BITCHSLAP
XVI
Sweet Sixteen BS 16 | 1
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THE V56 AV COVINA / STRETCH TWILL
JOHNNY LAYTON
THE V56 STANDARD
A CLASSIC REGULAR/SLIM FIT WITH A MEDIUM RISE AND A SLIGHTLY TAPERED LEG
AVA I L A B L E I N S T R E T C H D E N I M A N D T W I L L V A N S .C O M / A PPA R E L ©2012
VANS,
INC.
PHOTO:
ANTHONY
ACOSTA
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Publisher
SWEET 16
Kids in the Kitchen Founders Dick and Nanny Managing Editor
I was so fucking cool when I was 16. I had cool spiky bleach-blond hair. I had big sunglasses. I was a rad skateboard dude. I smoked pot and hated school. I ran away from home and I stuck my fingers into girls when they would let me. I may have looked like a malnourished, sleep deprived pimply weirdo in a school uniform, but believe me… cool as a cucumber. It ran through me. I cared not for the world and the world not for me. I was misunderstood. I wore a sarong in protest or harmony, I can't recall which, and skateboarded recklessly with disregard for old ladies. I spat publicly. Can't get cooler? Oh but it can. I rolled my own cigarettes and grew a dread. I was sweet 16—fuck the world. My twenties were no different; a decade I casually pissed up against a wall or two in some pretty cool places. I was a rad snowboard dude. I went fast in the slow zone. Probably jumped the sign. Girls wanted me to put my fingers in them. I afforded rounds of drinks at the bar and celebrated my youth at house parties in the suburbs and on rooftop terraces. The world grew bigger and smaller at the same time. I hate when it does that. But it was ok: strings were something I knew nothing of so I swaggered through airports. I thought I ruled the dance floor and definitely ruled the bike lanes. Country goes city. You know the way. Head high. Now I have sets of keys that jingle. I like looking sharp and using words like strategy and busy. I'm the balls in Excel. I host dinners, drink white wine and thoroughly enjoy myself. I'm chuffed. I wear matching socks and accessorise. The girls humour me. Bands are better from the balcony. Hotels are cooler than tents and taxis cooler than buses. My coolness updates, as does yours. But the truth is this: We're as cool as we feel, and no one ever feels as cool as sweet 16's with all their spots and hair and ripped clothing and pungent smells and giving way less of a fuck than you. It's true. Can you even remember a time when you gave less of a fuck? What freedom! With that in mind, I salute and celebrate the freedom and coolness that comes with being 16 again. Check out Rasmus Petersen not giving a fuck while doing the Rasmus Grab, also known as the Bart Simpson.
Dick nick@bitchslapmag.com Art Director Nanny danny@bitchslapmag.com Music Yum Yum, Fergus Murphy, Pelle Peter Jensen, Carolina Echeverri. Copy Dick, Lasse Kofod, Yum Yum, Spencer W. Wells, Thomas Nash. Head of Photography Lasse Kofod Contributing Photographers Kamilla Bryndum, David Read, Ironflag, Nils Svensson, Sam Muller, Peter Stanners, Jens Schrøder, Thomas Cato. Design Blameme, Sarah Brueckner, Ironflag. Illu Blameme, Leh Poulsen, Kevin Reid, Anna Magnussen Project Pusher Barnes Cyberspace bitchslapmag.com | facebook.com/bsmag twitter.com/bitchslapmag | vimeo.com/bitchslapmedia girlsareawesome.net Circulation 15,000 See key stockists on page 94 Selected spots in Copenhagen, Barcelona, Amsterdam, Paris, Berlin, London & Malmö Go to www.bitchslapmag.com/find to see where. Advertising inquiries hello@bitchslapmag.com Blog Dick, Lasse Kofod, Nanny, Youngbuck, Spencer W. Wells, Chris Danforth. Dog Arthur, the long haired white Shepard, photographed by Lasse Kofod
Jens Schrøder
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IN THIS IS THIS AN
ISSUE
Photo taken with permission from The Motherfucker (MFS) with assistance from Albert. Retouching by Anna Magnussen.
Hjalte Halberg Nils Svensson
Dick
Who are you?
Best thing about being pro:
I am Hjalte Halberg and I'm from Copenhagen, Denmark.
You get paid for what you like doing the most.
Years skating?
Have you got a favourite own board graphic yet?
I don't really know, between 12 and 14 years. Spons?
Nike SB, Carhartt, Indy trucks, Polar skateboards and Streetmachine. Favourite trick that's not a backside 180?
Fs shuvit or Bs noseslide.
Things that suck are:
Money and war. Best video part right now?
Top 5 tunes for riding?
Shawn Power in Caviar, Vincent Alvarez in Skate Sauce and the Jake Johnson Quartersnacks part.
What gets you on the dancefloor then?
Who's pushing you?
Old Danish hippie psychedelic and a lot of hip hop: Fujara, Janus og venner, C.V. Jørgensen, Big Pun, Ten Wanted Men, Wu of course....
Pontus Alv. He has been pro for more than 10 years and started skating the year I was born so he really knows how to do a good video part and how to push me.
Tight or baggy?
Favourite meal?
I am always skating with my friends, so no need for music.
Don't care
Ledges, trannies or stairs?
Ledges. The best ledge in the world is located on plaza called Jarmers in the middle of Copenhagen. It grinds and slides better than anything I have ever tried. Best tour story:
I once woke up in Shanghai and my board was full of duck feeds and pig ears. Top 5 spots:
Jarmersplads, Fælledparken and the Red Plaza. Every good flatland plaza out there. 12 | BS 16
My new one for sure. It is called Kiddo. I took the photo from my parents crib and scanned it to Pontus and he was down to use it.
Burger with burger. What about when you cook at home?
Burger. Favourite homies to skate with?
It's rare but when they get their lazy ass out there it is for sure the The Batman crew. When I'm not skating I'm mostly:
In sauna sweating my ass off. Best young bloods on the radar?
Hugo from Hullet and Mads from Fælledparken Skateboarding is good because:
It makes me feel happy.
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Leh Poulson Lasse Kofod
Dick
Why do you draw animals?
I draw animals because they are beautiful and there is a big variation of expression, volumes and colours to choose from. I'm fascinated by how violent or melancholic emotions combined with a beautiful creature become grotesque. What's your favourite hybrid animal now the Liger is taken? Will you draw me one?
Good question. Although I don't think anything can compete with the Liger, I think the Fat (fox + rat) or the Beat (bear + bat) are two qualified candidates. You know they sell pencils with colour as well right?
Are there any established illustrators out there that make you want to drop your panties?
I recently discovered Marco Mazzoni - and speaking of coloured pencils, I dare to say that he's one of the masters I would scarifice my panties for. He creates sinister pastel pieces with beautiful birds, fish and flowers. Finish this sentence: When I'm not drawing I'm:
Studying architecture. But I guess that also includes drawing a lot, so that doesn't count. But apart from that I'm assisting a graphic designer with magazine layout and, I guess, also an occasional drawing or two.
What are some of your favourite implements?
You've said before that your drawings don't have to take that long if you get it right first time. Tell me about discipline and eďŹƒciency.
Skinny mechanical pencils h6 + b2. Generally tools with hair thin tips.
Discipline is a skill I've had to work hard to achieve. You can compare it to exercise - it takes a lot of
I am aware of that fact yes.
training to run a marathon; likewise, it takes a lot of practice to be able to draw for 12 hours straight and still be eager to do it again the next morning. You can say that I've achieved a sort of 'Drawer's High'. EďŹƒciency comes with investing in practicing. Basically if you invest some time in mastering drawing something, let's say liquids, you don't have to break a sweat and wear down your eraser every time you do it. You've just held your first solo exhibition. Congratulations on the success. What's the next step after being published here?
Thank you very much. The next step is to get some (read: a lot of) rest. After that I'm planning to study some live animals for my next project - which will, by the way, include colour. Who is on your radar right now? Who's about to break out?
I wouldn't be the best person to ask. I'm low tech and have no radar. If we started a company selling sugar to children, would you do our logo?
If the logo could be of a fat, unhappy and sick child, then yes; Show me the money! What makes girls so awesome?
Girls are awesome because they break out in hysterical laughter without the ability to stop. If you could draw your perfect future how would it look?
