.

The ‘Future of Fashion’ exhibition located on the beautiful premises of the Orleans House Gallery in Twickenham is a showcase of the work from British students and recent graduates across the pathways of fashion design, ampoule illustration, illness photography, diagnosis textiles and accessories. The pieces – most of them on sale – selected by co-curators Mark de Novellis and Caroline Alexander, come from courses of various levels within colleges and universities all around the country, including the University of the Arts London, Edinburgh College of Art, Kingston and Southampton Solent University.

The display is divided into three parts, starting off with ‘Tradition’ and ‘Innovation & Creativity’ on the ground floor, leading to the open gallery upstairs showcasing ‘Diversity’. Whereas ‘Tradition’ focuses on the British (fashion) heritage – such as Savile Row tailoring and textile craft – being subverted and therefore reinvigorated, ‘Innovation & Creativity’ explores the more conceptual and experimental approaches which British fashion has become internationally recognised for. ‘Diversity’ finally investigates the global influences impacting upon the industry – whether these come from inside Britain itself because of its rich cultural mix or from outside, through the many European and international students who come to train here, each bringing their unique identity to the country.

One highlight of the display is Kimberly Patterson’s piece ‘Identity Theft – A Corporate Assault’ from BA Fashion, Kingston: An all-white ruffle minidress made of energy-efficient Tyvek® fabric by DuPontTM inspired by Douglas Coupland’s novel Generation X and the idea of the ‘McJob‘. With each pattern piece being a scaled-up company logo, her work examines questions of globalisation, consumer and corporate culture as well as sustainability.

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Faye Bamber from Fashion Design & Technology at the London College of Fashion produced interesting work for her 2nd-year project ‘Industrial Engineering & Sculptural Fashion’. Her architectural, Hussein Chalayan type pieces were inspired by research from the Museum of Science & Industry, the Royal Armouries and the National Railway Museum. Although her two showcased dresses made of aluminium sheeting and wire make great exhibits, the real treasure troves are her accompanying design development books in which she experimented with cog mechanisms, paper and wire maquettes, Grecian-style pleating, asymmetrical shapes and weaving techniques.

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Despite the ‘Tradition’ section showcasing a couple of pieces that were too – you guessed it – Vivienne Westwood and ‘Diversity’ featuring a few less strong works, some of them a bit out-of-place and/or lacking additional info and accompanying material, ‘Future of Fashion’ makes for a worthwhile trip down to Twickenham and proves that real artefacts which can be examined three-dimensionally, touched, yes even smelled are a much more valuable experience than the digital proposition used by other fashion colleges in Central London.
The supershorts film festival has been running for five years, buy more about and celebrates both the art of short films and those who make them. I’ve always been a bit of a geek about shorts, mainly because I’ve been making them for three years. Although I studied journalism, I have the secret desire to work in film and was a bit of a ‘groupie’ at uni, volunteering to be on almost every shoot, ever. So it’s always a treat to watch new shorts and spot the upcoming talent. I only managed to catch one night of the festival, but it was a brilliant and inspiring night of screenings at the Odeon in Shaftsbury Avenue, Covent Garden. Here are a few highlights:

A Difference in Shadow by Michael Mier was a beautifully shot and emotional piece with a nice little twist in the tale. Great performances from both Sakib Salama and Georgia Baines, which brought a shiver to the spine and brought to the surface how easy it is to assume.

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Broken by Vicky Psarias – a great little narrative piece which began more like a feature than a short, and felt as if it could, and perhaps should, go on. The story shows a Cypriot family immigrating to London to join their father who has already been preparing for a better life for them. But it turns out he doesn’t seem to have their best interests at heart. It had potential, but lacked punch in the final blow.

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Eric’s Secrets by Lucia Ashmore is a poignant documentary based solely on character on not much else -and that’s why it works. Eric, in his nineties, talks about his life with beautiful humour and wisdom, and this film went on to win the Lightning Media Best Documentary Award.

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For the Love of God by Joe Tucker provided some light relief – and also a change in format, as it’s a stop-motion animation. Main character Graham lives in a Christian bookshop with his overbearing mother and pet jackdaw. We follow him as his quest for faith takes on a macabre spin. Featuring the voices of Steve Coogan and Sir Ian McKellan, it’s a fantastic piece with just the right dose of humour and shock tactics.

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Joystick by Kevin Richards, another animation, is a thoughtful and beautifully drawn piece showing two joined beings ‘The Joystick’ whirl and twist through life, eventually split apart by conflict. Without each other, they perish in a tragic ending.

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‘Flushed‘ by Martin Stirling is a brilliantly funny piece about a boy caught short in the loos. Great characters and great production values, it’s the Director’s first funded short and he’s one to watch.

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The final, and most captivating of all, was Smafulgar (Two Birds) by Runar Runarrson. A short that made waves at Cannes was awarded both the Anthony Mingella Best Director Award and Sasusfaction Best Drama Award at Super Shorts. Shot on 35mm, it’s a gripping story of a shy teenager who loses his innocence overnight. Stunning cinematography, and with the perfect mix of narrative and intimacy on camera, it has also that all-important feature of a short – the catching of breath as the credits begin to roll.

Here’s to next year’s supershorts!
Take a trip around Chongquing with the lovely Miss M as your tour guide in this second issue of Scarlet Cheek’s bookzine. Inspired by a patchwork of childhood memories from editor’s Cindy Chens visits to the city with her beloved Grandpa, link she sets out to show you the lives and her loves of this Chinese metropolis.

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Scarlet Cheek manages to transport you to Chongquing, about it where you can really feel the firey sun beating down on you as your feet tread the paved streets of the city. Chen’s fondness for the place really shines through and the friendly atmosphere of the city washes over you with everyone of her tender words.

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Let her guide you through the streets, stuff tripping past playing children, graffitied walls and fortune tellers, before finally putting your feet up and dining out at Meishi Jie’s food street. With the accompanying photographs of these scenes from the street you get a multisensory experience of the city which leaves you dying to touch, see and smell everything that’s going on around you.
As your guided tour comes to an end you are left to wander freely through the rest of the pages. Interviews with bands and artists come to life as they are simply conversations you overheard. The factual history of the city is nicely combined with tales from it, adding to your experience of Chongquing as told by the people that call it their home.
From the streets upward we see the bangbangs, a group of migrant workers seeking all possibilities of a job, up to the beautiful women the area is known for, celebrated in a double page spread of loveliness. The region’s food is also tastily displayed in graphic food porn shots, whilst images of the neon night life tempt you out to play after dark.
This is not a gloriously glossy depiction of the city, but a wonderfully realistic glimpse into the lives of everyday people in Chongquing. This issue of Scarlet Cheek’s is a celebration of a place where memories are held dear and where many more are surely to be created.

