a skateboard culture quarterly
ISSN 1920-0412 WWW.COLORMAGAZINE.CA
a skateboard culture quarterly
ISSN 1920-0412 WWW.COLORMAGAZINE.CA
a skateboard culture quarterly
ISSN 1920-0412 WWW.COLORMAGAZINE.CA
LAKAI LIMITED FOOTWEAR THE SHOES WE SKATE BIEBEL / JOHNSON / MARIANO / CARROLL / HOWARD / ALVAREZ / GILLET / BRADY / JENSEN / FERNANDEZ TERSHY / ESPINOZA / HAWK / WALKER / PEREZ / SILVAS / photo by colen / ad #168 / lakai.com + crailtap.com supradistribution.com / lakaistickers@supradistribution.com
DCSHOES.COM/NYJAH
INTRODUCING THE
WITH
B/S NOSEBLUNT | BLABAC PHOTO
adidas.com/skateboarding © 2013 ADIDAS AG. ADIDAS, THE TREFOIL LOGO AND THE 3-STRIPES MARK ARE REGISTERED TRADEMARKS OF THE ADIDAS GROUP.
AdiCourt Gonz
vol.11, no.2
photo by jay delaney
Gonz wallride cover photo by Sem Rubio c.2009 / The Parisian Romantic cover art by Andy Dixon 30 x 30”, mixed media on framed panel c.2012
Intro
We’ve been called a lot of things over the years—hipsters, art fags, the American Apparel of Canadian skateboarding —but “too smart?”
Following the release of our previous issue, we immediately set out on an old-fashioned mission to phone Canadian skate shops that we had selected to receive copies of the newly designed Color 11.1 and just ask them what they thought. Overwhelmingly, shop owners from one province to the next told us how much they loved the magazine and that their customers were thrilled to leave with a copy. But at least one shop (names have been protected) actually told us they didn’t have any use for Color because we were too smart for their customers: “It’s not what the kids want.” Hold up… Now we’ve been called of a lot of things over the years—hipsters, art fags, the American Apparel of Canadian skateboarding— but “too smart?” This was an abominable new low. Can you believe that there are people out there controlling what information the younger generation is exposed to? I mean sure, we already expect this from our governments, but now skateboarders too? Have we lost our way? When I was growing up, the skateshop was a place where we came together and talked about everything from boobs to books to bands. Admittedly, it was often swirling with immaturity and ignorance, but as we shared our thoughts and taught each other new things, ultimately we created a well-rounded collective worldview. Mind you, this was pre-blogging and magazines
were an important part of how we received our information as we defined ourselves, but no matter how shifty the shop owner seemed sometimes, never did I suspect that he was censoring my reading material because he didn’t think I was cultured enough to appreciate it. Skateboarding is diversity on four wheels. Our differences define us and yet, at our 7-ply hardrock maple core, we are unified. We should be celebrating the fact that there is more than one Canadian skateboard magazine, each one a little more different than the next, and we should be encouraging the next generation to become a mixture of all of them. I can’t say for sure what the kids of today want, but if they’re anything like me, they’re hungry to learn more about the world. They are inspired by the differences of other people like The Gonz. They find solace in stories like that of Chad Dickson using skateboarding to escape tough times. Their creative minds are unlocked through the wonders of artwork by guys like Andy Dixon and they’re relieved to discover Hanni El Khatib and know that Lil Wayne isn’t the only available music option. I can’t say for sure what the kids want, but I can say that it’s not our job to decide for them and the best we can do is encourage them to explore every available option. Dan Post / managing editor
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crailtap.com chocolateskateboards.com supradistribution.com chocolatestickers@supradistribution.com
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phil mcknight
photo by jeff comber
frontside boardslide, Toronto
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volume 11
number 2
Contents 008 __ INTRO 012 __ CONTRIBUTORS 024 __ ANTHRAX 110 __ CREDITS
AR T 036 __ PAGE 36 038 __ SHOW 046 __ RESIDENCY 064 __ ANDY DIXON 103 __ INSPIRATION BOUND
F ASH I ON 028 __ PRODUCT TOSS 050 __ FEATURE
MU SI C 086 __ HANNI EL KHATIB 085 __ MERCHANDISE 089 __ ARBUTUS RECORDS 106 __ SOUND CHEQUE
FILM 090 __ CHERYL DUNN 104 __ TRAILER
LIFE 026 __ NEXT/BEST 042 __ RED FLAGGED 044 __ X PAT 040 __ FACES N’ SPACES 032 __ QUARTERS 108 __ LAST NITE 102 __ TATTERED TEN
SK ATE 016 __ FOTOFEATURE 058 __ 15 YEARS OF GONZ 074 __ MIKE CAMPBELL 092 __ PERSONALITY ORDER
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volume 11
summer 2013
number 2
Contributors and other hyperbole
DAN WATSON Dan Watson is considered the foremost expert on anything to do with skateboarding. He’s written several invaluable guides to the industry including How To Go Pro On Image Alone and Turning Social Media Followers Into Board Sales. His newest guide entitled Finding The Right Energy Drink Sponsor For You is greatly anticipated and will be out soon. In the meantime you can see more of his work in this issue testing Mike Campbells’ ability to answer questions on the fly (pg. 74) and online at youwillsoon.com or blackartsdist.com
ANDREA WILLIAMSON Andrea Williamson is a Calgary-based visual artist and writer. Her current practice involves print media, drawing and watercolour painting. She is driven by a desire to understand feelings of exclusion and inclusion in social settings, as well as language’s propensity to carry personal, subjective meanings. It’s probably how she managed to infer so much depth from an exhibit where everyone else just sees a bunch of bottles sitting on statues (pg. 38)
JORDAN COMMANDER Yes, that is his real name, and no, he doesn’t fuck around. As a new contributor to Color, Jordan brings 15+ years exeprience as the publisher of his very own magazine,Thick. He is credited with launching one of Vancouver’s first hip-hop crews 108 Records which released the world’s first beatbox compilation. We trusted Jordan when he said we had to do a piece on Hanni El Khatib (pg. 86) and he didn’t let us down. He’s also a borderline hoarder with a vast collection of cassettes, records, action figures, ball caps, books and anything Star Wars. Like I said: doesn’t fuck around.
MARK RICHARDSON We recently handed Mark the reigns to our music department and he’s been killing it ever since. He’s one of those guys who knows almost too much about music, having several years’ experience digging through crates, hosting his CitR radio show Pop Drones, playing in bands, curating music festivals, raging at music festivals, passing out at music festivals… A longtime contributor to Color, we are stoked to have Mark as our Music Editor and look forward to hearing great new music before you do.
DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed here are not neccessarily shared by fourcorner publishing inc. or Color Magazine, but by the author credited. Color Magazine reserves the right to make mistakes and will do so on a bi-monthly cycle without liability. No part of this magazine may be reproduced in any form [print or electronic] without permission from the publisher. The publisher of Color Magazine is not responsible for errors or omissions printed and retains the right to edit all copy. The opinions expressed in the content of this magazine do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher. Color Magazine reserves the right to accept or reject any advertising matter which may reflect negatively on the integrity of the magazine. COLOR WELCOMES SUBMISSIONS for photo and editorial content, but is not responsible for unsolicited material or liable for any lost and/or damaged material. Please provide a return envelope with postage with your submissions or email submissions@colormagazine.ca for more information. Color Magazine is published by fourcorner publishing inc., printed six times yearly and distributed direct to retailers throughout Canada and to newstands by Disticor Distribution. Subscriptions can may be ordered individually or in bulk by retailers for resale. Subscribe: 4 issues for $24.99 in Canada, $39.99 CND in the United States, $59.99 CND for all other countries. Contact us at 604 873 6699, subscribe@colormagazine.ca with any subscription inquiries or visit us online. Printed in Canada
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photo courtesyTourism Vancouver
Colin Nogue
wallie backside lipslide
photo by gordon nicholas
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Ace Sugimoto
boardslide
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photo by luke connor
Paul Liliani
switch varial heelflip
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photo by andrew norton
Bradley Sheppard
nollie halfcab
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photo by gordon nicholas
Cameo Wilson
kickflip fs boardslide fakie
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photo by brian caissie
Taylor Senft
backside 180 nosegrind
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photo by ali yaqubian
Luke Gonis
frontside flip
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photo by steve marentette
vol. 11, no. 2
Anthrax human resources
Education Oasis When I went to highschool, lets just say skateboarding and class were two thing that didn’t always go together. But at the Oasis Skateboard Factory, part of an alternative school system in Toronto, kids can earn credits learning how to manufacture skateboards, design artwork and even start their own brands through entrepreneurial courses. The kids also make a little money too by contracting out work to local indy companies. They get paid to go to school and make skateboards. [slow clap] Our full conversation with program director Craig Morisson is on the blog. www.colormagazine.ca
SWITCHEROO While Hana Pesut’s work often covers subjects within the spectrum of contemporary photography, her freshman publication and longtime personal project ‘Switcheroo’ focuses primarily on the relationships between gender, sexuality and the incerasingly interchangeable fashion statements of her peers. It is available for purchase online. sincerelyhana.com
Concrete Competition Have you ever woken up and found a bump on the side of your building and thought, ‘hmm, I don’t think that was there yesterday?” Well RedBull’s giving out bags of concrete and tools as part of this contest to meet and Skate with Ryan Decenzo, and encouraging people all across Canada to come into your hood overnight and build spots. So ya, you’re right, that weird bump on your building, wasn’t there yesterday. I guess you’ve got yourself a case of the spots—you might wanna get that checked out at your local skate shop. #redbulldiy
Maru - Not For Squares We take that back. Maru, “the circle brand” from Ottawa, ON, could definitely be for the nerdiest of nerds, and if that’s what it takes, then sign us up! It’s about time someone stepped up and made a brand for the dudes in the trenches. For the skate photog/videographer, thinker and bike tinkerer. www.maruthecirclebrand.com
Muttonhead
Tired of people yelling “nice shirt” at you from a passing car and being slightly unsure of their sincerity? Well Toronto’s unisex label Muttonhead offers guys and girls a collection of ‘Made in Canada’ apparel that consistently garners the genuine cries of “dope kit” wherever you go. muttonheadcollective.com
20 Years with the same Girl For many, the very thought of spending 20 years with the same person is enough to want to blow one’s own head off. In the case of Girl Skateboards, 20 years was enough to want to celebrate their anniversary by mailing wooden OG Dolls out to friends, shops and artists around the world to see how they came back. The results have been collected and a travelling exhibition will be moving across the globe beginning this August. Additionally, a select few of the drawn-in/ reworked ladies icons will be reproduced in the form of a skateboard graphic for Girl. Rick’s going to have a great time shooting this one.
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summer 2013
photo by dylan doubt
Color x Sitka Capsule Collection FW13
FAN MAIL We’ve seen a lot of things squeezed through our mail slot in the past, but recently, this rare gem was hand-delivered by the postman because it had no return address. In the note attached an unkown author asked us to consider publishing his “book,” comprised of poached skatepark disposables, glued and stapled atop layer upon layer of: notebook paper scrawled with illegible prose and random numbers, old pages of Color, fairly bitchin’ pencil crayon blueprints for potential pro model shoes and calendar pages from an insurance company with all the Wednesdays marked off. Later, on the phone the author told me he lives on Salt Spring Island, his name is Eddie and this book is called Blondie. The story is about a boy returning from Jamaica and then driving from Nova Scotia to B.C., hitting skateparks along the way. Without his explanation, I would have never known and this cryptic waterlogged manuscript would have sat on our coffee table forever, subject to the translation of curious guests. Thanks for sharing your art Eddie. Do you need it back?