If I could draw Utopia? It would look like an endless adventure.
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PRODUCT
PARTY Kevin Reid
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PRODUCT
PARTY Pt.2 Kevin Reid
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It's hard not to fall a little bit in love with Liv Lykke. Behind a pained and incredibly seductive voice I find a deeply passionate artist, vulnerable but strong. Tormented and brave. Like Denmark, a living contrast. Any loyal reader of this magazine will know we're gaga for anything out of the Boom Clap camp, and this is where I first caught Liv's notes; the tune Tiden Flyver turning over and over in my head, sending thoughts to lalaland as I cycle this fairytale town. A gift to my playlist, and one she has shared with the likes of local mainstays Claus Hempler, Tomas Barfod and Mikael Simpson. But this is all just the beginning I'm ensured. And I'm sure. As before, but more, the songs of Liv Lykke will reach the souls worth reaching, enriching them.
Dick
Thomas Cato
So Liv Lykke. Besides the music you're a tricky cookie to research. How does someone find out about you?
Well sir, I promise to be more generous with my self from now on. I’ve leaked what is to become the 1st single from my debut solo EP. It’s called Magi. It’s spit with a Danish tongue, as is the rest of the EP. I'm very open musically but never really know how to describe the genre, my closest attempt would be Some Sort Of Pop. This is the first time my own music is being presented in a concentrated form. But anyway, now The Era Of Generosity is here and I'm available so if you wanna know me, look me up and follow my movements. When I translate your name into English, I pretty much land on Life Happiness. How close to the truth is that?
To be named Liv has always made me feel very loved. I am very much alive so yes, there is much happiness on my path. But it does seem that I bring people surrounding me more happiness than I bring myself. I bet a lot of people can relate to that feeling. People close to me always experience me much more joyful than I experience myself, and since it's almost impossible for me to be anything else
than authentic, I sometimes wonder if I might really be as happy as others see me. My middle name Lykke was passed on to me from my father. His mother gave him that name to celebrate his very existence because her firstborn had tragically died at birth. My name is a bit babble happy when you think about it. Or is it more Indian-like? My Indian name is Little Big Butt.
Would you say your music is laced with sadness?
How beautifully formulated. Yes, much of my music so far has been laced with sadness. Actually the last feature I did was on a Dragonborn track (a Kristian Leth and Fridolin Nordsø project) released this summer which I named Sadness. It was renamed Dark Water. A feeling of being unsatisfied haunts me, and unfulfillment has been a topic in my lyrics as in my personal life ever since I started in school. I was different and far from stimulated enough from going to school. It was quite disheartening. But then, contrast is that which characterises my universe best. I love contrast, it's in everything. And it unconsciously sneaks its way into my lyrics. Contrast creates a crisp energy and a human beauty in my ear and eyes. BS 16 | 21
I'd never heard that sound before. We made it.
So let's say I found out I could sing like you. What do I do with my days while I'm waiting to get signed? How do I get people to listen to my songs?
Don’t wait. Do something. Expand yourself, refine your skills and be productive. Then put it on display. If you don’t stick your hand out, nobody can grab it and take you on a ride. Initially the concept of rehearsing in front of an audience sucked for the perfectionist in me, but it's an unavoidable part of the process. It’s a mindset. I think it is healthy to keep a sense of chill about it while still working hard. You've featured on some Boom Clap Bachelors stuff. Tell me your thoughts about that style of music really picking up overseas, especially in LA, and not really getting glances here.
Well back in 2006 I wrote 4 songs on top of Boom Clap Bachelors tracks. I knew Robin Hannibal (of Quadron) from a colab on a track called Moonlight we did for a Nobody Beat The Beats album (Drops from above). He invited me into the BCB world. I wrote and recorded the vocals at home while I was drunk and stoned and had no clue as to how long it should take to write a tune so it took months. When I think about now it seems dumb and cute. In that little world of clouds, creative freedom and my instinctive love of words and choirs, the style I rolled with on BCB—and partial foundations for the music I make today—was born. I love what we did back then with Boom Clap and it was only when Kendrick Lamar recently sampled Tiden Flyver on his new album Good Kid, m.A.A.d city that I realised how new the sound we created was. I remember thinking how incredibly weird I thought the tracks were and also how what I was doing with them was 22 | BS 16
new and special. I'd never heard that sound before. We made it. And I'm recognising the sound more and more in other people's music, a gigantic compliment.
I'd probably be really jealous if some people I played together with got really famous and started making movie soundtracks and doing shows with other famous people.
I’d probably do that too if I felt I’d done everything in me to succeed and nothing ever came of it! Luckily I’m not in that situation – jesus, I haven't even released my first solo EP yet so I see it as an good opportunity to exercise that Buddhistic vibe, to stay calm and be in my own spot in the process. Nothing is stolen from your happiness and possibilities because of other people's success! It doesn't work like that at all. I've only just begun. Do you think your sound is trapped in that geographic Bermuda triangle? Do you feel sometimes that there's a label and audience in the US who are waiting for you to land?
So far the only places my music has been trapped is in my throat, head and on my harddisc. The attention I got on the BCB stuff, specially from the US, surprised me and thrilled me considering all the lyrics are Danish. This first EP will be dressed in Danish, but the second or third will be in English. It's 50/50 whether I write in my mother tongue or in English. Either way, I feel very welcome here on this big blue planet. If all of Denmark's producers were reading Bitchslap and started fighting over the honour to
produce music with you, who would you choose and why?
The guys from When Saints Go Machine. The sounds they use and how they make those sounds sound impresses me so much. These guys make original music that sounds so refined, twisted and luxurious. The BCB boys. I feel that so much time has past since we made music together that it’s time again. I can feel it. I developed big parts of my style on music from these guys, it was very important to me. When I made Andres Hænder with Robin Hannibal it was meant for my solo material, but because of delays we put it on the BCB’s “Mellem dine Læber” Album. But ever since there has been a plan pending to bake some of my solo songs with Robin. Brian Batz the man inside the bunny of Sleep Party People makes such dreamy and melodic tunes with focus on the detail. I can see us mate. Franceska is an fucking amazing singer who sounds like she's bred by Mariah Carey and Prince and she is also a great producer. And Jenno of OOFJ who I made Magi with. When and where can we see you sing and what's going to happen next?
These days I’m in a thinking box to find out exactly how and with whom I wanna work with from now on. The 1st single Magi will be coming out soon. We got the video coming out and my solo EP. I get happy just thinking about it. www.livlykke.com
CARE
VITAMIN B12 BIOTIN+FOLSYRE MED SMAG AF
RØD GRAPEFRUGT
CO N C E PT & A R T D I R E C T I O N b y I R O N F L AG
N I K E S B 路 KO S TO N X H E R I TAG E
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NEW BALANCE 路 998
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A D I DA S 路 B L A U V E LT
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ADIDA S 路 ZX700
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CO N V E R S E 路 A U C K L A N D R AC E R
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CO M M O N P R OJ E C T S 路 D E R B Y S H I N E
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A . P. C . 路 D E S E R T B O O T 30 | BS 16
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sjællandsgade BA D
The nostalgic smell of a public changing room fills my nose as I enter the historic baths on Sjællandsgade in Nørrebro. Since it was closed in November 2010, the only people to set foot inside are public servants and labourers. Toilet rolls still hang in the toilets, the hoses are coiled and ready to be used, the shower curtains are tidily rolled up, while the small shelves holding the bottles of shampoo, toothbrushes and tickets for the bath still hang on the wall next to the keys.