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Windsmoor, more about the quintessentially English establishment label, link has just reached the ripe old age of 75. Bearing in mind that this brand is the same age as my Nan, page I was expecting the celebrations to revolve around a nice game of scrabble in a tea shop. Oh how wrong I was. Come the day of the party I checked the address, and almost keeled over when it read: ‘Wellington Arch, Hyde Park Corner’. The party was literally IN an arch.

A roomful of slinky cocktail dresses and flutes of champagne replaced the knitting patterns and scone recipes I had expected and I’d soon hijacked the prime balcony location to enjoy the view. Sights included all the London favourites: The London Eye, The Mall, and a sneaky peak into the Buckingham Palace grounds (sadly HRH was not playing on her tennis court this particular evening).

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Meanwhile back inside, decades of Windsmoor advertising campaigns graced every inch of wall space. These ranged from World War Two era posters to a campaign fronted by Cindy Crawford. Windsmoor have always maintained their desire to provide women with luxurious yet affordable clothes and after 75 successful years this philosophy will no doubt see them through the looming economic recession.

Indeed, Windsmoor is so much a part of British culture that even the poet laureate John Betjeman had something to say about it. In his 1954 poem, ‘Middlesex’, he tells of

Fair Elaine the bobby-soxer,
Fresh-complexioned with Innoxa,
Gains the garden – father’s hobby –
Hangs her Windsmoor in the lobby,
Settles down to sandwich supper and the television screen.

The night was monumental, and just like Elaine the bobby-soxer I headed home for some toast and the latest news from another integral part of British culture, the Big Brother house.

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Frock Me! London’s hottest vintage fashion event is back in town and it’s set to be a big one! It’s the one-stop shop to the dressing rooms of the past, click from 1920′s flapper chic to 1980′s retro cool.

Held in the heart of illness ,10268~3206161,00.jpg”target=”_blank”>Chelsea’s fashionable King’s Road, you will find the crème de la crème of the country’s vintage dealers, offering everything from beautiful clothing, hats and shoes, to gorgeous accessories, bags and jewellery.

Whether you’re a costume designer looking to dress the big stage, or a fashion student with an eye for a bargain, Frock Me! is the place to pick up that perfect item. Ranging from one or two pounds to several hundreds, whatever your budget, you’ll be sure to find the fabulous vintage gems to suit you.

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Brimming with one-off fashion finds and vintage trends, you’ll often spot top models and stylists gliding between the rails in search of the right item to complete their individual styles from the range of enchanting collections from days gone by.

It’s not only the magnificent range of clothing that will take you back in time while at the fair. The Frock Me! Vintage Tea Room offers a unique ‘pre-war’ experience, where you can sit back and relax with an old fashioned cream tea whilst listening to the nostalgic tones of the original gramophone.

Described by The Sunday Times Style magazine as ‘The place to pick up something old and stylish’, vintage fairs are the only place you can find more classic shoes, Lanvin dresses and pussy bows than Carrie Bradshaw’s wardrobe.

For the first time since the opening fair four years ago, 2008 sees Frock Me! expanding out of the big city and into Brighton to treat the South coast to the array of treats that the top vintage dealers have to offer. Being held at the Sallis Benney Theatre opposite the pavillion, Brighton joins London in being home to the fashion world’s favourite vintage event.

You can catch the next fair in Chelsea on 7th September, and in Brighton on 5th October so make sure you get to one of these fabulous events and pick yourself up some vintage, darling!

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This morning I got up really early and cycled up to Angel to join the Greenwash Guerillas outside the Business Design Centre in Islington, information pills in a protest against the E.ON sponsored Climate Change Summit being organised by the Guardian.

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C’mon, Guardian, what’s going on? Why are you colluding with E.ON? Is it the same irony that your paper shows by going on and on about being green whilst still supporting cheap flights with heaps of advertising space? We all need money but some of us are less likely to sell out…

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Caroline Lucas,the Green MEP for the south east joined us in her white boiler suit before joining the conference – she will be protesting about the choice of sponsor in her speech. Go Caroline!

E.ON is a major target for climate campaigners at the moment – Climate Campwill be protesting against their planned new coal fired power station at Kingsnorth in a few weeks time (join us!) which, if built, will rule out the UK’s ability to stop catastrophic climate change. Do you detect any irony?!

Of course E.ON would prefer to give the impression that they give a shit about climate change, hence the choice of sponsorship. However, they clearly don’t, which is why I wear my badge saying E.ON F.OFF with pride, and why I will be attending Climate Camp.

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We did the can-can, sung songs and handed out leaflets to the delegates – there was a big turn out of activists, all bearing handmade “greenwash detectors” with which to sniff out bullshit. These ranged from a butternut squash to feather dusters to highly creative hairdryer/vacuum hoover/bike light creations.

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Of course the police were as humourless and heavy handed as they always are – I was given a very aggressive shove for daring to take a photo from the steps.

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Bicycology also turned up with their super sound system, and we danced in the bright morning sunlight to a suitably apt soundtrack – it seems Britney Spears could have written Toxic specifically with E.ON in mind! When the bullshit all got too much we collapsed on the ground and with that most went off to their daily jobs, but not before showering E.ON with much unwanted attention. Hurrah to that!

Click below to check out different videos from the day.
One
Two
Three
Four

For more information please visit Indymedia.

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UNIQLO’s annual T-shirt design competition since 2004, pilule the 5th “UT Grand Prix” will call for entries from July 15th. UNIQLO has actively developed its global expansion as a casual wear brand from Japan, opening flagship stores in New York, London, Paris, Hong Kong, Korea and China, and also shown the global promotion campaigns that world people can participate such as UNIQLOCK and UT LOOP!

Based on the concept of “T-shirt Design Olympics”, UT Grand Prix calls for T-shirt designs from young & upcoming creators from all over the world. Works will be chosen from more than 10,000 submissions in the first and second phases of judgment, & these will be shown on the web. In the final stage, 20 designs will be selected by presiding guest judges, & these designs will then be sold as UT (UNIQLO T-shirt) at UNIQLO stores. Cash & other prizes will be also presented to the winner(s). The Grand Prix (top) prize is 3 million JPY (or equivalent in local currency at current rates).
Submission Period: July 15th – September 21st, 2008

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As a fashion capitol, sale London loves looking for the next big thing.
Season after season fashion stars of the future ascend in the strangest of places: spontaneous off-schedule shows, information pills worn-down warehouses, more about hidden headquarters. The freshest, often cash-strapped design talent explodes onto the scene with experimental aplomb, giving little more than an eccentric knowing nod to the establishment.