ANOTHER ONE FOR THE WALL FROM THINK SKATEBOARDS
They fought here before — 78 years ago, on the pier just outside our windows in Vancouver’s DTES. It was over the right to work; the dockers vs. the scabs. Non-union workers had moved into the industry and were diluting the market with cheap labour. Longshoremen were being laid off and slowly the culture here changed to one of defiance, of protecting a dying industry. On June 18, 1935 the dockers stormed the pier. The Battle at Ballantyne Pier was, in reality, more of an ambush than a true battle. RCMP hid behind shipping containers and waited. The crowd was beaten down and fired upon with guns until they were all dispersed. The stevedores may have lost that day, but here was a turning point in the spirit of this neighbourhood. With unjustness finally moving to the forefront of community dialogue, a DIY spirit was truly born along with a solidarity between those who work with their hands. ColorMagazine.ca/features/post/293/
A pro’s first board and graphic is a special thing and this painting by Rob White for Josh Matthew’s debut deck features two of the best things in the world. Coming from the Pacific Northwest, we can only surmise that they mean a lot to Mr. Matthews as well, and see how there’s now another great item of export they can be truly proud of. Congrats Josh! thinkskateboards.com
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THE MOST IMPORTANT PRODUCT REVIEW YOU MAY EVER READ!
I know what you might be thinking: “Wheels. What more can they do?” They’re round, they’re still the classic Spitfire shape, but you’ll just have to feel them out for yourself to decide if you don’t believe me, because the dudes at DLXSF have answered the call for a better wheel They updated the Poly-Urethane compound used in them to create the Formula-Four: a faster, no-flatspot (at least I haven’t been able to), more responsive wheel. And while these ones in particular were unbleached, and maybe a little harder durometer than I would usually skate, I can tell you they’re fun as fuck and will tempt you to skate faster and have an amazing time trying to flatspot ‘em. spitfirewheels.com
life
summer 2013
photo by dylan doubt
Next Best
*facebook.com/colormagazine Fan Question
Rick McCrank
Peer into the mind of Canada’s favourite antisocial vegan who hinted that his “Best” video part may still be on the horizon.
Adventure
Skate spot
TED Talk
Tweet
Tranny skater
Non-skate activity
Place to #skateeverydayin2012
Gluten free treat
Delicious meal
Up and comer
Camera purchase
Playlist
iPhone app:
Next skate trip / Tucson
Dubstep mix / Destroyer — Kaputt
Skatepark
Website
Film role
Camp Vibes / New Zealand
Manhole / Le Dome in Paris
I just ate a banana / I’m eating a banana
Raven Tershy / All Hail Cardiel
laps on the rain board / every day in 2012
Rainy day activity Replace throttle cable / Surfing
Personal slam
Camping Spot*
D’Arcy, near Pemberton BC / coast to Portland, near Olympia WA
Hastings / Burnside
Bliss ball / Epicurean Nanaimo Bar
Stevie Perez / Arto
Thrasher / Crailtap
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Hans Rosling / Brandon Biebel
Mellow softball game / Crokinole
Salad / Brown rice with veg & tofu
no more / Leica M6
Ultimate Life Distraction / Phone
Anything with Bill Murray / Harvey Spannos
fashion
vol. 11, no. 2
Product Toss some like it hot
DC council shoe, CHOCOLATE brenes currency deck SITKA canadiana one piece, MATIX no damn good hat THUNDER shane o’neill trucks , CHOCOLATE 53mm spiral wheels MATIX garage floral woven top, QUIET LIFE sunglasses FOURSTAR highspeed socks
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summer 2013
fashion
vol. 11, no. 2
Product Toss his & hers
FOURSTAR signature top, GIRL kennedy owens world deck HABITAT expo shoes, THUNDER trucks, SPITFIRE wheels QUIET LIFE sunglasses, DIAMOND the snake wallet INSIGHT cookie crew shorts, QUIET LIFE five panel
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summer 2013
Bali Mask P2 Model Available Now www.habitatskateboards.com photos Chami
supradistribution.com habitatstickers@supradistribution.com
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photos by ryan allan
words by dan post
life
Quarters Jordan Hoffart, Vista CA
With no previous experience renovating houses, it’s been a challenge for the B.C. native, but Hoffart has been rolling up his sleeves, diving in headfirst, and in just over a year and a half (with a little help from his friends), he’s turned a foreclosed home in America into paradise.
“You’re gonna have to bomb that thing to get it outta there.”
Opposite Danny Dicola, boneless
What do your neighbours think of you building a full-on skatepark in your backyard? The neighbours are totally cool with it, but the way those lots are set up is that, we’re kind of on a hill, so it’s a little bit down from all the [other] houses. We only had one guy call the city on us when we were building it, and that’s ‘cause he’s right below us and the bowl butts right up to the bottom perimeter of my property, so he just wanted to make sure the bowl wasn’t going to fall into his house [laughs]… You’d pretty much have to rip the whole hillside off, because it’s all re-barred into the existing foundation. It’s solid as shit. That thing’s gonna be around for ever. It’s gonna be like Seylenn dude. You’re gonna have to bomb that thing to get it outta there. Tell me about the neighbourhood. The permit laws and the zoning laws in Vista are pretty mellow, so I kinda knew beforehand that I could get away with a lot more as opposed to living in like a new development that has home owners association fees or community fees.
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How much experience did you have in renovation before you started? I Bondo’d some cracks before [laughs]. As far as overhauling a house, I had that loft in Vancouver and my Dad and I renovated that, which was mostly just a demo. I knew a lot about demo’ing (which is pretty self-explanatory obviously), but if you take something apart, you can visualize how it all goes back together. To be honest though, I didn’t even have any tools. Josh [Hawkins] knew quite a bit about construction, framing and plumbing, so he helped me. What changes do you still want to make to the house? We’re pulling those trees out of the front and we’re putting up a white picket fence believe it or not, like the full-on American Dream [laughs]… Once the trees in the back get pulled, we’re doing a tabletop/pyramid. Then we’ve got the third bathroom. I tore it all out and built like a walk-in shower and it’s all framed up as well. I gotta finish the electrical in the next couple months.
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Read the extended interview with Jordan on our website and find out how you can add to his house.
Opposite Hoffart’s home interiors photos by brian fick Here Jordan Hoffart, kickflip photo by ryan allan
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art
words by jenn jackson
image courtesy clint roenisch gallery
Page 36 Jason de Haan
I was introduced to Jason de Haan at an isolated mountainside residency called The Soirée Retreat. Poetry, performance and pleinair painting passed the days, cookouts and conversations stole the nights. De Haan was the resident fire starter. It has been two years since de Haan ignited a casual clamour around the flickering flames and yet, the memory of his projects are as potent as the smoke on the denim jacket he wore around the fire for six weeks straight. Each evening unfolded like an unwritten play: a staged production of idiosyncrasy culminating in the form of collective memory. The sculptural manifestations that de Haan created during, and since, the residency appropriately align with this narrative stream: characters strung together in an imaginative play of personal and pedagogical pursuit, an archive of de Haan’s past, present and future. For his sculptures de Haan harvests a number of natural elements. Crystals, salt, wood, marble and precious metals are amongst his choice materials. A catalogue of self-reference, each new
materialization repeats and reflects on the last. The titles incite correlation. Future Age (2010), Future Future Age (2010) and 100 Ages (2011) were produced by placing golden rings within tree growth rings. New Jerusalem (2010) and New Jerusalem, Clouded Shroud (2012) are cyclical collages—cut-outs from covers of 1950s-1980s science fiction paperbacks, a combination of circumstantial placement arranged together to represent a spherical globe. Each individual work becomes a part of an extended saga, an evolved edition of its predecessor, a phrase within de Haan’s overarching oeuvre. De Haan presents the invisible, metaphysical and spiritual realm of cosmology. He represents the absurd and conceptual. Each work is a rabbit hole of fantastical fiction. In Untitled Cube
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(2008) an internally mirrored cube is proposed to contain the northern lights. Cannon Ball (2012) sees all the world’s coin currency melted and forged into a weighty orb and Salt Beard (2010-13) features the result of mineral formations slowly grown on the faces of found sculpture. The titles beg for translation and yield abstract reasoning. They advance along an anachronistic angle of time, an improbable landscape of ticking and tocking. De Haan’s works reach beyond the now into a vortex of imaginary mysticism. They indulge in a process of poetic hypothesis and they pontificate on procedure. They are experiments in transfixing, simultaneously looking forward and back. As the title of his 2009 collaborative sculpture suggests THE END IS NEAR HERE IS NEAR THE END, they place themselves somewhere in the vastness of the universe, and even if it is at the end, it is prepared for the next beginning. New Jerusalem (detail), 2012 mixed-media 48” x 36”
Sitka.ca
2003 - 2013
Brett Stobbart in the Railtown henley, Nocturnal Japanese denim and Shwarma toque. photographed by Dylan Doubt
art
Still from Julia Feyrer and Tamara Henderson's Bottles Under The Influence (2012), courtesy the artists
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vol. 11, no. 2
words by andrea williamson
art
Show Bottles Under the Influence Proponents of a relatively new philosophy called object-oriented ontology (OOO) argue that: an object’s meaning can not be exhausted by any or all of its particular relations to other objects, or to us. In this model, the object is not only defined by our relation to it—that we made it, that it has use for us, that we perceive it—but also as a thing wholly outside of the human mind.
Julia Feyrer and Tamara Henderson Walter Phillips Gallery Banff, Alberta May 4 - June 23, 2013
For more about OOO see Ian Bogost’s blog: http://bogo.st/32
Tamara Henderson and Julia Feyrer’s first major collaborative film Bottles Under the Influence (2012) and same-titled exhibition at The Walter Phillips Gallery in Banff, imagines this speculative reality of OOO as a world that doesn’t revolve around us, creating rather a universe of objects that are self-governing and self-perpetuating. Audiences lose sight of the representational strategies intrinsic to film, mass media, written language, body and facial cues. There are no voices, signs or texts. In short, no remains of denotative language. This disavowal of transparent meaning doesn’t necessarily indicate a cultural resistance, but a safeguarding of a space likened to dreams that have an unfading opacity and pre-linguistic knowing. While following the logic of the film we either: turn towards our own non-verbal systems of meaning determined by instincts, emotions and object relations, or we try to learn a foreign visual vocabulary. Eventually, as we navigate to the best of our ability, a space emerges somewhere in between. It is in this prismatic space that we are left to surmise the filmmakers’ intentions behind the staging, lighting, manipulating of objects, their afflictions and environments. With wondrous confusion, the objects are framed far outside of familiar use, challenging our perceptions in a way reminiscent of surrealist disjunction. In exceeding typical relations, we start to imagine the object independent of normative human use and perception—as a being in itself. In Bottles Under the Influence, Feyrer and Henderson hint at this life of objects that surpasses our involvement with them. In the film’s barely there surfacing of a narrative turn, the characters are glass bottles or, “vessels of communication” as the artists see them. At the Museum of Spirits in Stockholm, Feyrer and Henderson examined historic glass bottles, learning how they were made to contain specific recipes and represent various states of intoxication. In the film,
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the bottles withdraw from the concept of pure function or history to comprise what Henderson calls, “a bottle typography.” We enter a new language when the bottles are laid down under a blanket to rest, lowered onto the missing head of a statue or shot at in the snow. Here the paradox of OOO can be seen: our best attempt at imagining objects as their own centres of meaning nevertheless involves anthropomorphism. Even if we tried to imagine things outside of human cognition, we couldn’t. Appealing to craft theories sheds some light on how this “being” of objects defines us and not the other way around. Crafted objects drastically alter the perception of private and public divisions by containing, on their surfaces, the evidence of material processes or encounters which imply the interior space of the creative process. For this exhibition, the architectural effects of the artists’ handmade bottles are brought to the public space of the Walter Phillips Gallery. With titles like Old Hag Bottle (Valerian) and Pest Detective (Applewine), the bottles are portraits as much as objects. Visitors to the gallery are invited to contend with these caricatures of sentient beings, as their materiality starts to shape us within a context of intimate relations and personal associations. The pineapple yellow and violet glow of a neon sign within the gallery immediately triggers the presence of a night club, which here offers a hazy atmosphere: a round table, a book of drinking songs and a newspaper called Night Times containing “nocturnal journalism.” The host structure of the gallery encompasses a strange, interior landscape made of crafted objects and mottled surfaces. More than installation art, the fabricated space is a set for a film to be made during the exhibition. As we move through it, we’re refreshingly made aware that, for once we are not the subjects of this movie. These objects and their associations don’t exist for us. They don’t need us.
