Status 10 - Photo Issue - feat. Brooke Nipar by STATUS Magazine

FEAT. 2 The iconic Lazy Boy logo signifies self-assurance and comfort with being different and standing out from the crowd.

FEAT. 3 The sole combines functionality and incredible attention to detail.

FEAT. 1 Grassy footbed gives you a cushy stride.

The Urban Safari Mark

The Urban Safari range is our collection of everyday essentials for exploring the city. We fuse the latest footwear manufacturing techniques and technologies with old school and modern designs that are simple, unique and set us apart from what’s already available on the market. Our iconic “Lazy Boy” logo signifies our self-assurance and comfort with being different and standing out from the crowd

The Universal Traveller mark

Universal Traveller is our rugged, robust and hardwearing range designed for apres-outdoors and adventure travel, we use premium, rich full grain leather and protective features to get you where you need to be. Looking at the end use of each style, we’ve turned the benefits and features required into bold design statements,such as the signature oversized protective toe bumpers and multi-directional sole grip.

The Coastal Supremacy mark

Drawing on inspiration from board sports, surfing, skate and coastal living, the Coastal Supremacy range is our most innovative line of sandals and sneakers. The intelligent line of footwear utilizes new materials and fabrics and incorporates quick drying properties and use of natural components.

Voyager

Mia Breeze

Vinyl Frontier

Stylus II Gold

Manuka Fearless

Manuka Strip

Available at R3 Bridgeway, Power Plant Mall; 5th Level Shangri-La and 3rd Level Trinoma.

Just point...

The effortlessly smart Canon Digital IXUS 200 IS Touch

PLUS

On top of a FREE 3-year warranty*, enjoy a 4GB SD Card, Camera Case, Belle de Jour more premium items Lifestyle Planner* OR Timex with every purchase of Canon Digital IXUS Cameras ! Ironman iPod Watch* when you buy a Digital IXUS 200 IS Touch!

and shoot!

Advanced Smart Auto

Motion Tracking

HD Movie

Touch AF with face detection 24mm wide angle lens

200 *Promo runs from October 1 - December 31, 2009 only. Redemption period is until February 28, 2010. To claim freebies, log on to www.canon.com.ph or call (02)884-9000 for more details. Per DTI NCR No. 5224, Series of 2009.

STATUS MESSAGE

Photo by Ryan McGinley

Photo by Brooke Nipar

AUTO FOCUS

ome say that a photograph not only captures the moment but also the photographer’s true self—one photo that can reveal who you are, expose your thoughts, and inspire those who view you work. This Photo Issue features the artistic souls behind some of the most fanciful and surreal portfolios we’ve seen recently. We tapped the gifted Brooke Nipar to lend her talent for our cover. Her mix of sexy, mysterious, and provocative imagery has given her a badass reputation in the fashion and music scene. Shutterbug Anouck Bertin creates a whimsical, quirky world of fashion fantasies and adolescent dreams. Her photos certainly contain an Alice-In-Wonderland quality to it—innocent, fun, and with a touch of girly-ness. We were able to pin down Ryan McGinley for an amazing interview about growing up in a skate/graffiti/music scene and exhibiting at the Whitney. His portfolio shows versatility and great range but our favorite photos are when his subjects are running around carefree (and naked). Another man that’s hard to get a hold of, Timothy McGurr aka 13th Witness, is producing some of the most electrifying images we’ve seen to date. We have a suspicion that he is a superhero whose special powers allow him to see reality in Technicolor. This issue marks the culmination of an amazing year and gives a taste for more things to come next year. It only seems like a few months ago when we were staying late nights putting together our first issue, but STATUS has definitely grown and evolved. We just added a new section called Photo Diary both in the magazine and online, which showcases cool photos of young talented photographers. We also expanded our Statusphere reviews section and have solidified the pages of Brick and Mortar, which highlights stores and boutiques around the world. We are now distributing in 5 other countries as well as increasing our reach with the digital magazine. With this growth and rise of STATUS, the more we treasure every word we type and every page we layout and give this issue as a gift to you. Cheers! -STATUS TEAM

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Photo by 13th Witness

status issue 10 ...is cross processed

Statusphere

Tech Pack

Swag

Ignition

99 38

Phoenix

STATUSPHERE...................................19 SUBCULTURE....................................23 BEATS.........................................24 SCREEN........................................25 INK...........................................26 IGNITION......................................28 TECH PACK.....................................29 ABOUT FACE....................................30 BRICK & MORTAR................................32 GO-SEES.......................................34 SWAG SHIRTS........................................38 SHOES.........................................40

Brick & Mortar

52 48 Status Invades

WATCHES.......................................42 ACCESSORIES...................................43 BAGS..........................................44 PUMPS.........................................45 GLASSES.......................................46 CHAMPAGNE.....................................47 JUJIIN SAMONTE................................48 DJ VIRMAN.....................................50 PETER BJORN AND JOHN..........................51 PHOENIX.......................................52 K-OS..........................................53 METRO STATION.................................54 BOYS NOIZE....................................55 PLUS/MINUS....................................56 CORPORATE LO-FI...............................57 NEW BOYZ......................................57

status issue 10 ...is cross processed

Levi Maestro

Anouck Bertin

PAMELA LOVE...................................59 Photo Diary LEVI MAESTRO..................................60 Night Vision KERIN ROSE....................................61 MARLON pecjo..................................62 U92 DOLLHOUSE LAUNCH..........................92 JIM GRECO.....................................63 KATY PERRY AFTER PARTY........................93 MANGORED......................................64 MTV MASQUERADE................................94 DREWFUNK......................................65 LITTLE DRAGON SECRET SHOW.....................95 MANSION LAUNCH................................95 TELEPOPMUSIC..................................96 PHILIPPINE FASHION WEEK BY CHOLO DELA VEGA....66 ENCORE LAUNCH.................................96 MOCA MADNESS..................................97 TOKYO POTLUCK.................................97 TIMOTHY MCGURR AKA 13TH WITNESS...............68 RYAN MCGINLEY.................................74

MELODY EHSANI.................................100 BROOKE NIPAR..................................80 ANOUK BERTIN..................................88

STATUSMAGONLINE.COM

Blogsphere Be on the pulse of fashion, music, design and anything that tickles our fancy through our community of bloggers worldwide.

ith the press of a button, our cover photographer Brooke Nipar can take gorgeous up a notch. One look at this photo of our cover— the girl seducing with magenta lips and applered nails, imposing with a glittering black officer’s hat, kitschy with the rainbowstreaked Elizabethan makeup, and rough with the wrist tattoo—and you’ll see what we mean. Brooke’s talent to bring glamor and edge to a photo was exactly what we needed for this issue.

Go Sees Look to the streets for your fashion inspiration. From Manila to New York, we spot the stylish kids trotting the globe.

Night Vision Your personal pass to pool parties, barbecues, festivals and events. Now let’s party! Photo Diary A photo is worth a thousand words, so we decided to find out what these talented photographers have to say. Digital Magazine Get STATUS at a click of your finger. You can browse the full digital format magazine at the comfort of your computer.

Photographed by Brooke Nipar

CONTRIBUTORS

TOFF DE VENECIA

Aside from geeking out on comics and Broadway, Toff works as a marketer and writes a weekly newspaper column. He remembers an old photo of himself licking a bowl of instant spaghetti clean, which is just how he is today— happy and perpetually hungry. He interviewed photographers Anouck Bertin and 13th Witness, the latter he watched sunset with at Union Square.

EDITOR IN CHIEF Rosario Herrera ART DIRECTOR Revo Naval ASSOCIATE EDITORS Victoria Herrera Nante Santamaria MARKETING DIRECTOR Jon Herrera ASSOCIATE MARKETING DIRECTOR Mesh Villanueva ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE Maita Baello GRAPHIC DESIGNERS Patrick L. Jamora Nicole Bianca Po EDITORIAL ASSISTANTS Tracy Collantes Kristine Dabbay Raydon L. Reyes

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MARTIN ARNALDO

Martin is busy shooting TV commercials right now, but he can’t wait to get back into fiction. No wonder he went back to Joseph Conrad when we asked him in STATUS Screen to tell us about his favorite movie Alien (1979). In 2001, he had this photo shooting with a Panavision 500 in Paris, a big leap from his first camera—a simple Nikon FM he used on his friends in Boston.

INTERNS Krystel Coling LA Laguna CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Sarah Meier-Albano Martin Arnaldo Mario Banzon Francis Cabal Nathaniel Dela Cruz Twinkle De los Reyes Toff de Venecia Don Jaucian Sarah Jesri Marq Navarro CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Bruce Casanova The Cobrasnake Lorenze Buenaventura

SARAH JESRI

Cholo Dela Vega Patrick McMullan Scott Munn Mike Quain Scott Regan Nuk Romualdez Melvin Sun Drake Santos Pascal Teixeira Brad Walsh Anthony Williams

On the first time Cholo handled a pro camera, he “took” photos of gorgeous yachts. He figured out later on, though, that the film wasn’t properly loaded. So he made sure his camera’s working and his batteries are charged when he shot Photo Diary during Philippine Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2010. After the shows, he went back to his job, making ads while having a healthy computer tan.

What’s your STATUS? Email us. Editorial editorial@statusmagonline.com Advertising advertise@statusmagonline.com Marketing marketing@statusmagonline.com

SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT Linda Lovemade

General Inquiries info@statusmagonline.com

FINANCE Eva Ventura

It’s also available digitally at WWW.STATUSMAGONLINE.COM

PUBLISHER Whiz Kids Publishing

STATUS ONLINE CONTRIBUTORS Gio Dionisio David Melgar

CHOLO DELA VEGA

Where good music is at, that’s where you’ll find Sarah. That’s part of her sonic branding job. She’s also busy realigning her universe while fondly entertaining 2012 theories. Meanwhile, the last photos she took were of underground dancers during a club night she recently co-launched. In this issue, she learned what a “nollie backside flip” is from skating rockstar Jim Greco.

CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Bruce Casanova Miki Giles Patrick Jamora Nick St. James

www.twitter.com/statusmagazine Status is published by Whiz Kids publishing. Reproduction without permission is prohibited.

(S)WEARING BY THE MESSAGE W

ith OBEY creator Shephard Fairey describing his brand as “intelligently irreverent,” irony has never been sweeter. His hell-of-a-ride career influenced by skateboarding, music, and pop culture mix to form a basics-witha-twist fashion niche. Obey Holiday 2009 shows us that propaganda is fashionable in this graphic tees collaboration featuring the gritty environmentalist film 180 South and Vietnam War photojournalist Al Rockoff. Also expect more hardcore street items like the bicycle charm necklace, “city skate” duffel, and “stalker” beanies that match their black knits, wovens, denim pants, sweaters, and cardigans. Add to that Andre the Giant’s iconic stare—you don’t need words to say what you mean because with Obey, YOU are the message. www.obeyclothing.com

GOTHIC STATURE W

hen something is inspired by gothic architecture, you expect clustered columns and design techniques that emphasize height. Translate that into fashion, and you get LA-based label LE SANG DES BETES. Their white Chopin denim vest is inspired by the ribbed vaults in the gothic church of Notre Dame while their jersey t-shirt and yellow burlap skirt ensemble definitely takes influence from the architechtural period’s pointed arches. And even if you don’t notice these structural influences, it wouldn’t matter. You’d simply be satisfied with really just looking good. www.lesangdesbetes.com

ECO FASHION U

K label ROCIO shows us how to protect the environment and kick global warming’s ass by using its eco-friendly handmade bags. Created by Philippine-born Rocio Olbes and Tessa Nepomuceno, the bags are made of organic materials native to the archipelago: acacia wood, sea shells, fine leather, crystals, gem stones, and pearls. Bright and natureinspired patterns like the shiny giraffe print, lady bug exterior, and deep sea design also ensure that you can add loads of style and art to the green cause. www.rocioba.com

SHOE ARCHITECTURE

ritish-born NICHOLAS KIRKWOOD, who has collaborated with the likes of Chloë Sevigny, Rodarte, and Phillip Lim, created his brand of architecture-inspired shoes way back in 2005. And today, his Fall/Winter 2009 collection continues to show his love for sculptural shapes with black, brown, and grey leather straps. Molded with soft curves, their heels are made from metallic building materials. Notice his heart-racing version of “bondage shoes” with spikes jutting out from the heel caps and flat weld nuts making the four-inch heels—definitely any woman’s fantasy or fetish come true, depending on how she uses them. www.nicholaskirkwood.com

SPRINTING ON A BUBBLE T

otal foot support integrated into a hybrid BUBBLE TECH PACK PUMA sneakers— this is the result of the innovative Cell System Technology. All its three designs—the Sky 2 HI 10 Cell, the Puma Mid Archive, and the Disc Blaze 10 Cell—have a cushioning sneaker feature built onto the tonal uppers of the shoe, with contrast speckles adorning the midsoles. Everyday athletes, trainers, and sneaker fiends can now float in style, in an array of vibrant colorways. www.puma.com

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STATUSPHERE

TWO-WHEEL TRAILBLAZIN’ W

hen the company making your next road bike’s known for its championship F1 cars, you know you’re in good hands. Inspired by lightweight racing and track cycles, COOPER BIKES is the British take on modern and aggressive two-wheel transportation. You can choose from four hand-built bicycles according to your own needs and aesthetic: the dark blue T100 with flat bars, the silver T100 Sebring with bullhorn bars, the single speed T200 Championship 50, and the very practical 5-gear T200 Reims. Training wheels definitely not included. www.cooperbikes.com

COPY CAT

ave you ever been in a store that made you want to just copy its style for your wardrobe? This is what Southern California-based COPY CLOTHING is all about— to be an inspiration to anyone’s closet, knowing that real creativity is, after all, a reinvention of former concepts, inspirations, and styles. Founder Murphy Martines exploited this with his men’s streetwear brand which started as a personal collection in the late ‘90s. He wanted to reform urban couture and break into an untapped market. By offering classic denims, hoodies, button down shirts, plaids, and multi-color lightweight tanks, Copy Clothing shows that you can be wearing the most casual clothes but stamp them with some Bowie-rockability. Moving forward with the same daring of mixing urban and retro, cool cat Copy Clothing is evolving by fine-tuning their designs to sportswear. www.copyclothing.com

