NOCTIS
ISSUE 1
Welcome to our first issue of Noctis. Thanks for stopping by and reading. By Doing this you are supporting the raw talent of our artists. We are here to give a platform for people to sing shout celebrate their work, previously unnoticed. Our first issue was hard to create and finding the right people to support is always hard, but with the wit and charm of our team we managed to produce something to be proud of, with features such as Soulwax, Oh My and Pete Carvell in music, and interview with designer Julian J Smith really sets the mark for thing to come from Noctis. Haunting Beauty is the theme, because we felt this encapsulated the feel for the A/W season upon us. It gave us a starting point for a magazine which will continue to grow. We have been lucky working with some amazing people through our first issue and hope to carry this on working with likeminded talent people in the future, as this pushes the boundaries furthering creativity. I would like to personally thank all of you for getting onboard with a raw idea and producing something beautiful. We welcome your eyes and ears to explore out first issue and hey if you like it get involved next time we our open to your creative input.
CONTRIBUTORS Editor
Dolly Dyer
Image makers Leoni – Blue www.leoni-blue.co.uk http://pointandshootforbeginners.tumblr.com/ Lily Bertrand-Webb http://www.lilybertrandwebb.com/ http://lilybertrandwebb.tumblr.com/ Kyoko Munakata http://kyokomunakata.com/ Montanta Lowery http://www.montanalowery.com/ Hannah Garrad http://hannahgarrod.tumblr.com
Louise Hisayasu http://www.louftenandshiba.com http://louftenandshiba.tumblr.com/
Pictures Holly Gooch http://www.hollymaeillustrates.com/ Kayley ann Witt http://www.kawcandraw.blogspot.com/ Dan Hillier http://www.danhillier.com/
Style Makers Sophie Monro – Pruett http://www.sophiemonropruett.com/ http://myleathersandfeathers.tumblr.com/
Katie Eleanor http://www.katieeleanor.com/ http://katieeleanor.tumblr.com/
Natasha Zoe
Joe Stephens http://www.photographyjoe.co.uk/ http://www.photographyjoe.co.uk/journal/
Dionne Lea Taylor http://babybattenberg.blogspot.com/
Words / Articles Hayley Meredith Greg Swaby Nikki Merrifeild Erin Davies
Beauty
Luisa Matsushita http://doesurmotherknow.tumblr.com/ Ross Cosgrove http://totally-over-it.tumblr.com/ Namiko Takemiya http://namiko-t.com/ Haruhide Ishizaki http://www.haruhideishizaki.com/
Becka Hussey – Image maker
http://beckahussey.com http://beckahussey.com/12666/-diary-of-a-hussey Becka ha s a penchant for the quirky & hilarious, and in her shoot for Noctis, she took her traveling mind across America to create these stunning quiet portraits of the city. Entitled Empty State the colors speak to the audience and create the atmosphere of empty space. Becka resides in Australia
Mariell Amelie – Image maker
http://www.mariellamelie.com/ http://www.ponygraph.blogspot.com/ Mariell originates from a small island in Norway, but now resides in London. We at Noctis choose to interview Mariell about her self-portraiture work, which draws the lines between fashion and fine art photography. Her simple motto is “Make cake not fire.”
Tom Hinton – Words
http://pumaparded.tumblr.com Tom studied modern literature at Goldsmiths, setting him up for interviewing pops new hip queens, OH MY. Tom finds himself sharing his time writing for music mag Mint Magazine and blogging random pictures from his travels through London, check out his blog for a true look on London life.
Christian Newman - Words
Uk based Chris took on the channelling of interviewing the first UK digital record label, Gash Digital, fronted by Pete Carvell. Also owner of Bad life records. Chris being new to the game wrote a great article for all are music heads out there be sure to check it out.
Livia – Drawings
http://www.liviaillustration.com/ Livia is a wonderful illustrator. We just knew she had to be featured in our first issue. Her work depicts fauna and flora fashion designs. She takes inspiration from what’s happening in fashion, and sometimes uses fashion as her drawing influence such as her pencil portrait of the Alexander McQueen’s birds dress. Livia resides in Paris.
Natasha Zoe – Stylist
Natasha was found due to her wonderful styling, Originally from San Francisco, she moved to New York city to pursue a creative career in fashion Styling. She has shadowed fashion director Kate Lanphear from Elle magazine, and has spend some time living in London studying at LCC. Natasha has a bright future in front of her and we at Noctis will welcome her back anytime.
CONTENTS
Nicolette
JULIAN J SMITH Transgender Generation BEAUTY OF SANITY Etymology
La Femmes EMPTY STATE MARIELL AMELIE
THE WITCHING HOUR
AUDACITY OF HOPE DAY S GOLDEN EPILOGUE
JUDY WU BOURGEOIS AND MAURICE OH MY KITTY COWELL LE CASTLE VANIA
SOULWAX PETE CARVELL DJ MEHDI
Nico
colette
Photograpy: Katie Eleanor
Model: Nicolette
JULIAN J SMITH
With a career that began with working for Roland Mouret and that has led to his own fashion range, as a young designer Julian J Smith already has a lot under his belt. Having designed stage costumes for the likes of Alison Goldfrapp and Beth Ditto, you can begin to see the far- reaching appeal Julian has. Factor in a commission for designing the staff uniforms of the hugely anticipated Westfield Stratford City shopping centre and you are convinced that Julian is an absolute success story when it comes to new challenges. His previous S/S11 collection combined gorgeous sherbet colours with bold prints as a nod to abstract expressionism, whilst his more recent designs show a darker, gothic influence. The identities of the collections are not intimidating, they are empowering – and this is part of Julian’s aim; designing wearable clothes for strong women. Just look at the clientele - Victoria Beckham is a fan and if Julian has it his way it won’t be too long before he’s designing for Grace Jones and Tilda Swinton. Bearing all of these huge achievements and ambitions in mind, we thought it was surely time to find out a bit more about what to expect from this stand-out home grown designer – and also what his taste in confectionary is. Naturally.