life
words by aidan johnston
photos by jeff comber
Faces ‘n spaces Floating freely in a sea of skateshops
need, otherwise that’s a bad reflection of me. Mike was good with his stock but he played it really safe. There’s a lot more brands now. I try and think of it from the outside, as a shopper, how I would want to come in and see things. What the next big move for Adrift? We’re gonna have the shop video coming out. Our due date for filming is the end of the summer when we’ll sit everyone down and watch everyone’s footy and get stoked on it. But you know how skaters are; we always push stuff back. I want to give everyone enough time to comfortably film a full part. We haven’t had an
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Adrift video since the Kensington days so it will be really cool to have another actual skate video out from the shop. How has business been effecting your skating? Last summer was good. I lived right next to DunBat so I was skating everyday, but this past winter I didn’t get to go to L.A. or travel. It’s the first time in three years where I didn’t get to skate consistently throughout the year... You’ll have to wait for the video to come out to see.
Left to right
What changes to the shop have you made? We try and have a little bit of everything for everyone — the core skate product that the real street skater would want to be skating. I try and keep it very niche with the merchandise I see most skaters skating. We won’t have every board company on the wall, but we’ll have the Girl/ Chocolate, the Baker/Deathwish and the Kayo stuff, the things I actually see people skating. It’s not for the guy who’s picking up a skateboard for the first time. We bring in more lifestyle stuff now, but we’ll always have the skate stuff. I’m a skater so I want to make sure I’m keeping the hard goods my team rider’s and all my buddies
Shop owners Max Zevallos, Jesse Williams and Jacob Williams with the skate team;
116 Spadina Ave, Toronto; Opposite: Jacob Williams, switch backside heelfip crook
Decks break, wheels get flat spots and shoes sometimes get made fun of. Whatever the reason, your skateshop is always there for you, but even they need a new setup once in a while. Changing hands for the second time since it opened its doors in 2005, Toronto’s iconic Adrift has now been passed down from original owner Mike Frost to three new caretakers: Jesse Williams, Max Zevallos and Jacob Williams—a team rider since day one who now tells me is ready to give the core shop a little flex.
sequence shot by brandon alton
“If you skate, you get the drift.”
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colormagazine.ca
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vol. 11, no. 2
words by gordon nicholas
life
X-Pat Terry Worona
Forever an East Coast staple, Terry Worona has been behind the lens of some of Color’s best photography over the past several years. Unfortunately we lost him to the sunny California weather for now, but this certainly won’t be the last you hear from him.
“Other than eating shit on a few hill bombs and breaking my thumb slappying a curb, it’s been totally worth it.”
Above backside lipslide collissonphoto Opposite page Jonatan Drab Kickflip bs tailslide
What made you decide to move south? I want to say Canadian winters, but I don’t even really mind them. Living in a city like San Francisco, where 90% of the days are sunny and beautiful, can get tiresome. I grew up outside Toronto and spent six years in Ottawa. I was kind of over Canadian cities. I write iPhone apps for a living and there is no better place than San Francisco for my industry. It’s like going to L.A. to become a professional skateboarder; tech dudes just come to S.F. to start businesses and make a home for themselves. Has it been a worthwhile choice? Skateboarding is amazing in that you always have a home and family no matter where you end up. You don’t really need to go through the turmoil of making a new life for yourself, it’s already there waiting for you. Other than eating shit on a few hill bombs and breaking my thumb slappying a curb, it’s been totally worth it. Besides photography, what are you doing with your time?
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I’m a mobile engineer at a company called Jawbone. They make all sorts of neat consumer electronics like portable speakers and sleep-tracking wristbands. If I end up shooting anything, it’s usually with my Xpan, which goes with me everywhere I go. I’ve just been skating & enjoying life; no agenda. How did you get into making apps? It was kind of by mistake. I was always good at math and science, so I got an undergraduate degree in Computer Science with a hunch the industry would take off. This was way before the iPhone and the web 2.0 movement. Basically way before any of this shit was cool and nerds were still nerds who didn’t get laid. Now we run tings! What are some of the hot technologies coming down the line? Mobile is running the world. The singularity is near. Do you think you’ll live anywhere else in your life? Who knows. Probably. Trying to get outta here before the ‘big one’ hits.
colormagazine.ca
summer 2013
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photo by brent goldsmith
vol. 11, no. 2
words by brent goldsmith
life
Red Flagged Kevin ‘Spanky’ Long
Spanky was once double red flagged by border security for having a previous arrest on file and for bringing a stack of boards (apparently you have to claim all wooden material). This time around, he avoids the “torture room,” but he can’t dodge our interrogation.
Citizenship? American. Purpose of the trip? Play a show with The Goat for the Deathwish premiere. How long are you in the country for? Two days. Travels before Canada? San Francisco two days ago, back to L.A. yesterday and here now. Where are you staying? St. Paul Hotel. Know anyone in Montreal? I have one friend here, but she doesn’t skate or nothing. How much cash are you carrying with you? Umm… let’s see… three U.S. dollars. Planning on leaving anything in the country? Maybe some empty boxes of cigarettes. What is one thing you hope to take home with you from Canada? Stories about Atiba getting chicks [laughs]. What is your knowledge of Canada? I know they have low crime, they’re super into hockey (I like hockey as well) and I know they’ve
got some good teams. It’s a pretty liberal country, lot of good spots and a lot of good skaters from here. I know that Leonard Cohen is from here and a lot of other good musicians and artists. Share a special piece of information that you’ve learned about Montreal so far? I learned that they transported that one spot, the big U thing [ed. The Big O] That’s pretty incredible to me. I’ve never heard of an actual street spot being moved. What did you pack with you? Socks, underwear, two pairs of pants, some
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shirts, jacket, iPod, guitar, skateboard, skate shoes, chilling shoes, some deodorant and a tooth brush. The basics. Any good luck charms or essentials? No, not really. I guess my passport. It always helps me out overseas. Expectations for tonight? From what I’ve heard, it’s going to be pretty hectic. I know you fucking Canadians can rage and there’s going to be a ramp, people getting tattoos, fuckin’ Deathwish video, bands playing. It’s going to be all around a good time.
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vol. 11, no. 2
photos by bent rené synnevåg
words by yvonne mullock
art
Residency Fogo Island Arts Fogo Island is comprised of 11 communities and is roughly 25km long and 14km wide. It is home to about 2,700 people and a herd of caribou. The Newfoundland and Labrador offshore island is also home to Fogo Island Arts, an international arts institution run by curator Nicolaus Schafhausen. The site boasts four beautiful artist studios built by Todd Saunders, nestled in four of the communities across the island.
the Tower Studio, Shoal Bay, Fogo Island
inside view of the Long Studio, situated in Joe Batt’s Arm, Fogo Island
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Iceberg For Fogo Island When There Are None Katie Bethune-Leamen, 2012 foam insulation board, expandable polyurethane foam, paint, person, Fogo Island
Fogo Island Arts is made possible by Shorefast Foundation — a charitable organization and truly philanthropic project funded by Zita Cobb, a Fogo Island native. This institution has already put Fogo Island on the map in the eco-tourism and artistic worlds and as these two worlds collide, Fogo will become a go-to destination for artists, writers, curators, cultural advocates and travellers who want to experience something different from the run-of-the-mill holiday or art residency. Icebergs, snow-crab and cod the size of a small child await you. There have been some interesting outcomes produced via the Fogo Island Arts programs with several artists returning to pursue ambitious projects that are locally rooted. Rory Middleton’s three-month residency last year resulted in a one-night, site-specific video and sound spectacle
on a frozen pond, only accessible by ski-doo or by foot. Hannah Rickards, who has visited the island twice, will return a third time to make a piece that reflects on her research and observations of the island. Also expect to see solo exhibitions from former and recent artists in residence: Kate Newby (New Zealand), Kevin Schmidt (Canada), Zin Taylor (Canada) and Silke Otto-Knapp (Austria) in the soon-to-be-open exhibition space within the Fogo Island Inn. Each exhibition will be historicized by a parallel publication, produced in partnership with Sternberg Press: a Berlin/New York based publishing house. In 2014 Fogo Island Arts will host a series of international conferences titled “The Fogo Island Dialogues” that will address issues related to the cultural, economic and ecological survival of rural communities.
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Top (left): the Fogo Island Inn the Bridge Studio Inside view of the Long Studio, situated in Joe Batt’s Arm, Fogo Island
Yvonne Mullock is an artist based in Calgary, AB currently working with Shorefast Foundation and Fogo Island Arts. She is directing a community based quilting project that engages over 50 quilters across the islands, to produce locally made quilts for the Fogo Island Inn.
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fashion
vol. 11, no. 2
Joyriders photographer KYNAN TAIT assisted by SILAS PRONK styled by MILA FRANOVIC models TARA B at Lexington and BROCK at 778 865 5570 hair and makeup by WIN LIU using MAC cosmetics
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LEVI’S shorts, ACNE cardigan from gravity pope tailored goods opposite: DC top, ALEXANDER WANG dress from gravity pope
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ACNE jacket from gravity pope tailored goods, FUCT t-shirt, vintage skirt from f as in frank opposite: ANTIHERO top DIAMOND hat SITKA shirt /ACNE jacket, vintage top, model’s own hat, STUSSY top
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DC hat and INSIGHT bikini, vintage dress from DUCHESS vintage SITKA top, CARHARTT pants, HUF socks CONVERSE shoes opposite: SITKA top, CARHARTT pants / vinage shirt. CALVIN KLEIN shorts
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ADIDAS jacket vintage shorts MATIX shirt SITKA jeans CONVERSE shoes
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skate
vol. 11, no. 2
summer 2013
“His creative and free mind, to do whatever he wants to do with a board, a brush or whatever he comes up with — in my opinion, that’s what makes him so genuine in all he does.” —SEM RUBIO
15 years of Gonz & his first adidas pro model 15 years is a long time. That’s the amount of time Mark Gonzales has spent as a member of the adidas Skateboarding family— inspiring, developing and nurturing the program. It is with great honour that we celebrate The Gonz, not only for these past 15 years of adventure, but also for having such an impact on what all of skateboarding is today.