MODERNMUSE N

ew York label NOMIA, named after a nymph in Greek mythology, goes heavy on geometric construction with its garments. Debuting her collection last spring of 2007, its designer Yara Flinn balances design and wearability by incorporating rich details into otherwise simple pieces—the shifting lines of a lace-paneled dress or the unexpected rustle and shine of evergreen taffeta. Yara surprises many with her menswear-inspired LBD that you can dress up or down, made tomboy tough or feminine pretty. At once modern and classic, Nomia’s impeccably well-tailored pieces continue to appeal to the stylephile in the big city. www.nomia-nyc.com

HAPPY FEET D

on’t let its lazy boy logo fool you. CUSHE shoes, sandals, and boots are meant for more than just lying around the whole day. Created by Martin Dean from the UK, they’re fitted for sports aficionados such as skateboarders, surfers, and bikers as its Twin Skin technology closely follow the natural contours of the feet. Also providing rubber toe protection, their translucent outsoles coupled by soft full-grain leather and suede give your feet enough ventilation while showing off a clean and classy style sure to survive the onslaught of future trends, not to mention the routines you’ll be making with these babies. www.cushe.com

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statusphere

UCHARTERED STEPS I

f you’re going to wear basic shoes—might as well make it GOURMET. Its deliciously crafted footwear styles have been getting the nods of sneaker-bon-vivants all over the globe since 2007. Using only premium materials like handwoven custom canvasses and epi leather, you’d literally crave for their menu of mixed Italian sophistication and American ruggedness. Its designers Jon T. Buscemi, Greg Lucci, and Greg Johnsen never stop improving their recipe for breaking into uncharted territory with their Fall/Winter ‘09 collection. Latest models Uno, Due, Tre, Quattro, Cinque, Nove, Dieci, Tredici, and Quadici are solid with their earthy colorways and silhouettes like the duck shoe with a bubble sole. Your look doesn’t have to be as subdued as the season when you can remain dapper and kicking with a pair of these sneaks. www.gourmetinyourface.com

UNDERCOVER CHIC

hannel your inner celebrity with MOSLEY TRIBES. It doesn’t only make you look like being stalked by paparazzi but also presents an alternative lifestyle that bridges fashion and active living. Why settle for plain eyewear when you can have Mosley Tribes eye-candies—just like Diddy who rocked a pair of Bromley with grey gradient lens at the VMA? With designs ranging from the super limited Lamar Odom Diamond Frame to the candycolored Gates, the look’s smashingly different. Created by the equally cool team of Oliver Peoples eyewear, its Summer/Fall ‘09 collection uses autumn and winter colors to highlight the collection’s versatility. You can be sporting slightly oversized Bromley, slim androgynous Flynn, or double-bridged aviator Raynes—bottomline remains that you can be that character you want to be. www.mosleytribes.com

BUILD ME UP

ith our childhood attachments and nostalgia for imaginations that ran wild of the things we could construct using the popular building blocks, LEGO takes our love for the plastic bricks into current times, quite literally, with their wristwatches. As with any other Lego set, these timepieces can be assembled and pieced together according to your liking. The wristband’s pieces snap together, allowing you to arrange its colorways as well as its bezels, making it the perfect wristwatch for the kid-at-heart. www.lifestyle.lego.com

LOVE STONED

LOVE,PEACE, AND FREEDOM A

decade ago, you probably wouldn’t have considered dangling cloth and professional nameplates as accessories. But I LOVE YOU STORE has turned these usually mundane materials into something you’ll want to wear with your favorite party ensemble. Take the nameplates bearing phrases like “Truth and Freedom” or “Write What’s Right” that say your causes without spelling your name. The earrings and necklaces designed by Kel Sampayan combine shiny metal and smooth fabric forming wild floral shapes that add delicacy on every indie chick. www.fashionwillsavetheworld.tk

ince their launch in 2001, Australian clothing label LOVER has struck the hearts of garb addicts. They couldn’t resist designers Susien Chong and Nic Brand’s “romance, drama, and a touch of rock ‘n roll swagger” incorporated in this made-to-last line. Taking cues from the realms of music, art, film, and pop culture, Lover builds its collection themes according to central characters and narratives. From “Melodies” to “Miss Francoise” to their limited edition denim jeans collab “Lover Loves Levi’s,” the brand’s grown to be a lover any lady would want to get her hands on. Remaining true to their signature style and ideals since day one, the brand has garnered loyal followers from the likes of Kirsten Dunst and Michelle Williams. It even reaped praises from Vogue, Nylon, Rolling Stone, Dazed and Confused, and Bazaar. www.loverthelabel.com www.statusmagonline.com - 19

STATUSPHERE

POLYFACTORY I

f there were ever such a thing as a Renaissance space, it would be THE OXFORD ART FACTORY in Sydney. This Warhol-inspired two-room venue combines a bar, an art gallery, and a performance stage all in one place. That means you can admire graffiti on the walls while enjoying their specialty wines like the Lindauer Sparkling Brut and Giant Steps Chardonnay. Fans of indie bands, theater, burlesque, cabaret, and even vaudeville will also enjoy Oxford’s performance space which promotes alternative entertainment. Some of the artists who already have made full use of the multi-functional bar include graf artist Phibs and photographer Bridget Mac. Electro group Metronomy and side show performer Little Boots have also already graced Oxford. Check this place out next time you’re in the land down under. www.theoxfordartfactory.com

I-M-HEALTHY M

CAFÉ DE CHAYA on Melrose Avenue, LA is solid proof that health food need not be boring. Adopting a macrobiotic menu, the restaurant specializes in seasonal organic whole ingredients prepared with minimal processing. That means you instantly lessen your chances of ingesting carcinogens. Specialty items include smoked salmon, blueberry pancakes with “bacon” (made of soybeans), and Carolina-style barbecued seitan sandwich. You should stay for the egg-free, dairy-free, sugar-free desserts like their tiramisu and strawberry shortcake. Not a bad way to start a health-buff streak. www.mcafedechaya.com

FINE VINE

f wine is the perfect symbol for a good time, then Portugal’s THE VINE HOTEL is one grand metaphor, an unapologetic one at that. Named after the vineyards that produce the world-famous Madeira wine, the hotel infuses a grape theme throughout its interiors—from big basket sofas to staircases, cushions, and even a heated pool and bathroom fixtures in purple. Take the elevator to the rooftop, and you’ll see the UVA (ultraviolet A) gourmet restaurant with a 360-degree view of Funchal, Madeira’s Capital. Complete that with the hotel spa’s signature Vinotherapy treatments, and you have an instant therapeutic high. That’s before you actually take a sip of fine booze! www.hotelthevine.com

FRENCH TOAST

he aroma of freshly baked Pain aux Chocolat would lure you into this cozy metropolitan French salon nestled in the quiet corner of Grand Hamptons. Combining a traditional French bakery and patisserie, ALEXANDRE uses old-fashioned baking methods handed over from generation to generation, fused with the idea of a stylish coffee bistro. Launched by Alexandre Michaels in May 2009, the bakery has gained a favorable reputation for their almond and chocolate croissants as well as their delectable cheese platters and canapés. As the sun sets, the unique daytime ambience transforms itself by early evening into an exclusive wine lounge offering its guests a different feel, menu, and a ticket to a whole new different wine and dine experience. www.alexandre.ph

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LIFE ON A STRING D

IT’S THE THOUGHT THAT counts

efy friction and gravity for a few minutes. That’s what yo-yoing is all about. You don’t even need to leave your chair—if you do it right. You can do it in your room, in the library, in class, or you can even sneak a few routines inside the office when the boss isn’t looking. This makes yo-yoing different from other street hobbies like skateboarding where you’ll need at least a couple of ramps and lots of space on concrete. Just ask the Philippines’ own yo-yo group called FlipSpin. “Yo-yos are no longer the ones people saw back in the ’80s, the one with the wooden axle that you can do two to three tricks with. Kids nowadays develop new tricks every single year. Each one plays differently, so there are thousands of tricks,” FlipSpin leader Edmund San Antonio points out. This assembly of yo-yo enthusiasts is made up of kids as young as 10 and up to 30-something professionals, all coming together just to spin their hearts out. What also set today’s yo-yos apart are their designs. Modern pieces usually have a ball-bearing transaxle made with aluminium instead of wood or plastic. This ensures a longer spin time for yo-yo exhibitionists who do more than dangle a piece of metal on a string. Flipspin usually get theirs from the US or Japan, each one costing about $90 to $100. If that sounds expensive, consider the fact that most hobbies that require real skill usually are. But after seeing one of these guys toss and twirl their toys as if it were as natural as breathing, you might just discover it’s worth it. www.flipspin.net

nstead of giving into the trend of “don’t think, just shoot” photography, 12 motley professionals combined their powers creating ANTI-LOMOGRAPHY, a joint online protest against the evolved culture of quick-shot, ready-for-photoshop-manipulation photos. With inspired photography ranging from stills and candids, this site exposes their stance against this culture while declaring, “Shoot from the heart, not the hip.” Don’t get it twisted, they’re not lomo-haters and anti-digital. These dedicated photographers are simply out to stand for the artistry: the thought, emotion, and time that should be spent on a good film photo. And they maintain, “Film photography is not lomography.” www.anti-lomo.com

WIDE WHITE WALLS

Poklong Anading

Steve Tirona

ho knew a former piano factory could be this bright open plan gallery housing some of today’s best contemporary photography? Now known as SILVERLENS, this is where Wawi Navarroza turned her eye from the lyrical to a discourse on composition in her recent show Perhaps It Was Possibly Because. She happens to be one of Silverlens Foundation’s lucky grantees. But from whom much is also expected after her sponsored, fourmonth creative sojourn to New York. “As long as you’re working with photography and you have a body of work,” director Isa Lorenzo, also a photographer herself, explains who could have the same privilege as Wawi. They could actually go to any city that’s a member of the Asian Cultural Council. For some like Poklong Anading, who did an experimental series on Anonymity, the gallery buys the work outright for its own library. Steve Tirona’s advertising work for the jewelry line of the former dictator’s wife Imelda Marcos also became part of these acquisitions. While nobody got the grant this year as the financial crisis hit their endowment, the foundation’s setting its eyes on the next big photography star. Only for rigorous talents willing to take risks as much as Gina Osterloh in Rash Room, filling her frames with giant pink petals, photographing a blind woman in the middle. What started from Lorenzo’s apartment turned out to be at par with the world’s widest white walls. www.silverlensphoto.com

Gina Osterloh

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MUSIC REVIEWS

ON THE SPOT

B_CAL

www.myspace.com/b_cal

JUNIOR SANCHEZ

www.myspace.com/juniorsanchez

DJ Green Tea - “Wonderful Beats” Listening to this will definitely put you in a good mood. It also samples one of my favorite artists of all time, Mr. Stevie. DJ Green has come up with his own sound in my opinion.

Alicia Keys “Sleeping with a Broken Heart” This song, by far, has been my jam for the past few weeks! I absolutely love this song…the simple chord progression, [its] very 80’s sounding melody…it’s simply magic!

Lil Wayne - “Every Girl” When I first heard this song, I couldn’t stop laughing because of what it’s about, especially the part about Miley Cyrus. Classic. This is one of the only songs right now that get me dancing, and everyone knows that I don’t dance.

Bat for Lashes - “Daniel” This is, by far, one of my favorite new artists from the UK! Such a great composition…very captivating. Bat for Lashes is straight up amazing! I’m a fan!

Metric - “Help I’m Alive (The Twelves Remix)“ Honestly just started diggin’ this type of music, and I’m really feelin’ this track. It’s got sounds of house, rock, and funk… The track is not complex, but I guarantee you [will] hit repeat after the track is done. Steve Aoki ft. Zuper Blaq -“I’m in the House” This track is straight fire. I love seeing the crowd jump and go crazy to this track. It takes over and makes the level of the party higher. I’ve actually seen a couple of bouncers at the club movin’ their head to this track. I love the energy and creativity Steve Aoki brings to his music. The guy is one of a kind.

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Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros “Desert Song” All I can say is wow! The song and video are classic! Some of you might recognize the frontman. It’s Alex Ebert [from] this band; I had the pleasure of producing their last album Ima Robot! I’m a great fan of Ima Robot! Now, Alex just transcends and evolves…it’s pure music art! Junior Sanchez ft. Good Charlotte “Elevator” Shameless plug! But the song is fiiyahh! We did the video in Vegas at the Palms, and my homegirl VA$HTIE was not only kind enough to direct this video but also star in it! She’s awesome. Benji’s guitar solo is classic! Also, be on the lookout for remixes by Manila-born phenom and great friend Laidback Luke!

PASCALENE

DJ MEHDI

www.myspace.com/djmehdi

to finish.

Drake “Successful” Drake is my favorite artist right now. The So Far Gone record is just perfect, start

Siriusmo “High Together” Electro track of the year. Awesome.

Boys Noize “Kontact Me” One of the standout tracks of the beautiful Power album.

Retro/Grade “Moda” Retro and future at the same time. Grower.