Since graduating from the Royal College of Art in 2002, you’ve been gaining momentum fast. Having worked for Roland Mouret, then launching your own fashion range and now with celebrities such as Diana Vickers, Mischa Barton and Victoria Beckham lining up to get their hands on your pieces, does it feel like you’ve made it or is this just the tip of the iceburg for you?
Flying saucers De Kooning sometimes painted with his eyes closed in order to capture the motion he wanted to depict in paintings more precisely; would you ever consider this as a productive way of working when designing? Or do you have any idiosyncratic methods of your own involving temporarily reducing your senses?
I feel like this is just the beginning . I hope to achieve much more . Developing ones own methods of creating/designing is really what its all about What does it feel like when people refer .... but I can’t say i’ve ever designed to your designs as the ‘Victoria Beckwith my eyes closed . ham’ or ‘Mischa Barton’ dress? Moment of flattery? Or sense of being overshadWhat are the main influences you take owed? from the likes of de Kooning and Picasso I feel its more like flattery . I think its good and their contribution to abstract expressionism? that the celebs picked up on my work . Is it important to have famous women wearing your clothes? In a pragmatic sense to gain more exposure or in an artistic sense to see what they bring to the clothes and what the clothes bring to their image in the public eye? Victoria Beckham in bright prints (though still contrasted with her signature sour look) can surely go down as an achievement ts important in terms of exposure and generating sales . But its certainly not the only way of gaining exposure and a name for yourself as a designer . The bright colours and patterns you use in your S/S11 collection you have referred to as ‘Sherbert de Kooning’. When it comes to confectionary, are you a Dip Dabs or Flying Saucers kind of guy?
I like mark-making , naive lines , contrasty graphics and bold colours . Your S/S11 collection you’ve described as having a great energy to it, in order to ‘cut away the greyness of urban living’. Your A/W11 is a darker affair – do you see it as a reflection of or a reaction to urban living? Or perhaps just a natural preoccupation with gothic films such as Sleepy Hollow (and/or Christina Ricci)? I had done bright colours for 3 seasons , and just wanted to try something a bit darker .. I was into Sleepy Hollow and Blair Witch at that time ...
How did it come about that you designed stage outfits for Beth Ditto and Alison Goldfrapp?
Well , i’m very open to many possibilities . Video , film , music videos .. i’d like to work with all of those actually .
It usually happens through connections within the industry ... a friend of a friend etc. knows you’re good at making clothes .... and it goes from there . Its a lot about ‘who you know’....
And what of your collaboration with Westfield Stratford City as the sole designer of the concierge team’s uniforms? You must’ve been inundated with staff thanks! Uniforms are historically the antithesis of creative individuality – how have you tackled this fashion dilemma?
Was it ever your intention to work alongside such strong women and does that encourage your interest in creating statement pieces for women?
Yes . I love to make and design thinking of strong memorable women ... Grace Jones , Bjork , Tilda Swinton. Do you prefer making ready-to-wear pieces for everyday usage or flamboyant stage costumes for one-offs? It changes . I normally prefer ready-towear , and doing collections , but right now , I prefer stage and costume work . I feel more free ... You’ve also worked with cabaret duo Bourgeois and Maurice in the past and are no stranger to the flamboyance of the drag scene – do you see yourself producing more outrageous pieces in the future? And how about dabbling in music too?
Yeah , uniforms are very restrictive .. they have to be practical , smart looking etc ... but as designers , we all have to face a brief to work within . its actually quite good to try to be creative within a tight brief . i’m happy with the results . The uniforms look good . An event where uniform will be strictly forbidden this year (unless of course it’s in the shape of Police Officers – thanks rioters) is Notting Hill Carnival 2011. How would you describe the ultimate Carnival outfit and who would you want to wear it? Grace Jones of course , wearing an enormous bin bag filled with glitter . She pops the bin bag and glitter goes all over everyone ! Fantastique !
Words By: Nikki Merefield Photo: Leoni Blue
Transgender Generation
A woman stuck in a mans body works her way through the city, aware that her secrets kept beneath her stylish ensemble and long silky black hair. Hair and make up done, she quickly gets dressed and makes her way onto the runway. Lights off, applause. The life of Jane is glamorous to those around her, who are envious of her achievements and fame. She can have money, success and power, but one little detail stops her from being who she truly is. A stylist, runway model and fashion icon in one of the largest metropolitan cities in the world; she still faces a lot of discrimination and difficulties in her day to day. At a young age, she knew she was different, often stealing her mothers dresses and putting on make up. With love for carnival- a time when anything and anyone are accepted, she got into designing. 18 years of self discoveryand a lot soul searching, she was strong enough to be herself, thinking, acting and dressing like a woman. Nowadays, she runs her own business- catering to the most diverse.
Transsexuals, different from transvestites and drag queens, usually suffer from GID – Gender Identity disorder at birth or a young age. Hormone therapy and sexual reassignment surgery are a few of the options transgender have, but most cannot afford it. Sexual reassignment therapy must be attended for months, sometimes years prior to the surgery- in order for the transformation to take place. It’s important for the inner self to accept their bodies, in order for them to be emotionally well after the change. Jane claims that nowadays, the majority accepts and even looks up to her, “it’s cool to be the girl with a dick”, but is this just another trend. Lea T, a famous Brazilian footballers daughter and Givenchy’s muse, has been the most iconic transsexual to date. She has come out in the past few years to raise awareness of her condition. She’s revolutionised the runway and beauty industry. Her transformation into woman has not been easyhormone treatment has her constantly feeling premenstrual.