Mark Gonzales is considered to be the father of modern street skating. Mark (commonly known amongst his peers and fans as ‘The Gonz’), has often been named the most influential skateboarder of all-time. His imaginative and spontaneous style is one of the founding forces of street skateboarding, consistently turning the inconceivable into reality. Not only is Gonz an incredibly talented skateboarder, his everyday life could be considered an art form in its own right. His works of art, poetry and videography express his unique imagination that colours his day-to-day life.
Because adidas Skateboarding is so proud to have such a talented and magnetic member on the team, a photography exhibition was held at the HVW8 gallery in Los Angeles this past spring, to kick off the 15-year celebrations. The exhibit revisited the personal selects of six prominent photographers that have documented Mark during his time with adidas and we were lucky to have the opportunity to share a selection of these great photos, hear things from Mark’s point of view and gain just a bit of new insight into the elusive character that is The Gonz.
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photo by brian gaberman
Mark Gonzales
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“As a child I wanted to be a grown up pro skater just like him.
Mark Gonzales photo by brian gaberman
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BRIAN GABERMAN
On a small farm property in Northern California lives one of the most highly esteemed photographers in skateboarding. Originally from the East Coast, Brian was compelled to move west to pursue a career as a professional skateboarder. However, his passion for skateboarding became even more evident from behind a camera. “Gaberman is really cool and likes skating a lot. When he is shooting photos, I feel like I want to skate with him instead of shoot photos - it’s a trippy situation. You know he skates, and you want to skate with him and see all the moves that you saw him do in skate magazines, but you know he’s taking photos so it’s kind of a Catch 22.” —MARK GONZALES
Gonz Pro adidas 2013
As an adult, I want to be a child just like him.” —BRIAN GABERMAN BENJAMIN DEBERDT
Benjamin is truly committed to the authentic documentation of skateboarding and the characters that colour its surroundings. Deberdt and Mark’s most recent collaboration involves one of Gonz’s ‘norm defying’ dreams, The Circle Board: nine skateboards Mark attached nose to tail in a circle, that he brought to Paris in 2010. What’s one of your funniest moments with Mark? BD - I remember once pushing together toward Street Machine skate shop in Paris, just getting from point A to point B. I did a simple no-comply, or something basic, to which he replied: “Oh, you want to do tricks!?” and he started pointing at various obstacles on our path and stating what trick he was going to do on them.
JOE BROOK Noted as one of the original skate photographers who documented street life, Joe photographed Mark extensively during his stint in San Francisco. Their shared eye and appreciation for the world around them has created incredible opportunities for amazing skate photos as well as candid portraits.
“Joe always makes you feel comfortable and you never feel under pressure to make moves.” —MARK GONZALES How did you choose the selection of photos that are being exhibited? JB - The photos I chose of Mark were things that were printed small in articles in magazines. I wanted people to see them in a larger scale and in the context of an exhibition so that they have more room to breathe and showcase Mark in frozen moments.
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“I still don't know what went on there. Skateboarding? Performance art? A little of both maybe.” —SKIN PHILLIPS
SKIN PHILLIPS
Hailing from the Swansea skateboard scene (Wales, U.K.), Skin’s talented eye took him to San Diego in the early 90s where he landed a job at Transworld and has been there ever since. The combined artistry of Skin and Mark has occurred on numerous occasions over the past few decades. However, the relationship has never been as close as it is today. Skin has recently joined the adidas family as the skate Team Manager where he will also continue his photography. What is your most memorable moment with Mark? SP - Probably the museum piece back in Germany in the winter of ’98. The way that ended up in a music video really sums up what that was about for me. Mark looks really young and kind of cheeky. I get all sentimental when I watch that video. Seems like so long ago.
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A special collection of footwear and apparel has been created around The Gonz’ 15 year celebration with adidas, inspired and created with his illustrations and creative mojo. Click HERE for an exclsuive interview with the designers behind this exclusive collection on ColorMagazine.ca
Germany, c.1998
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art
words by jenn jackson
Andy Dixon
STILL LIFE SELFIE Andy Dixon’s charisma prefaces everything he does. There is a silver lining quality to his disposition; something you can’t quite put your finger on but you can sense from a mile away. His appearance is meticulous—a menagerie of pattern, colour, texture and design. He is a connoisseur of mixing and matching, a commander of composition. This penchant for detail extends beyond his apparel and into his interdisciplinary studio practice of painting, performance, photography, installation, design, video and sound works. Andy borrows from art history without rhyme or reason. He dispatches seemingly random bits of context in his practice—a condition of contemporary culture and a populist dream. Anyone with access to social media, a library and urban sprawl can spout a list of disparate references or melancholically culled contexts from the near and peripheral cultural landscape. Andy is one such patron, openly foraying into art history, embracing arbitrary adjacencies and harmonizing appropriation. He harvests information from all sorts of places. Used bookstores, friends, historical and contemporary exhibitions and pop culture are all navigated with intuition as a prioritized investment. Andy has no worry for stepping on the toes of painting’s pedagogy. He is humble about his varied interests in the canon of art history and doesn’t mind being of the school of no school. With his most recent body of paintings The Great Conversation, Andy choreographs a colourful pallet, frantic lines and abstract mark making into a historical play of figurative forms. Each representation, a protagonist in their own right, is accompanied by a trite title: Portrait of a Lord #1 (2013), Portrait of a Lord #2 (2012), and Portrait of a Lord #3 (2012) to name a few. “The titles I’ve been using lately are intentionally dry,” says Dixon. “This is to keep the doors open and to not be heavy-handed.”
Acrylic paint and oil pastels are amongst Andy’s preferred mediums. They come together in a rough play of fictitious suggestion. The Matador (2012) exists in the same field as Venus #1 (2012), Venus #2 (2012) and Venus #3 (2012). It is a vague mish-mash of allegory and symbolism absent of specific referent or meaning. “I don’t want to back myself into a corner with over-explanation,” says Dixon adding, “My work intentionally avoids [that] trap. The last thing I want to do is shove anything down anyone’s throat… My agenda is simply to open some doors and get people thinking.” Andy’s formative education took place beyond the walls of university during a decade-long tour as guitarist in Canadian punk band, d.b.s. The band’s final album Forget Everything You Know [2001] is an ode to Andy’s preferred methodology of inspiration by happenstance. He solicits his influence from a diverse spectrum of sources. French artist Edgar Degas (1834-1917), Czech writer Milan Kundera (1929), French-Swiss film director Jean-Luc Godard (1930) and American rapper A$AP Rocky (1988) are among his tutors. Andy harbours a responsive sensitivity to his environment. His brain is a chaotic archive of attraction and repulsion; a collection of daily observations expanded and contracted into the material output of his practice. This applies not only only to sight but all of his senses, specifically sound.
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photo by gordon nicholas
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For example, his experimental sound works began in his early teens when he performed under the name Secret Mommy. His first series compiled samples of Top 40 pop music digitally manipulated into abrasive noise. These experimentations extended to include non-musical samples that challenged the definition of instrument, music and musician. He once made a thirty-minute electronic piece created from the sounds of his wisdom teeth surgery. In his recent compilation, Montreal in E flat Major, Andy produced a portrait of Quebec City composed entirely of personally collected soundscapes. But Andy’s familiarity with experimental sounds works and indy music extends beyond his own recordings. He’s been creating album art for British Columbia’s Said the Whale since their debut EP, Talking Abaloni [2007] and this year he was nominated for Best Album Design of the Year at the 2013 Junos for a collection of 15 family photographs that he painted for the band’s latest record Little Mountain. The same work took home Breakout Album Design of the Year at the Western Canadian Music awards. The photographs he used for Little Mountain
have diverse provenance. The images came from Andy and his wife’s childhood picture albums: a trip to Tokyo with a Holga camera and several digital point and shoot castaways. Each photograph holds an idiosyncratic connection to a corresponding song on the album. Again, Andy repositions the arbitrariness of found material within a set criteria in mimesis of re-appropriated nostalgic vernacular. Andy’s works are a filtered lens, a call and response of situational sampling. His upcoming projects include an exhibition at Wally Workman Gallery in Austin, Texas, a performance at MUTEK music festival in Montreal, Quebec, and a Chinatown night market video and sound installation in his hometown of Vancouver, B.C. When he’s not out collecting samples, Andy can be found organizing them in his studio at the Gene Building on Main Street. He loves studio visits and regularly hosts guests a few times a week, always appreciative of extended dialogues and social context. In his own words, “For me, showing people what I do is an opportunity to be understood. I like the idea of people getting to know me through my creative process. Perhaps I am the personification of the internet selfie.”
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Opposite: The Romantic 40” x 58” Acrylic, oil pastel, pencil, and crayon on canvas 2012 The Lake 72” x 60” Acrylic, oil pastel, pencil, and crayon on framed canvas 2012
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andy dixon
“The last thing I want to do is shove anything down anyone’s throat”
Opposite Venus #3 45” x 58” Acrylic, oil pastel, pencil, and crayon on framed canvas 2012 Bouquet in Green Vase 24” x 24” Acrylic, oil pastel, pencil, and crayon on framed panel 2012 Portrait of a Lord #2 24” x 30” Acrylic, oil pastel, pencil, and crayon on framed panel 2012 Portrait of a General 24” x 30” Acrylic, oil pastel, pencil, and crayon on framed panel 2012
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andy dixon
“He once made a thirty-minute electronic piece created from the sounds of his wisdom teeth surgery.”
Peacock 24” x 30” Acrylic, oil pastel, pencil, and crayon on framed panel 2012
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Opposite: Olympia, After Monet
Portrait of a Lord #1
35” x 58” Acrylic, oil pastel, pencil, and crayon on framed canvas 2012
24” x 30” Acrylic, oil pastel, pencil, and crayon on framed panel 2012
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andy dixon
Opposite: Portrait of a Schoolteacher 24” x 30” Acrylic, oil pastel, pencil, and crayon on framed panel 2012
Venus #1 63” x 58” Acrylic, oil pastel, pencil, and crayon on framed canvas 2012 Tiger 43” x 58” Acrylic, oil pastel, pencil, and crayon on canvas 2012
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words by dan watson
MIKE
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phots by jay delaney
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CAMPBELL
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shazam
Mike Campbell is a simple person. Not in a bad way, more like, if he’s got the chance to skate and good friends to skate with, he’s content. However, being content doesn’t always add up to the best interview. For example, when I asked Mike what he was most bummed about in skateboarding, instead of an elaborate answer about what’s wrong with the industry (yadda yadda yadda), Mike’s answer was “flatspots.” We decided we’d need to slip in a few Proust-like questions to get him to open up and maybe even have him get to know himself a little better along the way.
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ollie
Opposite
photo by keith henry
backside five-o, Barcelona
What is the best sound in skateboarding? There’s so many to choose from, but the best is the “Woo hoos” and high fives after rolling away from a trick. What is the worst sound in skateboarding? The screeching sound of landing primo on a rough concrete surface. Describe your hometown of Saskatoon in 10 words or less. Family and friends, the summertime memories, hanging by the river. Describe your new home of Vancouver in 10 words or less.
Homies, being around skateboarding, the local food spots. What is one place you would like to visit that you’ve never been? Definitely Brazil. It always looks so cool to skate and just live in, with how the weather can rain and then dry up about four times in one day. After I saw the 411VM Brazilian Issue it really got me thinking about skating there. They’re always pumping out so many skaters that rip and have marvelous stee. What is one place you would like to skate that doesn’t exist anymore? I got to skate the indoor skatepark at Lions
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hockey arena in Saskatoon the summer that I started skating, but I never got to hit up the previous one, Archibald, so I would go with that one. Who are three of your favourite skaters that you’ve met? I once got to meet and hang with Paul Rodriguez and he’s always been one of my favourites. Devine Calloway is a G, and my bro Justin Schwan (aka Chappy). Who are three favourite skaters that you have never met? Rodrigo TX, Gino Ichiban (sic) and Sean Sheffey. What do you look for in a skate buddy?