Kikumoto Allstars - “I’ll Make You Jack” Admit it; Gigolo brought back the crown to Berlin this year. Kikomoto is my favorite dance album of 2009.

heir music is all about playing for the best of reasons— brotherhood, artistry, and experiencing the ride—wherever that leads the group, staying unsigned or making the major-label move. At the end of the day, PASCALENE is bent on absorbing and exuding only positive vibes, the same blood oozing out of their funk and soul. “Well, we still haven’t really thought about labels yet, since right now, we’d like to focus on creating new songs and just taking our time. But someday, yeah, why not?” muses drummer Ralph Mendoza who, along with guitarist Paul Mendoza, formed the band three years ago in search of fresh, artistic outlet. A jam session started their musical journey that took them to the gig venues and later in the studio, joined by vocalist AA Enriquez, bassist Fritz Mendoza, guitarist Miggy Regal, and RJ Miso on alto saxophone. Providing Manila scene followers with fresh, new sounds they can catch live or enjoy via the band’s social networks, Pascalene veers away from the common Pinoy pop rock formula with a musical design which Ralph describes as “rock, soul with a shameless dose of organic funk.” Imagine the audio onslaught from cross-breeding Jamiroquai, Marvin Gaye, plus a dose of Michael Jackson, and you have their thick, melodic, and rhythmically seductive tracks like “3:,” “SHS,” “Cinnamon,” and “Kings of the Atmosphere” to name a few. If you ask when you go their gig, they won’t spare you the stories behind the cryptic titles too. NATHANIEL T. DELA CRUZ www.myspace.com/pascalene

LISTEN UP

FEEL THE THUG A

lways pulling us through their poignant bursts of emotion, The Magnetic Fields will release their album Realism on January 26, 2010. For a band that made the epic 3-CD album 69 Love Songs, one of the indie gems from the ‘90s, they’re back next year for another potential zeitgeistdefining set. Expect more of Stephen Merritt’s deep voice to haunt your bottomless thoughts. But then again, these guys know how to whip up some bittersweet tunes too. Dealing with love, humor, and the irony of it all—Realism gets even more real next year with this release. www.houseoftomorrow.com

MOVIE REVIEWS

DIBIDI: Rize (2005)

on’t be tricked by the glossy poster or by one of the poster boys of glam photography, David LaChapelle, in this directorial debut. Rize, from Luther’s “I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up.” is not a movie translation of LaChapelle’s surreal, perverted, and irreverent fashion editorials. This documentary on dance is an extension of his subversive work made through an anthropological trip into black America. It is about a history of street violence—gangsta wars and government repression—sublimated into a cultural phenomenon, captured in this portrait of a meta-nation in Los Angeles, where babies learn how to shake it as they learn to talk. There is the danger of this becoming yet another caricature, but it succeeds in framing its subjects compassionately down to the funeral, braiding, and gang banging which all become sacred community rituals. On one face, there’s Tommy who pioneered clowning, a form of dance born out of celebrations. On the other is krumping, the ultra-sped up anaerobic aggression-release— almost a fit, frenzies sometimes accomplished with blasted eyes. Born out of clowning and constantly changing everyday, it’s about making a connection to another world where their sufferings are freed. At the core of the movie is a spiritual renewal program. “When they dance,” one woman says, “they dance for their spirit.” This is not a hip-hop music video. This is dance right where it comes from. This is a testimony that bad spirits can be shaken off from the body. NANTE SANTAMARIA

CINEMANTICS: The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus(2009)

ow to doctor the unfavorable turn of events after the film’s lead actor Heath Ledger died in the middle of the production—this is what director Terry Gilliam had to overcome in his fantastical territory. This is also why The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus would not reach the same heights as that of his earlier successes Brazil or Time Bandits. But yes, it remains a trip worth taking as it pushes the limits of continuity with the multi-actor portrayal of a single character and magnificently transforms contemporary London into a grim, medieval city. Immortal Doctor Parnassus (Christopher Plummer) travels with his theater troupe to offer his audience a chance to transcend reality by passing through a magic mirror. Bound to a Faustian trickyes, a deal with the devil (Tom Waits) in exchange for his daughter Valentina (Lily Cole), he meets trouble when mysterious outsider Tony (Heath Ledger, Johnny Depp, Jude Law, Colin Farrell), a disgraced charity boss, tries to save the day. This multiple personality portrayal is reminiscent of Luis Buñuel’s use of two actresses to provide contrast and a surreal sense in That Obscure Object of Desire. But in Gilliam’s recent flick, it may feel too contrived, giving a disturbed rhythm through shifting personas. With the right mix of eccentricity, star power, and chick-bait leading men, this film can attract mainstream success. But if we’re talking about the industry’s watershed, perhaps Gilliam’s other movies have already carved those dams. TIN DABBAY

DIRECTOR’S CUT: Alien(1979) I realized the vessels in the movie were named after Conrad’s books: the Narcissus, the Nostromo… And of course, there comes the juicy part of penetrating the Alien craft, which now resembled Marlow’s journey up the river, deep into the dark and wet jungle. “Going up that river was like traveling back to the earliest beginnings of the world. […] We were wanderers on a prehistoric earth, on an earth that wore the aspect of an unknown planet.”

studied the first Alien when my filmic vision was still undergoing much process. It was during film school, and I was reading a lot of Conrad. And I found one of his quotes in the epigraph of the script:

“We live, as we dream— alone.”

The very first time, I do not remember noticing the crew entering an enormous vagina with phalluses rimming the sides of the alien hallway. Perhaps because of the film’s tension, I could not see or accept H.R. Giger’s sexual biomechanical designs. They were too alien, too other.

Usually, the point of view shot is meant for the spectator to identify with the camera. But the POV shot was given to the alien, thus confusing our sense of identification and awakening a familiar sense of horror deep inside. The camera tells us to identify, but the spectator can’t. “Ugly. Yes, it was ugly enough; but if you were man enough you would admit to yourself that there was in you just the faintest

trace of a response to the terrible frankness of that noise, a dim suspicion of there being a meaning in it which you—you so remote from the night of first ages—could comprehend.” So I realized that the alien was none other than Conrad’s dark and unacceptable “other.” It all hit me afterwards. That’s why I had to read the script. And reading the script made me go back to Conrad. MARTIN ARNALDO

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BOOK REVIEWS

PICTUREBOOK

Moonmilk

By Ryan McGinley

O ne - S ittin g s

You Better Not Cry By Augusten Burroughs

Perhaps one of the most common first encounters with Ryan McGinley is seeing naked bodies slice through the bluest of waters, capturing the easy spirit and whimsy of summer. The eternal youthfulness of the season, hedonistic and indulgent—represented through strangers’ faces, awkward limbs, and glints of sunshine. Such was what McGinley stood for: the proverbial witness to wide-eyed wanderings. His latest adventure Moonmilk is like seeing an old friend after a long time, noting the new way he slants his head to the side, as if listening more closely now to what life has to tell him. You sit down, peel through conversations until you get to that one thought: he’s growing up. Photographed in the marvelous underground, the title refers to the crystal deposits in caves: something beautiful this way comes, what the dark recesses have probably beckoned. His photographs still display an uncanny intimacy, but there is a level of depth that wasn’t present before. And this is what makes McGinley one of the most talented photographers of his generation: he makes you go through an experience, like you were standing there beside him, taking this all in. He captures the nimbus, brooding, and meditative— his use of the human body adding an almost celestial undertone. The soft contours of flesh versus the sharp angles of rocks show a venture into new territories half-SciFi and half-children’s book. You see, the world could fit in a womb, and underground, what a world it is. TWINKLE DE LOS REYES

Normal is relative—a most concrete testament being New Yorkbased writer Augusten Burroughs, whose memoir Running With Scissors became a Brad Pitt co-produced movie in 2006. Four books later, his debut novel Sellevision is on the way to become an NBC series, and he’s releasing yet another memoir featuring more of his acerbic wit and sense of humor in You Better Not Cry: Stories For Christmas. But that’s kinda normal. Burroughs has lived a life worthy of a book…or six (so far). To him, nothing is ever too private—from his relationship with his foster family after being adopted by his mother’s therapist to his battle with alcoholism and his relationship with his father. And if you’ve read him before, you will come to realize that, coming from the write-what-you-know school of writing, this is what constitutes “normal” for him. In You Better Not Cry, Burroughs communes with the ghosts of Christmas’ past and present. This supposed holiday reading, however, recounts experiences such as eating the face off a six-foot wax Santa, waking up with a bad hangover next to a French Kris Kringle, and spending Christmas with a former lover who’s dying of AIDS. Each Christmas, he realizes, seems worse than the last because he’s being punished for mixing up Jesus and Santa when he was a kid. Your Christmas stories may be different, but one can’t deny that funny, indescribable feeling the holiday leaves behind, even for someone who‘s lived a life as colorful as Burroughs. FRANCIS CABAL

He captures the nimbus, brooding, and meditative—his use of the human body adding an almost celestial undertone.

Each Christmas, he realizes, seems worse than the last because he’s being punished for mixing up Jesus and Santa

READING GROUP

The Architecture of Happiness By Alain de Botton

In the recent indiefied romantic flick 500 Days of Summer, Tom (Joseph Gordon Levitt) gives Summer (Zooey Deschanel) a copy of this book as a birthday gift. It appears earlier when Tom meets her un-accidentally on a train ride. The book leaks its meanderings on symmetry into the scene: the train’s narrow hallways bring them into an awkward post break-up contact. It is this kind of insistent nuance that de Botton brings up in The Architecture of Happiness where he extrapolates the magnificent relationship between humans and architectural design. And right in the book, de Botton emulates this calculated aesthetic by sculpting words that appeal to the senses, as if consciously treating his speech as architectural elements. It is a maxi-trailer hitch across the globe and into living rooms, weaving in and out of history. Plunging into the thoughts of German art historians, psychologists, theologians, and contemporary urban planners, de Botton attempts to capture the verve of aestheticism. He prescribes idealist trappings, functional design, and modern sensibilities for the “perfect home,” deftly insisting that these structures should reflect the current zeitgeist—our passions, ideals, and aspirations. With all its Oscar Wildean aesthetic leanings, the book is somehow hilariously pretentious. But what The Architecture of Happiness effectively distills is that we are creatures deeply rooted to our physical surroundings. Whether it’s neo-classical, modernist, or minimalist, our architectural landscapes are the shapes of our dreams and desires, silent witnesses and suspects for our own coded constructions. DON JAUCIAN Whether it’s neo-classical, modernist, or minimalist, our architectural landscapes are the shapes of our dreams and desires. 24 - www.statusmagonline.com

IGNITION

BABY, TAKE ME FOR A RIDE

If music is your girlfriend, wheels would be your hot mistress. Don’t deny it with all your “need for speed” cravings and ride-pimpin’ instinct. Gentlemen, prepare to extend your, uhm, manhoods.

HOW YOU DOIN’, S?

ow and robust, wide from behind and long from the side. In high-gloss black by standard while trimmed, rimmed, and tipped with silver accents. Here’s PORSCHE Panamera S,the ride that holds that same sophistication, carries the speed, silhouette, and—yes I’m gonna say it, sexiness that Porsche personifies. If you wanna talk technical, 400 horses keep it ridin’ with a 4.8 liter V8 engine and 369 lbs/ft of torque. Steel-spring suspension, round twin tailpipes, wheels up to 20-in dressed in rims that expose the smooth brake calipers, double slats on the side that just remind you of past favorites (Carrera GT, anyone?), and a spoiler that deploys automatically when you crank up the speed. We haven’t mentioned the embossed leather, heated and individual power seats, auto climate control, and all the leg, head, and storage space. Comes with extras too...the kind your girls will drool over. MSRP: Will www.porsche.com

THIS ONE’S GOT SOUL

definitely break a bank or two.

here’s this little something everyone is drawn to—that’s soul, baby. With an exterior designed to show off sophistication and the dimensions of a stable drive, the MAZDA CX-7 has it. Gone lower, lighter, and leaner, the CX-7 is seriously tricked out all over that it allows for the look of composed refinement—a drivetrain with Engine Speed Sensing for heightened curve-hugging and the slide-reclineadjustable leather seats with more than enough cabin space. Don’t get it twisted though; it isn’t just an SUV. Coming standard with 17” aluminum alloy wheels, an MZR 2.5 liter engine, and a five-speed automatic transmission, hitting maximum torque of 205 NM/5,000 rpm, you can’t deny it’s got that soul of a sport’s ride…not the one you can resist. www.mazda.com.ph

MSRP: Your ego www.mazda.com.ph called and insisted you have the budget for it. 26 - www.statusmagonline.com

TECH PACK

Dell Adamo -Ultra-thin 0.65-in profile -Silver aluminum with pearl finish or onyx aluminum with brushed finish -2.1 GHz/1.4 GHz Intel Core Duo Processor with Centrino technology -Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit -4GB/2GB 800 MHz DDR3 dual channel memory SRP: $ 1,499

Canon G11

-10 megapixel High-Sensitivity CCD -20x Optical Zoom with Optical Image Stabilizer -28mm Wide-Angle lens -2.8” PureColor II LCD Screen -Raw Image Recording -HD Movie Recording (720p) with HDMI output SRP: 33,950.00 /

$ 730

TECH PACK The thinnest.the latest, the most limited—superlative gadgets for serious technophiles.

Leica M7 Edition Hermès -SUMMILUX-M 35 mm f/1.4 ASPH wide-angle lens -Chrome with orange/etoupe calfskin leather -classic round lens hood -LEICAVIT M rapid winder -200 units only SRP: $ 14,300

Sony Ericsson Satio -12.1 megapixel camera with Xenon Flash -Ninth High Definition (nHD) -gaming -3.5” crystal clear 16:9 -touchscreen -16 million colours display SRP:32,500 / $ 695

Sony S Series Walkman Video MP3 -Built-in stereo speakers -42 hours music playback -6.5 hours video playback -FM Tuner -Voice and FM recording -2.4” LCD SRP:$ 119.95

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About face

WE’VE STRUCK OIL Let’s bust a myth right now. Applying oil to your face does not give blemishes and complexion complexities all on its own. It’s actually a combination of a whole lot of things, including hormonal imbalances, skin types, and environmental circumstances. So bring on the magic of these essential facial oils that will leave you simply, beautiful.

FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH

LA CLAREE’s Radiance Elixir bodes well in that ‘fountain of youth’ dilemma. This natural dry oil has organic ingredients that protect your skin and help it regenerate from the evil that is old-age. Key word: Elixir.

GET ALPHABETICAL

Gimme antioxidant C! And an E! Plus the magic of pure organic soybeans, PRATIMA Liposomes dig deep into the seven layers of your skin just to refresh, remake, and renew. Poreminimizing and scar-fading, these essential oils hydrate the skin and stimulate much needed collagen production.

