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18SECONDS MAGAZINE
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contents
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13 EDITOR’S NOTE Worthy of the name: 18seconds
81 Men with large stones
15 2012 ASP TOP 34 and 17
93 something in the water
Best get familar with these talented men and women 21 2012 World Tour Calendar
Europe’s largest wave
Coolangatta 111 Young dudes Luke Hynd
Free for all: download 25 blood, sweat and tears
123 MUSIC INK Clowns and 1929Indian reviews by Jake ‘Yaki’ Newell
Kieren Perrow secures his maiden World Tour victory 31 tour de asia
125 Tapas plate of tunes Ten essential tyre spinnin’ tunes
Ry Craike and Dede Suryana gallivant across Asia
127 staff and FEEDBACK FORM Your thoughts?
47 single lens reflux Sean Davey 77 excuse me darling, what’s
your name? Izzy Anders
Cover Joel Parkinson finding a moment of solitude near home, whilst skipping the first leg of the Triple Crown in Hawaii. Photo: 18seconds
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Like 18seconds.
editor's note
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worthy of the name: 18seconds Many have asked about the origin of 18seconds. Some think it’s the length of ride. No. How long you last under the sheets? Fuck no. It refers to a swell period. One of the best, most sort after periods in swell generation: usually they’re beautifully spaced lines stacked 20 thick to the horizon. The kind of ground swell you wish for as you round over the last hill and catch a glimpse of the ocean for the first time. They can also be powerful, mountains of water big wave surfers comb the globe searching for 18second periods are rare. Sort after.
The origin goes back to another time. 1997 – my first year out of school. And my first stint out of Melbourne, living just over an hours drive south west in Torquay, Australia. It was a daring move at the time – bailing on the parents, brother, sister, friends... the promise and expectations of a rewarding 9-5 city life. It all had to go on the back-burner. I insisted on discovering things for myself. I’d been surfing since I was nine or so – Christmas holidays, weekends. Basically whenever I could convince Dad to drive for over an hour to the coast. Lucky, my old mate was good to me. For a businessman who grew up in Melbourne, I think he just got it: how surfing can take over. The promise of hitting the surf after a week in the suit was pretty alluring for him too.
The rule of thumb: if Bells was up to onefoot it was two-tofour-foot down south – a manageable size opening up a huge array of beachies. Most times we headed south because Torquay was flat – any bigger and it could be maxing out. This was before internet forecasting – we relied heavily on our own understanding
of synoptic charts. It was the westerly swells that can leave the Surf Coast flat, yet unload on the south west coast, which caught us by surprise. There was one place. A beachie in between Johanna and Princetown. It held a north westerly wind. It was usually too big most of the year. There’s a river mouth. A long walk in – around one hour return. It’s a gamble, the waves relying heavily on sand formation. Simon ‘Curl’ Clark and I arrived early one morning. We’d left Bells just when there was enough light to know it was flat. Wheels spinning, two winding hours later, a brisk walk through towering gums along a steep, narrow track, we arrived. The lefthander was like nothing I’d seen in Victoria. Three spitting sections – up the line, in the
middle and down the line. There was no one around. For the first hour it pumped. Three-tofour-foot perfection. Just Curl and I. Taking turns, foaming at the mouth. Then something strange happened. The secluded rivermouth went from three-tofour to six-foot plus in the space of 30 minutes. Sets started washing through so we headed in. I sat and watched the spectacle. The lines growing more consistent and evenly spaced. Minutes went by and I started timing the interval. 18seconds. Every wave of the set passing the exposed rock I was using as a marker, smack bang on 18seconds. A new swell had arrived.
We hiked back to Curl’s trusty old wagon (Ford Falcon Deluxe ’64 XM) loaded the gear and plonked our exhausted bodies in the car. The call was made. The whole coast down south was under the influence of a new westerly swell which by the time it refracted into the Surf Coast would be only two-foot at best. Last thing we wanted was drive back to Torquay and surf the reefs small and crowded.
different cliff faces. Once you surface, gather your board and feel the cold bite, there’s a keyhole and you must paddle hard. Worthy of a name: we’d found a winner. I didn’t know it at the time. There was a smile from Curl, a twinkling in his eyes. We surfed for hours. 13 years later, with a bunch of appropriate jobs under my belt to make it happen: a memory was jogged, an idea was born. 18seconds magazine.
But all the open beachies down south Andy Morris were overloaded. So we headed west for an hour until we reached Peterborough. The reefs were lighting up and there were a handful of sharp locals out. We suited up and made our way down to The Well. You must time the jump perfectly or you end up damaged goods. We jumped into the broken whitewater, which bounces off two
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Being a first year uni student my main aim was to chase waves. And there was certainly no shortage of them along The Surf Coast. But what I loved the most, were strike missions down south. Big ocean beachies, rip bowls that would fire under any hint of swell, solitude, adventure, the unknown state of the sand banks: around the headland you could find pointbreak style sand formations – lefts and rights. We found many, most of the time, completely empty.
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2012 ASP TOP 34 // Best get familiar with these talented men // Photography ASP/Kirstin except several sourced from web (see if you can pick ‘em!)