Words: Louise Hisayasu Illustration: Kayleigh Anne Witt
On July 23rd this year a young woman died, alone in her apartment, at the age of 27. Tragic by any means: even more so because that woman was one of the most talented artists on the British music scene. I am talking of course of Amy Winehouse. Rumors soon spread about the cause of death, predictably making the assumption illegal drugs played a part. However toxicology reports have since shown there were no illegal substances in Amy’s system when she died. Perhaps a bitter sweet comfort to her family who supported her throughout her addictions, to know she was on the road to recovery. Although a multi award-winning artist, her career was so often over shadowed by media coverage of her troubled lifestyle. Branded ‘the voice of a generation’ her music spoke to people on a personal level. Its content honest, confessional and often self-critical with lyrics filled with emotion and passion. Which leads me to the question - would Amy have been as talented had she not been battling with demons?
Van Gogh wasn’t quite in his right mind when he lopped his ear off. More recently we saw Heath Ledger die from a lethal mix of prescription drugs after giving arguably the best and most unnerving performance of his career as the blatantly unhinged Joker in The Dark Knight. The role which led to his retrospective Oscar win. Comedian Sir Stephen Fry has had a life long struggle with manic depression – that’s what they used to call bi –polar before it infected Hollywood and they put it through a tinsel town re branding. Away from the mainstream singer Charles Haddon of Ou Est Le Swimming Pool committed suicide after a gig by climbing up a satellite mast and throwing himself off in front of a sell out crowd in August last year. All highly creative people, working in different fields, struggling with mental illness. What feels like a long time ago now, I fought and overcame my own battle, maybe not of the same magnitude as Amy’s, hers could be described as World War 2, while mine was maybe more like a tussle outside a fried chicken shop on a Saturday night. But it could have been much bigger had I said no, no, no when they tried to make me go to rehab. After medication, various stints of therapy and counseling, years later, the mood swings eventually evened out and I am at a point now I can genuinely say I am happy. HOWEVER happy does not always equal exciting. In fact it can be pretty boring at times – cue a series of ill advised hair cuts in a desperate attempt to spice things up!
You see when you have mental health problems you’re often in a state of heightened emotion where although the lows were an all-consuming, agonizing hell on earth. The highs can be exhilarating, stimulating and elating. I could sit and write for hours back then pouring my heart out in minute detail, now if someone asks me how I’m doing I just shrug and say “yeah I’m all right” because I really can’t complain, I have become complacent. The point I am trying to make is that, when you are in a state of mental instability it’s easier to draw on experiences and let them manifest themselves creatively because you have a whole wealth of emotions constantly oozing out of you, along with the copious amounts of alcohol you are likely to have consumed. You have to wonder, without the troubles and personal issues, would the people mentioned above have been able to achieve their potential as an artist? That is the haunting beauty of sanity, many people feel it is worth sacrificing in order to nourish their creativity…But not me.
Words: Hayley Meredith Illustration: Holly Mae Gooch
Etymology ILLUSTRATIONS BY LIVIA
La Femmes ILLUSTRATIONS BY DAN HILLIER
EMPTY Photograpy: Becka Hussey
Y STATE
MARIELL AMELIE How did your career in photography begin especially your interest in photographing yourself? I guess from growing up on a small island as an only child, I’ve learnt to appreciate and make the most out of my own company. I never looked at it as a career until I decided to move to London two years ago. Do you remember the first self-portrait you took, what were your impressions of those initial images? It’s a hard question. It started as a way to kill time and learn about photoshop. I think perhaps it just developed from taking stupid pictures to use on online networks, to grow in to a passion and hobby where I wanted to actually freeze a feeling rather than a face. My first self-portrait where I made an effort to actually create something special was in early 2006. What are the predominant moods and themes behind your work? I always end up taking self-portraits when I’m feeling down or think about something I would like to share with someone without telling them. I wouldn’t say there is a specific theme to all my self-portraits, I guess its more about the mood. Perhaps a bit cold and dark, at least its what I’ve heard from others. You grew up in Norway; did that help you grow creatively? Definitely. I grew up on a little island above the polar circle, as an only child. From our windows we see ocean for as long as the eye can reach. I have always liked sitting in the window-post just looking out and thinking about life. Sounds like a cliché, doesn’t it? ..but, for sure; inspiring and very relaxing. When shooting do you follow a strong narrative? I wouldn’t say so. I seldom plan my self-portraits. I just end up having this feeling I want to freeze and most often don’t know how. So I start by dressing up in a way that reflect the person I feel like at the moment, and than find a spot to shoot it at, and it all just rolls from there.