EXPERT ADVICE TALKING NUMBERS

A replenishing oil with omega 3-6-9 essential fatty acids, PHILOSOPHY when hope is not enough uses a formula meant to bring back the moisture in your skin sans sticky residue. If your skin is all stressed out, enter nightly relief with these happy nurturing digits.

Use ice cold water to rinse your face. It increases circulation, tightens the skin, and flushes excess oily residue.

SUPER “E”

With antioxidant super powers, THE BODY SHOP Vitamin E Facial Oil acts fast to protect your skin from its merciless enemies— premature aging and the effect of harsh conditions. Along with rose, soya, and other essential oils, their powers join forces to bring your skin nourishment and high conditioning.

LOCO FROM MOROCCO

JOSIE MARAN’s Argan Oil is grown organically in Morocco where it is historically known as the hero against acne. It also wins over stretch marks and other skin dilemmas like psoriasis and eczema. All these benefits, and it comes in recyclable glass bottles bought from Moroccan women’s co-ops.

BEAUTY BITE: KIEHL’S New York’s pride KIEHL’S continues to cleanse the world of bad pores and bad vibes with their dedication to amazing customer service and natural ingredients. Spreading their influence by slowly, and rather selectively, branching out across the globe, their latest venture is located at Greenbelt 5 in Makati City. Inevitably homey with it’s

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brick layered walls, wooden shelves and warm lighting, this shop is busted with all the brand’s iconic products like the Pineapple Papaya Facial Scrub, Lip Balm #1 and the tropical-appropriate Ultra Facial Moisturizer. Find your way here for your skin’s natural best. www.kiehls.com

DAILY PROJECTS 1-24 Chungdamdong Gangnamgu Seoul, South Korea Tel: (82) 2 3218 4072 www.dailyprojects.kr

ith a store like fashion mogul Junghee Lee’s DAILY PROJECTS, Seoul might as well be dubbed as Asia’s Paris. And why not? This is the South Korean mecca for your favorite international labels like Bernhard Willhelm, Slow and Steady Wins the Race, Band of Outsiders, Patrik Ervell, Opening Ceremony, Common Projects, and Fifth Avenue Shoe Repair. Of course, local Korean designers aren’t far behind in the lifestyle store’s line-up. Instantology, Suh Sang-Young, and up and coming designer brands from the Korean metropolitan fashion hot spot definitely get prominent placement in Daily Projects. The minimalist design of the store, with its clean white walls and a multitude of mirrors, highlight the clothes instead of the shop’s interiors. But just in case you make your way into the store and lose too much energy buying and trying on the fab outfits (which we totally won’t blame you for), you can spend a few hours resting your feet in their well-stocked and sun-lit magazine and book shop, café, and gallery. During peak seasons, you can also enjoy events like musical performances and art exhibitions in their abundantly spaced showroom, where last year’s Seoul Fashion Week was held. Did we mention that Daily Projects has its very own flea market during the spring and summer seasons? All of these were Junghee’s idea of a place where Koreans and foreigners of any age could shop, eat, drink, read, or relax.

BLEACH CATASTROPHE 2nd Level, Greenbelt 5, Makati City, Philippines Tel: (632) 948 7617 www.bleachcatastrophe.com

ith all the ditz and glamour that dominates today’s fashion, it hits like a truck when BLEACH CATASTROPHE comes into the scene. Like stepping into a dilapidated warehouse of funked surrealist art, the walls are lined with unevenly laid cement, ceilings set with in-your-face fluorescent lights, and the goods displayed through shoe boxes, tin drums, and free-standing clothing racks. The shop houses distressed jeans, chunky accessories, quirky kicks, and graphic tees that scream simplicity with almost child-like prints. With a whole lot of earth tones, Bleach boutiques keep their merchandise limited, displaying only about twelve pieces per style. Rugged is one way to describe the brand, kickass graphic artistry another. If you don’t believe me, you can ask the paper mache mummies up front.

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GO SEE

GOSEE From New York Fashion Week to streets of LA, we got the street style on lock.

Acid Wash Jeans

Vintage Inspired Dress Trench Coat

Sun Glasses

Combat Boots

Printed Leggings

Ruffled Blouse

Buffalo Check Jacket

Fidel Hat

Fur Vest

Argyle Socks

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New York

Los Angeles

Las Vegas

Singapore

Tokyo

Manila

New York Los Angeles

GO SEE

Blazer

Knit Boots

Fedora

Suede Jacket

Skinny Belt

Hi Tops Sneakers Slim Jeans

Pea Coat

ngeles Las Vegas Singapore

Knitted Gloves

High Socks

Tokyo

Reptile Pants

SEND THEM GOSEE PHOTOS TO GOSEES@STATUSMAGONLINE.COM - www.statusmagonline.com/gosee - 33

Greyone Social x Mdvl Nike Air Force 1

Photographed by Wesley Villarica at Tryptych Studios and Parallax Studio Makeup by Grace Deang and Omar Ermita of Shu Uemura Modeled by Darlene Anderson of Mercator Model and Artist Management and Rich Herrera of W Talent Management

swag

Jacket by 7 For All Mankind [P28,898] Shirt by Dissizit [P1,650] Jeans by 7 For All Mankind [P11,998] 36 - www.statusmagonline.com

Von Zipper [P1,800]

Bones [P1,200]

Topman [P945]

Jeepney Clothing [P1,320]

RVCA [P1,020]

Hurley [P1,600]

Dissizit [P1,650]

Dim Mak

Dissizit [P1,650]

Crooks and Castles [P1,800]

[P1,600]

Billabong [P1,650]

GET GRAPHIC Traffic-stopping tees. Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s all you need to know

Adidas [P1,250]

Once Upon A Time [P1,320] www.statusmagonline.com - 37

swag

Sketchers White [P3,495]

Marc Ecko Duvel [P3,890]

Puma Clyde Bring Backs [P3,650]

Marc Ecko Woodhaven [P3,995]

Zoo York White/Grey/Hi

Pony Feed the Cat

Gravis Cortex Hi [P6,390]

Adidas Nizza Low [P2,695]

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Pony Manhattan [P3,195]

Gravis Tarmac Vulv [P4,950]

Pony Collegiate

Adidas Stan Smith 2 [P3,295]

Tretorn Skyrmra Puffer [P3,990]

Puma Clyde PF [P3,670]

Clae Cousteau [P5,020]

Etnies Trader [P4,000]

Puma Clyde Africa [P3,650]

Topman Canvas [P1,995]

swag

Clae Romare Hi [P5,980]

Gravis Indo Hi [P6,990]

Pony MVP

Zoo York Collingswood [P3,695]

SNEAKIN’ SUSPICION It’s impossible not to make noise in these kicks.

Shirt by Folded & Hung [P999] Jeans by Gola [P6,320] Shoes Clae Khan [P6,450]

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swag

WATCH ME Tellinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; time just got hotter. With four right angles.

Andy Warhol [P10,750]

Aldo Accessories [P2,895]

Beanie by H&M [P500] Shirt by Folded & Hung [P1,199] Watch by Storm [P13,150]

Kenneth Cole [P10.450]

Vagary [P8,950]

Andy Warhol [P9,350]

Nixon [P10,200]

Kenneth Cole [P10,450]

Lambretta [P9,950]

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Hugo Boss [P35,950]

Nixon [P11,200]

swag

Aldo Cuff [P895] Nyx Necklace [P1,050]

Liz Claiborne Cuff [P2,950]

Accessory Lab Ring [P6,950]

Aldo Earrings [P895]

Sepa Necklace [P1,900]

Aldo Necklace [P2,695]

SILVER STYLIN’

In every storm, there’s a silver lining, and with these accessories, you’ll dance knowin’they’re finally over.

Beanie by Aldo Accessories [P895] Vest by The Ramp [P2,880] Jumpsuit by Trunkshow [P850] Chrome necklace by Cosmopolitan Clothing [P2,600] Bib silver necklace by Nyx [P1,350] Cuff by Firma [P3,950] Ring with Cross detail by Firma [P360] Silver ring by Tru [P2,198] www.statusmagonline.com - 41

swag Beanie by Forever 21 {P327] Jacket by The Ramp [P2,880] Top by Trunkshow [P750] Jeans by The Ramp [P1,500] Shoes by Dolce Vita [P4,170] Bag by Tru [P3,500] Ring by Accessory Lab [P4.950]

Divared [P2,698]

Aldo [P1,155]

Cathy [P2,640]

TOTE-AL MADNESS

We all gotta recognize that ladies need their space, and these TOTES will definitely give you that space and leave you with style.

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Tru [P4,450]

Bally [P22,500]

Savannah [P2,800]

Lyn [P4,595

Charles and Keith [P3,450]

Officine [P2,500]

Aranaz [P4,800]

swag

Lyn [P4,995]

Steve Madden Luxe [P4,650]

Micheal Kors[P7,250]

BCBG [P5,799]

Nine West [P5,650] Aldo [P6,495]

Charles and Keith [P3,450]

Gaupo [P21,000]

Steve Madden [P6,950]

PEEP SHOW

Steal the attention you deserve with these peep toe temptations

Shirt by Celio [P1,495] Top by Trunkshow [P650} Shorts by Possibility [P850] Shoes by VNC [P2,670] Necklace by Accessory Lab [P990] Bracelet by Dumond [P4,500]

www.statusmagonline.com - 43

swag

Sioux Lace Eyewear[$210]

Barracuda [$350]

Love/Hate convertible pearl sunglasses & shades [$260]

Schubert Sunglasses [$200]

EYE CANDY

Adding funk to your â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;fit with these statement specs. Sweet! All eyewear from A-Morir by Kerin Rose

Sabotage Sunglasses [$600]

Love/Hate convertible Dookie chain [$260]

Love/Hate convertible chain eyeglasses [$260]

8. Love/ Hate neon convertible Dookie chain [$260]

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swag

CHAMPAGNE DREAMS Just because the holidays are never the same without the bubbly. Veuve Clicquot NV Champagne France 37

Geoffroy Champagne 1er Cru Cuvee Volupte Brut

Champagne de Venoge Brut Rose

Champagne Dom Perignon Rose 96

Raoul Collet Cuvee Fondateur

PolRoger Champagne

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STATUS INVADES

JUJIIN SAMONTE

“I accidentally broke a car’s side mirror while I was in the middle of the EDSA People Power 2. I decided to keep it for the sake of nostalgia.” “This is for fitness motivation. I haven’t worn it because I look fat in it. I got it in a second-hand store in Tokyo and just had to buy it.”

“I have this undying attachment to pillowcase edges that I fondle with my fingers. It’s a source of pleasure and calm that puts me to sleep in peace and unmatchable relaxation. I also rarely wash it.”

Beyond his silence, JUJIN SAMONTE would simply shock you off your conservative socks. A stylist and photographer by profession, an avant-garde by nature, Jujin rocks visual arts in a way that words seem pretty unnecessary. So here are the not-so-insignificant little nothings that mean everything to keeping him, well... phenomenal.

www.jujiin.com “The only item that’s unintentionally left with me from the house I grew up in. It’s from Japan and reminds me of my late grandmother who would cut my nails before I sleep.”

“The rave scene of the late ‘90s and early 2000s will forever be etched on my heart. I would often fantasize about the unmatchable fashion and fun of those times.”

“All I really need to know I learned in kindergarten.”

“They pretty much shaped my whole adolescent years that helped make me become the person I am today. The fearless way of making clothes is an extension of fun.”

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“No book has ever reformatted my five senses but this one.”

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MAESTRO

How is the Manila scene different from almost every major city in the world where you’ve performed? You know what I love about DJing in Manila? I can get creative. I can actually step out of the box. In the States, it’s like their ears are so tuned in to what they hear in the mainstream. Here, I could get away with stuff that I would never get away with in LA or anywhere in the States. Some say that Japan’s music scene is a little eccentric. However, you’ve had major success there. What does it take for an artist to crossover to their market? For an artist to break-in, he needs to learn to speak in Japanese. If you say one Japanese word, they’ll go crazy. To be different, I’d get Japanese songs and mash it with American songs. I got a Namie Amuro record and mashed it up with Diddy’s “Last Night,” and they were so shocked… They thought it was an actual remix. In Japan, they love certain types of records and sometimes you gotta make that record that meets in the middle even though it’s not something you would do. Once you grab their ear, you can start making anything and they’ll love it.

SCRATCHING the surface

Sharing his scoop from the backstage and afterparties of today’s dopest hip-hop artists, DJ VIRMAN’s feet are refreshingly planted on the ground. But brace yourself. Him becoming another star in the musical constellation might just soon become a reality. By Marq Navarro

ike a storm cloud in the horizon, it’s quite difficult to miss DJ Virman—decked in a blue shirt, shorts, midhigh socks, and white-rimmed sunglasses—walking into this posh mall coffee shop serving as the atmospheric setting for this afternoon’s interview. Having just flown to Manila two days earlier, the thrill of being back in his motherland is still spread across his face. As of late, he’s been busy touring the world with his crew Far East Movement—jumping across Hong Kong, Brazil, Singapore, Macau, Korea, Holland, the US continent, and Hawaii. But back to his other home, he’s known for working with Power 106, the numero uno hip-hop station in Los Angeles.

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What do you think of Hollywood actors who moonlight as DJs? I admit that technology helps everyone become a DJ. It’s great that everyone’s picking it up as a hobby, but at the end of the day, it’s really about who’s actually started DJing with records, who actually knows how to program or rock a club. But yeah, anyone can be a DJ, and I respect that. “[When my brother E-man] got on air…I said ‘Wow, you can actually make a career out of DJing,’” he recounts as if he has just discovered the joy of his job. So he started on the station’s street team while making mixtapes on the side. Then because there was an open slot for an extra DJ, well, you know what happened. You’ve chopped it up with Snoop, Knoc-turn’al, and Ludacris to name a few. What’s it like backstage during their concerts? People think it’s crazy, but it’s actually all work. No one is going all buck wild or anything; they’re just waiting for their chance to go on… But afterparties are a different story. After performing, that’s when you see everyone having fun. You’ve also toured with America’s Best Dance Crew. What sort of things do you experience on tour? It was fun, but the funny thing is that everywhere I went, everyone thought I was a Jabbawockee. Just because I had that Asian or Filipino look… And it’s funny because… sometimes fans would want to take pictures, and they’ll think I’m Kid Reinan. The Jabbawockee guys would just play along with it.