Written and Photographed by
L a ss e K o f o d Translated by Peter Stanners
I am standing in an almost 100 year old bathing hall, Sjællandsgadebadet, where thousands of people have stood before me stark naked. Even though many of the housing complexes were installed with showers in the 1940s, the Sjællandsgadebadet kept offering a unique service. There were essential oils baths and baths with salt from the dead sea, as well as saunas and the offer of massages. Further modernisation in the neighbourhood and gentrification lead annual visitor numbers to plummet from 55,000 in 2001, to 36,000 in 2005. Despite an upswing in 2009 to 45,000 annual visitors, the city council decided to close the baths. The closure came
despite popular support events that were held in the baths, such as music and drinks evenings, and hangover Sundays, where people were invited to come and wash the weekend’s excesses out of their systems. After the closure, former users formed an association, Sjællandsgade Bad, that successfully managed to get the building protected. After a long struggle with the council, the association managed to secure two million kroner a year to run the baths that are expected to reopen on January 1, 2013. On the following pages you can meet some of the former users and hear their stories. BS 16 | 33
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Lisbeth
Bryhl One of my more sophisticated friends told me about the Sjællandsgadebadet when I moved to Nørrebro in 2006 with my daughter. He lived in Solrød but often made the 30 kilometre trip all the way into Copenhagen just to go. It was a ritual he made, usually before or after a drinking binge – either to prepare or as a hangover cure. I only had a little shower booth in my apartment so I used to go have a bath with my daughter. And what a bath it was. When I sat there just soaking up the atmosphere and the fantastic acoustics, listening to the women walking around in clogs, it gave me a break from my everyday stress. Sometimes I went alone and smuggled the newspaper in. Other times I dragged my daughter and her friend with me and we’d each sit and relax in our own bath. I might be an adult, but sometimes it felt like I was being looked after by the grownups. I rarely met any of my friends there, but when we were together quietly talking to each other, we’d be gripped by a special feeling that made us feel as though the baths were just ours. These little oases are really important, especially in Nørrebro where there is so much going on. I really used to look forward to getting inside and taking a break.
Helene
Arentzen I moved to Prinsesse Charlottesgade around 16 years ago. We didn’t even have common showers in the basement back then so we had no other option but to use the baths. But even after we had some showers installed in our basement, and one eventually in my apartment, I kept on going to Sjællandsgadebadet. It was full of people I knew and I even got a part-time job there. After the baths shut I met one of the regulars who was really distraught. She had to use her friend’s bath because the local swimming pool was closed for the summer. It was a real burden on her, so she ended up washing herself in the kitchen sink using a cloth. She had arthritis and couldn’t really wash her hair properly. I am angry that the council got away with closing it. Lots of people with psychological problems used to come to the baths and talk and get a bit of help. It was a place where they felt welcome and weren’t a burden or getting in the way. It felt good to give people something they couldn’t get anywhere else. We need these places where we can meet and look at each other eye-toeye, especially in Nørrebro.
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Svend
Andresen I used to go to Frederiksberg swimming pool to train with weights. But when they closed for the summer in 2005 I had to look elsewhere. I heard about Sjællandsgadebadet and their little fitness room that was only two meters by two meters. It had three or four machines and, as far as I was aware, I was the only person to use it – I was there four times a week and never met anyone else using it. I always ended with a bath and this is when I noticed the intimacy. People were chatting away and I quickly got to know a couple of the guys. I really valued the atmosphere in the baths. It was the social highlight to my day and I also got to know a lot of immigrants. Who can be racist when you’re sitting around naked? If you wanted peace and quiet you could get it, and if you wanted a chat there was always someone to talk to – though we only ever really used to talk about football.
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Bettina
Rønning
My boyfriend is from Finland and every Saturday he would just vanish for a few hours. I had no idea what he was doing so I asked him and he told me that he was going to the Sjællandsgadebadet to listen to the records the head bathing attendant, bademesteren, played on his gramophone. It sounded interesting and so I decided to give it a go on my own. As I went in I was met immediately by all these smiling people and this really loving atmosphere. I was hooked. The female bathing attendants did a wonderful job looking after me and were really kind. Some people only used Sjællandsgadebadet it to take their daily shower. But many others would stay there and chat for hours. The baths means a lot to its users, though perhaps most of all to the men that go. A lot of men use it to meet their friends, have a cup of coffee and get their social fix. Everyone was equal at the baths and people left their social status with their clothes. We were all just naked people using a bath.
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thOMas
negriJn The music career I had focussed on since 1985 ended in the year 2002 when I was offered the job as substitute head bathing attendant, bademesteren. I lived on my royalties and was given a few shifts a week in the baths. I was tired of being in bands and constantly on the road. I wanted to return to reality and meet real people that had nothing to do with the music industry. It didn't take long before I got to know the people that came. The socially vulnerable would come and ask for help with their welfare benefits, which I had been on in the past. We’d talk as they scrubbed their back with a sponge they had just bought. We have a saying, “Once you’ve dropped your pants you’re equal in the eyes of the bademesteren.” It was a saying we stood by. I met everyone, from well-off types to drug addicts and the mentally ill. But when the politicians, led by Frank Jensen (Copenhagen’s mayor) wanted to close us we fought tooth and nail. We offered free footbaths on Nørrebros Runddel and marched on town hall wearing only bathing robes to ask them if they fancied a bath. A couple of young men organised a DJ night in the baths on Fridays when the young people would come and have a bath and a beer. I’m really looking forward to it reopening. All the generations will be able to get together around a common cause.
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FLeMMinG BAlKe
My parents moved to Nørrebro in 1946 when I was eight years old. We didn’t have a bath in the apartment and I was normally washed in the kitchen sink. But once a week we went to Sjællandsgadebadet for a real shower. We moved around Copenhagen over the years but I moved back to Nørrebro when I married my wife. We had five children together and they also needed to be washed so history ended up repeating itself – we washed in the kitchen sink using cloths and once a week we took a trip to Sjællandsgadebadet. In the 30 years before it closed I went every day. There were seven or eight of us that used to meet once a week and drink beer and talk about football in a room in the baths we called the ‘scoundrel’s lounge’. One of the guys was 87 years old and came all the way from Husum, 10 kilometres away, for a wash. But it won’t ever be the same. When the baths closed we agreed to meet once a week but that slowly died out. I do still see two of the guys from the Scoundrel’s Lounge. We drink beer and talk about FCK like the old days. Hopefully we’ll see each other again when the baths reopen in the New Year.
FUCK YOU – Folk der går med kniv
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FRAME OF REFERENCE
David Read
W E L L I N G T O N
–
N E W
Z E A L A N D
David Read is founder and managing editor at Manual Magazine. Having published their first issue on a consumer printer, we feel a real sense of affinity with Dave and his accomplishments in publishing - taking Manual well beyond any other skate publication in New Zealand and subsequently putting rolling kiwis on the map. Through his lens David has not only paid his dues for the industry tenfold, he's elevated countless grommets to the glory of his pages and beyond. It's with pleasure that we invite him back onto ours. TJC baby.
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MIDLAND PARK Wellington’s Midland Park is as close as it gets to hallowed ground when you’re talking about skateboarding in our windy capital. This spot in the heart of the business district has been the proving ground since before time, despite the persistent security, and the now creative skate stopping. Having spent more time there than the old pigeons, Joseph Whaanga could quite comfortably be crowned lord of this spot. He’s owned the smooth pebble ledges and marble surrounds for more years than I care to remember.
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Joseph Whaanga Frontside noseslide between the stoppers. Midland Park, Wellington, New Zealand. 44 | BS 16
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CIVIC SQUARE Meet you at Civic for a quick bite? Normally that’s all you get before security bounce you out. This spot is far more suited to lunchtime strolls and sushi destruction; the sandstone ledges and brickwork are rough, and much better for sitting that skateboarding. It doesn’t stop us from trying though.
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Fred Shallcrass Navigates a right-turn nose manual before security realise his trespass notice is still in effect. Civic Square, Wellington, New Zealand. 48 | BS 16
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SPOT Every Sunday this empty car parking lot and plaza are transformed into a marketplace where, rain or shine, people (and their dogs) sniff out bargain fruit and veges. What’s special about this place is that it’s one of the most frequently skated spots in the city, and it’s a stones throw from the skate park. Spot, as people call it, is a happy accident and it makes up for short falls in the neighbouring park with its simple layout of concrete ledges and plenty of smooth flatground; sometimes this is all we really need.