“TECH DECK JUST SEEMS POINTLESS TO BE SPONSORED BY.” switch frontside heelflip
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“ENTHUSIASM IS A GREAT THING TO HAVE.”
backside 180 photo by gordon nicholas
Well, mostly I like to skate with anyone who’s down to skate and get the good vibes going. Enthusiasm is a great thing to have and I always love chill sessions. Skating with your friends, you’re able to learn and teach tricks with homies. I love skating through downtown and finding spots, or just skating the older ones and getting a session sparked up and everyone gets into it. Keeping the vibes going is very important. What is the single worst article of clothing someone could wear while getting footage? The sweatbands on the wrist are stankin’ but were so fresh in the era when I started skating. I rocked one or two for a bit. My homey David Foley (aka Duey) would have mad flare, like all these lanyards hangin’ off of him and like four or five sweatbands on each arm. Big ups to Duey! What is the single worst article of clothing you have worn while getting footage? Two tall tees from Foot Locker at once: baby blue and black [laughs]. I was stoked at the time, but fuck that shit’s hilarious now.
Lucas Puig recently brought swishy pants back in his Bon Voyage part. Would you rock adidas swishies in footage? I used to rock them in my first year of skating, mostly every time I skated because they were light and stretchy, but they weren’t adidas, they were from The Gap. I think I would definitely be down to film at least one trick in ‘em. It’s one thing to look good in what you’re wearing, but if you feel good in them, then fuck it, rock ‘em man. If you could pick any song for a section you had finished, what would it be? Tupac – “Let Them Things Go”. If you could never skateboard again and had to pick between scootering and rollerblading, what would you pick? Scootering for sure man. I gotta get my tail whip on. I ain’t trying to soul grind. What do you like the most about being a sponsored skateboarder? The travelling and getting to meet new people
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constantly. I feel the more travelling I do, the more I grow as a person and become more curious about other destinations. What do you like the least about being a sponsored skateboarder? I don’t know. Everything has been pretty chill so far. I’m diggin’ it. Name a sponsor, skateboarding or otherwise, that you would love to have. Sweet Cherubim, this restaurant I always go to on Commercial Drive. They have the most amazing food and the people that work there are really respectful. Name a sponsor, skateboarding or otherwise, that you would never accept. Tech Deck just seems pointless to be sponsored by. Who do you look up to in skateboarding? Paul Rodriguez, Javier Sarmiento, Kevin Lowry and a bunch of my friends that I skate with, because we’re always feeding off each other.
50-50 photo by gordon nicholas
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Who do you look up to outside of the skateboard world? My father. And a lot of musicians come to mind like Hendrix. Ab-Soul is amazing. Who is the super hero you most wanted to be as a child? I didn’t ever really wanted to be a super hero as a kid. But as far as being influenced by a fantasy character of some sort, it was when I was a kid watching The Lion King. Me and my sister were running around the house acting all wild ‘cause we were so hypnotized from the movie. We were pretending to be lions and tigers, then my mom had to simmer us down. So I guess I wanted to be an animal. What’s the first song lyric that comes to mind when I say: “skateboarding”? “Stop frontin’ mothafucka, let them thangs go.” [Tupac] What is the sweetest thing you’ve ever hit with something you’ve thrown? Lunchtime in elementary school, hiding behind power boxes hucking snowballs at random vehicles. The snowball was more like an ice ball and I cracked this elderly guy’s windshield. He caught us by finding out what school we went to. Don’t think I’ll forget about that one. What is the meanest thing you’ve ever done to a complete stranger? My friends and I would sneak out of our homes late at night when everyone was sleeping when we were 13 or so. We’d just throw a lot of random things. We had a bag of toy cars and juice boxes and shit. We’d even tee up golf balls, aiming them at random apartment complexes. Sorry to those who caught something but we were extremely bored and ready for an adrenaline rush. Good thing I turned my attention fully to skating.
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Mike Campbell kickflip backside tailslide, Barcelona
vol. 11, no. 2
WE WERE PRETENDING TO BE LIONS AND TIGERS... MY MOM HAD TO SIMMER US DOWN. —
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Click HERE for video from this year’s event.
photo by gordon nicholas
words by mish way
music
Merchandise Changing Tunes
“Everyone would be there watching the noisy shit and then just leave the room when Merchandise played.”
In September 2012, I wrote an open letter on the VICE website to Merchandise frontman Carson Cox, apologizing for saying his band sucked. We’d played a show together in Brooklyn in 2010 but my hatred at the time had had little to do with their music and more the fact that I had been on tour for nine weeks and hated everything, including myself.
Since that day in New York, the Tampa Bay post-punk outfit—comprised of Cox on vocals/guitar, David Vassalotti on guitars, Patrick Donovan Brady on bass and Elsner Niño on drums—have released a series of EP’s recorded in Vassalotti’s bedroom and two LP’s: Children of Desire (2012) and Totale Nite (2013). Children of Desire proved to many (myself included) that Merchandise are creating intelligent rock music that bridges a gap between post-punk and charming pop without relying on cheap radio hooks. My band has been on the road playing with Merchandise recently and during our last show in Florida, Vassalotti and I snuck out of The Atlantic to share a pack of Camel Blues and talk in the stale Gainseville heat. Merchandise began as misfit friends who had finally found a niche. “I started going to shows at the skatepark in town during my senior year of high school,” Vassalotti says. “The guy who ran the skatepark hooked up my power violence band with Carson, so he could record us. We went in to record and we just hit it off right
away. Same story with Pat [Brady]. Pat would be working sound at those shows.” Cox, Brady and Vassalotti started Merchandise as a three-piece at a time in Tampa when no one wanted to hear music that lacked aggression and violence. Cox has spoken publicly about all the punks hating Merchandise, which is partly why I penned that open letter. “I was playing in Cult Ritual at the time so Merchandise would just piggy back onto the bill. Everyone would be there watching the noisy shit and then just leave the room when Merchandise played. It is kind of crazy that we are even still a band.” But something eventually clicked. When Vassalotti had relocated to Atlanta to be with his then girlfriend, Cox had scrapped all the Merchandise demos, Strange Songs, and added synth and drum machines. Once Vassalotti heard the reinvention of the band, he packed up and went back to Tampa Bay. “Even if nothing came of the band I just had to do it. The [demos] blew me away.”
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A quiet genius, Vassalotti plays with a nervous, sparkly energy filled out with catchy hooks and inventive pedal noise. He’s electrifying to watch on stage. “I’ve never taken a guitar lesson in my life,” he admits. Beyond his ability to play every instrument (highlighted by his solo record Book of Ghosts) he also wrote the insert book in Children of Desire, something called Desire In The Mouth of Dogs—a collection of essays manifesting his naturally poetic tongue and containing hidden lyrics from Carson Cox which provided the story a, “thematic cloak.” With a fully packed touring schedule stretching all over Europe and North America, Merchandise shows no sign of stopping anytime soon. I imagine that Vassalotti will be doing a lot of writing in the back of the van (or “The Silver Slipper” as they call it), penning beautiful lyrics that Cox will eventually sing, and little riffs that will transform into flowing pop songs. Our bands will play together again at some festivals during the summer, but until then, they always have the keys to my apartment if they get stranded in Vancouver.
music
words by jordan commander
photo by nick walker
Hanni El Khatib Innovating leisure
Hanni El Khatib has a signature aesthetic he applies to everything he creates—from music, to videos, to album art—which can best be described as a thick slice of West Coast Americana. With a deep history in skateboarding that dates back to his tenure as Art Director at HUF, Hanni is making music that tastes (and looks) a lot like the dusty back highways that connect San Fran and the City of Angels. If you haven’t yet had the chance to see the L.A.based singer/songwriter perform, catch up on the buzz by giving his latest album a listen: the Dan Auerbach-produced Head in the Dirt, released in April on HEK’s own label Innovative Leisure.
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TOP 5 SKATE BRANDS 1. Girl 2. Real 3. Spitfire 4. Antihero 5. HUF
What kind of parents and upbringing produces the music of Hanni El Khatib? My father is Palestinian and my mom is Filipino. They were like normal parents, I guess. They were supportive of the arts and skateboarding when I was young. I got accustomed to being able to listen to whatever music I wanted to and go skating whenever I felt like it. They were pretty lenient in that regard. Also, I think it helped that I was born and raised in San Francisco. It’s a very liberal and loose city, you know? The San Francisco/Bay Area is known for a lot of tastemakers and a lot of influential scenes. What was it like being a part of that? I think San Francisco is a place where you can really forge your own way. San Francisco lends itself to individuals pursuing their own path.
In terms of skateboarding, I was working for a company called HUF, which was owned by skater Keith Hufnagel. I hung out around all those guys skating. And [they] were part of the Deluxe family, who are one of the best skate companies out there. That crew are the founders of certain things. Your music and videos and covers and even ads seem to have a very cohesive vibe. How do you achieve that? I think that has a lot to do with my outlook on the creative process. I don’t like anything I work on to be disconnected. Since I grew up doing art (I grew up illustrating), as I got older I started doing graphic design, I kept a focus on visual aesthetic. I tend to view music in a very similar way. I see music as a very visual thing as well.
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Anytime I make a song, I’m always thinking about the visual component to it, especially when I’m making an album. I think about the greater vision versus just the songs themselves. To me it’s important to place the music in a visual context or else it is kind of missing the point. I try to get the music to a point that you can understand it through and through. I think there is an open dialogue amongst music and art that I’m trying to communicate. Let’s zoom into the latest video for “Family” with the (is it Japanese or Korean?) biker gang. Yeah, the Japanese motorcycle sex gang. Did you design the logo at the beginning? I didn’t. That was actually done by Nathan Cabrera, who is a guy I collaborated with for a
“Skateboarding was one of the first things that really exposed me to art. It exposed me to the idea that you can make a living by being creative.”