Your images mirage the edges of fashion and fine art - which inspires you more? You get inspired by everything you do and everyone you meet in life, and I guess I could say I’m not as interested in fashion as I should be nor in art. I do appreciate art as well as fashion, but I’m not obsessed with it and feel like I have to know all the ‘important’ names. When people ask what designers or artists I like, I never have an answer as I’m pretty shit with names anyways. I guess I just stumble upon art/fashion that I like and then get inspired without feeling I should. Do you feel you can get across your message more in your self-portraits than directing a model? Absolutely. I feel that my self-portraits and my other work are two completely different things. In self-portraits I can do 100% what I want to do. With my fashion work I need to think of others as well as try to make the model move as I want, although I often let my models do what is natural for them, as I want to capture the person I’m shooting as well. They are not just “hangers”. You have a dreamlike stillness to your work, what did you last dream about? Its funny you say that. I dream pretty much every night, and almost every day I remember what I have dreamt. I might get more inspired by my dreams than what I’ve always thought. My dreams are often very complicated and include so many people, creatures, places and feelings, so it’s hard to write down any specific dreams. I do often dream about flying and landing in a field though. 5 years ago I used to write a dream-diary, where I woke up in the middle of the night or early morning, to write down little notes to help me remember the whole dream later in the day. Do you have one idea you aim to communicate with your images? Not one specific idea, no. Did you ever consider doing anything different with your life? I wanted to be an actress when I was younger, and was quite active in the theatre until I was 17. I have never really thought too hard about what to do with my life. I know I will always do self-portraits, but who knows, I might live on a farm in three years milking cows instead of doing fashion photography. People change. Right now I have no plans of changing the route in my life, but you never know what’s next. What does self-portraiture mean to you? A lot. I guess it’s the only thing in life I’m absolutely sure I will have forever, and as long as I have that I will never feel completely lost.
Our issue theme is Haunting Beauty what do those words mean to you? For me it means something that you truly fall in love with. Something that is special and beautiful for you. Something or someone that is different from everything else you have seen before. What is your greatest love? Life. Is this an option? (I love so many people and so many things. I love being up late after everyone else has gone to bed. I love feeling appreciated. I love waking up and then fall asleep again. I love the feel and smell of fresh bed-sheets. I love eating Indian food. I love the sound of a cat purring. I love the morning-mists of November. I love how you can walk in a street in January and all you can hear is the crisp snow under your feet. I love the smell of ocean. I love silence.) What’s your cats name? My cat, that currently lives at my parents as I couldn’t take her to England, is called Luna. I also live with a cat here in London, called Poe. She is all white and fluffy like a little rabbit.
Photography by Mariell Amelie
THE WITCHING HOUR
Cece - Jumpsuit - Connie Tolan, Necklace - Urban Outfitters, Shoes - ‘oh you magical thing’ vintage Kara - Top and Skirt - Jade Bianca Anglin, Shoes - Topshop, Necklace - Urban Outfitters, Ring Urban Outfitters Agny- Dress - Julian J Smith, Socks - American Apparel, Shoes - Stylists own
Agny - Dress - Agatha Hambi Cece - Dress- Julian J Smith Kara - Jumpsuit- Alexia Jordan
Kara- Dress and Leather vest- Juliet Carmen Teknes, Cross Ring - Urban Outfitters Opposite Page: Same Outfit
Opposite Page: Agny - Dress/Jacket - Julian J Smith , Necklace - Stylists own, Boots - Beyond Retro This Page: Agny- Dress - Rebecca Hunt
Opposite Page: Cece- Dress - Julian J Smith This Page: Left to right Agny - Dress - Agatha Hambi, Kara - Jumpsuit- Alexia Jordan Cece - Dress- Julian J Smith
Opposite Page: Top Kara - Jumpsuit- Alexia Jordan Bottom: Agny- Dress - Jade Bianca Anglin, Necklaces - Mix of Urban Outfitters, Topshop and Stylists own Cece- Sheer jumpsuit- Rebecca Hunt, Bangles by Yorkshire Pearl, Choker‘oh you magical thing’ vintage, Shoes - Beyond Retro This page: Cece- Feather jacket - Hollie Willis (Black veil - Fabric from Ridley Road Market)
THE WITCHING HOUR Photograpy: Leoni Blue Stylist: Sophie Monro-Pruett Make up: Luisa Matsushita Hair: Ross Cosgrove Videographer: Joe Stephens Models: IMG models Agne Konclute Cece Yost Profile models: Kara Marshall
Agny- Dress - Jade Bianca Anglin, Necklaces - Mix of Urban Outfitters, Topshop and Stylists own
AUDACITY OF HOPE Photography by Montana Lowery Styling by Natasha Zoey
OPPOSITE: Dress-All Saints Briefs- American Apparel Necklace-vintage Boots-vintage
Jumper- TOPSHOP Leather shorts- topshop Tights- topshop Necklace- Valerie Rubinaccio (www.valerierubinaccio.com) Loafers- stylist’s own
Jumper-stylists own, Collar Necklace-vintage, Dress-topshop
Dress-vintage, Earrings-vintage, Socks-Topshop, Loafers-stylist’s own
DAY S GOLDEN EPILOGUE Photography by
Lily Bertrand-Webb
BOURGEOIS AND MAURICE
Just a few seconds in to the first track of Bourgeois and Maurice’s latest album ‘Shedding Skin’ I was all ready smirking uncontrollably and knew I was in for a pleasurable ride. Siblings George and Liv don elaborate costumes and take to the stage to become Beourgeois and Maurice, who through their cabaret act take you on a journey through a satirical commentary of modern life in an explosion of glitter, wit and lashings of eyeliner. With references to Jeremy Kyle and David Ike’s Lizard People teamed with toe tapping melodies, their songs are annoyingly catchy. Packed full razor sharp lyrics such as “Nostradamus did predict/ that Lady Gaga had a dick” or “save our soles I’m in a K hole/Volunteering to be disabled” songs are laugh out loud funny, and if you don’t agree… its more than likely you’re a Lizard Man. Here’s what they had to say when we caught up with them… Your act has been described as ‘Neo Cabaret’ how would you best describe your act? We don’t really know what neo-cabaret means. I guess it’s just a prefix to distinguish the new wave of cabaret from more ‘traditional’ forms that are still performed and possibly have more in common with the cabarets of the 20s and 30s. Although we actually think we’re doing precisely what those prewar time artists were doing, which is talking about current issues in a way that reflects the modern world around them. Sometimes we’re described as musical comedy, social satirists...any of those terms are fine by us! We prefer the term cabaret to comedy because, to be honest, we don’t always want to make people laugh.