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Jason ‘Jagger’ Gallant Switch Pupecki (switch backside 180 fakie five-O). Spot, Wellington, New Zealand. 52 | BS 16
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We’re not aiming for Denmark 54 | BS 16
Thee
Attacks Yum Yum Saint Hamilton
Lasse Kofod
The air is heavy in the band room at Loppen. You can almost taste the sickly sweet smell of sweat in the room, itching at the back of your throat, creeping up your nostrils. The atmosphere is tense, the adrenaline still pumping. Thee Attacks are slumped on sofas, shirts soaked, boots up on the table, chain smoking, knocking back beers, eyes closed. Front man Jimmy Attack, more than anyone, looks fucked. The show they have just played was a success by any standards. It is a rare thing to find more girls at a rock show than men but this was certainly the case. The front of Loppen’s stage was utterly packed with wailing chicks desperately reaching out to grab hold of some tight denim, and if they were lucky, the chance to touch something else. Yes, it was certainly a cracking night for Thee Attacks. According to them, it was nothing short of normal. ‘Everybody wants to touch. We just let them do it. There is no line’, they explain to me after the show. Off camera, Jimmy Attack in a somewhat shy tone, informs me that a fan had managed to get his cock out on stage only a few night’s earlier. Good times indeed. There has been a bit of talk about Thee Attacks in recent years, most famously by David Fricke of Rolling Stone fame, who named the band as one of his favorites in 2010 following the release of their debut album ‘That’s Mister Attack To You’. That was 2 years ago. With the release of
the new record ‘Dirty Sheets’ in September, there was a certain amount of anticipation; would it be as good? When I ask Terry Attack if there was any pressure, he sucks on his beer and irritably brushes the question aside. ‘We just write the songs we want to,’ he tells me. ‘There is no formula. We don’t write our songs to sound one particular way; when we did this record, we were completely open-minded in the way we approached it. This record sounds a whole lot different to our last record but ultimately we just did what came naturally. Did we feel any pressure? No, not really. When we wrote our first album we just wanted to write songs and play them. The same goes for this record. There really was no change.’ As I ask them questions, there is a vague sense of defensive aggression that surrounds Thee Attacks; they are protective of what they do, and passionate about the music they play. There is a definite sense of ‘us’ against ‘them’, yet just who constitutes ‘them’ is unclear. There is no doubt however, that Thee Attacks are a singular unit, a united front. Not that it matters, but I don’t think they like me very much. Our presence seems something of a nuisance, a vaguely irritating element that simply has to be endured. BS 16 | 55
‘Everybody wants to touch. We just let them do it. There is no line’
‘We started in 2006,’ Terry continues. ‘We never really paid any attention to what was going on then. The Danish scene, when we started, was hopelessly outdated. And it remains hopelessly outdated. When we go abroad we get more recognition; people like our albums more in England and America much more than they ever have in Denmark. The moment we head south of the border, we are instantly exotic and people just dig it more. In Denmark it’s hard; people just want to listen to dancehall and reggae.’ Perhaps this is the source of Thee Attacks’ staunch approach. The Danish music industry, which has never been enthusiastic for local garage rock bands, is certainly a sore point of contention. ‘When we made the first record, we didn’t pay any attention to the Danish scene,’ Terry, who comes across as something of a spokesman for the band, tells me. ‘When we made the second record, we didn’t want to adjust our sound for the dub step market. We wanted to express the way we felt about music. I think there are a lot of bands that want to sound like what’s popular. Instead of thinking too much about the scene, we did what felt right. If you think too much about it, there is a danger that you only do what the music scene demands.’
now, we are huge fans of Blue Van who one of Denmark’s best bands right now. The live scene in Denmark is really growing now and in a great way. It’s really growing. The mainstream, the radio stations, they can’t follow it.’ Is the radio something they want to break into, I ask them? ‘While we would like to break that market, I don’t think we ever will. Danish radio caters purely to what’s generally popular in Europe and internationally. Our kind of music has a very small chance of making it on Danish radio. Of course, we would like to, but it’s not really our choice,’ Johnny replies. ‘The mindset has to change and it just doesn’t. At the moment it’s actually pretty awful for a band like us,’ Jimmy agrees. ‘If you’re trying to make hits to be played on the radio, you’re going to fail,’ Terry adds bluntly. ‘It’s better to stay true to who you are. If you make a semi big hit in Denmark, you’re still never going to live off it. Maybe if a song gets big in Germany or America or England, then you can buy a new Porsche. We’re not aiming for Denmark.’
For all the irritation and dismissiveness of the greater national music industry, Thee Attacks still appear deeply passionate about local bands. ‘When we started the band, Baby Woodrose was a massive influence that we respected.’ Johnny Attack, the affable bass player points out. ‘Right 56 | BS 16
Full video interview here: www.vimeo.com/bitchslapmedia/theeattacks
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The Pinkyvision brain spreads psychedelic work across the globe from his headquarters in Brighton. His work with Altamont and Flip have ensured a core following within skateboarding while his bong antics are just plain funny. And dolphins are cute.
New Mexico – Large gouache painting Kube – T shirt design for Savakas 58 | BS 16
Avalon – Pen and ink piece for the Mushroom show at Grass Hut Portland Stoned Again – T shirt design for Thread Council
BS 16 | 59
Live Fast – Flip Pro Series Stage Set – Brighton Source Magazine
60 | BS 16
BS 16 | 61
Peace Sign – Thread Council Death Valley – Small Gouache painting
pinkyvision.com 62 | BS 16
Dedicated to skateboarding Est. 1989
Photos: Henrik Edelbo
Streetmachine · Kronprinsensgade 3 · 1114 Copenhagen K · +45 3333 9511 · facebook.com/streetmachinecph · streetmachine.com
T H A T
D U D E
T H E O T I S
BEASLEY Featuring
Eric Koston
64 | BS 16
I wonder how many hours people have collectively spent waiting for Eric Koston. A lifetime of hours, that's how many. His popularity doesn't aide his speed either, he bounces between different centres of attention until he's diverted towards one of his countless obligations. So we're waiting for Eric. We can see him. We call. He ignores it.
This is an interview with Theotis Beasley, and maybe Koston. I've never been that good at interviewing two people together. To kill time, Theo shows us some of his 'insta-bitches' as he so delicately calls them. Scantily-clad girls flood his sms feed too: email-length texts followed by pictures of incredible babes in their underwear. Just like the ones on the internets. No one sends me pictures of themselves in their underwear. Never have. I get bad artists wanting free promotion, a lot of 'no thanks' and bad PR, but no cleavage or tight frilly buns. "Yes, I'm loving it" Theotis tells me while beaming his huge, charming dirtbag grin, showing me another dark, voluptuous beauty. "It gets better, it gets better".
We wait for Koston. We watch him joking with Schaefer while he's announcing. Perhaps he's talking to himself. He enters the Death Race. The PR people are getting a little edgy. The hang time gives us a chance to get to know Theo a little better. People say he's the nicest guy in skateboarding. I heard he had more sponsors than anyone - perhaps he's just so nice that people are tripping over themselves to give him nice things. If I were to sponsor someone, I'd probably sponsor someone nice, like Theo: He's excited, he's funny, he's made it out of the hood into a blossoming career as a pro skateboarder and his phone is full of sexiness. He probably has someone to wipe his ass for him.
BS 16 | 65
Theotis Beasley is on his first trip to Europe and together with Koston they're under the wing of Skull Candy. We're at the Cph Pro where neither rider made it to the finals but who cares? They're in Copenhagen with the happiest people on earth. Yesterday they smuggled GoPro cameras onto the carousel at Tivoli. People pick them, drop them off and feed them. The city is overflowing with babes. "They're real cute sexy. I wanna see them in their panties" Theo reports. Hailing from Inglewood, California, Theo had a pretty regular upbringing surrounding by thugs and gangsters stealing and shooting. "Inglewood is the hood, it's crazy, people get shot. But I got into skateboarding through my cousin. He told me to come outside and did a kickflip off the curb and I was like 'that's crazy'. I thought he like glued his shoes to the board. So when I was leaving I got a board and went to a skate shop and got some trucks and wheels and just started skating. I was 15. Did I mention the girls out here is cute?" When I hear the story of how he first got picked up by Andrew Reynolds while skating at Hawthorne park it sounds like a story of being at the right place at the right time, but after watching him skate I'm not sure too much time would have passed before someone else started flowing him gear. He's such a likeable cat and skateboards with flawless style. Enter Lord Koston. Beer in hand. Sweat on brow. Talking: "Yea, it was the death race, I made the semi finals, that was it. I beat Cole. I'm faster than Cole, for the record I'm faster than Chris Cole." I bring him up to speed telling him we've been 66 | BS 16
talking about Copenhagen girls in their panties which ignites a thought. "Did you see Staba's VIP area?" Phone appears "And he's got these girls with him. Poppin' models right there". Because interviewing two people at once is a pain, we've written a bunch of topics on torn up bits of paper and thrown them in a hat - which, once pulled out, Theo and Koston should briefly discuss. This should take no more than 2 minutes of your time, and seriously if you can't really be bothered to read any further, we videoed the whole thing which you can catch on our vimeo.