HEK’s TOP FIVE SINGER-SONGWRITERS 1. Tom Waits 2. Marc Bolen 3. Nick Cave 4. David Bowie 5. Neil Young
lot of the artwork for the new album. He was the guy that I had worked with about six years ago for another project when I was working for HUF. When it came down to start working on artwork for my new record I wanted to keep the spirit of collaboration and sharing ideas alive with the artwork as well, ‘cause that’s how I treated the music. I thought it might be cool to get outside perspectives if I art directed and gave specific guidelines and a concept, that actually might change things completely and take it to a new place. So I tried to work with multiple people for the second album. It all came to a head this past weekend when I curated an art show in celebration of the release of the record and celebrating all the artists that I worked with on this album. We all contributed to a larger group show and that came out pretty cool. It put the art into a 3D space that made it come alive. You’re about to play Coachella, you got any surprises? The only surprise is that I’m now going to be a four-piece. [Haden Tobin on guitar and keys, Adrian Rodriguez playing bass and Ron Marinelli is now the drummer]. In the past three years I’ve either been a two-piece or a threepiece. We’re going to be debuting a lot of new songs. No crazy stunts or anything. I think one of the best surprises was when Black Lips brought out their version of hologram Biggie. When you moved from San Francisco to L.A., did it affect your music? I don’t know if it made a direct change to the music, but there was a change in that I started playing shows often and starting play-
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ing quite frequently. I think the shear amount that I played influenced my music. I just started playing so much that I started trying different things live at shows and then started realizing that I like playing faster music or louder music or noisier shit or whatever. That move pushed me in the direction of consistently doing music, versus when I was living in San Francisco, it was something I did on the side. How did skating influence your music or even the visual aesthetic that goes with it? Skateboarding has been a part of my life since I was a little kid. I mean always, and I think it always will be. It feels funny because I still have a strong connection with a lot of the skaters and people and companies that I’ve become friends with over the years, even though for the past three years I’ve been focused mainly on music. Skateboarding is one of those support systems that doesn’t go anywhere. As far as how it has influenced or shaped what I do, skateboarding was one of the first things that really exposed me to art. It exposed me to the idea that you can make a living by being creative. It also exposed me to music at a young age, and all sorts of different music. As any skaters knows, if you watch a skate video you are not going to just hear one kind of music, you’re going to hear everything. When I grew up there weren’t that many skaters around. There weren’t that many at my school, there weren’t that many on the street, and when you did see them, it was an instant connection or bond you had with these people. You’re like, ‘You skate? Cool. This guy is a punk dude, and this guy likes rap, and this dude is a weirdo? Fine, let’s all skate together.’ That’s how I grew up.
photo by brent goldsmith
words by erik lejoin
music
Arbutus Records Spreading Roots
AR’s Sebastian Cowen and Marilis Cardinal
Arbutus Records (pronounced Ar-beat-iss) has become one the most dynamic, talked-about indy record labels in Canada and they’re doing it the Montreal way. By fostering a tightly knit community rooted in mutual support, they’ve grown from after-hours spaces to stages the world over. Now they’re trying to retain that DIY spirit while expanding their empire. Like many of his Arbutus cohorts, Sebastian Cowan is enjoying the fruits of his labour from afar. Though the label’s Montreal office is situated close to where three distinct neighbourhoods intersect—ritzy Outremont, artistic hub Mile End and working class Rosemont—Cowan is now mostly running the operation he founded from London, England, at famed XL Records. As the international stature of Arbutus grows, many of its essential contributors are leaving the nest. It’s a long way from humble beginnings as a group of artistically inclined friends who frequented the same DIY loft space, Lab Synthèse, down the street from Arbutus’ current home. Back then, Cowan ran the cultural speakeasy locally with a strict mandate. “I wanted to create a community,” the 26-year-old recalls. “Don’t get me wrong, it’s not as though there weren’t crazy parties, but it was primarily a central meeting place.” A ‘zine was hatched, after-hours concerts were held, plays were performed and people even lived there. The space fostered a network of mutual support, which remains Arbutus’ distinctive quality, even with everyone off in far-flung places. Under the shadow of unpaid fines for not
having a liquor license, Cowan closed shop in November 2009 to focus exclusively on the label. The artists Cowan worked with early on were the same who brought the label to prominence. “The first two albums we pressed 1000 digipaks for,” Cowan recalls, “were Blue Hawaii’s Blooming Summer [2010] and Grimes’ Halfaxa [2010].” Grimes (aka Claire Boucher) has emerged as the label’s breakout star. Her 2012 release Visions was lauded by Pitchfork as, “a triumphant meeting of human and computer,” while still adhering to Arbutus’ vague sonic aesthetic. “I sometimes describe it as pop music coming together with a punk ethos,” says Cowan. “The genres of the artists are different, but the essence of the music is so similar,” says Raphaelle Standell-Preston who, along with Cowan’s brother Alex, form Blue Hawaii. “No one is trying to do something because it’s socially acceptable. Everyone is doing it for the right reasons—to truly express what resonates within them.” Earlier this year, Arbutus released two hotly tipped albums in rapid succession: Doldrums’ Lesser Evil and Blue Hawaii’s Untogether. Both were launched on the same February night in
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their hometown at unlicensed venue, The Plant. Although inspired by different locales (Lesser Evil from defunct Montreal experimental dance loft space Torn Curtain and Untogether from Alex Cowan’s time in Berlin) the soiree flowed seamlessly. It had the unbridled energy of a longawaited reunion among friends, devoid of any external hype. Arbutus remains small, with only three fulltime employees (there’s only one person who lays out the album covers), so don’t expect Cowan to stray from his inner circle in search of the next big thing. “We’re not cruising the blogs. Even our secret projects, that only recently came to inception, are naturally homegrown.” Two upcoming releases he was able to talk about are from off-kilter singer-songwriter Sean Nicholas Savage, and electronic artist Paula, (a.k.a. David Carriere), who also performs with garage pop band TOPS. “There’s no way we could have done this anywhere but Montreal, and part of what makes Arbutus great is how insular it is,” says Cowan. “But looking at it from a distance gives you a perspective of what’s going on in the world. Being away has helped us move forward.”
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vol. 11, no. 2
words by aidan johnston
film
Cheryl Dunn On “Everybody Street” City streets are swelling worlds of spontaneity, endless noise and infinite movement, but there are some out there who find poetry amidst this chaos. They belong to a select breed of photographers who innately understand that the streets are always waiting to reveal themselves.
“You have to put in
the time, be stealth and move fast. You are a hunter.”
Beastie Boys
New York based filmmaker and photographer Cheryl Dunn has spent her career chronicling alternative street-style photography. Her work spans commercial projects with brands like Nike and WeSC, alongside collaborative films with Mark Gonzalez and lookbooks for Wendy Nichols. Now, with her first feature length documentary Everybody Street [2013], Dunn has focused her camera back on New York to profile those whose photos the city inspires including Joel Meyerowitz, Martha Cooper, Ricky Powell, Jamel Shabazz, Bruce Davidson, Jill Freedman, Jeff Mermelstein and Bruce Gilden amongst other legends. New York plays as much of a character in the film as your subjects. What was the allure to focus purely on this city and what distinguishes it from anywhere else as a constant source of inspiration for these photographers? N.Y. has a long tradition of street photography. The only other city really like that is London. Something about the nature of its development, its industrial revolution, its immigration patterns, architecture and light. Manhattan is a small island surrounded by water with steel and glass skyscrapers that create a light quality that is pretty amazing. People were drawn to this “volatile proximity,” as Max Kozloff calls it in the film. The amount of people walking on the streets, people and buildings on top of each other, people of all races and social levels, rich and poor all mashed together. This new-world city emerging into the sky, inspired photographers to go to the streets to try to capture all that it encompassed.
photo by Ricky Powell
Opposite (Clockwise fron top): Bruce Davidson and Cheryl Dunn in his darkroom Mike Fox Street Cop Jill Friedman Boogie Cheryl Dunn NYC 1950 Elliott Erwitt
What were the inherit challenges of making an engaging film about pictures? One big one was how to present the pictures. Initially when I did the short, due to resources and time, I filmed a lot of the work out of books; sometimes when I was interviewing and sometimes after. The quality was definitely compromised, so we culled lo res stills from anywhere we could and got the higher res ones when the picture was closer to being finished. But the biggest question was: should they move or stay still? In one discussion during the edit someone
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said, “Well when you go to a museum you don’t look at a picture on a wall bobbing and weaving your head, you stand still and look.” That analogy is better in real life, as I move around like an intentionally shaky cam, but made a lot of sense. So that’s what I did. My film camera is mostly handheld so the static of the stills worked. Do you find the rapid integration of digital cameras, cellphones and the ability for anyone to snap anywhere, has changed the landscape of street photography? Yes definitely. It’s much harder to shoot someone undetected. Everyone is aware of the camera, everyone has one in their pocket. There are trust issues to deal with — people are leery about what your motivation is and where that picture will end up. But if you look on every streetlight, or mounted on the corners of most buildings, there are cameras shooting everyone and everything, so you can use that as an argument if someone trips on you for taking their picture. As a photographer yourself, what do you find artistically separates staged work from street? I have done both types of shooting and I also started as a photo assistant for big studio guys over 20 years ago. There are hard things about that, but I think it is more about dealing with personalities that don’t really interest me. Staged shooting is usually about fantasy. I like reality. Street shooting is really hard to do well. There are so many variables. You could be the best photographer in the world but if the characters aren’t there, or the action or the light is a bummer, you can’t create a great street situation just ‘cause you want to. You have to wait for it. You have to be out there ready for anything. You have to put in the time, be stealth and move fast. You are a hunter. You have to anticipate how people will react, how they move, what the right thing is to say to someone when you piss them off. Not a lot of people want their picture taken on the street these days... Every situation is so different, so I get a kick out of making the right calls. I like to do things that are really hard. My merit badge goes to the street.
CHAD
Chad Dickson, frontside crook [ o ] furkay
words by dan post
Skateboarding would be nothing if not for the personalities it attracts. Age, colour, gender—it all fades away the second we roll out into the streets, but this doesn’t mean we become faceless and bland, as nothing allows for a more creative and unique personality than skateboard culture. Sure, other “sports” have their characters, but more often than not they are penalized, alienated or mocked for being too different. Not here. Everyone from outcasts to academics finding solace in this activity, and so here we celebrate the screw-ups, toast to the timid, big-up the boisterous and pay homage to just a few of the great personalities that comprise our massive worldwide family.
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(clockwise): Geoff Strelow [ o ] marentette; Jamie Tancowny [ o ] nicholas; Phil McKnight [ o ] comber
GEOFF
Multiple Personality Disorder PHIL
JAMIE 093
it
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A man who needs no introduction and represents a small yet fiery percentage of skateboarders, he’s the last one to crash and the first to rekindle the flame. A wrecking ball both on and off his skateboard. A true badass of skateboarding. Everyone’s got one: that livewire in the group who can’t be controlled and whose recklessness is reflected in his gnarly ability to skate the biggest stuff, take risk and handle punishment like a champ. You watch them roll up to a 20-set and your stomach turns. On the one hand, you want to see it happen, you might even cheer it on, but then shit gets to a certain point where you feel like you might just watch your friend die. Originally hailing from Redwater, AB, “Lil Fucky” grew up with nothing more than a basketball pad to learn on. “Being from [that] little piece of shit on the map, he was a bit timid at first,” recalls longtime friend Jess Atmore, “but I knew from the moment I met him that he was destined to be something really special. There was just something about the way he skated and acted that was different. I could also tell that he was gonna be a fuckin’ pain in the ass for the rest of my life.” According to those that know him, Jamie quickly became loud, obnoxious, annoying and very good at skating. He was just so exciting to watch on a skateboard that people couldn’t help but want to be around him. “He had so much drive” says Atmore, “that I thought if I could forget about him screaming in my ear all the way to spot from the back seat, maybe some of his excess determination would end up spilling over in my direction.” That determination is what has always given Tancowny a reputation for hucking and eventually earned himself a spot on Zero. Two video parts, two pro boards and several broken
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bones later, Tancowny is arguably credited as the one Canadian who’s done more to tarnish our quiet polite Canadian image than any skater before him. Despite a complete disregard for his personal well-being, Jamie continues to have his life extended by unseen forces that seem to protect all that is good and true about skateboarding, allowing for the Tancownys of the world to carry on. Our most recent run-in with Jamie was in Vegas where he got married in a boozy blur. Shortly after that he surprised everyone by quitting Zero to ride for Life Extention.