How did your act come about? Did you always want to be Cabaret artists? No, it was really an accident. We both studied theatre, ended up doing jobs we hated and decided to write a few songs to vent our frustrations. We performed them for one night at a cabaret club in Soho, not because we had much interest in cabaret but because it was the simplest way of putting the songs in front of an audience. As luck would have it Time Out were there and wrote about us, and we got booked again and then suddenly four years flew past... Your on stage costumes are pretty spectacular, who comes up with the costume design? We’ve worked with a couple of labels Julian J Smith has designed the majority of our outfits and design duo Fanny & Jessy have designed some others.
Your songs are a satirical look on life, where do you get your insparation?
What was your school experience like?
How does an act evolve and come together?
We fight like brother & sister sometimes, but most of the time it’s almost like we’re friends.
Did you go to stageschool or normal Life! The peculiar habits and rules of hu- school? Both went to ‘normal’ school. man beings. George was the stereotypical skinny sport-hating teenager with a penchant Who writes the songs or is it a joint for eyeliner and Camden-market accesprocess? sories, so a large part of his school career was spent either hiding from teachTotally 50/50 process. Sometimes one ers in the library or scratching the lyrics of us comes up with a grain of an idea from Suede songs into his pencil case. in the shower or walking down the He doesn’t miss it. Liv was a massive street (humming offensive lyrics out loud geek and spent most of her time trying is a sure-fire way to guarantee a free to pretend to be cool, but ultimately seat on the bus). Then we work on it failing. She’s at a point in her life now together, and they often change after where she is comfortable enough to adwe’ve performed them a few times. mit that maths was one of her favourite Sometimes we scrap them all together! subjects. Deal with it. Things that can seem wise and witty in a rehearsal room after a few coffees, You are brother and sister, whats it like doesn’t always come across that way working with family? Any sibling rivalon stage! ry?
We can’t speak for every act because everyone’s different but it’s been a Who inspires you? gradual process of learning along the Depends on who’s on the cover of Heat way. There’s no real training for this every show teaches you something new. this week. Where did you grow up? We haven’t.
If you had to go on Jeremy Kyle/Jerry Springer what would the title of the show be? We Killed Our Parents With A TV Aerial But It Was An Accident And Now We Don’t Have A TV :(
If there was one song you wish you had wrote, what would it be? George- Queen of Denmark by John Grant. Liv- Rock n Roll Suicide by Bowie. Ed Miliband, David Cameron, Nick Clegg - Snog, marry, avoid? Marry David Cameron - bring him down from the inside. Snog Ed, because in politician terms he’s practically David Gandy, avoid Nick. If you could swap lives with anyone in the world who would you choose and why? George- I’d swap with Boris Johnson. Not because I’d much like to be him, but I’d LOVE to see him arse around a stage in a pink gimp suit for a night. It might be easier to take him seriously. Liv- Liberace. I’d book in a recording session for that day and lay down some piano tracks, which upon returning to my own self, can claim are all my creation. We’ve got similar hair, so I don’t think anyone would notice. If you had to chose between a life without lipstick or a life without eyeliner, which one would you chose? Ditch lipstick. Blood is just as effective. If you were playing for the Queen what would be on your rider? A tank of petrol and a match. words Hayley Meridith photos: Joe Stephens
Oh My! There are certain artists that you expect stories of audience members covering their ears because it’s gotten a bit much, be it Boyd Rice and his brand of noise warfare or G.G Allin and his raucous brutality, Oh My! are slightly more surprising for it to have happened to. Dainty stage school pop kids while not everyones cup of tea rarely cause this kind of extreme reaction. It’s been happening though, but only because they’ve been touring schools and some of the younger ones cant deal with the volume yet. A school tour is hardly the usual route to stardom but it seems to have been something the girls have enjoyed, they remark on the fact that if the teachers are herding the pupils into an assembly hall specially you’ve at least got a guaranteed audience but then you also end up finding yourself conversing with people of an age that means they’ve yet to develop a civility filter, all you get is honesty, something at the same time refreshing and alarming. “They manage to tell you the truth even if they dont know that they’re telling you the truth”. I’d also imagine the teachers frowned on lyrics like “I’ll skip school today, spend it with you, i’ll show you a naughty thing to do” but they’re planning on going back and doing another round of educational
establishments so it cant have gone too badly. While still young themselves Alex and Jade have been on the path towards pop success for a while now, they’ve been performing in various ways since about the age of three, not a case of pushy parents and behind the scenes machinations luckily. Just the fact that as like most people at a young age there was a need to occupy them and so parents “ put you in a sport or send you swimming or something and for me it just happened to be dancing, I mean most little girls do but its up to you if you continue it or not” and they simply have ended up continuing. Originally the pair know each other through a performing arts school in Leeds, a year apart but geographical circumstance meant they ended up sharing a lift, up and down the M1 with Alex’s ipod wire not working and so having to rely on whatever came on on Heart to keep them entertained. Jason Derulo’s “Riding Solo” becoming a fixture of these journeys, I got treated to a few lines of the song after they told me this and it happened a few other times when songs were mentioned, Alex in particular seems prone to these musical outbursts. In terms of their own tastes there is a reasonable degree of a