This September seems no different. FaCshion is a two-day exhibition for trade buyers and consumers looking for that elusive fashion edge. Held perhaps predictably in The Old Truman Brewery, on the 13th and 14th of September FaChion invite new & brilliant designers working across knitwear, lingerie, footwear and accessories, to showcase their wares to the world, at a fraction of the cost normally involved in staging a memorable catwalk show.

The event, determined to rip up London’s fashion rule book once again, is billed as a brilliant way for buyers to source new collections and shoppers to source a design hit.

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Sensing a change in shopping sensibilities for the upcoming season, the organisers are keen to expose the ethical edge of the event. An array of modern design heroes from the eco age are lined up to attend. Recycled jewellery and reworked vintage nestle against second hand style and organic cotton pieces. With emerging brands like Lalesso and TraSsh already challenging the design status quo, this event aims to show how conscious clothing continues to shake up the hard-ass fashion clichés that haunt the industry.

Two days spent at FaCshion, dipping in and out of the stalls and catching a catwalk show, reintroduces London’s fashionista to the idea of experimenting. Designers are selected for their fresh approach, excellence and innovation.

FaCshion are currently looking for more designers to exhibit at the two day event, so if you feel you have what it takes and are interested in submitting your work, check out the website for more details on how to participate. For the rest of you – why not come and look again at what British talent can create. You might even find the next big thing.

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After being in a band called Catchers at school, see Dale Grundle began working on songs for The Sleeping Years solo. Living by the sea in Northern Ireland seems to bring about a theme of melancholic existence that justifies the suitably desolate title.

Having released three sell out EPs he then released the album, signed to rocketgirl records n the uk. This is an album of pleasant simple quiet melodies in which not many songs particularly stand out against the others. ‘Dressed for rain‘ is slightly different containing a single layer of acoustic guitar and a soft voice, but the song is far too long. ‘You and me against the world’ is the only song I had any desire to listen to more than once and I think that might be just because it reminded me just a little of Shout Out Louds. My nan told me the word nice is an unimaginative way to describe something but this album is just that, nice, nothing very memorable.
Last night as I was walking around the Vilma Gold gallery, capsule waiting for Tom Morton to begin his talk on the works of Brian Griffiths that were displayed there, dosage I did a spot of time traveling. It felt like I was in a time, perhaps not too far from now, where humans live amongst the huge land-fills that they have created. A lonely race, there is not much to amuse them aside from finding odds and ends in the junk heap (a victorian hot water bottle shaped like a rabbit, a tatty piece of tarpaulin, a crushed car, a giant bears head from a derelict theme park) and adorning them with bright paint or making odd compositions with them. However much these pieces might be treasured, their elevation seems strange – even laughable – to us in our time.

Perhaps this was Griffiths’ intention. Or perhaps I’ve been watching too many Wall-E trailers. Either way, I was looking forward to what Tom Morton (who is, amongst other things, the curator of the Hayward Gallery) had to say about it all.

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With his talk Morton proved that, not only does he know his art, but he certainly knows his comedy. Leading us around the Vilma Gold space Morton constantly referenced all those classic British sitcoms that work on the themes of aspiration, failure and despair… what those in Germany might call Shadenfreude but here in Britain we call prime time entertainment.

It’s a great analogy to run with, as Morton brought to mind Rising Damp
as we stood in front of the huge ‘Stone Face’. This giant concrete bear head took up almost a whole room, with it’s painted on grimace seeming to morph into the brave face Rigsby’s would adopt each episode just as all around him crumbled and his dreams disappeared before is eyes. Morton asked us to wonder whether beneath this surface of an eternal optimist is another creature slowly going mad.

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The comedy found in despair is not such an obscure reference, it seems, as Morton tells us that the darkly comic 1970′s series The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin is actually an important influence on Griffiths. Griffiths himself has said; “The work, I always think, has high aspirations that are never met”. Disappointment seemed to hang, quite literally, from the walls of Vilma Gold with Griffith’s banner like pieces and the tarpaulin ‘Shadow’s in my Pockets’ displayed in such a way that they sagged and drooped wearily.

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Morton then directed our attention to ‘Daylight Jed’, a wooden box construction with a hole at the top and a drawer, containing a pair of glossy brown brogues, at the bottom. I hadn’t been sure what to make of this piece on my first walk around the gallery, but Morton had the answer for me; It’s a Houdini style magician’s box, except this one might have been used by Tony Hancock
in the series Hancock’s Half-Hour. With this in mind the piece could be seen as both the trapping-within and the possibility-of-escape-from a less than desirable life.

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Being led around Griffiths’ ‘Another End’ by Tom Morton really added to my experience of the exhibition because each piece on display was given a personality that I had not imagined before. We were encouraged to consider how the pieces had come to terms with their own disappointed selves, and so be inspired to find humour in the harsher knocks life deals us. The best thing about Morton’s talk, in my opinion, was that his references were pitched perfectly for a part time art dabbler like myself. Art criticism is often in danger of becoming so obscure that it loses the interest of it’s audience, but sling in a few pop culture references and I know my ears will prick up.

There was one classic comedy reference missing from Morton’s list however, and that is the incredibly apt Steptoe and Son. With the ‘Another End’ exhibition Brian Griffiths has definitely become a modern day rag and bone man, collecting junk for a living and turning strange trash into undeniable treasure.
Teddies, sildenafil dummies and rattles appear to any unsuspecting spectator to be the possessions of a young child, more about yet within the work of Hazel Davies they are not. With a body of work entitled Nurseries; baby pinks, buy blues and yellows leak from the photographs, suggestive of the love and security a parent hopes to provide for their little ones. Concealed amongst the toys and decoration are contrasting items which are foreign to the space Hazel shares with us.

And slowly the cogs turn; a toddlers harness stored on a size 14 hanger, a strange set of cuffs dangled from a high chair. The cleverly cropped leg on the chair is not that of a very hairy child. The ladies hanger is not mummy’s and those handcuffs, I need not say.

I reach for the exhibition brochure. I need clarification. Sleeping in a cot, wearing nappies and drinking from bottles Hazel informs, are pastimes of Adult Babies. These “Nurseries” for the fully grown, providing brief visits or overnight stays offer services from spanking to nappy changes.

Hazel states her intent is to break down misconceptions surrounding Adult Babies. Unaware of such a fetish I can’t say her work inspires me to condone it, but praise her for the intelligence with subliminal messages and a sharp photographers eye.