But don’t let all the craziness fool you, for as photographer Bart Jones says: “Jamie is humble and full of love for his mom and his friends.” Sure he likes to get loose and throw himself off of things, and ya it’s kind of nerve wracking to watch it happen, but it’s also kind of like a car accident that you can’t look away from and exactly why our culture needs him. “In this new age of skateboarding with all the training and general jock mentality,” explains Jones, “you need to be some kind of athlete to keep up in the game, but Jamie, he’s partying like a rock star and still raising the bar every time he goes skating.“
Jamie Tancowny throws down a long 50-50 kickflip out of a since defunct Vancouver spot. [ o ] nicholas
“Just saw him yesterday getting a drinking in public ticket. And he’s always happy.” —Riley Boland Remember when you were a little kid and life was just fun as hell? Consequences barely registered and you never seemed to get hurt, so you’d just do anything the older kids would tell you to do? This is quite possibly how Geoff Strelow earned the nickname ‘Lil Bro and what still drives him to be a powerhouse in skateboarding and represent one of the most fun personalities to have in your crew.
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You say “hi”, Geoff Strelow says “how high”, and then he frontside five-o’s it. [ o ] marentette
“I remember him being the little shit, always wanting to impress,” says Calgary contemporary Devin Morrison. “It was like watching a baby jump onto massive rails and soar down huge gaps.” Through part jealousy, part admiration, the older skaters push the Lil Bros of the word to their limits, which
Strelow always exceeded. But if it wasn’t for the coaxing, he wouldn’t be the skater he is today. Quite possibly one of the most ‘downfor-anything’ dudes, Strelow continues to embody the Lil Bro persona: the guy you want in the van. Today he is no different
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aside from the fact that he has physically outgrown his nickname. “The fact that we call him Lil Bro is hilarious because he’s far from a small guy,” says long-time friend Dana Rolles. “Kid’s got some muscle, that’s where his deadly pop comes from.”
Chad Dickson might just be the most polarizing figure in Canadian skateboarding. Whether it’s the tall tees or ghetto steez, Chad has always found himself under the harsh microscope of peer criticism. But sometimes we need to look past the image and dig a little deeper, which is exactly what we had Chad do over a couple of beers. What we found out (and what many have always known), is that despite all the adversity that has fuelled this hardened image, Chad is humble and honest and one of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet. At school he was spit on for wearing Goodwill clothes and looking too “native.” At home, his family life was troubled with alcoholism, drug addiction and poverty. The dirty ghetto kid just became his identity. “There was a certain point of my life where I just didn’t give a shit, and I’d fight anybody… I just wanted to get my rage
out for everybody that fucked me over when I was younger.” Luckily for Chad, he discovered that skateboarding was the perfect outlet for his anger. Not only did it give him a release, he got really good, really quickly and his self-confidence finally soared. Through a combination of being in the struggle and the fact that guys like Muska, Stevie Williams and Wade Desarmo were there to look up to, Chad naturally gravitated towards that certain image. “There was a huge chunk of skating during those years where kids were all just wannabe gangsters and they loved it,” he admits. Soon Chad began to make a name for himself with his image and also with his natural talent, massive pop and unreal switch game. But as the spotlight began falling more and more on him, he felt pressured to fit the mold he’d created. “I was just like ‘fuck, sometimes when I land my
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trick I’m not relaxed, people aren’t gonna like watching that shit,’” he recalls. “I was all about fake style,” admits Chad. “When I was in the air, all I’d think about was: when I land it I’m just gonna fake my style to shit.” It was a standard he had created for himself, but had also gotten him to where he is today. Chad looks back on his career now with the kind of clarity we all wish we could have. Despite the internet backlash and the fact that he no longer identifies with his own image, Chad admits he owes much of his success to those tall tees and knows he might not be where he’s at today if not for the ghetto gowns and the adversity that propelled him to wear them. “I learned the hard way, and I’m fucking so stoked I did. I managed to give my self at least some name in Canada, and if I died tomorrow, at least I made my parents proud ‘cause I’m doing what I love.”
When we started asking around about Phil McKnight, one expression just kept coming up: Weekend Warrior. A carpenter by trade, McKnight works long hours during the week, but come 5 o’clock whistle, he wastes no time swapping one tool for another—dropping the hammer at the shop to go drop hammers on the streets.
Same idea, very different results. Phil McKnight, nose manual revert [ o ] comber Opposite Chad Dickson, nose manual nollie lazerflip [ o ] odam
“Rage, rage against the dying of the light” —Dylan Thomas
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Phil McKnight, smith grind [ o ] comber chris wardle portrait
“When I don’t have to work, I get really excited to hit the streets”
Jobs are a necessary evil, and not everybody is lucky enough to be a professional skateboarder, but sometimes too much free time can sap one’s creativity and it’s amazing what having only limited amounts can inspire. “When I don’t have to work, I get really excited to hit the streets and try to find something new,” said McKnight. If he’s anything like the rest of us, Phil spends his days dreaming about where he wants to skate and what he wants to do at the spot when he gets there, but unlike many of us, he has a unique ability to discover and invent. “He’ll skate something nobody thought to,” we heard from fellow Toronto skater Thomas Berry, “then it’s like, ‘that’s a spot now.’” We asked Phil what inspires his unique eye for creativity: “I like spots that make you feel like a skate pioneer. It’s an adventure when you’re the first person to skate something. Spots that are unique also bring that sense of pioneering. Pontus Alv, Gou Miyagi and Tort are some of my inspirations in the spot selection game.” Chris “Tort” Wardle is a friend of Phil’s and a guy who’s spent a lot of hours cruising the streets of Toronto filming with him. Tort told us he’s been privy to some special moments. “I dig that Phil isn’t afraid to pull out his cruiser board when the ground at a spot is really crusty,” he admits, “and then somehow land something I wasn’t sure was possible.” Phil recently became a father and diaper duty is now likely to cut his skating down even more, but don’t expect him to quit dreaming about spots anytime soon, it just means you might need to be out skating at 4am if you want to catch a glimpse of the Weekend Warrior.
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vol. 11
no. 2
reviews
Inspiration Bound and recorded
THE EVIL DEAD (2013) Fede Alvarez (Sony Pictures) Edgar Allen Poe once said: “The death of a beautiful woman is, unquestionably, the most poetical topic in the world.” One of the key attractors to seeing The Evil Dead remake for me as a genre film fan, was finally witnessing the Fangoria #322 cover which portrays the partially rotten face of a woman with a blade cutting the tongue and the mouth. The cover, a striking image from the recent film, reminded me of the decayed woman’s face from the film Ghost Story [1981] that is displayed on the classic cover of Fangoria #16. Again, the partially rotten and cut
away face and mouth acted as the virtually fetishized portrayal of a beautiful female victim’s face, made most popular from the razor and knife-obsessed Italian Giallo films of the 70s and the U.S. slasher films of the late 70s and early 80s. I came away from The Evil Dead [2013] fascinated even more with this genre-specific stylization as the updated film relentlessly pursues the death of the female form via facial blade lacerations; portrayed as an altar for its audience. —Sam McKinlay
THE DEATHWISH VIDEO
BON VOYAGE
DAMN!
Erik Ellington and Jim Greco
Boris Proust
Mike Manzoori and Bill Weiss
(Deathwish / Baker Boys)
(Cliché Skateboards)
(Blind Skateboards)
The Deathwish Video is all killer with little hijinx filler, plus it has a raw soundtrack. Expect to see Lizard’s hair-ball drops and deep bag of tricks, Furby’s switch stair attack, Ellington’s gnarly elegance, Neen’s notorious heelflips, Moose’s blizzard of tech, Brian Hansen’s bearded blitzkrieg and Greco’s tribute to his heros with his best part to date, all leading up to Jon Dickson and his stellar display of tech-gnar, pop and balls. The extras include a couple of flow bro parts, tour footage, trailers, leftovers and a scenic ride in the Death Caddy. The deluxe edition is a history book on the Deathwish brand, featuring ads, a timeline and insight into one of skating’s best. —IM-R
Offering a break from the latest barrage of Michael Bay-like video releases, Europe’s smoothly edited answer to Pretty Sweet boasts many memorable parts from their 15 riders: Espinoza—solid opening; crazy last trick. Max Geronzi—more combos than a Wendy’s. Paul Hart—hammers... dope ones. Brezinsky—started his own Daewon Song cover band. Villemin—only reason this smooth operator isn’t famous is no one can say his name, like Sade. Puig—makes skating in shorts look like a good idea? K Bradley—skating that’s rough like lyrics to his A.$.A.P song. Flo—dat backside flip doe. Although this video isn’t hella flashy and has a soundtrack like the movie Drive, it will get you hyped to skate and seems to get better the more times you watch it. Those Europeans are sophisticated that way. —SS
20 years ago I gathered with some of my friends to watch Blind’s frist video, Video Days [1991] which was, in my opinion, the beginning of modern skateboarding. Those 24 minutes were forever etched onto my mind, which is odd, because we also smoked a great deal of cannabis before watching it. Fitting then, that like my last video review for Color 11.3 (morphine) and my viewing of Video Days (cannabis), I am writing this review of DAMN! (Cipralex) under the influence of drugs. That last one is to keep what I call ‘the glumsies’ at bay. I could tell you what I thought of DAMN!, but it might be better to tell you what my ersatz sister thought. She was amazed. She even mentioned how good T.J. Rogers’ style was. And she doesn’t skateboard. You should probably watch it. —SM
VACATION FROM REALITY: THE ART OF ANTHONY AUSGANG Justin Giarla (9mm books, 2007)
Dogs are simple: they like chasing balls, eating, and on occasion, playing poker. But cats, well, if one is going to use art to anthropomorphize any animal and depict them in human sex acts, murder, drug hallucinations or shitting on Jesus’ plate during The Last Supper, then one must use cats; for their complex little minds and questionable moral character lends much more to the believability of Anthony Ausgang’s twisted work (shown here spanning several neon decades) than a bunch of drooly dummies who couldn’t even catch their own tails let alone a pair of aces. —Dan Post
SICK PEOPLE - VOL. 2
A ROOM WITH NO WINDOWS
LOWDOWN MAGAZINE
Adam Rossiter and Reggie McCafferty
Scott Hobbs Bourne
Thomas Marecki
(self-published, 2013)
(19/80 Editions, 2013)
I was at the Fairfax Flea in L.A. one time, digging through a box of random photographs that someone was selling at 10 for buck when I came across a strange double exposed Polaroid from someone’s private nude photo sesh. I looked around to see if anyone was watching me before I quietly paid the man a buck just for the single photograph and then slipped it into my back pocket. You’d probably hide this ‘zine like I did and keep it your dirty little secret too, because it has nude pictures (not the “sexy” kind), really private and dark writing and satanic drawings all stapled together. You wouldn’t want your friends to think you were ‘sick’ would you?—DP
The first page you see when you open Scott Bourne’s first novel is one paragraph titled “Virtual Disclaimer.” It clearly states that this book will only be available in a physical format of printed words on actual paper and will never be boiled down into ones and zeros. Bourne is a man of strong convictions and this book is a perfect example of his drive and his determination. —AP