seperation, Jades a big garage fan while Alex has a love of old Motown tracks. They put on a monthly night in Shoreditch, where the disparity in tastes can come through. Obviously these nights draw quite a different crowd to the school shows, a sign of the breadth of people who are coming around to Oh My’ glossy pop. The production on the tracks is coming from quite a few different places, a lot of its coming from Example but they’ve also been spending time working with people ranging from Futurecut to the Cock’n’bull Kid. There’s also been quite a few remixes of the tracks they’ve already done, quite sweetly the girls say that some of them they only even find out about when they’re playing around on youtube. Still a long way from becoming jaded by the industry, its all still new and exciting at this point. “You dream about it from when youre a litte girl but never actually think its going to happen’ . Well it certainly seems to be happening for them now. Words: Tom Hinton Photography: Hannah Florence Garrod
INTERVIEW: GREG SWABY PHOTOGRAPHS: B.B MANIK
Q&A
KITTY COWELL For those of us out there not keep an ear and eye on the sounds coming out of Cardiff, who are you and what are you about? My name is Kitty Cowell and I am a female musical artist. My music crosses rap, electro and dubstep influences to create the Kitty Cowell sound. I am basically a female rapper/song writer but ‘rapper’ sometimes leaves a bad taste in peoples mouths so I like to open with something of a slightly wider catagory! I write lyrics and infuse them with music produced by lots of interesting people, I love working with different producers so I can bring a different vibe to my sound on every track. My music definately has a dance vibe and I certainly dance around / run around when I perform. You’ve toured and supported with some big names so far, who’s next in your sights? Well I think it would be sick to play shows with Foreign Beggars, Skrillex, Kid Sister or Uffie. I have always wanted to tour with/play some shows with Hadouken too, we’ve done a show together but they were just DJing and their live dates go off! I honestly put my all into getting crowds dancing when I’m opening for another act so you won’t be let down if you book me!!! (hint hint!!) ;-) What does the next 12 months hold in store for Kitty? I have been demoing and recording with a lot of different people.
I’ve been spreading my vocal seed via alot of collabs so hopefully they will all start trickalling out and you’re ears wont be able to get away from me! I want to collab with more and more people so expect collabs galore, but with collabs it’s upto the other people to release them so all I can say is expect me to be working hard on collabs and hope they will come out soon! I’ve got a new EP out ‘COME ROLL WITH ME’ and 2 videos form it so far. I’m going to film another video for a song from this EP and then I’m guna drop more new material! So expect LOTS of material from me over the next 12 months and lots of press in mags and blogs becuase I’ve been working my ass off. Also expect videos and some shows! Nightmare situation, your house is on fire, you’ve got to save three items, what do you grab? In the theory that all my loved ones are out and safe; My laptop becuase if I lost my phone my laptop can back it up anyway... and unfortunately I am completely attached to both! My hard drive full of my music, and my Hello Kitty red rucksack because not only will I not be able to find it again because I’ve had it years but also it was a present from my mama.
The Streets basically made me want to rap. I hear the rap was just poetry and I won a lot of compet comfortable with that medium already. The Street being gangsta and you didn’t have to be a certain
Your style is very distinctive, and will we be seeing
I studied Fashion Design at Uni and have already my site under the “merch’ section. When was the moment when you realized this I have been focussing way more on my music than focus on my music and get it the attention it deser is what you want to do? But I most definately want to use my design abilitie rate with companies on ‘KC’ lines and pieces and Gosssshhh probably when I was stood on a Robot on characters and figures. I collect vinyl toy stage of a packed venue in a rap battle dewatches and would love to design some! feating every grown man there when I was 17. I kind of felt empowered and it was pretty Do you feel your music/sound having a wide rang exciting. opening dub fans to hip-hop and so forth?
Who has been your biggest influence on your My music taste is very wide and I listen to all kind career? thing,’ I know exactly what I like but my taste is in
I definately think that shows in my music and it inspires me to write my music. Since I have been living in South Wales for nearly 5 years I have played shows with so many genres of bands/artists as there is a huge ‘band’ scene here. People put me on with rock bands and metal bands experimental electro acts and some how it usually manages to work well! I have had a lot of expereinces where metal heads come up to me amazed that they liked my set. My goal was always to open up genres and stereotypes and it seems to be working so I definately think it is an advantage Your very open about your dyslexia and your struggle with it but you thrived with art and music; do you see yourself as a role model for others?
Wow I mean It’d be great if I could help other people with dyslexia and influence them to follow their dreams and I hope I am a good role model. rd Mike Skinners lyrics and he made me realise I don’t know if I am well known enough yet to titions as a child with my own poems so I felt be seen as a role model but somoene told me ts also made me realise that rap wasn’t just about the other day I had been used on a flyer as a n colour or from compton to be able to rap. dyslexia role model which is mad! I definately want to help kids with dyslexia g KC clothing line anytime soon? as I know how much it can effect peoples lives; I don’t think people really understand y designed my own stuff which can be found on it enough and if kids don’t get the right help it can really effect them right through to the n fashion design lately though as I want to fully choices they make in later life. rves. es again in the future. I would LOVE to collaboYou’re a fan of Japanese music and culture. d would really love to work with people like Kid But which is it, Yo! Sushi or Wagamama? ys and plushies, I also collect shoes, bags and
ge of influences is of an advantage to you?
ds of genres. I am not a person who likes ‘everyn no way limited to one genre.
YO SUSHI EVERYTIME! Yeah don’t get me wrong I love Wagamama too but no sushi?
LE CASTL
LE VANIA
Hi Dylan you are constantly on tour so how has it been touring? I love it! I feel really fortunate to be able to make a living doing doing something i am really passionate about, getting to travel and play my music around the world and also having the opportunity to share and connect with so many people in celebration! it’s really amazing. Of course it does get to be a bit grueling from time to time but it’s always worth it in the end!