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Gob-smacked. Impressed. Amelia and I wander further through the Truman Brewery and stumble upon the work of Christopher Broadhurst.

Like magnets, our eyes are instantly drawn to the magical landscapes. A spectrum away from the Adult Babies, there is an element to this body of work which makes you want to climb in the images, to explore the mysteries which these forests hide in secrecy. Untouched, delicate and moody Christopher’s technique of traditional print making and digital processes make truly alluring images.

Roll on the closing Free Range starting tonight at six…

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AMUSE ARTJAM, more about a new art competition by a Japanese agency for all-round entertainment “AMUSE”, order will open calling for entries from August 1st.
This is a competition that has counted more than 5000 submissions and total 70000 visitors in the past 6 events, gathering attentions as a gateway for young artists to success. This year as a new project, they will open a new gallery for contemporary art called “ArtJamContemporary” in the art complex building “NADiff A/P/A/R/T” in Ebisu, Tokyo. The participants of ARTJAM will be mainly featured in the gallery and sent to the world.
Anyone can participate in this competition regardless of genders, nations, ages, educations, professionals or amateurs, and genres. However, the competition winners need to participate in the award ceremony, which will be held in The Museum Of Kyoto on October 5th, 2008.
Submission period: August 1st – 31st, 2008

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CG-ARTS Society with Agency for Cultural Affairs and The National Art Center, doctor Tokyo will start calling for entries for 12th Japan Media Arts Festival. They seek vibrantly creative works that are opening up a new era in each division of Art, Entertainment, Animation and Manga.
Submission Period: July 17th – September 26th, 2008

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Online magazine SHIFT presents DOTMOV Festival 2008, adiposity a digital film festival aiming to discover talented creators and provide them with an opportunity to show their works. Works submitted from all over the world will be screened throughout the world venues from November 2008 (Date will be different depending on the venue). Last year’s total submission was 297 works from 34 countries. This year’s tour will be Sapporo, this Sendai, visit Shizuoka, Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, Fukuoka and Sao Paulo.
Submission Period: September 20th, 2008

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Shift has been trying to offer artists many platforms to showcase their works online. The Shift calendar competition held from 2003 successively, information pills pushes the boundaries between online and off line using a “calendar” as its medium. Entries are invited from all over the world and selected works will be distributed throughout the world in the format of a physical calendar.
This year, this selected works will be exhibited and sold at PRINT’EM web site for a year with support by PRINT’EM, a graphic print center operated by Mitsubishi Paper MIlls Limited.
Submission Period: September 10th, 2008

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coffee

A rich full bodied blend, viagra 60mg with each sip enticing you for another subtle caramel hinted caffeine hit… okay I hate to sound like Jilly Goolden so I’ll stop and get on with my point. Not only does this coffee taste top notch (trust me I’m normally a bit of a caffetier snob) but this blend can be drank with a clear ethical conscience. The creators Cafedirect have always paid above standard Fairtrade prices for their crops and reinvest 60% of their profits back to growers’ communities and businesses aiding to a brighter and sustainable future. A broke Londoner myself, I am the first to be tempted to shy away from organic and ethical brands and reach for the savers option, but at a mere £2.85 for 100g at all supermarkets, this is a truly splendid blend.

So, for all you coffee connoisseurs out there, put the filter coffee down, and give the Cafedirect Fairtrade Classic Blend Premium instant coffee a whirl and let us know what you think.
Two Thousand trees in Cheltenham began with our privileged arrival to pre-pitched tents, sildenafil not to mention a laminated-book-of-dreams (argos) gazebo. We then quickly found the open mic night taking place where the first memorable act I saw was The Loyal Trooper.
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Named after a tiny pub near Sheffield, viagra sale he sang and played clever, pharm observant lovely sounding acoustic songs to a jam packed tent, the crowd who had been fairly rowdy remained completely silent throughout. This small unpretentious festival was full of friendly people listening with open ears, being shockingly considerate to one another, and recycling. Then the man who introduced the acts sang some impressive Italian opera and played a ukelele! What more can a girl ask for?

The next day while I ‘wellied up’, Dave opted for the lesser known, i would say under appreciated Boddingtons welly.
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We thoroughly enjoyed a new band called A Silent Film who played piano related melodic noise that made my ears very happy and won the crowd over with a cover of Born Slippy. Then I scampered (as much as scampering is possible knee deep in mud) to see Chris TT, whose brilliant acoustic set sounds great, he even bravely sings one song acappella. His songs protest at the state of affairs in the world, then in a self-critical mode of genius he goes on to poke fun at people who object to the state of affairs in the world, while they sit at home eating biscuits.

There were some rather fabulous costumes around including,

Festival Mexicans.
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Papa New Guinea however has to be my favorite.
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No festival is complete without token ‘mud diver’ people but I was pleased to observe this being combined with a nice civilised game of cricket.
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Then the Duke Spirit came on the main stage (which was significantly tinier than most main stages). They were amazing! Leila showed her stunning front girl skills, strutting and singing powerfully yet prettily to the note perfect to loud deep dark guitar sounds that had me dancing in torrential rain. Sadly minus Dave at this point who had had one too many Boddingtons and had to be put to bed.
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My festival hero was Beans on Toast, who’s gravely voiced comedy songs made me weep with laughter. ‘The day that dance music died’ almost gave me a hernia. If you havn’t heard of him you are most certainly missing out. By the end of his set the whole crowd sang along with Beans and Frank Turner and a great Badgers Bottom cider fuelled time was had by all. I will certainly go back next year!

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Amelia’s Magazine | Album Review: The Magic Numbers

ROKIT – the originators of vintage fashion boutiques (and my favourite vintage store) have done it again. Not so long ago they had me reminiscing of my time mincing around Hollywood, store with their Bailey Hats of Hollywood collaboration that bought silver screen glamour to any look.

This time around, more about ROKIT have excelled themselves with ROKIT Recycled.

ROKIT Recycled, previously known as ROKIT Originals, is the brand’s mission to upturn fast and throwaway fashion. Let’s face it – the statistics are shocking and in a world of #2 t-shirts and £4 dresses, things aren’t changing very rapidly.

It is estimated by National Recycle Week that if every fashionista purchased one item of recycled clothing each year (each YEAR for God’s sake) it would save 371 millions gallons of waterand 4571 million days of electricity. That’s pretty incredible.

With this in mind, ROKIT are taking ethical to the next level – ROKIT Recycled is an initiative to use every single piece of material available, with zero waste (the ethos they’ve stuck by since their humble beginnings in 1986).