05 Owen Wright (AUS)
Statistics Compliments of ASP
2011 earnings: $445,750 Career earnings: $722,200
11 Josh Kerr (AUS)
2011 earnings: $167,050 Career earnings: $421,650
12 Damien Hobgood (USA)
2011 earnings: $181,650 Career earnings: $1,134,550
06 Adriano de Souza (BRA)
2011 earnings: $297,500 Career earnings: $907,895
13 John John Florence (HAW)
2011 earnings: $151,950 Career earnings: $206,190
01 Kelly Slater (USA)
(AUS)
2011 earnings: $249,750 Career earnings: $1,434,476
03 Taj Burrow (AUS)
2011 earnings: $259,250 Career earnings: $1,664,863
04 Gabriel Medina (BRA)
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2011 earnings: $307,100 Career earnings: $386,800 18SECONDS MAGAZINE
2011 earnings: $556,250 Career earnings: $3,062,005
02 Joel Parkinson
07 Julian Wilson (AUS)
2011 earnings: $227,200 Career earnings: $360,975
14 Mick Fanning (AUS)
2011 earnings: $144,750 Career earnings: $1,548,901
08 Jordy Smith (ZAF)
2011 earnings: $198,250 Career earnings: $724,430
15 Jeremy Flores (FRA)
2011 earnings: $111,150 Career earnings: $601,335
09 Alejo Muniz (BRA)
2011 earnings: $203,000 Career earnings: $314,895
16 Heitor Alves (BRA)
2011 earnings: $132,750 Career earnings: $480,800
10 Michel Bourez (PYF)
2011 earnings: $162,100 Career earnings: $453,825
17 Miguel Pupo (BRA)
2011 earnings: $211,750 Career earnings: $274,175
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2012 ASP TOP 34 // Best get familiar with these talented men //
22 Brett Simpson (USA)
2011 earnings: $116,000 Career earnings: $559,350
28 Matt Wilkinson (AUS)
2011 earnings: $121,700 Career earnings: $353,225
23 Adam Melling (AUS)
2011 earnings: $163,400 Career earnings: $370,640
29 Patrick Gudauskas 30 Dusty Payne (USA)
(HAW)
2011 earnings: $152,800 Career earnings: $418,550
2011 earnings: $116,600 Career earnings: $270,600
18 Adrian Buchan
19 Kieren Perrow
2011 earnings: $134,100 Career earnings: $645,441
2011 earnings: $181,300 Career earnings: $770,150
(AUS)
20 Bede Durbidge (AUS)
2011 earnings: $130,000 Career earnings: $862,601
21 Raoni Monteiro (BRA)
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(AUS)
24 Kolohe Andino (USA)
2011 earnings: $157,950 Career earnings: $183,200
31 Travis Logie (ZAF)
2011 earnings: $111,550 Career earnings: $270,600
25 C.J. Hobgood (USA)
2011 earnings: $124,500 Career earnings: $1,231,858
32 Taylor Knox (USA)
2011 earnings: $119,150 Career earnings: $1,124,072
26 Tiago Pires (PRT)
2011 earnings: $135,900 Career earnings: $603,100
33 Kai Otton
(AUS) *Wildcard
2011 earnings: $156,750 Career earnings: $505,150
27 Jadson Andre (BRA)
2011 earnings: $145,200 Career earnings: $386,950
34 Yadin Nicol
(AUS) *Wildcard 2011 earnings: $60,800 Career earnings: $175,290
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2012 ASP TOP 17
// Best get familiar with these talented ladies //
05 Silvana Lima (BRA)
2011 earnings: $44,900 Career earnings: $327,650
11 Malia Manuel (HAW)
2011 earnings: $15,950 Career earnings: $46,950
12 Lakey Peterson (USA)
2011 earnings: $25,225 Career earnings: $32,675
06 Coco Ho (HAW)
2011 earnings: $53,300 Career earnings: $191,830
13 Sage Erickson (USA)
2011 earnings: $9,700 Career earnings: $51,000
01 Carissa Moore (HAW)
(AUS)
(AUS)
2011 earnings: $83,000 Career earnings: $263,900
2011 earnings: $55,400 Career earnings: $510,950
04 Tyler Wright (AUS)
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2011 earnings: $45,600 Career earnings: $125,350 18SECONDS MAGAZINE
2011 earnings: $114,900 Career earnings: $284,917
02 Sally Fitzgibbons 03 Stephanie Gilmore
07 Sofia Mulanovich 08 Courtney Conlogue 09 Pauline Ado (PER)
(USA)
(FRA)
2011 earnings: $50,900 Career earnings: $504,000
2011 earnings: $70,350 Career earnings: $ 114,000
2011 earnings: $44,950 Career earnings: $100,700
14 Rebecca Woods (AUS)
2011 earnings: $37,100 Career earnings: $306,175
15 Paige Hareb (NZL)
2011 earnings: $40,500 Career earnings: $153,880
16 Justine Dupont (FRA)
2011 earnings: $13,475 Career earnings: $47,315
10 Laura Enever (AUS)
2011 earnings: $40,750 Career earnings: $107,300
17 Jacqueline Silva (BRA) *Wildcard
2011 earnings: $10,350 Career earnings: $378,350
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2012 tour time calendar download options: Would you like a copy of the calendar for your own viewing pleasure? If so, we’ve got a couple of options for you – just think of it as a little something for you during the festive season. Options one and two won’t cost you a cent, option three just a few skins. Tell us which calendar you’d like in the forms below and we’ll swing you the file via email straight away or post you the limited edition print, in a very short time.
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BLOOD,SWEAT
+TEARS Kieren Perrow secures his maiden ASP World Tour victory
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photography Duncan Macfarlane
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BLOOD,SWEAT
+TEARS
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For ten long years Kieren Perrow has been competing on the World Tour. Last year, he narrowly missed his first ever tour victory going down to Jeremy Flores, thanks to a crucial mistake he made during the Pipe final. It’s taken him up until now, to get over the loss. For Kieren it meant his life to him. “If I had of placed second again, I would’ve buried myself in the sand… just in tears.” Very few get a second chance at being the Pipe Master. Kieren milked the opportunity. So much blood, sweat and tears - for ten years on the circus. It’s a true testament to his mental capacity, strength, skill and loving family. To win with a combination of traditional rail surfing, menacing kegs and new age stuff, just makes the victory even sweeter for us all. Like, he’s been a solid performer in his career, but has always been shadowed by guys who have the full-rotation, aerial repertoire happening. Here’s one for the underdog.
BLOOD,SWEAT
+TEARS
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And as for the young Hawaiian, John John Florence stepping onto the podium as the overall winner of the 2011 Vans Triple Crown, this is a sign of things to come. He’s only nineteenyears-old and already has the surfing world at his feet with his uncanny barrel riding skill and ridiculously stylish airs. Oh yeah and he pulls ten point rides at Pipe, like he’s doing here.
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Ry Craike & Dede Suryana gallivant across three countries & 14 flights of arse-numbing pain.
text & captions Brad Masters & Dede Suryana photography Brad Masters
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TOUR DE ASIA:
TOUR DE ASIA:
Ry Craike & Dede Suryana gallivant across three countries & 14 flights of arse-numbing pain.
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First stop Taiwan. In short, Taiwan is a bloody good place for surfing. You have everything you want for a real surf trip. The waves are nice – there’s a variety of punchy beachbreaks to powerful reefs. The crowds are not a factor in this area. Food is amazing and the nightlife in Taipei is something in itself. From there it was a short flight over to KL.
Next stop Terengganu. Malaysia is not known for surf, but from what we saw, the beachbreaks and points honestly do produce fun waves. The beach reminded me of Kuta beach ten years ago. The downside here: no alcohol rule. The upside: you can always find a cold beer if you look hard enough. While in Malaysia, we were lucky enough to see a swell en route to Java. Ry and Dede dropped everything and just like that, were onboard a flight for a three day strike mission. From there, the photos tell the story.
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W
ith plans this year to stay in Asia for the wet season, I’ve been able to view the country in a whole new light. Realising the potential it has for surf in these months, I was left to make a plan. With the ASC (Asian Surfing Championships) planning two events and run by Quiksilver, I knew Indo’s busiest surfer, Dede Suryana was in, and a quick phone call to Ry Craike, confirmed he was onboard too.
TOUR DE ASIA:
Ry Craike & Dede Suryana gallivant across three countries & 14 flights of arse-numbing pain.
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Dede Suryana finds his element in the Malaysian beachbreaks. This happens to be his first wave ever in Malaysia. One thing’s for sure, the local people hadn’t seen surfing like this before.
TOUR DE ASIA:
Ry Craike & Dede Suryana gallivant across three countries & 14 flights of arse-numbing pain.
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This wave in Java has really been exposed in the last few years, but with so many different angles to shoot from, it’s one place you can’t get bored of. Ry flaring.
TOUR DE ASIA:
Ry Craike & Dede Suryana gallivant across three countries & 14 flights of arse-numbing pain.
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With Dede preferring the rights and Ry on the lefts, you could hear the guys gasbagging to each other between the channel.
TOUR DE ASIA:
Ry Craike & Dede Suryana gallivant across three countries & 14 flights of arse-numbing pain.
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Sunset time is amazing here. They’re beautiful to see and experience. Not to mention the cold beers and crazy cocktails old-mate Rod would be serving at the same time.