But do you think that the term “DJ” gets thrown around way too much? Yes. There are times when I would go into a club and hear the DJ playing, but he’s not really DJing. It sounds like an iPod; there are no programming or DJing skills involved… It just kills the vibe of the club, which is supposed to be a party feel; instead, this guy is like playing for himself. At the end of the day, it’s all about skills and not how many mp3s you have.

www.myspace.com/djvirman

KICKS OF THE TRADE DJ VIRMAN TOP SNEAKER PICKS 01.Nike Air Jordan VI Infrared 02.Nike Air Yeezy 03.Nike Dunk SB High x Supreme Stars 04.Nike Air Jordan III 05.NIke Air Max 1 Supreme Safari 06.Nike Dunk SB x Supreme Cement 07.Nike Tiffany SB Dunks 08.Nike Hypermax NFW Back to the Future 2015 Marty McFly 09.A Bathing Ape Bape Sta 88 Mid Silver 10.Vans x Proper Sk8-Hi

MAESTRO

POWER

THREE

Soundtrack favorite “Young Folks” by Swedish band PETER BJÖRN AND JOHN is as good as it gets but really, it’s just a bite from their ever-evolving musical oeuvre. By Kristine Dabbay

edefining boredom from bad to rad, Peter Björn And John turned their suburban upbringing as vantage point for making never-a-dull-moment music. Guitar man Peter Morén recalls, “The nature and isolation of growing up in small villages and being bored made it easy [for us] to focus on our obsession with music.” From pop ditties like “Young Folks” that will make you sing endlessly in bubbly bliss— Peter Morén, Björn Yttling, and John Eriksson kicked out monotony in musical explorations propelled by Writer’s Block and sustained with their latest album Living Thing. Getting drunk in Paris, getting thrown out of trendy-but-“boooring” clubs because of shouting obscenities, and thrashing the small Swedish town Avesta one New Year’s eve are normal escapades for this trio. While digging their laugh-out-loud humor, these selfconfessed alcoholics are sober enough to concoct music that’s so drunkenly diverse and quirky that you’ll just want to listen right away and say “Cheers!” How did you realize that making music was something you wanted to pursue as a living? John: As kids we were reading comics like The Phantom, Bamse , and Lucky Luke, eating ice-cream and listening to all kinds of music…but I think the three of us had a feeling that we wanted to devote most of our time to music but, we didn’t exactly know how. So we just kept on playing and then suddenly we were older and playing together as a band. I think we didn’t have a choice. We were meant to do music. You once said that you don’t want to be put into a genre box. How do you measure the freshness or diversity of your music? John: I don’t think you should think about making “fresh” music and I don’t think that we deliberately aim to make different types of music. It just sort of happens that way. Every time you are beginning to work on something new, you want to do something that is different from what you did last time. And since the taste develops, the music will develop.

Can you tell us more about the transitions of your music and the ‘darker side’ of Peter Björn And John as heard from Living Thing? Peter: It’s all about the sounds and the arrangements. Sure, maybe the lyrics are a bit more negative on Living Thing, but there are also some really sad songs on Writer’s Block. The darkest album so far is Falling Out, so Living Thing is in the middle. But we did work more with synths and ‘80s sounds and effects on Living Thing to make it a bit more urban, less folk-rock, and maybe that made it colder and darker. Peter released a solo album last year called The Last Tycoon while Björn produced Lykke Li’s Youth Novels. What are your goals as individuals and as a group? Peter: At the moment I’m working with the band Tutankamon on a solo record in Swedish and writing songs for Björn Skifs (the Swedish Rod Stewart) and the British singer The Cock ‘n’ Bull Kid. I think the goal for the band is to make ten albums (five left), split up, and then reunite at 60 and play blues. My personal goal is to have music as a living the rest of my life and meet old idols from the ’60s before they pass away. The other day, I met Ray Davies from The Kinks. If anyone knows Paul McCartney, send me his number. Swedish music is gaining more presence with musicians like Lykke Li and the Shout Out Louds. How does being Swedish affect your creative process?

Peter: Swedes have always made good pop music. So probably that’s ingrained with us from birth, the lucky match of ABBA and Ingmar Bergman. Mick Boogie remixed your album Living Thing with a hip-hop twist—combining the efforts of artists like Jazzy Jeff and Talib Kweli. How do you find collaborations with other artists? Who top your list in dream collaborations and lineups? Peter: Hopefully, we can do more stuff with rappers. We wrote a rap for Living Thing that didn’t work out ‘cause I can’t rap. So maybe we can do that with a real rapper. I would like to collaborate with anyone in the New Orleans funk scene in 1970. I would like to open up for Robert Broberg (the Swedish king of rock ‘n’ roll) and write lyrics with Robert Forster of The Go-Betweens. John: The perfect tour would be with Paper, Nisennenmondai, and Van Halen. Complete the sentence: Music is our means to… …mental illness and mental wellbeing at the same time.

www.peterbjornandjohn.com

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MAESTRO

n r e d Mo Wide-eyed and wise at the same time, PHOENIX could be the virtuosos of our own age. With their latest album Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, we get a sublime mix of both the danceable and pensive. Listening to it is like jumping into a pool of genius that one can’t help but swim with the flow of each track, wishing to get deeper each time. By Kristine Dabbay Photographed by Pascal Teixeira

emember the scene in Sofia Coppola’s Lost in Translation where Bob took Charlotte to a karaoke bar? Charlotte sported an iconic pink wig while crashing into a party that climaxed to the tune of Phoenix’ “Too Young.” As the characters ended up dancing in a daze, so did the audience feel a wave of blissedout lightheadedness that only great music can bring. You can be in Harajuku or Paris—bottom line is, music is a language that everyone can speak. “As a kid, I would misunderstand lyrics, and they would talk to me directly,” Phoenix frontman Thomas Mars recalls. To mirror his words, there really is no such 50 - www.statusmagonline.com

thing as being “lost in translation” with French indie pop band Phoenix, only a vast musical world unfettered by territorial barriers, that is. Now we’re talking. Growing up in Versailles, Thomas Mars (vocals), Deck D’Arcy (bass), Christian Mazzalai (guitar), and Laurent Brancowitz (guitar) already knew each other since childhood. They hailed from the same place where Air and Daft Punk came from. “We’ve always felt isolated growing up in Versailles. I guess being French and singing in English was the only roadblock we’ve encountered.” There even came a point where they’ve felt like masochists for trying to win the hearts of the French crowd early in their career. But limiting their perspective to their roots

seemed like an unimaginable undertaking. So like all successes, they just had to do it. Since United in 2000, they already have five albums lined to their name. Who could forget hits like the wonderfully chilled “Run Run Run” and the bouncy beats of “Consolation Prizes?” Getting the applause they rightly deserve from all parts of the world must have been a result of their attitude to recognize a semblance of truth in everyone to gain some kind of objectivity. “We know our records so much that we have a much distorted vision of them. If we want to see some kind of truth, it’s in other people’s consideration.”

MAESTRO

“Chance is by far the most prolific creator ever! If you wait long enough, an eternal monkey randomly playing the piano will eventually come up with Beethoven’s ‘Piano Sonata N°31’.”

While busy touring and immersing themselves in their creative juices, they also got some offbeat tips to relax while in the middle of chasing their dreams. “We powernap while listening to early Kraftwerk,” Thomas said while believing that “Chance is by far the most prolific creator ever! If you wait long enough, an eternal monkey randomly playing the piano will eventually come up with Beethoven’s ‘Piano Sonata N°31.’” Now that’s really a new way of looking at things, which is exactly the reason why people love them. They never run out of tricks. Combining both their childlike and childish quirks, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix is an album name derived from wanting to experience the rush of drawing a moustache to Mona Lisa. Everybody wants to do something like that, but not

everyone has enough gall to go ahead and nail a whim. Packed with so many pop and historical references like the incendiary “Lisztomania,” which talks about the insane fanfrenzy for Liszt during his time, their work is a blend of reality, dreams, and moments that feel infinite. Thomas recalls, “I got handcuffed to a fan once when I was in the crowd during a show,” which is in stark contrast with the sensitivity involved in making the track “Love Like a Sunset Part 1” which was inspired by a drive across a tunnel between Versailles and Paris while seeing all the pretty lights. It’s actually stretching the present by capturing intensity which feels like 25 minutes when it’s just 7. Being picked for movies like New York, I Love You, and Where the Wild Things Are,

Controlled

Phoenix chooses “Vamos a la Playa” by Righeira to play in the end titles for their hypothetical autobiographical movie. Well, in fairness, their music is an apt soundtrack to our always fluctuating lives—yes, flaws and all. In 10 years, “Phoenix will be 10% bigger than Jesus,” they said. It’s such a heavy statement to begin with, but coming from them, there’s a touch of humor and daring in it that make us just smirk and admire the spirit.

www.wearephoenix.com

K-OS

The best thing to come out of Canada since maple syrup and Alanis Morissette—deftly making music sweeter than both—we are proud to present to you rapper, producer, singer, and songwriter K-OS. By Sarah Meier-Albano

e’s the type of artist your favorite artist listens to, the sort of teacher your teachers should listen to. Pronounced as chaos, his name stands for “Knowledge of Self.” k-os explains, “I can tell you that the more I get to know about myself, the more clever my self becomes. I chose my name...so that I wouldn’t get too busy being myself to be seeing myself.” Now if that statement isn’t proof that this dude is a thinker… k-os brings us a mix of rap, rock, funk, and reggae with influences like New Order, Depeche Mode, and A Tribe Called Quest. But his lyrics deserve equal attention, perhaps something he’s learned from The Beatles, which he hails as the best songwriters of all time. Coming out with his latest album Yes! are songs that reverberate his

exclamation-pointed commitment to revel in continued flow, in both the musical and spiritual sense. Listen to his songs “4, 3, 2, 1,” “Burning Bridges,” and “I wish I Knew Natalie Portman,” and you’d understand why we need to tell the world about him. Introduce yourself [in a four line rhyme] She used to be married Soon to be divorced I help her out of jam, I guess But I used a little too much force. As in your latest album Yes!, to what things do you passionately say “yes,” and what things do you find disagreeable? I say Yes! to things that will put me in a scenario to learn about myself...so I can learn about my carnal, animal self...and maybe the part of

me that I hide from me. I say no to the things that make me feel “not creative” or contrived or too overplanned. I really like spontaneous combustion. Five words that you feel are synonymous with ‘hip-hop.’ Q-tip from A Tribe Called Quest. R&B and hip-hop aside, who’d you like to collaborate with? Thom Yorke. Music piracy on the internet… ...was like when I used to dub my favorite records on dual cassette ghetto blasters when I was a kid! Do you get tired writing about your love for hip-hop songs? Never... I just get tired of pretending that music is not a woman!

What are artists today doing wrong? Thinking they can be genius without knowing the Creative Force behind the Universe, and not understanding that, in all things, spirit informs matter. Not the other way around. What are artists today doing right? Using their celebrity to help the less fortunate. If you had to tattoo a phrase on you, what would it say? “I may never be free from blame, but I am always free from shame.” www.k-osmusic.com

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MAESTRO

They could have lived off the fame of a tween show about a blonde pop star living a double life, but drummer boy Anthony Improgo of METRO STATION shows us that it pays to find your own thing and to do it on your own. By Mario Banzon

hen this year opened, after spurring a coast to coast bout of euphoria, Metro Station just landed themselves a double platinum rep for their dance-friendly, chart-topping hit “Shake It.” It was barely half a year since the release of their self-titled debut album. And so the story goes, Frontman Trace of the Cyrus family fame met Mason Musso, now the band’s co-lead, on the set of Hannah Montana. They eventually decided to play together, soon adding bassist/keyboardist Blake Healy from Synthetic Joy and Anthony who has played drums for On the Speakers and Death Cab by Cutie. So by conventional wisdom, it would have been easy for them to get a record deal but, as Anthony insists, “We totally did it on our own… Trace’s mom and dad and even Miley didn’t know that we signed a record deal.” But instead, they let destiny take its own course by posting one of their demos on the band’s MySpace where it was eventually discovered. “It was actually weird at first,” Anthony says of working with the rest of Metro Station, some of them almost a decade younger than him. “But the more

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we got together and started writing music, we just kind of fit. There was good chemistry and stuff.” He couldn’t emphasize more the importance of chemistry. “Being in a band is like having three or four girlfriends,” he says. “I’ve been in bands where we were good, but we didn’t have chemistry. We’d get a big record deal and everything, and the next thing you know, we would break up because we hated each other.” However, this doesn’t mean they’re having an all-time love fest. “Of course, we fight like hell,” he says. The only time they behave themselves is when they are working on their music. Though they may all be big on pop and ‘80s music, the band’s wide menagerie of influ-

“Being in a band is like having three or four girlfriends.” ences keeps things interesting. Anthony illustrates, “Mason listens to The Cure and Simon & Garfunkel. Trace loves Lil Wayne…and Blink-182. Blake is into OMD and Boyz II Men while I’m a fan of Depeche Mode, Led Zeppelin, and Poison.” These eclectic influences have resulted to an album filled with infectiously happy and danceable electronicdriven tracks. But it wasn’t until mid2008 when, after releasing two singles to dismal results, “Shake It” shot up to the top 10 of the Billboard chart. When the record was released, Metro Station was in Columbia, Missouri. “We played there two weeks ago, and we sold it out,” Anthony says. “It was like three thousand people…

the last time we were here [they said], there were only three people who saw us.” By all means, the band has definitely paid its dues. They have been touring crazily for two straight years. “The first six months, we were in a van and a trailer,” the drummer recounts. When the band went international, they’d wake up at 4 in the morning, fly at 6, arrive at their destination at 9, start press by 12, and play at 8 in the evening. The next day meant doing it all over again. “You kind of go crazy,” he says. For the past few days, all he did was bum around the metro and hang out with his musician friends. Of course, there are still the obligatory TV and print interviews here and there, but it has mostly been laid-back. Although, as we talk to him, he was previewing their latest video (“Kelsey“) set for release. He was also slated to go back to LA the next day to join the band for another EP. And of course, there’s also Metro Station’s forthcoming tour with Miley. “I’ve been working out a lot,” Anthony reveals. “It helps me. It relaxes me.” Something to do with stamina, he says, to be able to take in the crazy schedule and endless travelling. Hardly rock and roll stuff, but then it’s quite obvious: Anthony and the rest of the band are in it for the long haul.

www.myspace.com/metrostation

MAESTRO maestro

n reality, Boys Noize has the right to brag a little. Having been producing music since he was 16, Boyz Noize has accumulated a list of remixes that include tracks by Bloc Party, Depeche Mode, Sebastian Tellier, A-Trak, Cut Copy, Feist, and Kaiser Chiefs. Moving up to real albums, he released Oi Oi Oi in 2007 with the first track called “Don’t Believe the Hype.” Last October, he finally released his second album Power. We were psyched to find out what this electro- techno artist is doing next. Coming up is an album he’s producing for Canadian pianist, producer, and songwriter Gonzales, a collaboration he describes as “the best thing that happened in my musical ‘career’.” Also in his project line-up are tracks for Black Eyed Peas, Kelis, and British rapper Kano. Not to mention spilling tracks with fellow DJ Erol Alkan under his namesake independent label Boysnoize Records (BNR). He leads his label with a vision to produce music you’ve never heard before. “Today, on my label, I can say that every artist has it’s own sound, like Housemeister, Djedjotronic, Shadow Dancer, D.I.M., Strip Steve, or Siriusmo.” That’s exactly how we like it.