With a new design team on board to conjure up new and exciting pieces, this new range is a real winner. From bags to belts and purses to hot-pants, unwanted materials are salvaged and turned into key pieces for any wardrobe this Summer and through to the Autumn. Each creation is individually handmade and therefore unique, all depending on what materials are available at the time. You might bag yourself a patchwork purse featuring vintage calfskin and suede, or a pair of denim dungarees made entirely of jean refuse.

These products give new form to old structure, re-envisaging covetable pieces from vintage goods. We’ve got a few images of a teeny tiny selection of what’s on offer, but the beauty of the initiative is that you just don’t know what you might pick up. So pop down to your local ROKIT as soon as is physically possible and check out what they’ve got in store!

ROKIT – the originators of vintage fashion boutiques (and my favourite vintage store) have done it again. Not so long ago they had me reminiscing of my time mincing around Hollywood, adiposity with their Bailey Hats of Hollywood collaboration that bought silver screen glamour to any look.

This time around, viagra 60mg ROKIT have excelled themselves with ROKIT Recycled.

ROKIT Recycled, previously known as ROKIT Originals, is the brand’s mission to upturn fast and throwaway fashion. Let’s face it – the statistics are shocking and in a world of #2 t-shirts and £4 dresses, things aren’t changing very rapidly.

It is estimated by National Recycle Week that if every fashionista purchased one item of recycled clothing each year (each YEAR for God’s sake) it would save 371 millions gallons of waterand 4571 million days of electricity. That’s pretty incredible.

With this in mind, ROKIT are taking ethical to the next level – ROKIT Recycled is an initiative to use every single piece of material available, with zero waste (the ethos they’ve stuck by since their humble beginnings in 1986).

With a new design team on board to conjure up new and exciting pieces, this new range is a real winner. From bags to belts and purses to hot-pants, unwanted materials are salvaged and turned into key pieces for any wardrobe this Summer and through to the Autumn. Each creation is individually handmade and therefore unique, all depending on what materials are available at the time. You might bag yourself a patchwork purse featuring vintage calfskin and suede, or a pair of denim dungarees made entirely of jean refuse.

These products give new form to old structure, re-envisaging covetable pieces from vintage goods. We’ve got a few images of a teeny tiny selection of what’s on offer, but the beauty of the initiative is that you just don’t know what you might pick up. So pop down to your local ROKIT as soon as is physically possible and check out what they’ve got in store!


Illustration by Natasha Thompson

ROKIT – the originators of vintage fashion boutiques (and my favourite vintage store) have done it again. Not so long ago they had me reminiscing of my time mincing around Hollywood, order with their Bailey Hats of Hollywood collaboration that bought silver screen glamour to any look.

This time around, discount ROKIT have excelled themselves with ROKIT Recycled.

ROKIT Recycled, more about previously known as ROKIT Originals, is the brand’s mission to upturn fast and throwaway fashion. Let’s face it – the statistics are shocking and in a world of #2 t-shirts and £4 dresses, things aren’t changing very rapidly.

It is estimated by National Recycle Week that if every fashionista purchased one item of recycled clothing each year (each YEAR for God’s sake) it would save 371 millions gallons of waterand 4571 million days of electricity. That’s pretty incredible.


Illustration by Dan Heffer

With this in mind, ROKIT are taking ethical to the next level – ROKIT Recycled is an initiative to use every single piece of material available, with zero waste (the ethos they’ve stuck by since their humble beginnings in 1986).

With a new design team on board to conjure up new and exciting pieces, this new range is a real winner. From bags to belts and purses to hot-pants, unwanted materials are salvaged and turned into key pieces for any wardrobe this Summer and through to the Autumn. Each creation is individually handmade and therefore unique, all depending on what materials are available at the time. You might bag yourself a patchwork purse featuring vintage calfskin and suede, or a pair of denim dungarees made entirely of jean refuse.


Illustration by Emma Block

These products give new form to old structure, re-envisaging covetable pieces from vintage goods. We’ve got a few images of a teeny tiny selection of what’s on offer, but the beauty of the initiative is that you just don’t know what you might pick up. So pop down to your local ROKIT as soon as is physically possible and check out what they’ve got in store!


Illustration by Natasha Thompson

ROKIT – the originators of vintage fashion boutiques (and my favourite vintage store) have done it again. Not so long ago they had me reminiscing of my time mincing around Hollywood, remedy with their Bailey Hats of Hollywood collaboration that bought silver screen glamour to any look.

This time around, purchase ROKIT have excelled themselves with ROKIT Recycled.

ROKIT Recycled, website like this previously known as ROKIT Originals, is the brand’s mission to upturn fast and throwaway fashion. Let’s face it – the statistics are shocking and in a world of #2 t-shirts and £4 dresses, things aren’t changing very rapidly.

It is estimated by National Recycle Week that if every fashionista purchased one item of recycled clothing each year (each YEAR for God’s sake) it would save 371 millions gallons of waterand 4571 million days of electricity. That’s pretty incredible.


Illustration by Dan Heffer

With this in mind, ROKIT are taking ethical to the next level – ROKIT Recycled is an initiative to use every single piece of material available, with zero waste (the ethos they’ve stuck by since their humble beginnings in 1986).

With a new design team on board to conjure up new and exciting pieces, this new range is a real winner. From bags to belts and purses to hot-pants, unwanted materials are salvaged and turned into key pieces for any wardrobe this Summer and through to the Autumn. Each creation is individually handmade and therefore unique, all depending on what materials are available at the time. You might bag yourself a patchwork purse featuring vintage calfskin and suede, or a pair of denim dungarees made entirely of jean refuse.


Illustration by Emma Block

These products give new form to old structure, re-envisaging covetable pieces from vintage goods. We’ve got a few images of a teeny tiny selection of what’s on offer, but the beauty of the initiative is that you just don’t know what you might pick up. So pop down to your local ROKIT as soon as is physically possible and check out what they’ve got in store!


Illustration by Natasha Thompson

ROKIT – the originators of vintage fashion boutiques (and my favourite vintage store) have done it again. Not so long ago they had me reminiscing of my time mincing around Hollywood, healing with their Bailey Hats of Hollywood collaboration that bought silver screen glamour to any look.

This time around, information pills ROKIT have excelled themselves with ROKIT Recycled.

ROKIT Recycled, nurse previously known as ROKIT Originals, is the brand’s mission to upturn fast and throwaway fashion. Let’s face it – the statistics are shocking and in a world of #2 t-shirts and £4 dresses, things aren’t changing very rapidly.