TOUR DE ASIA:
Ry Craike & Dede Suryana gallivant across three countries & 14 flights of arse-numbing pain.
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video
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Ry was searching for this the whole trip. Finally it all came together in one session. The winds backed and the waves did what they do best. Spending so much time in the air, it’s always good to get shacked.
TOUR DE ASIA:
Ry Craike & Dede Suryana gallivant across three countries & 14 flights of arse-numbing pain.
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Ry loves this wave for the sections it offers: the biggest ramps you can image. Only problem is the shallow, razor-reef below you.
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bringing up the lives of legendary lensmen SEAN DAVEY
interview Andy Morris
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Single Lens Reflux
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Single Lens Reflux
ot many people
N
Fast forward
The global
can claim
several years and
financial crisis
over 140 magazine
his imagery is seen
struck. Eventually,
covers in their
in publications
reality set in: the
careers. Sean
such as Tracks,
freelance market
Davey can and he’s
Australia’s Surfing
was squeezed,
still counting. As
Life and Surfing
his daily crust
a child, Sean fled
World where he
begun shrinking,
his broken family
enjoyed many
so he reinvented
to be with his mum
years as one of the
himself: supplying
in Sydney’s eastern
leading editorial
stock photography.
suburbs at Bronte
photographers. In
First year, business
Beach. It was there
1997 Sean moved to
boomed. Then
he discovered
the North Shore
others follow suit
photography and
of Hawaii where he
and profitability
experimenting
continued at the
dropped out. He
with makeshift
top of his game.
reinvented himself
water housings
Around 2004, alarm
again: selling
engineered out of
bells started
prints from his
goon bags.
ringing, as the line
archive.
between hobbyist
In 2008 his business
and pro shooters
kicks into high
was blurred, as
gear. Freedom.
the market was
Joy. He’s never
flooded with surf
looked back.
photographers. He also noticed
Without further
the magazine
ado ladies and
environment
gents, Mr Sean
changing.
Davey.
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Sean Davey. hobart, tasmania. 1978
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Single Lens Reflux
bruce irons. teahupoo
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the beginning
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I was a child in Tasmania through the ‘60s and moved to Sydney to live with my mum in 1970. We lived at Bronte Beach, one of Sydney’s city beaches, although back then people used to look down on the place. It was working class in those days, but I loved it because I could be at the beach all the time.
My mates and I would surf all day long: like half a dozen surfs every day. I was a skinny runt with ribs hanging out. All that. It was a magical time in Bronte. My mum rented a flat on Pacific Street (behind the main drag) for the princely sum of $28 a week. I really developed a love for the sea at Bronte. You just couldn’t keep me out of the surf. I can clearly remember seeing the, “photo nerds” going in and out of the darkrooms at Dover Heights High School back then. We used to bag on them, totally ignorant of the cooler than cool image making process going on in their darkroom.
I ran up, grabbed it and headed back to the beach. I took my time, framed the scene, paying attention in particular to the composition and idea I needed to get really low to make the shot look correct. I squeezed off just one frame (left) and when I got the picture back, my mates were asking why wasn’t anyone out. The little light globe just clicked on there and then. From that point, I was hooked on photography.
I took it to the next level when I really wanted to get into the water. I was poor though and had no way of affording a fancy waterproof camera rig (not that they were easy to come by back then), so simply worked with what I had. My mum used to like a few glasses of wine after work, so I grabbed one of her (empty) wine casks and removed the plastic bladder bag. I then sealed my camera inside with some tape. Nothing too elaborate here, I can assure you. I took the tap off the bag and replaced it with a couple of camera filters, so I’d have something to point the lens through.
It was a pretty poor job, but it worked for exactly one session. I took it out at Bondi and after about ten minutes there was so much moisture inside the bag, it’d filled up with a fog, which made shooting no longer possible. Of course the camera was trashed, but I was now a water photographer. I was stoked!
It well and truly sowed the bug within me… I took it to the next level by buying a cheap SLR (a Praktika L – bottom of the range Russian camera – truly a piece of crap which fell apart). Anyhow, I put the Praktika inside an Eva Marine bag, which worked for a little while till it also started taking on water and moisture. I didn’t want to trash my SLR at that stage, so I stopped with the water shots until I could get hold of a Nikoness II some time down the road. They were pretty much the only option in those days because water housings were only custom made and there were no waterproof consumer cameras like these days.
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Photography kind of found me actually. It was October 20, 1977 and I’d just come home from school and raced down the beach to go for a surf. Disappointingly, the surf was tiny. Even more torturous was the waves were perfect shape, but too small to surf. That was when I sussed on to the crappy old plastic Kodak Instamatic camera sitting in the back of the wardrobe for the past four years.
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Single Lens Reflux
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Single Lens Reflux
heavy water speed
influences and training
Actually, I was a master of the darkroom. During my early years, I worked in a few professional labs where I learnt just about every single aspect of colour laboratory work there is. I learnt how to use colour enlargers in the darkroom, processing black and white and colour film, and printing them. I also know every aspect of professional copy work there is to know. I even used to process the slide films. All those years working in labs helped me to pick up all manner of influences and tricks. Like, Fuji film always processed better in Kodak chemistry just as Kodak film always looked better through the Fuji chemicals. Weird, hey?
I had no formal training at all. I was truly inspired more than anything by pictures of waves. There was one guy from the US who was nailing them better than anyone at the time and that was Woody Woodworth. He single-handedly inspired me more than anyone. Every time I saw one of his pictures in the magazines, it was a perfect spinning barrel, usually quite glassy and always interesting light-play. He was the master of shooting waves. I hope to meet him one of these days. Another man who had a huge influence on me, although I wasn’t really aware of it at the time, was Warren Bolster. He was always looking for ways to see things differently. That’s something I’ve strived to do too. I love to come up with something completely different, even more so if it’s a visual on a very well known subject or place. Another major influence for me was Bruce Channon and Hugh McLeod when they ran and photographed Surfing World magazine. Those guys had the perfect formula right there. They would simply do surf trips and fill a mag with them. Sometimes, it might be two trips, maybe three. Sometimes, if they had a killer trip, it would be almost all from that trip. It was such a good publication. They were a great team.
Bruce would seek out all the cool water angles and Hugh would concentrate on land angles, as well as sunsets, landscapes, native portraits, flora and fauna.. These guys had such a good gig happening there. They showed surf travel photography way better than anyone has, even till today. You would get such an immersive feel for a place when they went there. I based my approach to surf trip photography off these guys. Each trip, I would concentrate on trying to capture little visual glimpses into what a place is about. Get some moody portraits when the moments presented themselves. For me, shooting the surf is just part of doing a trip. There’s so much more going into telling a story visually and I’ve always been first and foremost about doing just that. Another major influence from the surfing world for me was Ted Grambeau. I could see that he had such a creative approach to what he does and a lot of that really rubbed off on me when I was sitting on the Australia’s Surfing Life masthead with him. Ted is the man! He inspires me to do my best.
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the dark room
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Single Lens Reflux
kelly slater sixth world title
editor/magazine who offered big break It was filled with cool surf pictures that weren’t finding a place in Tracks. Kirk used so many of my Tasmanian shots back then. I was stoked.