”

noise Modesty is hard to find, but Boys Noize a.k.a. Alexander Ridha has managed to turn his DJ volume up by staying away from all forms of hype. By Vicky Herrera

“there will always be a handful of guys who do something fresh and then a thousand others who start to copy.

You’ve managed to receive a lot of noise, but you didn’t like hyping yourself up. Why? I always ignored hypes. I only do the music for myself and my ears as a producer always wanted to hear something that was not around at the time. When I founded my label BNR, I was happy pressing 1000 vinyls only and get love from producers I like. I never wanted to have a manager who tries to push me wherever he can. [I’d] rather let people discover my music and contact me when they want something. I love sounds that stick out, that are not meant to be where they are, and so were the records I bought and play. Would you call yourself a music rebel, then? Not sure. What I do is pretty egoistic. I never ask anyone if he likes my music or not, and I don’t care if you write a good or bad review. What made you decide to put up BNR? I founded the label in 2005, and the idea was to have a platform for my own music and music that I love. [It is] a really traditional way of just releasing Vinyl Maxi 12”s for DJs only. Being 100% independent is the best thing. To have the freedom to release whatever music I like without any promotion or someone telling me how to do things. All my artists have the same freedom as well.

You have a wide list of remixes under your belt. How many people come up to you to ask for a remix? How do you determine if you’re going to say “Sure” or “Maybe another time?” I never counted how many ask me for a remix, but every week I get two requests or so. When I started Boys Noize, I told myself, I’m only gonna do what I like, so I only did remixes for bands or techno guys I really like, or if i like the song or so. I never did a remix for the money because I wanted to be cool with the fact that my name stands next to the other. Of course, saying no is a luxury, but I think it is the most important—staying true to yourself. What’s your take on the Serato? When you started, I bet it was all about vinyl. In March 2008, DJ Mehdi was helping me carry my vinyl cases in Miami, and I was laughing at him because he had the little “CD-girl’s bag” with the 40 CD’s he needed for his show. I ended up [becoming] like him now because traveling made it hardcore, taking my two heavy vinyl cases with me...Club set-ups are not about Technics anymore. It’s sad for me because DJing was always part of a big culture...and that is dead. I could never play with a computer on stage playing with Serato or Traktor. It’s not my thing. I heard you try to avoid music blogs. How do you keep yourself updated with music? I regularly go to record shops and listen to vinyl releases. That is way more fun than just clicking through stuff. Although I buy a lot of music on digital platforms like Beatport or iTunes. Say someone has never heard your music before, what would you do to help them connect to it? That is a really hard question to answer because it’s really subjective—what people think of the music when first heard, but to make it easy, I would probably play some Kraftwerk, ‘90s rave, and Justice. Where do you see music moving toward? I think there will always be a handful of guys who do something fresh and then a thousand others who start to copy. When this happens the five guys get motivated to do something else... It’s been like this since the last 50 years of music... I’m not really interested in what comes next. I just try to make something that is not out there now.

www.boysnoize.com

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MAESTRO

AUDIO

computation

+/- [Plus/Minus] share their take on indietronic music, hockey philosophy, and computations on a math problem called ‘life.’ By Raydon L. Reyes

“

e really have no formula,” says frontman James Baluyut of the indietronica band +/- [Plus/Minus]. Talk about irony, considering that a mere mention of the band’s name might automatically remind you of those gruelling math problems your grade school teacher made you finish on the black board. But come to think of it, there really is a sort of freedom with not having to conform to any particular equation, most especially in music. James (lead vocals/ guitar), Patrick Ramos (guitar/ keyboard), and Chris Deaner (drums/ vibraphone) attest to that: “I would define our music as anything we feel like doing at the time. Sometimes, we write loud songs, quiet songs, happy songs, sad songs, pop songs, epic songs, odd time songs… we’re always just trying to do something different.” Formula or not, the band is known by their avid followers for combining electronica, hyperactive drums, and traditional acoustic sounds while adding a fantasy twist via their music videos. Take their single “Unsung” from their latest album X’s On Your Eyes, with its semimorose Alice-in-Wonderland kind of character chasing crickets and playing with her magic tea set. James shares, “It’s important to us to take things to new places and get outside of reality.” +/-’s journey in music began when James contributed a solo track for an EP by indie rock band Versus in 2000. Impressed by the song, the owner of Teenbeat Records approached James and commissioned him to do a fulllength album for the following year. After releasing SelfTitled Long-Playing Debut Album, James took on his touring band mates Chris and Patrick and finally turned +/- into a team effort, sans a permanent bass player. They have released three studio albums and four EPs and have toured extensively in Europe, Asia, and the US since then. “I always knew I’d want to play the songs live, so I put together the band afterward. We work together well. [Our future bass player] would have

to live in New York, be easy to get along with, eat all kinds of food, and be good at bass,” he stresses. One key thing you might notice with +/-’ songs are the melancholy chord progressions and melodies coupled with sorrowful lyrics that tackle themes like regret, doubt, being lost in life, and living as a perpetual outsider. Their track “Steal the Blueprints” from their 2006 album Let’s Build a Fire, for example, talks about wanting to discover your purpose in life in the form of a map you can hold with your hands. “Do you wonder what just happened/ to all the desire to carry on/ without knowing where you’re going,” goes the song. It makes sense. After all, the reason why we solve equations and search for effective formulas and solutions, be it inside the classroom or out there in the real world, is because we understand that we don’t know all the answers. To go back to the real reason why the threesome chose +/- as their band name, James shares that the symbol comes from a hockey statistic that measures a player’s presence on ice. If his team scores while he’s on ice, he gets a +1. The opposite happens when the other team scores a goal. The ultimate metaphor and lesson for going through life—to just be here now and try to shake things up as much as you can. “You may not be the actual scorer but your +/- might be high if your presence makes things happen,” emphasizes James. Hence, talks about the future always come down to vague plans and infinite possibilities. On their plate right now is their winter tour in Asia and, as always, getting their music out there as much as possible. They’ll also be coming to Philippine shores this December. After that, who knows? James concludes, “The future? I have no idea what to expect. I think that’s what makes it fun.”

“I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT TO EXPECT. THAT’S WHAT MAKES IT FUN.”

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www.plusmin.us

JERK IT LIKE

MAESTRO

IT’S HOT

The NEW BOYZ from the LA block show us what’s jerkin’, how they deal with people picking on their skinny jeanz, and an upcoming hip-hop mixtape called Revenge of the Jerks, or not.

THE SHAREHOLDERS From slammin’ a corporate party to scorin’ a silent film, hip-hop fusion outfit CORPORATE LO-FI gives us the beat of surprise. By Nante Santamaria

ust the other month, Corporate Lo-Fi was performing right before The Ting Tings and sharing the stage with hip-hop soul-mates Musiq and Arrested Development in the Soulnation Festival at Jakarta. About the same time, the NU Rock Awards was going on back in the Philippines. They were nominated as Best New Artist. Roxy, the band’s sax-y player and the only girl in the “corporate world,” says anxiously, “Getting it together for this international opportunity is something else.” Band leader MC Rye Armamento and Analog MC Marcushiro are both excited for the recognition. Together with bassist Apol Dy-Yap, another “horn-y bastard” Richie Gonzaga on the trumpet, Kakoy Legaspi and Justin Case on guitars, Groovemaster K2 on drums, and Leo Saño on keys, they form “Tha Corporation.” With that C-word standing for the collective, “Lo-Fi” was added, Roxy explains, coz it “gave that extra oomph,” something discernable in their wide range of influences—from Q-Tip to De La Soul, Blige, Bilal, Coltrane, Frank McComb, and John Legend— sounds as varied as their number of members who kept on growing from a base of six “just as long as it’s gonna make our sound better,” Rye explains. Apol adds, “‘cause I’m sure it ain’t about the money, ‘cause we don’t have any.” So you can just imagine how songwriting’s done. “Someone would come up with a riff or a hook, then everyone else builds on that, and after a few jams, a song

emerges,” Apol makes it sound simple, but that’s only because of a common trust on improv skills and amazing talent. Last August, they scored the classic Fantômas in the 3rd International Silent Film Festival, a feat which the organizer called one of the highlights of the festival. “It shows how far hip-hop music can go,” Marchushiro says proudly. With their debut in The First Album, they rap “Nandito na kami [We’ve arrived]” in “Pagbabalik,” issuing refrains from the Duke Ellington classic “It Don’t Mean a Thing” in “One Music,” and groovin’ with some sticky R&B beats in “Hold You Tonight.” “I just wanted to record our music,” Apol says, “so that we can offer a product that would appeal to a wider range of audience.” Man, we’re just glad it happened. Today, on the same level as other international artists, you can even get their music via iTunes and Amazon, thanks to the Internet allowing them to put their music “out there.” And it really just speaks for itself. One gig they’ll always remember, Apol recounts, was a corporate (the real one) party, “and everybody still grooved to our set even if they have never heard of us and our songs.” We can only wish they get their payback after this initial independent release so we could hear “The Second Album” soon.

www.corporatelofi.com

eople ‘round the world are bending their knees on this inner city dance craze from LA. That’s all because of teenage Cali rappers Ben J and Legacy a.k.a. New Boyz. Their single “You’re a Jerk,” the vocals of which laid inside Ben’s house closet, peaked at 24 in the Billboard Top 100 early this year. Since their debut album Skinny Jeanz and a Mic, the boyz jerked themselves to stardom from their school days spent watching Bow Wow’s music video among other things. Some can’t crump, they say, but grandmas and toddlers can jerk. If you look them up on YouTube, maybe then you’ll understand what the fuss is about— how it “brings you back to how fun hip-hop used to be.” What fad? It’s This jerk

can you say to people who think this is just a not just a dance. This is a style, a culture. is where we live, where we eat. We jerk everyday— chicken. [Laughs]

Who are some of your influences? All the updated songs—Jay-Z, Drake, Eminem, Lil Wayne… Kid Cudi is dope…50 Cent, we like him too. No sellin’s, ya. Besides music, what do you guys like to do on your downtime? We like to sleep, eat, jerk, and [make] music…and get girls. Yeah, buddy, yup. Do you think it’s fair that people criticize Skinny Jeanz given the crazy styles throughout hip-hop’s history (i.e. Kurtis Blow, André 3000, etc.)? The world isn’t fair, you feel me? You just gotta deal with it. That’s what you’re supposed to do… Because a lot of people are going to criticize you no matter what you got. Bet if you wore baggy jeans, they be like “They jeans is too baggy…” What’s next for the New Boyz? We’re gonna take over the world… We starting to shoot movies in the beginning of the year. We’re trying to have our own fashion line… Look out for the mixtape comin’ soon, in December, yeah. It’s called Revenge of the Jerks. No, it’s not…we don’t got it yet, no title.

www.myspace.com/newboyz

“[Jerkin’ is] not just a dance. This is a style, a culture. This is where we live, where we eat...” www.statusmagonline.com - 55

mastermind

STATUS ISSUE 1 Status has ADD

STATUS ISSUE 2 Status is not at its desk

STATUS ISSUE 3 Status is out to launch

STEVE AOKI APRIL/MAY/JUNE 2008

IZA CALZADO X TILT JULY/AUGUST 2008

JONAS BEVACQUA SEPT/OCT 2008

STATUS ISSUE 4 Status is a piece of work

STATUS ISSUE 5 Status is revolutionizing rebellion

STATUS ISSUE 6 Status is hustlin’