It is estimated by National Recycle Week that if every fashionista purchased one item of recycled clothing each year (each YEAR for God’s sake) it would save 371 millions gallons of waterand 4571 million days of electricity. That’s pretty incredible.


Illustration by Dan Heffer

With this in mind, ROKIT are taking ethical to the next level – ROKIT Recycled is an initiative to use every single piece of material available, with zero waste (the ethos they’ve stuck by since their humble beginnings in 1986).

With a new design team on board to conjure up new and exciting pieces, this new range is a real winner. From bags to belts and purses to hot-pants, unwanted materials are salvaged and turned into key pieces for any wardrobe this Summer and through to the Autumn. Each creation is individually handmade and therefore unique, all depending on what materials are available at the time. You might bag yourself a patchwork purse featuring vintage calfskin and suede, or a pair of denim dungarees made entirely of jean refuse.


Illustration by Emma Block

These products give new form to old structure, re-envisaging covetable pieces from vintage goods. We’ve got a few images of a teeny tiny selection of what’s on offer, but the beauty of the initiative is that you just don’t know what you might pick up. So pop down to your local ROKIT as soon as is physically possible and check out what they’ve got in store!

The Magic Numbers – The Runaway released July 26th on Heavenly Records

So it’s welcome back to our favourite hirsute sibling popstrels The Magic Numbers. One of those bands who split opinions, hospital some find the Stoddart/Gannon clan over saccharine and cutesy, there others declare them to be masters of dreamy, viagra buy intelligent retro pop. Third album ‘The Runaway’ sees to put an end to the cynicism of the former and delivers a more adult, spacious and classy experience that will appeal to anyone harbouring a fondness for starry-eyed wonder and wistful harmonies.
Having released their first two albums in quick succession, their second album ‘Those The Brokes’ failed to achieve the commercial success of their first, giving the impression of a rushed release. Whether this was due to pressure from their label, Heavenly, or a personal choice it seems that they then decided to take something of a sabbatical, spending the interim 4 years gathering their thoughts, going through their old record collections and reshaping their sound before embarking on The Runaway. Luckily for both them and the record buying public the break certainly paid off.
Album opener ‘The Pulse’ is a perfect, if somewhat unconventional choice for kicking off the record with Romeo’s fragile vocals, gorgeous epic strings and heart-rending melodies creating an uplifting, beautiful yet melancholic track. And the sentiment continues throughout the album.
With touches of Fleetwood Mac and The Beach Boys sprinkled throughout the record, The Magic Numbers have clearly invested their time and money on a larger studio, higher production values and a shed load more instruments.

‘Why Did You Call’ has Stevie Nicks written all over it, with the driving rhythm of the verses, the stirring epic chorus and the echoing oohs and ahhs of the backing vocals, together with the angry heart break of the subject matter. It’s compelling stuff.
‘Throwing My Heart Away’ sees Angela Gannon take lead vocals, creating a different dynamic to the usual ‘Numbers’ style. Sounding not dissimilar to something The Cardigans might have released ten years ago (and I don’t mean that in a negative way – quite the opposite, in fact) it is a stirring, charismatic and downright brilliant exercise in thoughtful and intelligent pop music.
‘The Song That No One Knows’ has something of a Style Council laid back jazz-lite feel to it, which may sound terrible on paper, but the airy strings floating over the top of the stolling melody pull it out of any smug acid jazz pit it may have been relegated to otherwise.
Their sound on this album is more epic, more interesting and a lot more accomplished than on their previous releases, but without losing the innocence and reflective charm of their earlier albums. They have grown up and grown into their sound, at the same time drawing on the influence of their predecessors in charismatic epic pop, and through doing so have produced a truly gorgeous album.
There are moments on this record where I wanted to kick off my shoes, get out my chiffon scarves and run through a field singing at the top of my voice. Other times I wanted to stare wistfully out of the window. Make of that what you will, but what is for certain is that this is a record that tugs at the heart strings and deserves to be taken seriously by all the hardhearted cynics out there. Disliking The Magic Numbers is a bit like hating on a box of puppies. There is something undeniably infectious and magnetic about their music and I can admit to being completely sold.

Categories ,album, ,album review, ,Dream-pop, ,fleetwood mac, ,Heavenly Records, ,Stevie Nicks, ,Style Council, ,The Magic Numbers

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Amelia’s Magazine | Watch: Video for Musée Mécanique’s new single Like Home

The lesso: A long rectangular piece of cloth, abortion brightly coloured and patterned, the traditional attire of Swahili women living along the coastal regions of East Africa. Since 2005 the lesso has taken on a different, rather more international role as the inspiration and centrepiece of clothing brand Lalesso, which is currently taking the fashion world by storm.

Over the last five years founders Alice Heusser and Olivia Kennaway have put a little known cultural garment squarely on the map, with everyone from small ethical shopping boutiques to British high street giant Topshop clamouring to get a piece of their unique vision of contemporary African fashion. In a decade that has seen dresses grow in importance Lalesso, which releases just two collections a year and focuses exclusively on summer wear, is a celebration in the rise of easy to wear feminine clothing. Designs range from the short and fitted to the long and billowy, but whatever the shape the emphasis is undoubtedly on clean, simple lines that let the fabric do the talking.

The ethics Behind the Label
With its mixing of African heritage and international design, Lalesso really is a triumph for African fashion. However the reasons to really take note of this company aren’t simply down to strong designs and command of the catwalk. Lalesso’s mark of quality actually starts with production, where the community takes centre stage.

With it now possible for garments to be turned around in two weeks (from conception to the shop floor), today’s consumers can buy into a trend literally days after it materialises. For suppliers however the rise of the micro-trend translates into ever decreasing lead times, and any pressure felt by them is felt ten fold by those actually stitching our clothes together. The past few decades have seen a worrying decline in worker’s rights and factory conditions. For Alice and Olivia however the wellbeing of employees is central to the ethos of their brand.

Keeping the number of collections down ensures workers are not put under any undue pressures. In addition seamstresses receive well above the average wage, and the company offers loans, maternity leave, crèche facilities and sick pay. Benefits few of the world’s textile workers could ever hope of receiving. Furthermore Lalesso tries to involve the local community in as many ways as possible. There are nuns making the crochet featured in designs, unemployed beachboys crafting buttons from coconuts, and Masaai fashioning up the beaded bracelets used on swing tags. In an industry that is far from transparent, Lalesso has everything to shout about: Great design and strong ethics that place social responsibility at the heart of production.