Aside from that i think i have adapted my sound by really starting to broaden my sound. I do some stuff that is really banging and heavy, some stuff that is really chill and more disco, some stuff that is more indie and rocky sounding... for me mixing it up make music more fun. You run the massive party in Atlanta “Fuck Yesss” can you explain what the party is all about?
Honestly FUCK YESSS is one of the craziWhat is the music scene currently like in est parties on the face of the planet! the US? I’m not just saying that because it’s my party... i’ve DJed on ever inhabited Hmmm i don’t know really... i don’t recontinent on the planet so i have defially pay to much attention to the “Music nitely seen some crazy parties but the scene” i suppose it’s working out alright FUCK YESSS crowd seriously brings some for me. i definitely get the sense that the amazing energy every single time! There electronic music scene is continuing to are literally people hanging from the ramp up and grow in popularity which is ceiling and crowd surfing and just basireally cool. cally going ape shit the entire time! Talking of how long you have now been working writing and touring. How do you think you have adapted your style as dance music has changed? Well i am definitely always focusing a lot of time and energy on always raising the bar as far as the sound quality and fidelity of my music. As i have grown as an artist i’ve started to play at bigger and bigger venues with bigger and better sound systems. As a DJ i don’t think there’s anything better than the feeling you get when you play a new tune out for the first time on a big system and it just really goes off and sounds really good and you get to watch all the ppl go crazy for it!
You have remixed the likes of Ce-Lo Green. How did that come about? Cee Lo and i are both from the same home town of Atlanta. We met through some mutual friends. I’ve been a fan of Cee Lo’s work since back in the day when “Closet Freak” came out. He really liked my work so when the “Fuck You” single dropped and started getting a buzz he asked me to do the only official remix for it which was obviously a big honor for me. What Influences you as an Artist? I take influence from all over really, i obviously take a lot inspiration from indie rock and heavy rock music as well as
disco and various types of electronic music. We constantly see that you may be collaborating with artists in the studio.. who have you collaborated with and how did it come about?
I haven’t set any hard rules for the label. i just plan on releasing music that i like and think is good. The only thing i know for sure is that i don’t just want to release a bunch of Le Castle Vania knock offs or artist that try to emulate my sound. What would you say to young artists.
I just did a seriously mental track with Johnny Whitney, formally the singer of an really cool band called Blood Brothers. I basically just reached out and told him that i was a big fan of his work and sent him the demo i had recorded of the track, he came up with some lyrics and ideas that we were both feeling and then i flew to seattle and we tracked out the vocals just a few days ago! I really can’t wait to finish the final mixdown done so i can start letting ppl hear this one! Who else would you like to collaborate with?
Stay original! There are so many artist coming out everyday and so much music out there for ppl to discover. If you really want to stand out you have to develop your own thing and your own sound and not just follow the current trends... the artist that cling to trends like that always seem very disposable to me and never seem to last long. Finally, whats next for Le Castle Vania and Always Never?
i’ve been working on a release of all new original tracks that is getting pretty Cedric the singer of The Mars Volta. As close to being ready for release. aside far as electronic music goes i would from that i also have several gnarly have to say Soulwax would be a top remixes getting ready to drop, Includchoice of mine for sure. ing a remix that i have done for John Lord Fonda’s track “Sound of a Melody” dropping on Vitalic’s label Citizen ReHow did Always Never Records come cords, A remix for Kaskade’s next single about? “Turn It Down” which will be coming out on Ultra Records as well as a Remix for I created Always Never as an outlet song called “Roulette” by a duo called to release my music with out giving up Split & Jaxta that i am putting out on control to a third party label and to my record label Always Never Records share good cool new music with my fan (www.alwaysnever.com) aside from that base and following and to help cool art- i also have the Awake Remixes release ist that i like get their music out there! dropping at the end of this month on Always Never records which will feature You have been releasing other records various remixes of my single “Awake” by on Always never with the likes of Rrrump Evol Intent, South Central, J.Rabbit, and what sort of sound your looking to adopt FreeFire. for your label? WORDS: ERIN DAVIES
Q&A PETE
E CARVELL
GASH DIGITAL / BAD LIFE Starting at the start; when did Gash Digital materialize as a label and what was the original ethos? I put the first Gash Digital release was back in 2008, Deluka’s ‘Ike & Tina’. I was DJing as part of DJ duo called Gash DJ’s at the time (With Jim Damentalist), we’d just come to the end of our Ibiza Rocks residency and Deluka were a band we’d had our eyes and ears on for a little while, we’d played a couple of gigs alongside them and became friends, it all made sense to offer to put out a record for them, and that remix package featured Arveene & Misk, Fabian (Who has recently blown up), Jim and myself under our Gash DJ’s guise and our good friend Suxx. It get’s frustrating when you listen to stacks of unsigned music that deserves more attention on a daily basis, I think that provided the intial drive to set up a record label. As a DJ much of your pleasure comes from sharing records you love with people, I suppose setting up a record label is a natural progression. Instead of simply sharing your records with a dancefloor, a record label allows you to share records with the world. Back then the business side of things wasn’t even a consideration, it was all purely for the love of the music. A lot of new labels are emerging with this strict avoidance of genre pigeon-holing. In some cases, this perhaps spawning from a label’s need to differentiate their output from that of some heinously static dub-step labels or perhaps to keep up with dance music’s period of entropy and hybridization. Does this apply to Gash?