Topic 3: Jay-Z. Both dudes throw up Roc Nation and seem quite pleased with the topic. "So, what?" Eric leads "the first thing that comes to mind? The first Blueprint album, House of Blues, went to the show, bought a t-shirt and there was only a double X left, still bought it, still wore it" The Jay-Z thing was supposed to get Theo talking about his associations with Roc Nation but Koston was right in there.
Number 4, Mom. TB: "I still live with my Mom. Still haven't moved out yet."
Koston grabs the first slip, swigs his beer and tries to act enthusiastic "Well, this one's interesting:"
EK: "That one's for him. Me? I'm a dad."
Copenhagen.
EK: "Tell them what you're really want to say Theo" TB: "You know what? All I do on Instagram is talk to bitches. That's all I do. Bitches. Comment on girl's photos." EK: "My name is Eric Koston and I don't do the instagram, never heard of it."
"The first thing that comes to mind? Tivoli. We went on that high round one. He's the first black man ever on that thing" Theo: " First black man ever on Tivoli." Eric: "I'm kind of afraid of heights so I was pretty nauseous. I shed a tear."
Instagram.
Another scrap of paper. Another topic gets pulled by Theotis.
Nicest guy in skateboarding. TB: "I've said mine, I said Malcolm Watson." Koston, nodding "I might have to agree, I'm going to go with that." I let them know we put that in there because both of them are eligible for the title. Koston assures me "I'm not that cool, I'm like seasons, hot and cold. Not like Phelps, he's mostly cold."
Best thing you've seen this week. TB: "Oh, Austin Gillette Switch back noseblunt the hubba in the contest, that was pretty great." EK: "The best thing I've seen this week? The backs of my eyelids when I was sleeping, I'm tired."
Ladies. TB: "The ladies out here is really sexy, I agree.
Left to Right: > Lil' mermaid. Tourist attraction to millions, just another one of Theo's insta-bitches. > In between naps, Koston stops talking for long enough to blast the Nansensgade pyramid. > Theotis Beasley: the self proclaimed first black man on Tivoli. And Koston pretending not to shit his pants. > Beasley kickflips his way to millions at the SEB bank spot.
I'm sightseeing out here and breaking my neck." EK: "I've got two of them at my house, one's my wife, one's my daughter. I love them both."
Worst thing about being pro. EK: "I mean, if you think about things then they seem petty. If I think of one, I'm like nah." Theo breaks in "coming up with board graphics." EK: "Dude who cares?" TB: "Nah ok, let's think of another one." EK: "Fucken economy flights! Long ass economy flights" Eric grabs two. "Ok down to the last 2"
Best burger and the biggest fear. TB: "Five guys. Have you had it. Is it better than In & Out?" EK: " I kinda like 5 guys cos they're pretty new on the West coast but I'm gonna say the Parker Hotel in Palm Springs. They have a $1000 omelette there too. My biggest fear is that damn ride in Tivoli" TB: "Yea that was crazy, GoPro were sponsoring us on that, we snuck it on" EK: "We cried like little bitches while it spun around. The footage will come out." So we wrap it up and I tell them they're done while Theo.'s trying to let us know that his biggest fear is transvestites, but I tell him we're done. We head outside to the booth and kids flock. I notice they're mostly around Beasley. The sunshine kid. The future of it all and quite possibly the nicest guy in skateboarding. See the video: www.vimeo.com/bitchslapmedia/beasley-x-koston BS 16 | 67
SENIOR Junior
Sam MULLER I have a distinct memory of being blown away when I saw Sam Muller's photo of the beanplant on the film strips about five or six years ago, and have made a conscious effort to follow his work ever since. I didn't know much else about him until earlier this year when I read the announcement that he'd been made senior photographer for Transworld Skateboarding and saw that he was only a few months older than I was. It really made me question what I'd accomplished so far in life, but instead of falling into a pit of despair I decided to hit him up with some questions about how he's managed to make it as a skateboard photographer.
Spencer W. Wells
68 | BS 16
Sam Muller
Elliott Wright, aquatic life in California, 2011.
BS 16 | 69
Jason Dill, bs 360 in Arizona, 2011.
What's your name, age, and where are you from?
My name is Sam Muller, I'm 22 and I'm from Los Angeles. Hollywood if you want specifics, LA is a big ass place. What's the best part of working for a skate mag full time? Is it all you dreamed it would be?
Everything is the best about it. I get to do what I've been doing since I was 16 but now I get paid to do it, and I get to travel. The people at TWS are awesome as well, so that makes everything so much easier and more fun, there's a nice family vibe going on. There are some political aspects of the job that suck, but they're pretty trivial in the grand scheme. They're also cool with me shooting outside of skateboarding as well. It's a win win. Isn't "senior photographer" a bit of an oxymoron when you're only 22? But seriously, how does one end up as staff photographer at TWS while still in art school?
Yeah I don't feel very senior-ly. I was interning there for 3 years, helping around the office in San Diego the few days a week I didn't have class. I'd shoot on the weekends and show Skin Phillips (the editor-at-large) photos as often as I could. 5 months after I started the internship they started sending me on little trips that the other staff photographers couldn't go on, and it just kind of snow-balled. Then 6 months before I graduated, Skin said they were going to hire me as a senior photographer. That was a crazy moment. Speaking of school, how did you balance school and work? Do you feel your education is still valuable?
It wasn't really hard, especially because everyone down at TWS wanted me to finish, and were all really accommodating. Also, the teachers that I really learned from were always telling us to shoot what you love, so my work was also my homework. I have a lot of issues with the way the photo department is run at Art Center, but the handful of great teachers and friends that I met there were amazing. Also, I think it was really important for me to go there because it kept me focused, and kept me driven. There were definitely times though, when I'd be sitting in class and wonder why the hell I was there. I think I even corrected one of my teachers in class, he wasn’t too stoked about it.
70 | BS 16
BS 16 | 71
Nakel Smith posted up in Hollywood, 2012.
Sam Muller
Tunnel Vision. New Mexico, 2011.
72 | BS 16
Guy Mariano in Los Angeles, 2011.
It seems like you shoot a variety of stuff, from formal portraits to off-the-cuff lifestyle shots. Where do you feel most comfortable and how do you go between such different styles?
East Los Angeles, 2011.
I definitely feel most comfortable shooting a skateboard 'action' photo, but I think that's why I love to shoot other stuff, it makes me uncomfortable. It's best to be uncomfortable when you're shooting, that's when you take risks, and the best shit happens. At the beginning of college, one of my teachers gave the class some of the worst advice, saying that we needed to develop a style and stick with it because it'd be our brand. For a while after that I was really hung up on getting a style, whatever the hell that means. It was awful. After a while I realized that was total bullshit and I should just shoot the way I want to at the time. Every situation is different, so you have to treat it differently. It's a decision based on how I picture my subject in my head, not if I want to shoot a formal portrait or shoot loose lifestyle that day. I feel like even though some of my pictures are shot in different ways, you can still tell that the same person took them. Can you explain this shooting process a little more specifically? What does it mean in terms of the equipment you bring with you and use on a given day and the way you go about editing your work?
Basically, I have a picture in my head of the subject I'm shooting pretty much as soon as I know I'm shooting it or them. I'll then do some research and see how much sense my original idea made, and I'll change it or add to it so it seems more fitting. It never really crosses my mind to think oh I've gotta shoot a formal lit, orchestrated portrait or I've just gotta shoot off the cuff, it just makes sense to shoot the subject in a certain way. In terms of gear, I know how I'm going to shoot before the day of the shoot, so I'll pack accordingly. I try to never go too crazy though, I love natural looking photographs. Editing the work is a really difficult, really important part of it (when it's not skateboarding then you pick the try that looks best or most real). It takes a while, but I just follow my gut feeling in the end. There's always a photo that I gravitate toward. As far as bodies of work go, that's an even harder task, but I just try to establish a story I'm trying to tell, print out little versions of all the photos and try to piece together a puzzle. What does a typical day in the life of Sam Muller look like?