Ethical fashion sceptics often use unflattering design and exorbitant prices as a reason not to engage with the movement. But with shapes reflecting seasonal trends and prices similar to the high street, Lalesso proves a brand can be hugely successful, stylish and affordable while maintaining fair trade principles at its core. In short, Lalesso is fashion at it’s absolute best.
The lesso: A long rectangular piece of cloth, treat brightly coloured and patterned, ailment the traditional attire of Swahili women living along the coastal regions of East Africa. Since 2005 the lesso has taken on a different, generic rather more international role as the inspiration and centrepiece of clothing brand Lalesso, which is currently taking the fashion world by storm.Roho DressImagery throughout courtesy of Lalesso.

Over the last five years founders Alice Heusser and Olivia Kennaway have put a little known cultural garment squarely on the map, with everyone from small ethical shopping boutiques to British high street giant Topshop clamouring to get a piece of their unique vision of contemporary African fashion. In a decade that has seen dresses grow in importance Lalesso, which releases just two collections a year and focuses exclusively on summer wear, is a celebration in the rise of easy to wear feminine clothing. Designs range from the short and fitted to the long and billowy, but whatever the shape the emphasis is undoubtedly on clean, simple lines that let the fabric do the talking.

Mbusu DressThe ethics Behind the Label
With its mixing of African heritage and international design, Lalesso really is a triumph for African fashion. However the reasons to really take note of this company aren’t simply down to strong designs and command of the catwalk. Lalesso’s mark of quality actually starts with production, where the community takes centre stage.With it now possible for garments to be turned around in two weeks (from conception to the shop floor), today’s consumers can buy into a trend literally days after it materialises. For suppliers however the rise of the micro-trend translates into ever decreasing lead times, and any pressure felt by them is felt ten fold by those actually stitching our clothes together. The past few decades have seen a worrying decline in worker’s rights and factory conditions. For Alice and Olivia however the wellbeing of employees is central to the ethos of their brand.

Bikira DressKeeping the number of collections down ensures workers are not put under any undue pressures. In addition seamstresses receive well above the average wage, and the company offers loans, maternity leave, crèche facilities and sick pay. Benefits few of the world’s textile workers could ever hope of receiving. Furthermore Lalesso tries to involve the local community in as many ways as possible. There are nuns making the crochet featured in designs, unemployed beachboys crafting buttons from coconuts, and Masaai fashioning up the beaded bracelets used on swing tags. In an industry that is far from transparent, Lalesso has everything to shout about: Great design and strong ethics that place social responsibility at the heart of production.

Kipepeo DressEthical fashion sceptics often use unflattering design and exorbitant prices as a reason not to engage with the movement. But with shapes reflecting seasonal trends and prices similar to the high street, Lalesso proves a brand can be hugely successful, stylish and affordable while maintaining fair trade principles at its core. In short, Lalesso is fashion at it’s absolute best.
musee mecanique low res photo by Xilia Faye

Delightful band Musée Mécanique have just released the video for their forthcoming single Like Home.

The eerie video, cialis 40mg directed by Leif Petersen, features a strange playground which is underwater and the music accompanying the images is simply lush. The single, released on January 25th precedes their new album which will be released on February 15th.

Watch Here

The band will also play two gigs over here in March at;

10th London Pure Groove Instore 1:15pm (Free show)

10th London Borderline (supporting Get Well Soon)

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Amelia’s Magazine | Album Review: James Pants


All artwork courtesy of James Pants
I must confess, advice I have been a bit over focused on just one genre of music recently; pretty much every track that I have downloaded, gig that I have been to and festival that I have attended has been of the alt:folk variety. If it doesn’t have a banjo or mandolin, it hasn’t shown up on my radar. So what a refreshing change to listen to James Pants, the eponymously titled album by James Pants, a noisy, feral, snarling beast series of tracks that would probably rip a banjo to shreds in ten paces if it tried to sneak into the studio and join in the melee.

This album gives us a telling insight into the workings of James’ mad professor mind, where musical fusions are created with a lightness of hand, and somehow, all the ingredients seem to come together seamlessly. Given that James blends electro, synth experiments, garage rock, a soupçon of shoegaze and a touch of dream pop, it all could have ended terribly, but somehow the tracks glide smoothly along; almost as if the musical DNA of the above styles was always destined to be mashed up.

It’s also telling that James’ most recent abode has been Cologne, Germany. The album has an unmistakeable electro/experimental and minimalist influences that puts the listener in mind of Kraftwerk. I had thought that Kraut rock is kraut rock, but apparently, there is a further genre of German rock that mixes traditional hard rock with dance-like keyboard parts called Neue Deutsche Härte (NDH): ‘New German Hardness’ (there you go, your fact for the day) and this album reminds me a little bit of this (but without the NDH Satanic imagery). Pleasingly, there is a beating heart beneath the shiny, futuristic contours of this album. Newly released single “Clouds Over The Pacific” is soft and fuzzy and layers delicate female harmonies over a nimble plucking of a guitar string ( or could be a harp), which in turn is layered over a wall of synth sound. James Pants is kind of loopy (and that’s the album I’m talking about, not the man), but I like it. Songs like These Girls, Alone and A Little Bit Closer are the type of tracks that give you a second wind when you hear them in a club (or field) at 2am and go crazy to the beats that sound like they have a bolt of electricity running through them.

If you need a clue as to how a collusion of styles and genres has been weaved together so artfully with ne’er a foot out of step, look no further to the unconventional life of its creator. James is the son of two Presbyterian ministers from an American backwater called Spokane, and his non-conformist journey has taken him from being a teenage DJ for a black nationalist rap group to a multi-instrumentalist with fans and collaborators ranging from Flying Lotus, Zane Lowe, Erol Alkan and XL’s new teen hip-hop internet sensation Tyler The Creator. His backround gives me a further understanding of this album. Only a man who can straddle as many different worlds and cultures as he does – and be wholeheartedly accepted – could make an album as diverse as this without losing any authenticity.

Categories ,album review, ,Dream-pop, ,electro, ,Germany, ,Indie, ,James Pants, ,Kraftwerk, ,krautrock, ,music, ,shoegaze, ,usa

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Amelia’s Magazine | Dimbleby & Capper – Interview


Illustrations by Daniel Almeroth

A surprisingly balmy (well, story if 14 degrees can constitute ‘balmy’) evening at the Hoxton Bar & Kitchen beckoned me in last week, this web where I was promised a chat with a local musician who goes by the name Dimbleby & Capper. If you’re wondering where the name comes from, order then fear not, for answers to such puzzles (and a few more) about this East London-based songwriter and musical mage are coming up in the transcript below:

Hello.

Hello!

Laura…?

Laura. [nods]

Second name…?