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Kirk Wilcox who at the time was editing Tracks gave me my first big break with another mag that he was editing, called “Surfing Snaps”.
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how did surf photography transform It was kind of a perfect storm of sorts. First you had the advent of digital, which just created an army of new SLR shooters. Second. A lot of these new shooters bought a camera so they could shoot their kid surfing and being soccer parents, happily flowed the images to the companies for nothing, so their kid could get ahead. Now, although those images probably were not important to the companies, they saw the opportunity waiting to be exploited. Especially the publicly owned entities, which means they’re always looking for ways to make money for their shareholders.
Third. Real estate prices were so high in the early ‘00s so a lot of peeps were suddenly thinking they were really rich and began quitting their jobs. A lot of those lived in California and instantly got into shooting surf. Fourth. It was suddenly cool to be known as a surf photographer. I’m not sure how it came about, but suddenly we were seeing dudes on reality shows claiming to be surf photographers and shit. We didn’t know any of them.
Meanwhile, mags were finally starting to come around to the digital deal because there’s a lot of money to be saved in film, processing and scanning. Downside for them is there are a million shooters out there now and they all want to get their stuff printed. Magazine photo editors were, and still are hating life. It’s much harder to communicate with them as a result.
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Single Lens Reflux
Pipe reef
feelings towards magazine publishing It’s strange. I used to wonder about guys who came before me and why they gave away surf photography. I always thought I’d do it forever because I love to shoot, but I didn’t Now this is not to say there aren’t count on market changes and talented shooters around these politics, and now I’m one of those days. There absolutely is, but the surf guys who really doesn’t care for industry has a habit of ejecting prime the surf industry anymore. Even shooters, in favour of the young bucks just calling it the “surf industry” who know nothing, but how to swim seems kind of wrong as I’ve always with a pair of fins. And you know perceived surf to be the opposite of where all these guys are coming industry in a way. Anyone who read from? Yep, from the bodyboard early ‘70s Tracks magazines would scene which has no financial future know exactly what I mean. for aspiring pro’s, so many of them move on to photography. Problem There are three mags I still enjoy is, by placing more importance on and always read from cover to their ability to swim than over their cover: The Surfers Journal, The actual skills as a photographer, Surfers Path and Surfing World. they’re continually dumbing down All are beautiful with great art photography standards. It’s what it is. direction and minimal industry crap, like board buying guides and so forth... It’s worth paying an extra dollar or two for these. You’re actually getting good value for money as opposed to many of the mags which are sitting currently at around 60 percent advertising. Once you factor in the advertorial like the buying guides, it can be as much as 70, even 80 percent on some issues. Meanwhile, I keep hearing about mags actually paying less money for photos now. How can that be? They no longer have the huge expense of buying film, having it processed,
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I used to care so deeply about shooting and delivering the best magazine pictorial I could. It’s just not about that any more.
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Single Lens Reflux
pure wilderness
No matter how you look at it, with the way things are in photography, no one’s ever going to make a good living from surf photography and the surf companies are all too happy to keep it that way. If you ask most surf photographers, they’ll tell you they do it for the lifestyle I did get the main feature in the and not the money, simply because very first Australia’s Surfing Life (on there is none. I don’t know what Tasmania) and so worked with them most of the company guys are for a very long time. I still worked earning if you take into account the here and there with Kirk at Tracks companies hired them in the first though because we were mates place, in order to save money… then and I liked Kirk’s other mag, Surfing most of them can’t be making much. Snaps. I pretty much went fully with And even if they’re making decent ASL in the early ‘90’s and stayed loyal coin, how long till they get turfed for to them for a long time. I was living the new greenhorn who knows how in Hawaii by the time things became to swim with a pair of fins on and wobbly with the mag. Sean Doherty that’s about it. took up the editor’s job at Tracks and soon was able to convince me to throw off the ASL shackles for a different run. One thing that I can say as a photographer, the relationships you have with your magazine counterparts are really important. Some are great to work with others, not so much. The best editor I ever had was Sean Doherty at Tracks and the best photo editor ever was Lee Pegus at ASL.
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then getting scans done. So either the mags are huge money makers now for their publishers or they’re selling way less copies, which in itself is a damnation on the current state of those mags from the readers, themselves.
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sunny garcia. backdoor pipe
ads in mags and corporate sway Actually, one of the best editorials I’ve ever done was a trip to King Island a couple of years back. I had Derek Hynd there for one day and Marti Paradisis for another day. Not exactly a pro surf trip as such. What amazed me, was that it didn’t matter. The mags loved it anyway. That pictorial delivered close to 100 editorial pages worldwide as well as a few covers. It was 2008 then and I was already pretty jaded by all the cheap nasty deals companies were doing with young shooters who didn’t know how to price their work, often at the expense of established shooters, but I did see the success of this trip as maybe a shift in magazine perceptions away from having to appease expectations of their advertisers.
Of course though, the economic crisis came along and the surf companies had the mags right where they wanted them. I stopped travelling after this because I was always about doing independent surf trips and often to out of the way places. Those kind of surf trips seem to have disappeared with the new order. All surf trips now seem to be bankrolled by the sponsors and not so much the mags anymore. One or two mags are giving it a go, but generally speaking, most travel pictorials now are from the companies themselves. The mags are slowly becoming catalogues instead of independent opinions. Just look at how many pages now are filled with board buying guides, wetsuit guides, watches and sunglass buying guides. Since when have surfers been consumers who care about this crap?
We buy surf mags because we want to see travel to new places and epic sessions, etc. I think if you polled surfers, they might well be prepared to pay a bit more for a mag like the old days. They already do in California with The Surfers Journal. TSJ costs a lot, but it’s a real surf mag with no product guides and company sponsored surf articles. It’s totally independent and I love it just for that reason alone. It’s funny. Back in the day, if you accused a magazine editor of being biased towards any company, they used to get so bent out of shape, but now there’s simply no denying it with some mags.
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A lot of photographers get greedy and will approach companies with the best photos from their trips, often at the expense of the very magazine that sent them on the trip. Sound familiar anyone? I’ve never done this. I’ve always strived to tell the visual story to the viewers. Any advertisements from a trip I’ve done, have always come well after the magazine picked their edit. There’s even been a lot of shots that were good for ads, but I never bothered because all I really care about is getting the mag edit looking its best. That’s me though. I’ve always cared very deeply about delivering a rich colourful editorial pictorial. Of course some trips are just complete skunks, but I will always strive to deliver great editorial.
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Single Lens Reflux
heaven on a stick. king island
magazine buyouts changing Actually up till about a year ago, the two US mags were paying up to as much as $500 for a spread, depending on wether you were staff, senior or regular contributor. They both were purchased by the same publisher who then bankrupted them and dropped the rates across the board to $100 a page. So much for all the negotiation efforts of the past.
I’ve heard one of the main surf publishers in Australia now expects really stingy deals from their “staff” or “senior” photographers. One guy told me they were doing bulk deals for eight covers at a time, for pretty shitty rates, but it does explain why they often have the worst covers ever. It’s not that hard. It’s not rocket science. Do these mags think their readers are that naïve?