They're always different, which is why photography is so rad. Some days I'll skate all day, some days I'll be shooting something completely unrelated to skating, some days I'll get a call to go on a trip somewhere, and some days are completely dead, so you have to think of stuff to shoot. There are always ups and downs, it's the nature of the job, so you have to be ready for that. It's definitely frustrating when you're just sitting around with nothing to do. I feel a bit worthless on those days. BS 16 | 73
American Contemporary Ballet, California, 2012.
Yohei Miyazawa, Beanplant fakie in California, 2006.
74 | BS 16
The equivalent of shoe-goo? California, 2012.
BS 16 | 75
“Just fall exactly like that a few more times�, Ryan Spencer in Los Angeles, 2008.
76 | BS 16
Hand signals. California, 2012. The work you've done with the American Ballet is really interesting, what similarities do you see between shooting ballet and skateboarding?
That job was really fun. They said they hired me because they felt it was similar enough to skating where I’d be able to pick it up, but that they wanted someone who’d have a different take on it than someone who’s been shooting the ballet for years. I had to be coached a little bit at first, it was like learning about skating all over again. Ballerinas are even pickier than skaters about how they look in photos. Everything about their body position has to be perfect or the photo is useless. I did pick it up pretty quickly though, because it is really similar to shooting skateboarding, except you get to hang out with pretty girls instead of sweaty dudes. Maybe I’m in the wrong line of work. Who are your influences in photography?
Man, there are tons. I’d say the big ones are Annie Leibovitz, Dan Winters, Alasdair McLellan, Martin Schoeller, Frank Ockenfels, Bruce Weber, Avedon, Mary Ellen Mark, Danny Clinch, William Eggleston, Taryn Simon. The list goes on and on though, and I’m constantly finding new photographers that I love. Also obviously all the other guys at TWS, Mike O’Meally, Dave Chami, Oliver Barton, Seu Trinh, and most skate photographers that I looked up to growing up. Who do you see as your peers?
My friends from Art Center, notably Ryan Young, Damon Casarez, and Edward Cushenberry, my friend Saeed Rahbaran, Jeremy Adams, Tim Hans, Julian Berman, Josh Schaedel, Adri Law, Scott Langer, and Blaise Cepis to name a few. There’s a lot of talented people out there, and it’s fucking cool. Last words?
Huge thanks to my mom, dad, brother, aunt and uncle, Mike O’Meally, Skin Phillips, Desiree and Matt Hensley, Kevin Duffel, Federico Vitetta, Adrian Adrid, Max Karish, Elijah Berle, Shigeo, Blair Alley, Ben Kelly, Oliver Barton, Jason Lee, Martin Schoeller, Lisa Hooper, Michael Wilson, Ryan Young, Steve Pyke, Atiba Jefferson, Audrey Landreth, Ophelia Chong, Paul Jasmin, Dick Fink, Aric Van Halen, Saeed Rahbaran, Ken Merfeld, Dustin Koop, Jason Dill, Aaron Meza, Mike Carroll, Ty Evans, Carol LeFlufy, Martino Properzi, Sam Newman, Allegra Wilde, Eileen and Joe LaRusso, Arto Saari and anyone I forgot. BS 16 | 77
Restarting Disarmament Thomas Nash
Leh Poulsen
In September Oslo played host to the third annual meeting of the cluster bomb ban treaty. It was a steady sort of meeting, nothing remarkable, people in suits giving statements, maybe even a bit boring. But the idea that a ban on cluster bombs is somehow normal was pretty much unthinkable even six years ago. Having been part of the ban on cluster bombs from the beginning, I felt really proud to see this treaty maturing and becoming a normal part of the international political landscape. But you could also feel a sense of itchy feet amongst the people that make up the movement to ban cluster bombs. People from governments, organisations, civil society are keen to put the lessons learned and the sense of possibility and achievement into new initiatives. There’s still work to be done to finish the job on landmines and cluster bombs, but it’s only natural that those more suited to entrepreneurship than management are turning their attention to remaining challenges in disarmament and protection of civilians. 78 | BS 16
S
ince handing over the reins of the Cluster Munition Coalition, I co-founded a UK-based organisation called Article 36. The goal is to improve protection of civilians by tackling problems related to weapons and weapons technology. We’ve described it as restarting disarmament and we’re focused on the effects that different types of weapons technologies and types of attacks have on civilians. We’re convinced more can be done in this area, but new approaches will be needed to achieve the change we want. Check out the 1-minute clip describing our work at www.restartdisarmament.org . The problems posed by weapons are extensive. Towns and cities are bombed and bombarded on a daily basis. Explosives and toxic materials continue to kill and harm after the fighting has stopped. There are drones, computers and robots capable of remote and even automated killing, using new and changing technologies we can’t keep up with. As a result of armed violence, civilians suffer deaths in unknown numbers and often without any recognition. In this context a small group of states hold 20,000 nuclear weapons, claiming the right to unleash a humanitarian catastrophe. In all of these areas, coalitions of civil society organisations are proposing reforms and solutions that would set new international standards and save lives. But the machinery of ‘disarmament’ – the standing committees and conventions of the United Nations – is not capable of taking up or exploring these issues in an effective way. We need to restart disarmament based on a commitment to establish strong standards and not be held hostage to the vetoes of states who want to maintain the status quo. Here are some of the initiatives already underway.
Explosive weapons in populated areas
The bombardment of the Syrian towns of Homs and Aleppo in 2012 has provided another clear example of the unacceptable impact of explosive weapons in populated areas . Research by the NGO Action on Armed Violence suggests that in 2011 some 21,499 civilians were reported killed and injured in 68 countries and territories. The International Network on Explosive Weapons is a civil society partnership calling on governments to stop the use in populated areas of artillery, rockets and other explosive weapons with wide area effects.
Remnants of conflict: landmines, explosives and toxic materials Landmines, cluster bombs and other explosive weapons kill and cause injury to civilians long after the guns fall silent. Following global civil society campaigns , landmines and cluster munitions have both been banned under international treaties. This is a real success, but more countries need to sign up, and more needs to be done to clear land and assist victims. The legacy of war also goes beyond the explosive weapons left behind. The problems posed by hazardous materials used in conflict are now being more closely scrutinised by the new Toxic Remnants of War project.
Prohibiting autonomous killer robots
Thomas Nash
Casualty recording
Director and co-founder of the UK-based organisation Article 36, which does research, policy and advocacy on the humanitarian impact of weapons. Article 36 serves on the leadership bodies of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, the International Network on Explosive Weapons, the Campaign to Stop Killer Robots and the Every Casualty Campaign. Prior to co-founding Article 36, Nash coordinated the Cluster Munition Coalition, the international campaign that led to the 2008 treaty banning cluster bombs.
Autonomous weapons are military systems that are able to select and attack targets themselves, without human decision-making. The development of such technologies passes responsibility from human beings to sensors and algorithms. The use of drones and military robots is increasingly widespread, but a line must be drawn at the use of fully autonomous weapons. While it may sound like science fiction today, civil society should organise now to promote an international ban on fully autonomous weapons and to develop a better framework for reviewing new weapons before they enter into widespread use. The impact of weapons on people is the foundation of all of these issues. Most of us take it for granted that were a loved one killed violently we would be informed of their death promptly, there would be medical records and an investigation to ensure justice is done. For many living in situations of conflict and violence there can be no such expectation. Deaths go unrecorded and uninvestigated. The Every Casualty Campaign is calling for an international commitment from states to ensure that every casualty is recognised.
Nuclear weapons
It’s shocking to think that humanity has not yet banned nuclear weapons. But things are happening. The International Red Cross and Red Crescent movement passed a resolution in 2011 calling for a ban on nuclear weapons on the basis of their catastrophic humanitarian consequences. The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons is calling on states to start negotiations for an international treaty prohibiting nuclear weapons. States without nuclear weapons need to drive forward negotiations on such a treaty. The conference to be held in Norway in March 2013 on the humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons is a chance for a group of countries to kickstart a process to ban nukes once and for all.