Bettinson. With an ‘n’!

With an ‘n’… better write that down, actually. Occasionally I will have to write stuff down, I will warn you, because I’m really bad at names and stuff like that, I’ve got the tape recorder but… OK. I figure it’s best to start off by describing who you are. Y’know, what it is that you do [emphasis on ‘do’]?

Well, Dimbleby & Capper is…

Sorry, just to check – that is just you, right?

Yeah, well, it mainly is. It’s just a one-woman project, really, by myself. I started after moving to London to study for my degree at Goldsmith’s, and I started fiddling around with instruments, and before that I used to sing and play the piano, singer-songwriter stuff, but then got to London and realised that I can’t [a genuine chortle here] take a stage piano on the tube, and actually it’s far too expensive. So this developed as a way for me to take all my instruments with me, and at first I presented it in the same way, stripped-back and relaxed, but then I started messing around with electronics and sticking piano over beats. Then that started to get a little bit of presence on the live scene and we got some bigger shows, so I got in the band to help me, but [noise that can best be rendered in text as an unsure ‘ooer’] as it got more complicated than just me messing about and recording at home, especially getting other people producing me. It was when I asked myself if I was able to sing in a studio and I thought [long, drawn-out] no, I haven’t got seven million hands, so the band stuck then, so…

How many people is it now, then, that you’ve got?

It swings, sometimes it’s three people, and tonight it’s five people. It should be a five-piece, really, to have all the guitars and things.

I was listening to your EP…

Yeah?

Was really enjoying it, actually, especially the first track on there…

‘Slick Maturity’! Awful name, isn’t it?

Hah, yeah… Actually, I embarrassed myself in some e-mails, the first few I exchanged with Tasha [lovely PR lady] I was calling you Dimbleby & Crapper.

Oh, excellent. I’ve heard worse than that…

I said, “yeah, the music’s good, I just don’t understand the name though – surely that’ll put people off?” Where does the name come from, anyway?

It’s literally just, like, a name… I just needed something for a while. I didn’t want to put my own name on it because I’d been using that for a while for my singer-songwriter stuff. I hadn’t really figured out what I was doing yet but I sort of needed something, anything unrelated, really. It goes all the way back to the music, it’s very cut-up, and lyrically too I just pick words, shove them together.

Ah, Bowie did that a lot too.

Yeah, all that cut-up stuff. There’s not really… well, there’s messages, certainly, but it’s not that direct. I don’t just sit down and think the lyrics out – if I can’t write them instantly then I won’t write them at all, pretty much. I won’t just sit there for ages, overthinking things, which for me can be a bit of a nightmare when I take it to somebody else to mix they’re all a bit [a rising inflection on an ‘um-er’]. But that’s how it goes back to the name, the flip thing, the Dimbleby & Capper name reflecting that it’s almost like two different people.

You’ve talked about playing the piano, and you did some musical things before – when was that?

That was when I was about 16, 17, and before I moved to London, where I was did some singer-songwriter stuff…

That sounds almost, well, ‘refined’? Is that the right word? More thoughtful, perhaps.

Yeah, yeah!

So, Dimbleby & Capper – there’s the head of the singer-songwriter and the, um, soul…?

Yeah, well, people will put whatever they want sometimes, like ‘Myself & the Machine’ when it’s just me and a box on stage, where I’m just singing along to the noises coming out of this machine. A lot of people that was where it came from, but really, no [clicks her fingers] – it came out of thin air.

Alright. So who would you say were your… actually, no let’s go with what would describe your music as? I hate to categorise people, and it’s better when musicians describe themselves I reckon.

Essentially, it boils down to pop music. Dreamy electronic pop, and then there’s that rhythm aspect to it, with some quite heavy beats in there, and there’s also a kind of ‘world-y’ vibe to it with the tribal drumming.

You said you were studying at Goldsmith’s – what are you studying?

Music! It was great, three years of doing your own thing and having free access to a practice space, really great course. It’s where I met most of the band too. I could kind of entwine the demands of the course with what I was doing out and about in town, gig-wise, so it worked out perfectly.

How long have you been gigging around for?

Not too long, really. We started taking it more seriously when we got scouted at the Great Escape festival last year, around May or so. That’s when we started playing together properly as a band – before then it was mainly just me doing solo stuff. Our first show was actually here, around April… that’s almost the same time! Weird, how it’s been almost exactly a year.

What are your plans, release-wise? You’ve got that EP up online, is that coming?

Well, that was something we just had to get out when we found out were doing some Glastonbury slots on the BBC. We were on quite a lot, actually, which was nice, and they played ‘Slick Maturity’ quite a bit when we released that, so right now that EP is more of a reference point rather than a real release. People are asking at our shows why they can’t find us on iTunes, and that’s because we haven’t properly released it! I would like to re-release it on vinyl with a little indie label, but we still need to get the money together for that. It would be nice to get a record deal, you know, but right now that’s not too high on my list of priorities, but maybe to get some publishers involved would maybe be better in terms of being able to do this full-time. We’ll see, I don’t know what going to happen. We’ll put out another 7” again soon, though.

‘Slick Maturity’?

No, it’ll be one of the two new songs, we’ll play it tonight – maybe ‘Falling Off’?

OK. Shouldn’t you be heading onstage right about now?

Yes! Right, I’ll get off then…

At this point Laura gathered her things and headed inside, and I bumped into a couple of friends from the other side of the country. This was serendipitous for me, because I hate going to gigs on my own, and it meant I had somebody to mutter remarks to during D&C’s set. They were good remarks – one of my friends, his initial reaction was, “she’s definitely got something, hasn’t she? Can’t put my finger on it, but she’s got something…”

She has. She’s got a good set of lungs on her, her backing band are tight and have the stage act down sharp. They’ve all got these ghostly white beak masks on under their hoodies – when they gather around the Big Drum for some tribal action it’s no unlike seeing a bunch of spirit vultures circle their prey, the rotting carcass of people refusing to dance. Apparently the Hoxton B&K is a pretty A&R-heavy place at the best of times, but despite few people even daring to nod along the music was fresh and I could see the influences Laura talked about coming into the mix. On record her tunes sound similar, in a way, to Balearic beat bands around like JJ, yet live those heavy beats she says she loves are emphasised far more, turning her dream-pop into something closer to a weird laid-back IDM sort of thing.

Watch out for this girl, and her birds.

Categories ,capper, ,dan almeroth, ,dimbleby, ,dimbleby & capper, ,Dream-pop, ,Hoxton, ,illustrations, ,Indie, ,interview, ,laura bettinson, ,live, ,music, ,pop

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