UFFIE Nov/Dec/Jan 2008

JEREMY SCOTT FEB/MARCH 2009

ATRAK APRIL/MAY 2009

STATUS ISSUE 7 Status is abstract

STATUS ISSUE 8 Status hearts fashion

STATUS ISSUE 9 Status is up in the mix

FAFI JUNE/JULY 2009

LADY GAGA AUGUST/SEPT 2009

DJ AM OCTOBER/NOV 2009

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mastermind

As New York-based designer PAMELA LOVE started casting claw cuffs and bird skull pendants under her own label, she grabs Zac Posen, Yigal Azrouël, and the costume designers of HBO’s True Blood to be smitten by her edgy, at times feral, jewelry. By Tracy Collantes Photographed by Patrick McMullan

amela Love likes wearing lots of hats both in the literal and figurative sense. Aside from designing her jewelry line, she’s also a stylist, painter, drummer, and downtown garb addict. But while her multitasking skills are impressive, it’s Pamela’s knack for creating intricately detailed accessories and pulling together deconstructed ensembles that earns her a gold star. Having concentrated in production design and art direction in NYU’s film school seems far-fetched from her current career, but “It just sort of happened,” Pamela says. “It was a hobby that became my life.” Since its launch two years ago, her jewelry line has been getting a lot of buzz, having been spotted on the runways of New York Fashion Week as well as in glossies like Vogue, i-D, Nylon, and Elle to name a few. With each piece connoting heavy influence from natural elements with that macabre twist, Pamela actually derives inspiration even from the most mundane things. “Religion, mysticism, magic, astrology, science, and medicine have been huge influences for me,” she adds. “I’ve also been extremely inspired by jewelry from Africa, Mexico, the American Southwest, and India.” Her fierce full-finger rings, spiral dagger-like earrings, multi-chain silver and leather necklaces, and her signature talon cuffs were made even more covetable this season thanks to her collaboration with Black Sheep and Prodigal Sons. The limited edition pieces from her cur-

rent collection feature fossilized mammoth ivory claws, scrimshaw edition numbering, and colored diamonds. Inspired by music icons like Jennifer Herrema of Royal Trux and Bob Dylan during the Rolling Thunder Revue days, her fondness for irony transcends from her designs to her wardrobe. “I believe in contrasts—masculine and feminine, high and low, fancy and grunge,” Pamela remarks. “I love to play with contrast! Plus I think it’s important to always have fun with what you are wearing and never take yourself too seriously.” And when Pamela’s not tinkering with her jewelry, she’s out hitting the drums with her three-piece girl band Scorpio Rising. “We’re just good friends who started playing for fun in my basement. It’s still a really fun creative outlet,” she shares. “A way to spend time with my good friends and be productive instead of just vegging out with them.” Intrigued by her personality, I couldn’t help but wonder: if Pamela were to create a jewelry piece that would define who she is, what would it be, what would it be made of, and why? “I think I already did,” she tells me. “I think my eagle claw cuff defines who I am because it’s tough yet intricate at the same time. It’s scary yet soft and beautiful in a way. I think that describes my taste and how I see things as well as my design sensibility.” Ah yes, the irony of it all.

www.pamelalovenyc.com

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SHOW tell

MASTERMIND

LA-based video director LEVI MAESTRO entertains, educates, and inspires people with his online show Maestro Knows. From his strong connections, praiseworthy work ethics, and clear vision for the future, he shows us exactly how he knows-and that’s really more than half the battle. by Vicky Herrera Photographed by Scott Regan

“

o. Welcome to my show,” says Levi Maestro. I’m watching his charm from my MacBook’s glaring screen. I turn the volume up so I can hear him clearer. A steady beat, meanwhile, plays in the background, and then he smiled. “Yo,” I said back to the screen, and I smiled too. And that’s the story of how we first met. Well, not really...but for me and probably millions of other youngins with access to the Internet and streetwear blogs, it is. In 2009, we all were introduced to his online show Maestro Knows. And in the few months his show has aired, he has won our hearts with his “I’m just being me” attitude. Coz from what I can tell, this is Maestro: an appreciator of life and culture, a Godfearing, hardworking cat. “You gotta work hard and do for yourself, ‘cause nobody else is gonna do what you want for you,” it says on his site. Before the birth of the show, Maestro recounts how he was living in Las Vegas and skateboarding. “I eventually moved to LA when I decided I wanted to intern for the director David Meyers. I interned in his office about 10-5 PM each day and worked in restaurants from 6-1 AM. That was my 6-7 day week for a while.” Maestro worked his way up, doing projects for Nike, Belvedere Vodka, Moët & Chandon, Hennessy, and the New Era Cap. Eventually, he started Maestro Knows, a show that centers around his day to day life. From meeting creative people in LA, like grocery shopping and batting with the boys behind Gourmet footwear, and watching the graffiti

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crew 7th Letter’s art show in Santa Monica, Maestro no doubt is surrounded by talented people. He spills the secret for maintaining great connections, “I work hard; that’s why I have a lot of great relationships because we all have similar ethics.” All the people he works with are very different, he illustrates “One thing they all have in common is that they are all doing something. That’s a huge factor that is lacking right now.” Originally supposed to be about LA, his show has taken him to places like New York, Berlin, and Tokyo. From going to the Bread and Butter trade show, visiting the Nike Campus in Oregon, to eating crepes and shopping in Tokyo. The experiences this guy has is fulfilling, and Maestro well, knows it. “Waking up every day and knowing that I am currently doing exactly what I’m supposed to be doing. No other project that I can think of excites me as much as my own.” And with respect to his storytelling approach, Maestro doesn’t stand in the way of reality but lets “the stories tell themselves”. His most touching episode has to be the one set in South Africa. He was on a tour with Grammy awardwinning singer-songwriter Anthony Hamilton, and as they travel through Africa, Maestro narrates his realizations about the struggling situation over there, and despite the hard times, the people responded with so much energy and love during Hamilton’s performance. As Maestro quotes in the video, “You might not be able to document and

capture things the exact way you want them– that’s what makes each experience special. In your mind, they have a place you might not ever be able to describe...but its a feeling and an emotion that you may never forget.” Maestro transcends the usual light topics of his show–the street culture, the artists, the designers etc–to share his realizations on his first trip to South Africa. Maestro seems to hold nothing but positive thoughts in his mind, and these reflect in the nature of his videos. However, not everyone gives the thumbs up to what he’s doing. “It’s locked,” he says referring to his Twitter account “because it is a place for my friends and supporters. If you don’t want to be a part of that, then you don’t need to be listening to what I think about,” he explains. “My Twitter is really me thinking out loud to myself.” But for Maestro, not everyone’s two cents has value. “For the most part, I don’t listen to it unless it’s someone that I really believe in. Criticism is usually directed toward you in a negative manner, so why would I allow room for it?” His vision for himself is clear. “I’ve already made the choice to do what I’m going to accomplish, there are no wishes coming from over here,” Maestro says. His latest project is a web series called Portraits of the Process with Evil Monito Magazine’s Rickey Kim. “The message again is to create something you like, and when I say create, I mean think of a different spin on things. Rickey explained to me his idea on the creative process that we have as human beings and I was astonished that I had never thought of it my own.” The Process differs in narration because they take the “style of a magazine article and apply it to moving visuals.” Maestro further explains, “So now you have a video where you are being told a story instead of reading it and watching moving portraiture instead of still pictures. These are personal stories about creative people, not interviews, and it’s our take on creating a new form of information via viral videos.” Maestro is the type of guy who is set out to inspire and be inspired. It’s “knowing that I am in the huge process of translation that my project is going to take and eventually create change in people’s lives” that fuels him right now. And like the many people he looks up to (Eddie Cruz, Anthony Hamilton, Al Green to name a few), I wouldn’t be surprised if Maestro ends up on someone else’s inspiration list.

www.maestroknows.com

MAESTRO’S BEST

Maestro look: I want to always wear long sleeves and jackets. Traits of Mestro’s Girl: I really like light-skinned girls, but I just wanted to say that. Be real and be dedicated. Place you’ve travelled because of the show: Berlin Person you’ve met because of the show: Every person that comes up and introduces themselves when they see me in 3D.

KIS S BY ED A ROS E

mastermind

“So go big. Go hard, and go far,” so KERIN ROSE says. And that’s exactly why her bold handmade accessories are being snatched up by Rihanna, Lady Gaga, and Katy Perry— talk about big style. By Tracy Collantes Photographed by Brad Walsh

ounded back in 2008, A-Morir by Kerin Rose brings you one-of-a-kind accessories straight from New York. “It started shortly after I went into remission from a nine-year struggle with Ulcerative Colitis,” Kerin recounts. “Getting my health and my life back at 24 gave me the incentive to leave the marketing industry, work at a boutique, apply for graduate school, and take the time to figure out what I was going to do with my life.” This Israeli-American crystal queen doesn’t even have any formal design training. But solely as a hobby, Kerin has been using acrylic since she was five and have been painting colorful lips for the past few years. Her DIY creations started just as that. Originally wanting to bejewel an iPhone, which she wound up not getting at all, she grabbed a pair of glasses and began handencrusting them with pieces of crystal. Walking around town donning her DIY craft, random people came up to her asking where she bought it. The idea of creating a bunch more to sell seemed appealing. From making just a handful of designs and having only one piece each, her label has grown and is becoming more recognized by artists like Rihanna, who wore A-Morir glasses in Jay-Z’s “Run This Town” video. “[We] met a few months prior to the shoot. She bought and wore some of my

shades. Her personal shopper told me they were going to shoot the video and that if I had anything new, she’d bring them to the fitting.” Guided with the direction to “make something black,” Kerin made the stunning pyramidstudded Barracuda shades. A week later, it came out in the promo vid. But there are other personalities Kerin would love to see rock her accessories. “Give me Cher and Miss Piggy—because they’re queen bitches. I’d probably die if Henry Rollins wore a pair of my eyewear,” she exclaims. Apart from the Barracuda, her convertible chain sunglasses, Swarovskidecked sneakers, feathered necklaces, and embellished headpieces are also staples to the A-Morir wearer. Imitations of her designs have been sprouting everywhere, but she just shrugs it off, “Getting knocked off, as tasteless as it is, is like a badge of honor—it means you’ve done something noteworthy enough for someone else to copy.” As the fashion and design arena get tougher by the minute, Kerin leaves us with this advice: “Be as creatively smart as you are business smart because at the end of the day, you’re running a business. I don’t care how covered in glitter I am. I have adult responsibilities to handle.”

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MASTERMIND

“I believe that the photographer should always be behind the camera”

RADIOactive

Beneath DOC MARLON PECJO’s scarved head and shaded eyes is a photographer who doesn’t want to be seen in his photos, even though they’re in every newsstand all over the country. This photographing radiologist allows us to see through his career-consuming “hobby.” By Nante Santamaria

hen I’m not taking photos, I’m taking photos,” Doc Marlon Pecjo doesn’t spare a second for virtual ellipses while we lounge at his backyard terrace across an exclusive golf course. In his basement studio, a group of girl models are having their make-up done. We just sneaked out from an entire day of test shoot in his imposing white house. Not a bad workload today; considering his current shooting marathon record of 11 different shoots in just a day. “Doc” isn’t some funny nickname the industry gave him; he’s a real doctor, a radiologist by training and residency, who has done covers and editorials for practically every magazine in the Philippines. His clients entrust him with million-worth per piece gowns to photograph, and he’s done chronically controversial covers for men’s magazines. More than the celebrities he captures, he admits to be the most intimidating presence in his shoots. But back to his childhood, he recalls, “My life was programmed for me to become a doctor.” Then came these fateful days in 2005—a break from reading X-rays, CT scans, MRIs, and ultrasound. He got bored of resting from his round-theclock hospital duties, shot “once a week, and then it became twice, thrice…until I ended up shooting almost every day in the span of two months. I wasn’t able to go back to practice.” Soon enough, a publication called requesting him to do a fashion editorial.

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From his early makeshift lighting set-ups, his work has since been casted into a more glossy light, but at the end of the day, he proclaims, “I’d still like to be viewed that I’m doing this as a hobby…that I’m trying to do the best that I can while I’m still here.” Changing His Mind Actually, I hated pictures before. Seriously. I remember…every time I would see my classmates bring cameras to school, I was like, “That’s so corny…” until I got my first SLR camera. DOING THAN LOOKING The thing that I love about photography is the actual shoot that I do, not even the photographs… I love the idea of me just holding my camera and like sitting down on a bench somewhere in Milan or Rome or like when I used to travel a lot as a kid. Before It Started It’s funny ‘cause when I was starting photography as a hobby, I used to buy a lot of books not knowing who the photographers were…mainly because I love the photos that I see in those books. Until I realized that [all the books I bought] are actually the works of the masters…Meisel, Avedon, Watson, Weber, Newton, Leibovitz… First Time They thought it was something new and different…‘cause I was [shooting] very dark… Technically, ‘cause I used one light… A

lot of shadows. I don’t even use reflectors... And then…I make the models pose in…usually, very awkward ways.” Being and Working It’s different being a photographer and… working as a photographer. Being a photographer [means] you can do whatever you want. Working as a photographer, then you have to work with your clients and the people who got you to do a particular job. Without Style If I would be given the chance to be known as a photographer, I’d like to be known as the photographer without a style… I want people…[to] see the person in that photograph, my subject and not the photographer behind it… I believe that the photographer should always be behind the camera. Instruction Manual Read, and use your camera… You’re not gonna learn if you don’t use it, and you have to read. If you’re doing fashion, read a lot of fashion magazines. There’s a lot of books available. If you’re doing product, there’s a lot of books that would teach you how… Read and read and read… That’s what taught me everything else.

mastermind

DROPPIN’ HAMMERS He could be penduluming vert ramps at the X-Games but you’re more likely going to spot JIM GRECO riding walls, grinding car trunks, and landing insane tricks (or hammers, as he calls them) from rooftops and stairs 15++ steps high. By Sarah Jesri

n the world of skateboarding, he is revered as king of the nollie backside flip, but for individuals with a skate IQ of FAIL (such as myself), he can be more easily identified as the punk-rocklooking skater dude pulling crazy stunts without a care for any sort of protective gear. “Stunt? I don’t look at it that way,” he replies when asked about the most nervewracking thing he’s done, “uhm, I guess the Sunset Car Wash (in LA).” And his motivations simply being “[It] felt fun.” This pro-skateboarder nails his hammers on the streets for nothing more (or shall I say less?) than his own sanity and contentment. Not to say that he hasn’t reaped the fruits of his love for skateboarding, no. In fact, at this point, Greco holds a vested interest in most of the brands he rocks while skating, namely Deathwish Skateboards, Brigada Eyewear, Supra Footwear, and KR3W Denim where he is involved in product design, management, and promotions. There’s no wonder that when the opportunity to create his own skating company arose, he dubbed it Deathwish.