Even though I was ahead of the curve, my stuff wasn’t getting looked at very much. Digital is way user friendly than film ever was. When we were shooting film, you actually had to know about photography. You had to know how to properly expose your images. There was no second chance, especially with the slide films we were using. If you screwed up, that was it. Now, they can be so far off exposure and still pull a usable image from it. You pretty much have to be a total dumb-arse now to blow a shoot.
Just about anyone can shoot a surf photo these days, which is sad. What’s even sadder though, is video cameras are so close now, soon, companies simply won’t need to shoot stills anymore. It’ll just be a matter of lifting the image from the video.
stepping over to digital I actually adopted digital a little earlier than most simply because I could finally see it was the future and I didn’t want to be the dude playing catch-up. My problem back in 2004 was the mags wanted nothing to do with digital. They were really set in their ways and had to be dragged kicking and screaming into the digital age. I can even remember being told by someone at Surfer, “Davey, you’re blowing it going digital.” I tell ya, he was kind of right simply because it took so long for the magazines to get off their arses and deal with digital.
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I honestly don’t know what the mags (in Australia) are paying now, because I’ve heard of so many bad deals. Back in the ‘80s and ‘90s they payed around $100 a page and $1000 for the cover (in Australia and USA). Meanwhile mainstream magazines were paying $600 a spread and still do.
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Single Lens Reflux
dan jones
flood of photographers during oahu winter season Due to all the young guys flooding the companies with cheap paying “staff” jobs, we now have this, “us” and “them” situation and let’s just say, it’s getting a lot harder to recognise one of “us” on the beach… particularly when the “circus” is in town. It’s mostly “them” now with a string of hobbyists close behind. In the water is no different. It’s now a mass of hands holding housings (most of them fisheyes). Reminds me of an old story from about 20 years back. Dean Wilmot at the time was the young Aussie shooter swimming out to big Pipeline. All the established shooters are positioned with their 100mm and 135mm lenses. In swims Deano with a 50mm lens and totally pisses them all off.
So much apparently, one very well known American shooter actually swam over and clubbed him on the head with his water housing for being so cheeky. Now it’s all fisheyes. Not many are getting great shots. Just a couple here and there. The basic difference is, back in the day, it was largely a freelance market which pretty much ensured the best imagery was used. Now it’s mostly a “retained” market and at the end of the day, it’s really about who’s giving the companies the best deal. That does not equate to the magazine’s readers getting the best deal though, sadly.
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I have noticed more and more people who have cameras. In all likelihood, many of those increased numbers were definitely not experts, but closer to hobbyists. Both on the beach and in the water, the situation is the same. Massive numbers of shooters. Many of whom I have no clue who they are. It used to be all the surf photographers knew each other and were all, for the most part, on good terms with each other.
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Single Lens Reflux
I basically went and put all my time into shooting stock photography. That I’m seeing all this going is where I shoot an image and I license it on and really, I just to a photo library that want to stay ahead of all that. So I’m starting markets the license of my images to big to make inroads away companies. Anyhow, from the surf scene, I killed it that first simply because I have year. One of the best a responsibility to years I’ve ever had and keep a roof over my actually the first year of family’s head. the recession. But then all the photographers who were losing their gigs because of the new army of shooters, also started pouring thousands of images into the libraries. This overwhelmed the libraries at first to the point where they just stopped receiving submissions. Then due to the massive amount of new imagery in the system, stock photography became really cheap and inexpensive to a large degree.
I’m quietly freaking out now, wondering how I’m going to make a living, so I decided I didn’t need to shoot anymore. Instead I needed to start selling what I already have. So I started marketing my prints and canvas via the social networks. This has allowed me to keep my images in the public eye and also make a decent living from what I truly love to shoot. I still will shoot action shots of surfing, but only because I want to and not because I have to. That in itself ensures what I shoot is only primo. I don’t submit my images to magazines anymore for the most part, simply because I don’t have to anymore. I’m making enough from my print business, I don’t need to.
I shoot almost every day despite whether there are waves or not, when the tour isn’t here (Hawaii), but only on the very, very good days, if they are here. I’ve come to expect next to nothing from the surf industry these days , so I no longer shoot with intention to sell or market to the industry. That keeps my hours behind the lens down significantly, but I love what I’m doing now, because I only shoot good stuff. I don’t “have” to be there anymore. I now “choose” to be there. It’s so nice to truly work for yourself. When I shoot pictures, it’s because I want to, not because I have to. I love that! My print businesses are doing very well too, so I’m definitely not looking back. I’m even opening a gallery in the next month with a business partner, but more about that when I’m ready.
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changing your approach
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john john florence
Epson approached me several months ago, really interested in my imagery and just as interested in my story as a journalistic photographer turned to print sales. To them, it was the perfect story. Well-known magazine photographer watches the decline of his livelihood, turns to printing pictures for a living from his esteemed collection. They loved it!
I’m always busy on something. If I’m not working on a paying job, then I’m working on something that’s going to benefit my business. There is always something to be done. Lately, I’ve been finishing up my shoots soon after the sun rises. It’s way cool to get a shoot under your belt before most folks are even getting out of bed. I get up around five or six every morning and have quite a lot done before seven. Sometimes, I’ve even finished a shoot by seven. It gets light here early in summer.
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epson
strong work ethic
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gerry lopex. stylin’. pipeline
advice for aspiring photographers
Also do not spend more money on equipment than you’re expecting in return, because at the end of the day, you probably won’t make it back. It’s that simple. Sorry, I would have like to have been able to offer some more encouraging words, but I’m a realist and it’s better to be for-warned, than to charge blindly into it with unrealistic expectations. For more imagery visit Sean’s website here. And for daily photo updates check out his facebook page here.
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Two things. Don’t be a surf photographer unless you really love doing it because you’ll always struggle financially if that’s all you’re relying on.
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NicknamE Izzy Age 18 Live Gold Coast Uni Bond Work No thanks!
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Your last holiday was to… Bali for schoolies, but soon I’ll be in Thailand The last song you listened to… Afrojack and Steve Aoki - No beef The last alcoholic bevvie you had… One of those Smirnoff vodka sacks: cloudy apple Any advice for men Never cheat! And have a sense of humour Ten things you like to do in your spare time - sleep - go to the beach - watch movies - TV - hang out with friends - go shopping - listen to music very loud - have a long bath - more sleep That’s only nine. Nicest thing you’ve done I’m sponsoring two children in Africa. The baddest thing you’ve done I can’t tell you… :) Tell us something cheeky about yourself I can’t tell you that either… :) Want Izzy’s bike? Visit Currumbin Cycles (CLICK here) makeup Tanya Shaw did it (click here)
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video
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(Men with large stones) A Hawaiian, North American, Englishman and Irishman prowl Portugal for Europe’s largest wave.
text Maria João Leite / Nazaré Qualifica photography Polvo Jorge Leal / Wilson Ribeiro Nazaré Qualifica
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(Men with large stones)
Explore waves, understand their uniqueness and conquer them. This is a part of the tasks of an exploration mission to the waves of Nazaré, the Zon North Canyon Show 2011, part of a three year project initiated in 2010. It was the second time Gmac led the mission.