Conclusions The Convention on Cluster Munitions that has established itself as part of the landscape of international law demonstrates that the model set out by the ban on landmines in 1997 was not a ‘one-off’. The landmine and cluster bomb bans show that real progress is possible – states committed to reform coming together in a format where they are not held hostage by those that prefer the status quo, and with an emphasis on setting standards rather than getting everyone on board. This approach can be applied elsewhere as well, whether it’s stopping the bombardment of civilians or banning nuclear weapons. It won't be easy and it won't be possible just by using the existing mechanisms. We will have to invent new campaigns, use new meeting places, adopt new techniques and believe in what might seem impossible. But we know it can be done and we're determined to do it.
BS 16 | 79
Photo
Kamilla Bryndum Styling
Maria Barfod Model
Pamela Dos Santos / UNIQUE Make-up
Malene Kirkegaard / UNIQUE
LAND
Top - Moonspoon Saloon Trousers - Moonspoon Saloon Previous Page Hoodie – ACNE Coat – WoodWood Jewelry – Georg Jensen BS 16 | 81
Hat - Moonspoon Saloon All in one - Moonspoon Saloon
82 | BS 16
Shirt – WoodWood Skirt – Vibe Johansson Boots – PrimeBoots
BS 16 | 83
Dress – Louise Sigvardt Underwear – GANNI Gloves – WoodWood
84 | BS 16
Scarf – HERMÉS Top – WoodWood Jacket – ACNE
BS 16 | 85
Dress - Gina Tricot
86 | BS 16
Jacket – Maison Scotch Shirt – ACNE Bra – GANNI
BS 16 | 87
Music Reviewed
The Shrine Primitive Blast Tee Pee Records
How does rock and roll and skateboarding fit together? Let the Shrine educate you in the finer things in life. Check out their videos! Their live shows include dudes actually skating in the pit. Yes. Skating IN the pit. Back to the record, Primitive Blast is a lesson in pure speed, adrenaline, denim and skate rock filth. Do not expect a soft listening experience; expect carnage. All the classics are there; hints of Motörhead, the heavy drudge of Black Flag, the adrenaline of The Ramones. Everything you need. Skate and destroy! Y u m y u m s a i n t h a m i lt o N
Baby in Vain
Nonsens
Uffe
Machine Gun Girl Crab Salad Recordings
Mash Up The Place No label
Stræss Tartelet
download at: soundcloud.com/wearenonsens
Another young talent coming through from Denmark. Finding his feet as a resident in Amsterdam and keeping his contemporaries at arm's length with a sound that has grown into its own since his release on Cats & Dogs early this year. Stræss is anything but anxiety– funk and soulful house stylistics and the discipline to not crowd it all out but let it ride, making its own space as the tracks run. I like the weirdass 'Turbulence' with choir and piano. Tartelet continue to push the new from here, adding Uffe to the successes of Kenton Slash Demon and outlining the beginnings of a particularly local evolution in sound.
Pelle Peter Jensen
Fergus Murphy
Fine, you got me, I have sneaked a single in here. In my defence, I might be reviewing the music here but what I'm really doing is persuading you to go see them, live. You will never, ever, ever be the same again….I know I wasn’t: I have never seen girls rock so hard in my life. And believe me, as a retired punk label employee I have seen my share of rockshows. Three Danish girls, 16-19 years old, making stoner rock with a twist of grunge in the shape of jaw-dropping guitar riffs and combined dark screeching vocals - these girls are as badass as a girl can get. One of them also happens to put 90% of the rock guitar players out there to shame. My highest “Must see live” recommendation of 2012 .
C a r o l i n a Ec h e v e r r i
88 | BS 16
You already know that it’s a good record when there’s a huge pineapple on the cover. Just like the fruit, the sounds on this EP are pretty exotic. Moombahton without too many of those sounds that made dubstep sound like David Guetta. That is pretty cool, coming from three guys who grew up in a grey village on the island of Bornholm. It consists of three bangers that’ll tear pretty much any club down if played at the right time. The titles say it all – “Rudebwoi”, “Love” and “Go Low”. Pineapples are cool.
Tom Waits Bad As Me Anti Records
Many know the name, very few know the man, but how many really know his music? If Waits was one of the artists you always wanted to find what all the fuss was about and didn’t get around to it, Bad As Me is not a bad place to start. This fantastic growly poet of gypsies, intellectuals, libertines and drunks has pulled it off once again. His dark whiskeyed-up voice will lullaby you through his lustrous wordplay, his bar philosophy (How many times can you polish up a turd-) and his old kitchen bangin’ sounds. This album might be more mature, but in his own great style it remains brilliantly childish. There are beat and guitar driven tracks for the boys, and memorable ballads for us girls. There is really no excuse. C a r o l i n a Ec h e v e r r i
Broken Twin
Hold On To Nothing Broken Records
As the dark winter days crawl upon us it's time to return to candle lit early evenings and sparse and melancholic sounds of the north. And we don’t need to look any further than Copenhagen to find that Nordic artist with a celestial voice wrapped around penetrating lyrics, fragile pianos and delicate vocals worth your cold evenings. This 24 year old lady is my chosen contemporary to take on the baton from Under Byen, and my Danish pick as a musical response to Cat Power, Feist and Mazzy Star. Beautiful, haunting, and melodies worthy of a mastermind. Have a listen to this girl, and join Efterklang, Jens Lekman, and myself amongst others in the Broken Twin fanclub.
Kendrick Lamar
Turbonegro
Good Kid, m.A.A.d City Top Dawg, Interscope, Aftermath
Sexual Harassment Volcom Entertainment
There's two beats of Danish origin on this new album by Kendrick Lamar. One of them is a Boom Clap Bachelors bit - check the interview with Liv Lykke in here, and the other is Rune Rask & Troo.L.S with a 2 beats for the price of one offering on the incredible 'Art of Peer Pressure'. This only matters because the album is really that good. It comes with a classic cut to it. Simple and surprising, familiar from the first listen, lifestylin' intimacy, addictive tone and flow of words. Really good beats, cuts, skits and the start to finish cinema of storyboarded music. Fergus Murphy
Possibly the comeback record to end all comeback records, Sexual Harassment is the record no one expected. The challenges were many; with the departure of the iconic Hank Von Helvette to a Scientologyfunded rehabilitation clinic to combat heroin addiction, and the near loss of Euroboy, the ace guitarist who battled and thankfully recovered from Hodgkin’s disease, Turbonegro were certainly on the ropes. New vocalist Tony Sylvester fills Hank’s rather sizeable leather chaps admirably. The homo-erotically charged lyrics are just as hilarious, the subject matter just as offensive. Turn up your stereo, dig out the denim and get ready to step into darkness. Y u m y u m s a i n t h a m i lt o N
C a r o l i n a Ec h e v e r r i
Firehouse Sound
Bulut Loc
Skandaløst HvadEvigt Records
Trill! A genre that’s made on cough syrup and weed – two things that when mixed, make the world go by really slow. Getting high to this record must be like wearing 3D glasses at the movies. It doesn’t really give you that much extra but I guess it’s a bit cool still. In other words, you don’t have to inhale listening to Bulut Loc. The mood on this record is really laid back, a bit cocky and pretty strange in once. Like some of the early Outkast. But I like it! Fuck 3D glasses! Pelle Peter Jensen
Graveyard Light’s Out Nuclear Blast
Like a hammer to the brain, the second opus from Graveyard (yet another band straight out of Gothenburg) is a solid piece of work; Light’s Out sees Graveyard continue to knock out heavy hitting grooves and melancholy ballads. If anything, Joakim Nilsson’s vocal work seems stronger and more developed, carrying the songs fractionally further. The influences are plain to see, almost to the point where Graveyard could be accused of being a tribute band to 1970’s metal. But that would be incorrect. Light’s Out takes the traditions of metal’s super structure, delta blues, Birmingham grit, and a pitch black heart, and pushes into new and exciting territory. Y u m y u m s a i n t h a m i lt o N
Skrællet Og Klar – Firehouse Hits 2006-12 Maffi Promotions These days you can’t really turn on your radio without having Danish digital dancehall blasted into your ears. In fact, Denmark is the only country in the world where digital dancehall is considered pop music. And who’s to blame? Firehouse Sound! Back in ’06 they made the first ever Danish digital dancehall tune on a crappy laptop in a small college room. Since then, loads and loads have been made, and now Firehouse are behind the boards when Klumben, Raske Penge, TopGunn and co are selling out Store Vega and the likes. This mixtape is a collection of pretty much every track they made. From the early demos to the hits of today. Nuff bloodklat irie rewind pull up shabba lord have mercy’ing for 2012! Big up!