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The trouble with making a book is that you rarely find time to read another one. I’ve never been to Germany but know that I have friends there in Berlin when I finally make it. We’ve stayed in touch through post for over ten years now, sharing our greatest inspiration, thoughts and perspective in our respective cultures. Europe has always lead the way in fashion and culture and now, in the arena of publishing its destined again. The new Lodown App keeps it fresh and simple, offering all the best parts of the print edition—minus the rule-breaking and quirky design that is always the talk of the office. Download it for iPad today, they’re leading once more! —SG
music
vol. 11
no. 2
Sound Cheque sonic heat waves
DICK DIVER
QUASIMOTO
LAPALUX
Calendar Days
Yessir Whatever
Nostalchic
(Chapter Music)
(Stones Throw)
(Brainfeeder)
It’ll take no more than 10 seconds to realize that Dick Diver is from Australia. The accents are thick and references to Bondi Beach abound. This is not an insult—Australia has had some of the greatest pop acts that never broke into North America and one can hope a record this good will not suffer the same fate. Calendar Days is indebted equally to classic Aussie bands like The Go-Between, and newer Chapter Music acts. With strong melodies and sincere lyrics, it’s only a matter of time before they make waves elsewhere. —Evan McDowell
News of a new Quasimoto LP from hip-hop producer Madlib was cause enough for the crate diggers to pull their heads out of the stacks for a minute, though this isn’t exactly a “new” full-length. Yessir Whatever is actually a comp of unreleased tracks recorded over the last 12 years that feature the familiar collage of clips from novelty records, soundtracks, a plethora of samples lifted from some of the most obscure jazz/soul/funk records in Madlib’s extensive collection, and of course, Lord Quas’ helium-pitched rapping. —Mark Richardson
After a string of EPs for L.A.’s abstract beats’n’bass-driven Brainfeeder label, the UK’s Lapalux issues his debut LP, Nostalchic. Advancing on the earlier releases, Lapalux strips down modern R&B tracks to their bassy core and rebuilds them back with technically advanced production that mirrors the oblique music of Flying Lotus: his label-boss and contemporary. But rather than meddle too far into abstract hip-hop, Nostalchic still remains ingrained in the pop side of things, making for an obtuse, but addictively listenable LP. —Mark Richardson
DEAN BLUNT The Redeemer (Hippos In Tanks)
Just when you thought you had Dean Blunt pegged down, he goes and releases this wtf of an album. The Redeemer is far removed from the green cloud mixture of trip-hop and avant-beat work we’ve come to expect from Blunt. Instead, the LP acts like his foray into R&B, albeit a very twisted take on the genre. Lush strings, throbbing cello and lapping waves evoke the heartache that’s referenced throughout the LP, while touchstones like David Lynch, Serge Gainsbourg and R. Kelly lend the record its haunted mystique. -MR
DEERHUNTER
HOODED FANG
THE MANTLES
Monomania
Gravez
Long Enough To Leave
(4AD)
(Daps)
(Siltbreeze)
In a recent interview, lead singer Bradford Cox described his aspirations to be a great “American” rock and roll band like fellow Georgians R.E.M. While sharing little in common musically, it’s easy to draw parallels between the growth of the two groups. Monomania finds Deerhunter retaining the blueprint used on their previous albums, but with greater confidence and aggression. Vocals and instruments are louder, grittier, and each track sounds like a first take. This is Deerhunter at their angriest and, yup, their best. —Evan McDowell
Toronto’s Hooded Fang come out a kickin’ and a swingin’ on their much-anticipated third LP, Gravez, released on their own Daps Records. Burly and loose bass lines lead smack into squealing twin guitars that fire up the senses and create a sense of alarm throughout the tense LP. Lead songwriter and vocalist Daniel Lee and his anthemic and heavily-reverbed vocal melodies ground the record and lend it the infectious pop hooks that got the band on the long-list of the sought after Polaris Music Prize. Maybe this year, guys? —Mark Richardson
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Four years is a long time for a band to wait to release a follow-up to a debut album, much less one as heralded as their 2009 self-titled effort. Well worth the wait here, as the bay area four-piece take us through the dour jangle-pop of New Zealand’s past and steadily into the paisley territory that the Brian Jonestown Massacre once traversed. Long Enough To Leave is a dense record that obviously had some time put into it. Some of those other bands recently releasing records at breakneck speed could take a hint here. —Mark Richardson
life
summer 2013
photos by gordon nicholas
Last nite it rained, they poured
Click above text for video from this year’s event. 106
Left to right, Top to Bottom
John Hanlon take first place, YT Dist’s Yan Trebmlay and JF Taillon know how to get it done, Greame Betts brought out his best camera, “are you getting all this?”...
A DIY duo from Quebec arrive in Vancouver with nothing more than trowels, skateboards and a high-wallie record to try and break. Thanks to Vans, Polar Skateboards’ Wallie World Cup was held in Vancouver this spring along with an art exhibition that followed at Antisocial skate shop.
023.146 / OFWGKTA
VANSSYNDICATEZINE.COM
life
words by cameron mcarthur
photos courtesy the twins
Tattered ten the ATL Twins
1. When you’re at home in Atlanta, how often do you drink or take drugs? A lot. Probably four times a week we party at our condo. We don’t go out really. Our condo’s like a club: Club ATL Twins. We just get our homies over (and) call our bitches. Girls out there are kinda stupid. We already ran through most of them anyway. And the other kind of girls? They don’t know shit about culture. They’re not openminded. They just think we’re crazy. We can’t fuck with bitches like that. 2. I was at the party you hosted last night in Vancouver and girls were swarming you. Do you get that sort of attention from women in every city you visit? It was insane, I know. Girls were grabbing our dicks and shit. Grabbing our ass, saying, “Let’s go fuck right now.” Bad bitches too! Beautiful girls. Like, “God DAMN!” It was fun. We were just pop-
Nardwuar the Human Serviette posing with the ATL Twins outside REUPTRIPPYSHIT, Vancouver BC
Sidney and Thurman Sewell are identical twins who sleep together in the same bed in a high-rise condo in Atlanta. An online interview by Vice in 2011 catapulted them into the mainstream—most recently witnessed in Harmony Korine’s Spring Breakers [2013]. They’ve had the opportunity to meet (and befriend) some of their greatest idols in skateboarding, music and art. They’re licensed paralegals once engaged to a Penthouse Pet and they excel at partying—drinking, doing drugs and having sex with beautiful women… together. I got to meet the twins and watch them get tattooed next door to Color headquarters.
pin’ bottles and (there was) fuckin’ bitches just everywhere. It doesn’t get any better than that for us. Pandemonium. That’s, like, our dream, ya know? To do that every night. It happens, but not to that extent. Not to that extreme. That was extreme and it remained extreme for the remainder of the night. We ended up staying up ‘til like 9:00 in the morning, wylin’. 3. Now that you’ve established a reputation for yourselves, do girls just approach you wanting to get fucked by the ATL Twins? We have all kinds of psychotic girls hit us up on Twitter and Instagram. Young girls too. They say the nuttiest shit. You’re 13 years old! Like, don’t. Trust me, we’ve hooked up with plenty of girls off Twitter and Instagram. [Thurman singing] “Started from a follow now we here” There’s a lot of girls out here- I gotta come back here soon. Shout out to all the girls here. They have sick style, fat
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fucking asses. Girls in Atlanta don’t have sick style. Not to say all girls in Atlanta; there’s some cool shit in Atlanta, don’t get us wrong. We’re not trying to say anything bad about Atlanta, but we really just don’t go out there. 4. What about the strip clubs in Atlanta? They’re played out. I’m just not giving any goddamn fucking strippers money. They come over to our crib. It’s kind of a strip club. Like Jeezy said, “We bring Onyx to the condo.” Onyx is a strip club in Atlanta. We used to go pull bitches out of strip clubs and bring them back to our crib. Now we just have so many little thirsty ass girls out there, so it’s easy. Because girls are just thirsty little fame whores. You know what I mean? You get some sort of notoriety, it just makes it that much easier. It’s kind of sad but true. But I’ll take it…
5. Would you treat a girl who you were falling for the same way you’d treat any other girl? We’re sweet to girls! I buy girls little gifts and stuff. Ya know what I mean? Just ‘cause we’re cool like that. I’ll buy a chick a watch or some shit, if she’s tight. We give a lot of product and shit ‘cause girls always take our clothes. But usually, we just have a lot of onenight stands. We don’t really hook up with the same chick over-and-over. There’s not any relationships. There’s certain ones who are hella fine that we will keep in touch with—say like in New York or in L.A. You go back to L.A., hit ‘em back up and pop-it again type shit. But, like, it is what it is. It’s just like a drug. Sex is like a drug, like anything else. Ya know? And we’re addicted.
shit is out of hand.” Thinking how many I popped that day so far. I started thinking about the money, how much that was and was just like “fuck this” and called up a Suboxone doctor. Suboxone is the shit you take for heroin and opiate abuse.
7. Do you show the sex tapes you record to your friends? Ya, we do. Not too many people. I don’t go too deep with it. It’s kinda weird. We’ll just show them little bits and pieces. We’ll show them clips and stuff, but we like to shoot photos more… I swear to God, we get so wasted with girls I black out. I don’t remember. I just know we fucked them. But we always shoot photos. I have like 30,000 photos.
9. When you were growing up, what’s the most trouble you ever got yourselves into? This guy over here that we’re with (Chris), we got into this crazy police chase when we were 12 and he was 17. (Chris: “Are you telling those damn police chase stories again? Motherfucker!”) It was gnarly man. We stole our dad’s car. He (Chris) claimed he knew how to drive. He didn’t have a license, but we stole the keys to go skate downtown. Where we’re from in Chatanooga, TN it’s a dead nothing town, so nobody’s out. Downtown’s so shitty and small. This fool’s driving. He starts to take a left and then realizes, “Nah, I’ll go back this way” and jerks (the car) back like a dumbass. Cops behind us put their lights on and he says, “Fuck this, I’m not going to jail” and takes off. One cop turns into two cops. Two to four. Six to eight. Eight to fifty! We’re on a goddamn 45-minute fucking police chase- which is gnarly for police chases. It was scary bro. We were 12 years old. We’re in the back ducked down like “Fuck! AHHH!” scared as shit. This guy over here’s just fucking driving like he’s got goddamn 20 kilos in the trunk or a dead body or some shit. Finally we ended up hanging off a fucking cliff. As we came to this wall and this cliff we would’ve died, but we got stuck on the top of it. He jumps out of the car and takes off. As soon as we get out of the car, 50 cops: “Freeze motherfucker!” The craziest part is nobody went to jail. The next day we were all fucking hanging out on the front porch. It was gnarly though, man.
8. I read that you used to be addicted to Percocet and managed to kick a $6000 per month pill habit. We were up to taking thirty pills a day each. Spending like six racks a month each. And that’s getting it wholesale! Even to drug dealers who do what they have to do, sixty pills a day, everyday, is a lot… But one day though we were just like, “This is silly.” It was a dope feeling it used to give you and then that shit just went away. I remember being in the car and popping a couple Hydro-10s (Hydrocodone) and thinking, “This
10. How old are you guys now? I don’t know. I can’t remember. I think we’re like 100 or 19? I’m 18. I’m 15. I wanna be 15 for the rest of my life, ‘cause you have no responsibility. Fifteen’s the best age ever. Pussy’s new, skateboarding’s magical and that’s it. That’s the best. Certain things lose their magic. Fuck going to clubs and all that shit. All you need to do is skate, get some little high school bitches or middle school bitches and that’s it. Watch skate videos all day, hangout with your homies and egg houses. Ya know? That’s the best life.
6. Do you think it’s possible to have a legitimate addiction to sex? Ultimately, that’s all we want to do. This chick last night… we went in and filmed this crazy porno. It was amazing. This chick was fucking fine too. Kim Kardashian looking bitch. Ya know what I mean? You know like when girls have a perfect complexion? When their skin is just perfect. She looked kinda Persian. Everything is just so groomed.
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“Sex is like a drug, likeanything else. And we’re addicted. ”
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