This year, there was a greater understanding of the Nazarene waters and the phenomenon known as Nazaré’s Canyon: a gap off the continental plate 170 kilometres long and five kilometres deep. It’s located in front of Praia do Norte, receives swells from the Atlantic Ocean and creates abnormally large waves. The size, only men in peak physical and mental condition, can face. During the two months of exploration GMac wasn’t alone in this adventure. The North American CJ Macias, the Englishman Andrew Cotton and the Irishman Al Mennie were also in the waters off Praia do Norte. There were several successful sessions.
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ctober and November: two months of exploration in the sea of Nazaré, to the powerful break known as Praia do Norte. It was on this Portuguese beach Garrett McNamara (Gmac) rode the reported 90-foot bomb, which went haywire on the web – some say he wrote history.
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left or right?
(Men with large stones)
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gmac’s paddling xxl nominee
(Men with large stones) These two waves marked the debut of Portugal and Praia do Norte in the Billabong XXL Global Big Wave Awards, in the categories of “Biggest Wave” and “Monster Paddle”. Weeks later, history was made again with “the wave” on November 1. GMac and Praia do Norte entered into the race for the awards again, in the categories “Biggest Wave” and “Ride of the Year”. On this day, Gmac rode a wave with a height of around 90-foot. He was towing with Andrew Cotton and Al Mennie at Praia do Norte. The waves were flawless and the “Nazaré’s Canyon” blew everyone away. No-one had ever seen its full potential. The impact was shattering and the images were sprayed across the web.
One of the goals of the project, is the awareness of the international big wave competition taking place in Praia do Norte in 2012. This will be the first competition of its kind in Portugal and only the best global teams will be invited. Nazaré has waves to suit all tastes – it doesn’t just offer up mountainous beachies and reefs… there are friendlier waves. That’s why the Municipally of Nazaré is pushing the region as a prime destination for waves, especially Praia do Norte. And after the 90-foot wave Gmac rode, it’s a surf spot of global recognition.
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n October 17 2011, the first solid swell of the project hit. GMac and CJ Macias were towing at Praia do Norte. At the time GMac towed into allegedly the biggest wave ridden this year. The largest paddle wave of the year was caught on the same day too. It was also the largest wave ever paddled in Portugal. “The waves were perfect for the first swell of this year’s exploration. It was a good warm up for the waves to come,” said McNamara.
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(Men with large stones) the 90-foot wave gmac rode, which was a screened all over the world
I’ve heard it all about GMac and his biggest wave in the world. Like it or not his wave is echoing around the world. I’ve had many major magazines come to me wondering what I thought? Is it the biggest wave in the world? Was it a 90-foot wave? Is he pumping himself up? They wanted me to discredit it - to cause drama.
I’m not sure if this is the biggest wave in the world and I’m not sure if it was 90-foot. I’m not even sure if GMac is really human! But I do know this wave has been on every major news station around the world. Every newspaper. Every magazine will run a story. This is getting more publicity than Kelly Slater’s 11th World Title. And if we try and bash his accomplishment, we bash big wave surfing and ourselves.
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Award winning big wave loony, Ken ‘Skindog’ Collins examines the so-called, biggest wave in the world (left) and how his team are working with Google to create a universal measuring system.
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cj macias and gmac (front)
(Men with large stones)
ken ‘skindog’ Collins
Right now Mike Parson holds the Guinness World Records for biggest wave: 70-foot. Which, I will point out, The Billabong XXL awards came up with the number, and I will also point out, Mike Parsons does have a Billabong logo on his board. Yes it is a big-arse wave. But is it truly the biggest wave in the world? With that said, Chasing Monsters is working with a team of big brained engineers from Google to come up with a scientific way to measure the biggest wave in the world. I believe at this point in time, the measuring system is flawed and needs to be updated and done by a group detached from the surf industry to keep it real.
The big wave surf community should be measuring these waves with a state of the art measuring system, and be keeping the surf industries agendas and biasness out of the way of a genuine world record. This is a very big deal. There have been five waves in the history of surfing, which can be the biggest wave in the world. Let’s find out who really holds the title. Cheers, Skinz
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his is the largest coverage of surfing in the mainstream media. Big wave surfing has way more potential than any branch in the surfing tree. GMac did not state these claims, his Public Relations team did. Regardless, he has a whole country backing his accomplishment. We need to back him as well. He just busted down the door for us and now we need to charge right in and show the world how bad-arse big wave surfing is.
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( SOMETHING IN THE WATER ) How an Australian border town buried in surf history, produces world champion surfers.
text Andy Morris photography Credited
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Photo: 18seconds
/ Say Coolangatta to any surfer and you’re guaranteed a reaction. Either their eyes will light up with visions of crystal clear cylinders spinning down manicured sandy points, their hands will make gestures as they describe the punchy beach breaks or they’ll raise their eyebrows about the undesirable crowds. Ether way, Coolangatta is one of the most dynamic locations to be a surfer. And now, one of the globe’s most recognised surfing communities.
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( SOMETHING IN THE WATER )
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snapper. Photo: 18seconds
/ Cast your mind back to the ‘50s and early ‘60s, and Coolangatta’s beaches were packed. It was a full tourist destination. Families would come down and congregate at the beach. Kirra beach was crammed, Greenmount beach was packed. Rainbow bay. Hardly anyone was surfing – there was lots of bodysurfing going on. There were caravan/trailer parks everywhere. It was a huge holiday destination.
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( SOMETHING IN THE WATER )
/ By the mid ‘60s’ longboard era, Coolangatta was already a real surf town. It was full of employment: all the young guys in town were apprentice tradesmen going to school. It was completely empty during the week and feverishly crowded with Brisbane (city to the north) sun seekers on the weekends. All the surfers who worked during the week would surf on the weekends. During the week was quite. “In the ‘60s I lived right on the beach at Rainbow Bay and I’d be looking for someone to surf with,” recalls Wayne ‘Rabbit’ Bartholomew.
/ As a result surfing received a bad name in Coolangatta in the ‘70s. The Queensland premier at the time, Joh BjelkePetersen, believed in uncompromising conservatism and they hated surfers. Surfers were the vermin. They had no money. They were trying to avoid going to Vietnam for war.
Rainbow bay 1965. Photo: mal sutherland 97
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/ Then there was a revolution. A youth revolution. People started listing to The Beatles, Rolling Stones and The Doors, growing their hair long, smoking marijuana – being teenagers in the psychedelic era. “That’s what happened. All the music festivals were in full swing. Woodstock etc. It was a pop revolution. It affected every teenager,” says Rabbit.
/ It wasn’t surfers passing through town and hanging-out who were the problem. It was the local beachbums, enjoying themselves and embracing the surfing lifestyle. “They were doing what everyone is doing now. Hanging out and surfing. Back then it wasn’t on. It was counter culture. They didn’t want to be like their fathers. They wanted to be like Mick Jagger,” says Rabbit.
/ There were these rock ‘n’ roll icons who’d taken over the world. The Beatles and The Stones were the most powerful symbols of youth – icons which people aspired to. Then there was surfing. It ran a parallel course. It became its own revolution. / Police began cracking down on the drugs, but they were busting people for a marijuana seed. Or matchboxes full of leaf. Unlike the toxic stuff floating around now.