Lecherous Gaze On The Skids Tee Pee Records
I love Lecherous Gaze. Yeah, I said it. On The Skids is rapidly going down as my all time favourite record of 2012. This is skate rock at its most filthy best. There are happy little nods to the primal roar of The Stooges, the brutality of Black Flag, and the catchy grooves of Thin Lizzy that, if you are into this kind of thing, makes On The Skids intensely listenable. Singer Zaryan Zaidi's throaty growl may not be to the tastes of the masses but in my humble opinion there are no low moments on this onslaught of a record; all killer and no filler from start to finish. Y u m y u m s a i n t h a m i lt o N
Pelle Peter Jensen
BS 16 | 89
UkeNdT kUNsTNer Hælervarer No label
This duo got their name (Unknown Artist) from loading their songs into iTunes, since their own names “Jens Ole” and “Hans” apparently weren't quite cool enough. But their sound definitely doesn’t lack coolness. This EP is without a doubt one of my favourite Danish releases this year. It’s 40% ASAP Rocky, 40% Drake and 20% The Weeknd with Danish lyrics. It’s apparently called “Hælervarer” (Stolen Goods) since the inspiration and samples are pretty obvious. But even though it’s easy to hear where they got their style from, I still love the outcome, which easily compare with their overseas relatives.
coNVerge
All We Love We Leave Behind Epitaph Records
I try to usually point out records that you might have missed in the enormous sea of album releases and not follow the schedules people jump on for newsworthy new music. However, there is an awesome new album by Salem’s dark children of brilliance that I couldn’t wait to write about, yes the almighty Converge have come out with their 8th album. Is it metal, is it hardcore, is it mathcore? It's Converge, that’s all you need to know. And it's brilliant! If furious, precise, unpredictable is what you are after, these 17 tracks wrapped around the singers glorious art is as good as it gets. Carolina eCheverri
download at: ukendtkunstner.dk
The weakerThaNs Left & Leaving G7 Welcoming Committee
This is the first album I listened to from this Winnipeggian quartet, and I have been an avid follower ever since, even more so as time passes by and my taste mellows. With Propagandhi pedigree behind them, they were one of pioneers of punk values clothed around beautiful, intricate and complex melodies that weren’t very musically “punk”. They are the punk scholars all grown up, and for grown ups. I know, I'm not selling this much to the young, but for those ones out there screaming for some ingenious and enlightened lyrics, matched in poetic shadowplay and all the attitude with a spoon extra of complexity these are the Canadians for you.
Tame imPala Lonerism Modular
Another one getting love in many places and again a case of Don't Sleep. This is Tame Impala's second album and it's really good. The joys of psychedelic rock released from history to run free, here and now today. Not the reinvention of the wheel but rather the carefee joy of watching it spin round with some new perspectives on how to make it roll and rock. 'Apocalypse Dream' is sing along gorgeous – the soaring vocals, rough beat and rising crescendo's ”everything is changing and there is nothing i can do/../Am I getting closer, Will I ever get there, Does it really matter.” Fergus MurPhy
Carolina eCheverri
Pelle Peter Jensen
kalama's QUarTeT
fraNk oceaN horisoNT
Second Assault Metal Blade Something is happening in that sunny town on the Swedish west coast called Gothenburg; something in the water perhaps? Who knows. Horisont are just the latest in a series of killer rock and roll bands that draw on a deep pot of 1970’s metal, fuzz-drenched guitars, and heavy stoner riff-age for a truly classic sound. This is Horisont’s second record and their best so far. The songs are catchy with thundering grooves and soaring vocals that sound like the bastard child of Robert Plant and Ozzy Osbourne. Take note: all songs are sung in Swedish and that is kick-ass.
Channel Orange Def Jam
If you're reading this you check reviews and probably already read a lot about this record. It's kind of huge and it's been out since July. Franks potential sexual orientation made bigger news somehow and might have caused you to skip the album itself, or you got distracted and missed the moment, or you've never heard of it and need to. Either way, don't for a moment think it isn't as good as so many reviews suggested. As someone somewhere else said 'in a crowded market the weak are lame'. Frank Ocean is strong. Tune in to Channel Orange. Fergus MurPhy
TerreNce diXoN
From The Far Future Pt.2 Tresor Tecno te kno tech no. Wonderful super duooper wiggle lash, wiggle lash, bam bam. Open. close. Thud thud. Dark dark bright. 12 years ago Terrence Dixon released 'From The Far Future' on Tresor Records, the Berlin based label and infamous Bunker club that has been such a prominent focus for techno in Europe. I missed that record back then but there was a lot going on. Now I'm standing still and this is part 2 and marvelous. The music ranges across a broad palette of technoid moments held together in one album, told in a single sitting. Inventive, rich, simple, sonic, musical and functional. An open door to another world.
y u M y u M s a i n t h a M i lt o n Fergus MurPhy
90 | BS 16
Early Hawaiian Classics Arhoolie Records
Now here is a little something more tropical, for those Sundays when the sunlight shines through your window, you are cranking up the heater and you can almost feel it's warm outside…or for when you just plainly have a massive hangover. It's relaxing, it's soothing and warm waves and girls in hulas is all that come to mind. You wont understand a word, but you don’t need to, you will be too busy surfing on the ukulele and steel guitar tunes from these gone Hawaiian masters. A hidden classic. Carolina eCheverri
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GIRLS — Girls are awesome in sneakers
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Girls are awesome when they forget to put a skirt on and just wear tights
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Girls are awesome when they spoil you with free refills at the bar
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Girls who eat spicier food than you are awesome
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Girls are awesome humming on their bikes
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Girls are awesome because they smell better than guys, even when they're sweaty 92 | BS 16
ARE — Girls are awesome in cute little boots
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Girls are awesome when they dare to stand out from the crowd
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Girls are awesome when they don’t bend for threats from childish bullies
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Girls are awesome when they’re bundled up and warm and cosy
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Girls are awesome when they knit you a scarf for your cold neck
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Girls are awesome when they hold a glance, turning it into a moment
AWESOME — Girls are awesome in heels
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Girls are awesome with boy’s haircuts
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Girls are awesome when they open up and show you their vulnerability
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Girls who sing and dance are awesome
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Girls are awesome mumbling in their sleep
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Girls are awesome when they smile at you while you’re both waiting for the light to change.
EINE STREETWEAR, S K AT E B O A R D I N G UND SNEAKER MESSE IN BERLIN J A N UA RY 16 — J A N UA RY 18 2 013
NEW HORIZONS ALTE MÜNZE, BERLIN / MITTE B R I G H T T R A D E S H O W. C O M
XVI
FIND IT. Bitchslap is available at fine establishments throughout Denmark and the following selected stores in Europe:
AMSTERDAM 290 Square Meters Waxwell Records Patta Carhartt Store Amsterdam Toms Skateshop Hotel V frederiksplein Brandstof citizenM hotels Concrete Concrete Image Store Black Sheep Road Blue Blood BARCELONA 24 Kilates Vallery
LONDON The Hideout Glass House Boutique Meet Bernard Good Hood Slam City Skates Covent Garden Slam City Skates Carnaby Street PARIS Colette Le Bouclard Ofr. Paris Starcow SWOM
BERLIN SOTO Civilist Motto Overkill Kauf Dich Gl端cklich Cool House Boarding Faster Pussycat Soma Writers Corner Berlin Snea-q Kreuzberganker Zebra Club Boarderlinie DUBLIN All City records
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Photographed by Lasse Kofod. Thanks to Pixie for the sheepskins and Per & his organic pigs at Per's Griseri.
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IMP A CT P RO TEC TIO N
BS 16 | 1