I like to think that Gash Digital was one of the very first digital labels to adopt a true ‘love music, fuck genres’ attitude. That attitude was our tagline as the Gash DJ’s at the time. These days I don’t really think about it, if I love something I’ll put it out without paying a second thought to the genre. There were no shortage of labels mixing it up a bit, but we started putting out electro, indie, techno, house, disco and dubstep all under the umbrella of one release, everyone is doing that now. Its an essential part of many labels marketing strategies. These days the process is very much... love a record or act, sign the record or act, ask some friends and respected artists to jump on board and remix, I don’t really give it much thought, I think the label output simply reflects my broad taste. What acts can we look forward to hearing on Gash and where do they fit genre-wise? There is certainly a lot of variety on offer over the coming months! At one end of the spectrum I’d like to be doing more with Hybu and Roby Howler (Hybu makes two step/garage/broken beats, whilst Roby is pioneering a very tropical house sound), Coin Operated Boy has a new EP on the way, I’ve got a housey debut from Dan Neon and then at the other end of the spectrum the label has the likes of Night Symmetry (A tag team made up of Teen Symmetry and Nightbreaker, who make some awesome 3am worthy pounding future techno). Expect a remix package packed full of hot future tips for those guys. On the bands front we’ve got more to come from Jukebox Collective as we begin the second wave of marketing for them and I’ve just very recently bought on board a promising young band from Leeds called G.O.L.D. who I’m working on with
Gavin McLaughlin (Previously of Gash Digital’s Robot Disaster and now Frenetics). All this coupled with the usual extensive list of remixers means there is a lot to look forward too before Christmas. Where do your own productions and remixes fit and are you cooking any plans regarding releasing? I always have to have a bit of a laugh to myself when I get asked this! I wish I was capable of giving a straight answer. Whenever I look at the amount of unfinished projects on my hard drive I have a word with myself. I really need to get my act together and spend some solid time providing a bit of production polish to a few tracks. That all said, I think I’ll be making my remix debut on the forthcoming Gash Digital release of Roby Howler’s ‘Flute Boys and Girls EP’ alongside remixes from Hickup, Rishi Romero, Maxim Lany and Boogaloo. This being your second swing of the labelbat, how does the maintenance of Gash Digital compare with Bad Life? Russell (Autokratz) would tell you that there is always plenty of ‘maintenance’ involved in any situation that’s involves a bottle of Jack Daniels, David (Autokratz) and myself. At Gash I don’t get to share the bottle of Jack Daniels with David, so can only hold myself to blame. On a more serious note I’m constantly learning the ins and outs of running a label and there is still a hell of a lot to learn, Russell and Bad Life have certainly helped accelerate that learning process. investment and organisation.
Economically speaking, are you finding that spreading attention across more than one label is helping with the cash flow? Bad Life and Gash are two separate entities entirely. Whilst comparisons are unavoidable, Bad Life is very much the older, wiser relative both in terms of it’s artists, investment and organisation. On that topic, is the reason behind your digital only concept purely economic? Are you sad to see the physical release becoming more exclusively associated with major labels? Such decisions are driven by the market, unfortunately very few people buy vinyl and nobody buys CD singles anymore. It is hard enough to sell tracks digitally, vinyl is an even more challenging venture. Albums are still worth doing a physical run of of course and at Bad Life we have also just done a great limited 7” vinyl run for our new signing Dems, but that’s purely for the love, not the money, it’s always a great feeling to have a piece of vinyl in hand and it’s great for them to be able to sell at their gigs and showcase their art. Where do you see Gash Digital this time next year? I imagine I’ll be sunning myself beside the swimming pool of my third home in a world where underground music has taken centre stage, counting my millions and discussing holiday plans with a beautiful girlfriend. Aaah, wait, no that was just a dream. In reality Gash will continue to build upon the reputation it has for supporting new artists and music whilst having a damn good time along the way.
Interview by Christian Newman Photo by Leoni Blue
DJ MEHD
DI
DJ Mehdi’s current global illumination under tragic circumstances shows consistent recognition from artists and fans of his rare ability to demonstrate talent and humility in equal measures. The French-Tunisian producer’s roots were firmly stuck in early 90’s French Hip-Hop projects such as Ideal J. Subsequently, his career then formed as the pursuit of a rich path of interest through countless cultural influences and his journey lead to him being integrated into the core of the Ed Banger family. Mehdi carved his niche through blending production techniques from every conceivable category of dance music and Hip Hop and the success of his work always lay in his ability to hybridise musically whilst managing to ensure that listeners knew they were hearing something new. On the one hand, cutting up jazz-piano motifs and trumpet solos in a similar vein to the likes of DJ Premier and J Dilla and on the other, layering them above the thick and weighty acoustic and electronic drum samples that became the audible flag of Ed Banger’s sound Mehdi managed to get nods from a diverse range of fans, all of whom holding love for good music in common. On the back of a broad spectrum of remixes stretching from Zombie Nation to Asian Dub Foundation, a global reputation for delivering deeply rich DJ sets and success in synergising with Busy P in hosting a massive monthly night at Pulp in Paris, Mehdi released Lucky Boy in 2006. The album stands as a prime example, in title and in content of his attitude to handling success and explains the level of respect and gratitude he has been given.
Words By: Chris Newman
THANK YOU Thanks for reading the first issue of Noctis Magazine. It has taken a couple of months hard work with some great people from all around the world. We have missed deadlines, drank alot and stuggled at times but now it all seems worth it now. You are at the end. Don’t you agree? Although now finished with Issue 1 we are already taking our next steps towards Issue 2. We are looking for contributors to join in on our journey. If you are intrested drop our editor an email dolly.noctismagazine@gmail.com We will see you soon. Noctis
Photograph by Valarie Chiang