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( SOMETHING IN THE WATER )
/ “As a 12-year-old I saw the whole psychedelic thing happening. Amazing. It was an amazing transformation of Coolanagatta,” remembers Rabbit. “Then in the mid ‘70s heroin came to town and destroyed my whole generation. There are not many guys around my age who are still surfing. There’s a bunch of homeless guys in the main park (Rabbit points over his shoulder towards the park) who are the survivors. They’re the success stories. It was not only around here. It was Burleigh, Bondi…”
Kirra carpark 1962. Photo: Mal Sutherland
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/ Then came the turning point, which resurrected surfing in Coolangatta. Michael ‘MP’ Peterson, Peter ‘PT’ Townend, Rabbit, Wayne Deane and Co started cutting down Malibu boards. This was the new dawn. It was like the meteorite 60 million years ago. It wiped out long boards in two days. “One weekend everyone was down at Kirra walking the nose, being cool with colourful surfboards and boardshorts – it was the classical cool look with all the girls,” notes Rabbit. / “During the week we cut our boards down and the next weekend we were doing roundhouse cutbacks,” Rabbit explains. Longboards were over. It became a new world. The famous Kirra barrels were able to be ridden properly. You could actually sit in the barrel.
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snapper rocks way before the surf club. photo: mal sutherland
( SOMETHING IN THE WATER )
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/ Although they were performing for them, the boards being hacked down were rotten. The rocker was wrong, the curves were wrong. No one knew about the proper rails and bottom rocker for shortboards. Local Legend Wayne Deane recalls removing the glass. “You took the glass off. Once you worked out how long you wanted the board, you’d cut it a bit longer and you could peel the glass off, says Deane. “Mals were too flat and you couldn’t get any rocker in them. They were like flat ironing boards and difficult to shape cut-downs from.” / Over at the Joe Larkin factory there was another revolution going on. Terry Fitzgerald had temporarily moved to Coolie to shape, PT and MP were the apprentices and Rabbit was there hanging around cleaning the factory. There was this unbelievable revolution going down. Brian ‘Fury’ Austen and Graham Black were the main guys. Victor Preston was a worldclass glasser. Gordon Merchant was working there too. One morning, Merchant decided to do a tucked under edge, with a nice little rail and bottom curve. “We were given these boards to go and test pilot at Kirra,” says Rabbit. “And suddenly we started getting behind the curtain at Kirra. Once you go behind the curtain at Kirra you could be behind there for 15 seconds.
Joe LArkin sanding, miles street factory. Photo: Mal Sutherland
( SOMETHING IN THE WATER )
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/ “We had this running joke about sitting on a Surfside bus (Coolangatta bus line) which went around the corner at Kirra stuck in traffic moving slowly,” recalls Rabbit. “We’d slot in a barrel at Kirra and then a Houdini would appear 200 metres down the line. That was our little trick. No one had ever seen it before. / “Gerry Lopez was riding the tube at Pipeline, but we were getting 20-feet back in the barrel at Kirra for 20 seconds… because Kirra had such an amazing groove of a wave and we had boards that could handle it,” Rabbit remembers. / At the same time just up the road, Dick Van Straalen was making boards that were heavily influence by Hawaiian guns. They were amazing boards for Kirra and Burleigh. Between those and the cut-down boards, they started getting big barrels. Long barrels. / The mid ‘70 to mid ‘80s where packed with quality years of surf. All the points fired - good sand, regular east swells. It was a game-changing decade. / For three decades magazines and occasionally TV stations showcased dreamy images of warm water fun. It was portrayed as the ideal area to live, surf and bring up a beach family. Surfers aspired to this lifestyle and so began a migration to the town. Many passed through and realised the place was everything they’d been looking for, and decided to stay.
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( SOMETHING IN THE WATER )
kirra freight train. Photo: simon Muirhead
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/ Luke Egan and Mark Occhilupo made Coolangatta their home after relocating from Newcastle and Sydney respectively in the early nineties. Coolangatta had become the focal point of surfing. The whole world knew about the jewel. It was crowded. Companies were getting involved. Billabong was well and truly established as a major player. Sponsors were being thrown around to the local kids. The place attracted high-profile surfers.
/ Then the likes of Josh Kerr, Jay Phillips, the Harrington twins (Dean and Shaun) and Dorrington twins (Luke and Brent), Nick Vasicek, Clint Kimmons became established. In 2007 Coolangatta was home to the, at the time, men’s and woman’s world champions. Mick Fanning and Stephanie Gilmore. Mick, Dean and Joel have all won a Quiksilver pro at Snapper. / In 2011 there’s another breed of talent
/ And with that the Coolie kids were born. Mick Fanning, Joel Parkinson and Dean Morrison. Mick and his family moved up from Ballina. Joel Parkinson moved south to Coolie. Dean Morrison was living with Rabbit. Dave Rastovich was there. They all wanted to be together. They all went to the same school, had the same trainers and coaches. They all wanted to surf Kirra.
emerging. Guys rounding out their junior careers like Mitch Crews, Jack Freestone who are destined to impact the World Tour. Then grommets like Mitch Parkinson, Noa Deane, Leonard and Tiger Rawlings.
joel parkinson. photo: 18seconds
( SOMETHING IN THE WATER )
mitch crews snapper barrel. Photo: 18seconds
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/ Also the length of ride on the points is a factor. “You get so many more opportunities to iron out the bugs in your surfing and to perfect your timing,” reckons Mick Fanning. / Then there’s the hero factor you’re rubbing shoulders with. / “When I was a kid, Occy, Luke Egan, Rabbit, Jay Phillips and Brendan Margieson would be out there surfing with you and you could watch them and learn so much. Being surrounded by guys like Joel, Dingo and Damon Harvey meant I was constantly being pushed in the surf,” recalls Mick.
/ And it’s the same for the kids out there today.
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/ It’s the ideal breeding ground. Progression happens faster at breaks where the level of surfing is high. It’s human nature… Trying to better your fellow man. This is no more evident than at Duranbah beach. D’bah, as it’s affectionally known sucks any possible life out of the Pacific Ocean and the shapely waves are a regular venue for local talent to show off their latest rotations.
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/ Young Dudes
Profiling GROMS of the future
LUKE HYND / smooth ride. Photo: simon Muirhead
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photography Credited video Darcy Ward
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psychedelic. Photo: 18seconds
/ Young Dudes Profiling GROMS of the future Luke Hynd /
Natural talent is shoveled into every meal this kid eats– and good servings of modesty too. Luke’s humble when estimating his ability. He doesn’t talk things up. Perhaps living deep in the Tallebudgera Valley (QLD, Australia): an oasis of tropical forest, rainfalls and banana plantations enhances his honest and chilled demeanor. There’s another factor - his uncle Derek Hynd: the imaginative Australian surfer/ shaper/writer who tossed the fins and went back to basics. Luke doesn’t see him very often, but when he visits his Sydney home, he leaves a better surfer. “He influences me to surf how I want to, and not be like anyone else,” says Luke.
As you’d expect from a man who’s forever thinking outside the shoebox, Derek inspires him to attempt something different not to follow the norm. And being an x-tour surfer himself, Derek shares knowledge on avoiding common mistakes. Luke’s surfing has evolved without wanting to surf like the stars, but rather is stimulated by guys like Dion Agius and Craig Anderson. “I never try to surf like anyone really, but I draw inspiration from them (Dion and Craig) - like how they do their moves,” says Luke. And he thanks his easy-on-the-eye, smooth-flowing, tailhigh style to never receiving any formal surf coaching, “I’ve never been taught to do three to the beach, nor told how I should surf. I just surf the wave how I want to.”
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With his eyes firmly set on qualifying for worlds after this years (2011) selection camp, and continuing with under 16 competitions in 2012, we have a sneaking suspicion there may be some pro juniors soon. Time spent surfing his backyard, at world-class breaks like Burleigh Point, Snapper, South Straddie and Duranbah will only tell.
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ifteen-year-old Luke Hynd has been surfing for six years and already has won the Ocean and Earth Teenage Rampage, placed first in both Queensland State Title Rounds and Schools, won the All-stars at the Australian Titles, come first in the under 18 Joe Engle Memorial at Burleigh Point and placed fourth at the Australian Titles late 2010. What the?
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/ Young Dudes Profiling GROMS of the future
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LUKE HYND /
all style and confidence as luke draws off-the-bottom at his local point break, burleigh heads. Photo: 18seconds
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/ I think I have a smooth, natural style because I never did coaching when I was young, getting told to do three to the beach and how I should surf. I just surf the wave how I want to /
/ Young Dudes Profiling GROMS of the future Luke Hynd /
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/ I look up to Dion Agius and Craig Anderson as well as most of the crew in Lost Atlas and the world tour because they’re innovators in the sport and the best in the world /
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perfectly controlled slob air. Photo: 18seconds
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Luke and his older brother harry (right). Photo: 18seconds
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/ Young Dudes Profiling GROMS of the future LUKE HYND /
video
/ Young Dudes Profiling GROMS of LUKE HYND /
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/ I ride Darren Handley’s boards: usually the project 15 model - they’re smaller and stubbier which makes them more fun to ride than a narrow comp board /
of the future
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Photo: simon Muirhead
music inK reviews by jake 'Yaki' newell
CLOWNS Repeat After Me (clip)
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Clowns is a five-piece band of brats from Melbourne. Repeat After Me is the latest noise they’ve added some pictures to and released. It’s punk and hardcore at its purist: fast, intense and with a punch that’ll snap your head back. A squelch of feedback is the signal for the bass and guitar to send in the clowns, from here on the pedal is to the floor and Repeat After Me isn’t stopping for pedestrians. The vocal is a perfectly demented balance of gritty scream and clarity, making it listenable and moshable on first play. This thing makes me want to collate a montage of wipeouts and enter Innersection. Crank it.
SOUND & video
1929indian The Dreaming (EP) women in cages
six o’clock swill
‘The Dreaming’ is one of those EPs music critics love to come across: a band you know little or nothing about: and a sound which challenges you to draw comparisons between usually polarised adjectives and musical genres of then and now. Put simply, 1929indian is a five-strong band of musicians from Newcastle, Australia. To elaborate though, is to open one audibly delicious can of worms. ‘The Dreaming’ is the band’s first EP and a ridiculously mature and measured five-track display of synth-drenched, guitar-lead, drumthumpin’ indie groove. Opener ‘North Into The Sky’ is a grower. A pair of shadow-boxing guitars jerkily dance on a canvas of solid, spongy bass. Before you know it, the unique vocal has snuck in on the back of a stomping beat and you’re riding an intricately atmospheric new wave surge. ‘Women In Cages’ is instantly endearing with its futuristic ‘80s intro and galloping guitar groove (have a listen). The core of this catchy indie gem though, is the
combination of constantly throbbing bass and powerfully poignant drums. Next comes ‘0.1 Lux’ and an immediate “I know this sound” kind of feeling. This is far from being a bad thing when there are hints of Franz Ferdinand hanging out with the likes of Foals and Two Door Cinema Club. If 1929indian make it to the big stage (which I think is inevitable), ‘Six O’clock Swill’ will be a festival banger (have a listen). Beautifully blended electro hum and bass-line fuzz with a beat to shake a fist at. It’s their quickest in and out, but at full noise this one would rock. Title track ‘The Dreaming’ is a brilliant last track choice. Vocally dark from the start and with near-tribal drumming it rises and rises with chiming guitars to an elated electro finish. One you’ll wish never came. ‘The Dreaming’ EP has already been launched in Newy, but the band has its sights set on a handful of venues on the east coast for early 2012. Check 1929indian out on Facebook for more info and download a copy of ‘The Dreaming’ from iTunes today.
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music inK : Tapas plate of tunes
Yaki's ten essential road trippin' tracks for your summer
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Unknown Mortal Orchestra – Ffunny Ffriends
Portugal. The Man – Got It All (This Can’t Be Living Now)
They’re relatively unknown (see what I did there?), but I can’t fathom why. Such a knack for unshakable hooks that won’t turn pop, and acidsoaked retro fuzz refusing to sound like anything that came before it.
It’s sweet and awkward and catchy in a way not unlike the band’s name itself. Out of Portland, USA and not Portugal, this four piece has now released seven albums! This track should inspire some back-catalogue hunting.
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San Cisco – Awkward
Cage The Elephant – Around My Head
Infectious, cutesy, pop-tastic indie from this Western Australian foursome who are currently swimming in critical adoration.
A rad rock band out of Kentucky in the US and billed on this year’s BDO lineup - This one’s a bit of a nod to ‘Pixies’... but that sure ain’t a bad nod to throw.
09 Foster The People – Helena Beat Commercial radio is crucifying that ‘other’ track, but it was awesome prior to its homicidal saturation. This uplifting indie diamond dropped a while ago, but is purpose built for Summer spinning.
SOUND & video
r spinnin'
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King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard – Dead Beat
The Black Keys – Lonely Boy
We featured an earlier release by these strangely named Melbournians in an earlier issue of 18seconds (issue 6 – activate link http://viewer.zmags.com/ publication/d52fad6a#/d52fad6a/109)... but they keep the punk-preened psychedelic goods comin’.
Could everybody’s favourite band of last year make a late run at the 2012 title?
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Pez – Heavenly
Valley Floor – Forget The Feeling
Aussie hip-hip blew up a few years back and now everyone’s doing it. There is, though, some young and seriously talented blood coming through. On Sunday arvo when your eyes are sore, your arms are heavy and your skin’s starting to get that itchy post-sun tingle, this tastefully chilled tune will be just what the doctor ordered... along with a couple of coldies.
Seriously boogie-able, downtrodden, punk-rock from a freshly sprouted Gold Coast trio.
Why the masses largely ignored the previous five albums is stupefying, and though TBK are now taking clear aim at the FM airwaves, it’s not all bad... as this one proves.
10 Mutemath – Blood Pressure Big riffs and gallons of yesteryear blues swagger. This track is made for the pre-surf amp-up.
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A gang involved in crimes such as running guns down to the beach when it's ten- foot- plus and illegal carry- on luggage weights:
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the 18seconds' POSSE andy morris
founder & editor andy@18seconds.com.au
Alicia Smith
Art Director & interactive magazine design alicia@18seconds.com.au
Angela Liccardi graphic designer
jake 'yaki' newell music reviews
dwayne fetch
creepin' behind the scenes
asher wales worky kid
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