“The name says it all.” He, uh, clarifies. Think of it this way: if the rock & roll lifestyle had a skating counterpart, it would be Deathwish. You’ll find tattooed on Greco’s neck his underlying philosophy “Skate and Destroy.” I probe into his musical sensibilities and ask what possesses him when he hits the zone; he lists his top five as “The Birthday Party, Nirvana, The Locust, The Velvet Underground, [and] The Rolling Stones.” Music would certainly be his next love. He even sings and plays guitar in a band but tells me “I just do it for satisfaction, not reward.” For Greco, it’s always been about skating. He picked up his first deck at 11 and conquered the landscapes of his hometown New Haven, Connecticut. “I don’t know what a tender age is. I saw a skateboard, and I knew I would do it forever,” he says. He was ripping it by the time he hit 15 when Thunder Trucks took notice and sponsored him with free gear. Since then, he grew up impressing the best of the best and, at one point or another, rode for and endorsed top skating companies such as Plan B, Birdhouse (where he was kicked off by Tony Hawk

due to a drunken fit of rage), Zero, and Baker Skateboards. He left Baker in 2008 to create Deathwish Skateboards along with his band of just-as-sick-if-not-more skate brothers Erik Ellington, Antwuan Dixon, Brian “Slash” Hansen, and Mike Plumb a.k.a. Lizard King. Baker had gotten too big, so Greco and Ellington set their sights on a broader ambition. The thing about the skateboarding industry is that it is a very personal one. Together with Andrew Reynolds, owner of Baker Skateboards and a highly revered skater himself, they founded Bakerboys Distribution to carry brands that they and their closest friends own— Deathwish Skateboards, Shake Junt, and Brigada Eyewear. Interestingly, Brigada is the only skater-owned brand of sunglasses. For this, the three were in cahoots with another friend and pro-skater Terry Kennedy. “We like sun-

glasses, yeah kinda...they are just the best glasses out,” claims Greco. He jokingly recommends Brigada Eyewear for the dude who “jacks off.” Or then again, he probably wasn’t joking. “Jaime Thomas is on, [and] we got some new colors comin’ out,” Greco accounts as something to keep an eye out for as well as the new Deathwish promo video they are currently devising. At a recent Deathwish Barbecue, he wished that the earth’s gravity could be reduced to 1/3 its actual weight. Now in his thirties, he’s still thinking how he could get more air when he ollies. Greco lives in a dimension where every surface is something to skate on. The realization is clear and simple—that nothing in the world could make him as happy when he’s out dropping hammers.

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MASTERMIND

SEEING RED

Getting hitched need not be a boring affair, at least not in those album photos you’ll be showing your kids and grandkids a couple of decades from now. MANGORED shows us how to add zing to the world of weddings. By Raydon L. Reyes

he first thing you would see once you enter MangoRED’s office is a blue sofa and a large wide-screen LCD TV more than half the size of a door. Further back are the desktop computers surrounded by a myriad of stickers, plastic toys, a surfboard, and a collage of photos forming the image of Obama —all these hinting at the lack of any real planning when it comes to their space’s design. But from the start, MangoRED was never about making plans. The weird name itself just came up one day because brothers and company founders Randall and Ryan Dagooc thought it “sounded funny.” But it is this freeflowing, anything-goes approach to life that forms the core of their craft in the world of gigantic cakes with plastic couples on top, women in white flowing dresses and veils, and two people who vow to be

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together until the earth turns over—or something like that. What started as a mini-project between two brothers has since transformed into a team of photographers, graphic illustrators, and layout artists who share the vision of adding more zest to matrimonial memories. “People have this notion that weddings are corny because what they see are the cheesy and corny photos,” asserts Randall, who is happily married himself. “What’s corny about some [wedding] photographers is that they’re not genuine or authentic. Everything becomes template-based.” Randall noticed then that most wedding photos did not really show the identity of the bride and groom. And so in 2004, they began to experiment. One of their initial ideas was to make the couples in their photographs appear like cartoon characters

by using a lot of light. The pictures that resulted made the couples look like sketches of people celebrating in a more colorful parallel world. They then shifted their style into imitating baby pictures from way back that rouse a sense of nostalgia. When MangoRED posted their photos online, they eventually started getting some attention. “Posting your photos in a site works because people have time to ogle at them. One time, we even had a client from the US who discovered us just by searching ‘funky wedding photographers’ in Google,” Randall narrates, laughing. It also helps when the ones who commission them are mostly young people who understand what they are trying to do. Between puffs of smoke, Randall explains, “Many young people are also exposed to culture, and

they’re looking for someone who can relate with them. We cater to those who have similar personalities as we do.” The team of MangoRED also makes it a point never to let the technicalities of photography get in the way of their creative vision: “I once reached that point where I was too conscious about ISO, aperture, shutter speed… and before I knew it, I lost my idea for the photo. Never let the technicalities hinder you from achieving what you imagine is the perfect photo.” What started off as an artistic effort to spice up shots of people getting hitched is evolving beyond the wedding scene. From portraits to magazine shoots, you never know what to expect from this photo-graphics savant duo.

www.mangored.com

mastermind

Digging the underground

walls, and scratched surfaces. “I’m already where I am because I broke the rule of being comfortable in what I do in Malaysia. I have hard times here, but I know that I’m blessed because of doing what I do best.” Being the man that he is, he concludes: “Sauce for the positive, because negative is too easy.” Drewfunk sees the world as an artwork in progress, but unlike others in the creative field, he sure knows how to take it at face value. “I see myself still struggling, but I know that struggles are for artists. You will never grow when you’re comfortable. There are times that I can’t even afford food, but I know as long as my soul is happy, I will be happy.” Considering his hybrid influences, he describes his art as oriental-funk. He explains, “I am rediscovering my oriental culture now and trying my best to understand it. I was brought up with western influences ever since a child. My roots make me stand out.” So by erasing preconceived divisions of east and west, he blended them to form one aesthetic landscape. Drewfunk represents this union especially with his solo exhibit Elevation Not Levitation in Oh

Really Gallery at Sydney. His displays reflect the meeting of opposites such as the modern and mythical, the momentary lapses of being caught up with fluttering thoughts and being exactly where you are; such is the magic of his works—to steal your imagination while maybe walking in the streets and then take you back feeling rejuvenated. And while making the world feel young, he too is reborn each day from the moment he gets up, eats breakfast, and drinks coffee, to the second he begins drawing and painting. It’s give and take—each process feeding the other—nourishing the need for a booming artistic community that can defy norms. “I’m talking about the new generation of artists in this or the next generation. Graffiti and street art will have an impact on the art world. It’s already happening, no matter how people try to think it’s not. It’s like hip-hop but a little bit older. Hip-hop gained its reputation, soon it’ll be graffiti. You can’t keep it underground for too long.” www.drewfunk.com

Shame to just “painting the town red.” With DREWFUNK’s spray of creativity and canfuls of aerosol, the streets of Melbourne are transformed into works of art. By Kristine Dabbay

he world, in my perspective, is too digital. Everyone is becoming a damn robot,” so if given a chance to redesign it, “I will paint a garden, a colorful one,” says Melbourne-based artist Drewfunk, an alias ironically coined from wanting a fun and catchy net username. Growing up in Malaysia, he grappled his way to becoming an artist by watching Disney movies and Ninja Turtles. “I was drawing since a little boy [but it was] graffiti that triggered back my intention to draw since being a little kid.” Though he enjoyed tagging on tables and chairs during high school, studying Multimedia and Design at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology was what ignited his quest for success. He simply wasn’t just a creative soul; he also had a knack for deviating from the status quo. He fondly remembers, “I never had interest in what the teachers thought, but I never had regrets for what I did. I think it’s all about breaking the rules so we can live free.” Upon returning to his homeland after graduating, he

worked as an animator, but he had the dreaded soul-drain scenario. This made him try his luck back in Australia where he realized that separation exists between art and design. That rekindled a burning desire for him to define his own lines. “Design is for money. Art is for love,” he said. True enough, his work feels like a cross between a punchline and a poetic verse, of love and humor—that playful mix of being both personal and universal all at the same time. Take Drewdio for instance, a toy made from molding clay mounted on clay cast and rendered with spray paint. It’s something you can play with, but conceptually, “it’s the mystical hybrid of an oriental dragon and an Australian pan.” Belonging to the Blender Studio based at the center of Melbourne, Drewfunk shares his space with 15 other local artists. They have a mural-covered place, also known as the oldest graffiti laneway in the city. He’s been exposed to the streets—to the reality of gutters, dilapidated

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Photo Diary: Philippine Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2010 by Cholo dela Vega

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PHOTO DIARY

www.cholodelavega.com/blog

mastermind

“I WANT TO TAKE SOMETHING OF MYSELF FACING A MIRROR BUT NOT AS A SELF-PORTRAIT...

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HEAVY mastermind HITTER

I WANT IT TO BE A PHOTO OF ME LOOKING AT THE WORLD.â&#x20AC;?

itness Protection Program

Photographer Timothy McGurr aka 13TH WITNESS is moody, skillful, and bloody brilliant. If pictures could paint a thousand words, then onlookers would be surfing on a visual vocabulary high. By Toff de Venecia

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HEAVY HITTER

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HEAVY HITTER

“Even if everyone has shot [Empire State], I haven’t shot it my way.”

Such

is the power of 13th Witness—a rising shutterbug from Brooklyn whose pictures are surreal, dreamlike, and would most likely be mistaken for a desktop wallpaper you’d find on a MacBook Pro. “There are definitely surreal parts to my work,” says Tim, who I meet at Union Square, a historic haunt and junction in downtown Manhattan, for an afternoon conversation by the park. Laid-back and understated in true artist fashion, he continues, “But I also have pictures that are very real. It really depends on my mood at the time.” Reworking and post-producing photos of cityscapes and landscapes among other vacillating subjects, 13th Witness splices color and fantasy with canvasses of reality, creating visual orgasm that erupts through one continued glance. “For me, it’s about taking something and taking it a step further,” he says of his thought process, using Photoshop and today’s fastmoving technology to unhinge the extraordinary from the otherwise mundane. “My photos are certainly very dark in terms of color. I’ll have photos of really dramatic cityscapes, clouds, or of a beautiful flower.” Momentarily, a bunch of auburn leaves start to fall around us, proof of an emerging autumn in the City that Never Sleeps. “I’m feeling like I haven’t taken photos in the last two days. I really, really need to get my ass out there and start taking pictures. A guy’s gotta make a living,” Tim says. After all, he says, competition is stiff. And he seems caught within a vicious struggle between himself and other people. He shares, “I’m actually my own photo editor. If I were a printer, I’d probably be a scanner and fax machine too, all rolled into one. I’m very tough on myself. Besides, if you’re shit’s not that important, you won’t get any work.” 13th Witness, at that point, was two hundred six days strong into his “365” project, a self-endeavor for the followers on his website where he posts a different picture of people and his surroundings from day to day. Subsequently, he reworks them and dubs them after songs that best capture the general mood or feeling behind each photo. He most recently published 206 as “Strangers,” an allusion to a trip-hop track off the 1990s Portishead album. He says, “For me, every photo is a song.” In a sea of cultural revolution, hostility, and change, these are freeze frames of reality that keep him grounded, anchored, and unaltered. For 13th Witness, inspiration comes two-fold: movies and music. “I’m very big on the visuals,” says Tim, citing Tarantino and Stanley Kubrick as his cinematic motivations. “But I’m also very much inspired by music, by old hip-hop most especially, when people would sing and speak about the hard times.” Tim left New York when he was 18 to seek out adventures and opportunities abroad. He went to Tokyo and other countries, and in his own words, saw some “bad-ass countries” whose comparisons to the Big Apple were literally a matter of night and day. Subsequently, a lot has changed since his return. “It seems to be getting worse and worse everyday. Music is my way of protecting this idea of New York I have in my head. It’s kind of like a portal. It takes me back to those good ol’ days.” Profound changes are coming in both the photographer’s career (He most recently dipped his hands on short-length videos after doing stopmotion work for Nike) and his beloved hometown, New York—the city that

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HEAVY HITTER

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HEAVY HITTER

“For me, every photo is a song.” raised him and inspires him continuously. “At the end of the day, it’s about paying homage to your roots. I mean come on. It’s New York! There’s nothing else like it!” he says with a slight lisp and a crisp Brooklyn accent, upon which he takes another puff from his faltering cigarette. Growing up in a creative environment didn’t only stem from his upbringing in New York. Tim also comes from a very creative family. His father, being internationally recognized graffiti artist Futura, has also been called his best friend. From city to family influences, it is no wonder that 13th witness has a vision that is uniquely his own. Even if we place the clichéd Empire State Building in front of 13th witness, he would still see things differently, “Even if everyone has shot it, I haven’t shot it my way.” Good point. But maybe we will see this photo after he conquers his fear of heights first, “Shooting from high above is something I’ve always wanted to do. But because of this phobia I have, I can’t seem to look over a building and just shoot.” Well, what if he were to take the last photo of his life? What or who would it be of? He pauses and summons a deep breath. “I don’t know man. That’s a tough one. Okay, well, I don’t have any photos of myself.” I thought he might segue into that – in true fashion of men behind the lens who capture all things great but themselves. “I want to take something of myself facing a mirror but not as a self-portrait. I want it to be a photo of me looking at the world. I want to see the world behind me, kind of like proof that I was there and I actually existed.” At the rate the 13th Witness is going, the world actually might never forget.

www.13thwitness.com

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heavy hitter

Raised by Wolves Enough of being the youngest to go solo at the Whitney. RYAN McGINLEY’s now way beyond this anointment from the art world’s powers that be. It is his lived American fantasy that he has transformed into the finest of art. By Nante Santamaria

When

confronted with Ryan McGinley’s film images of naked youth—lodged up a pine tree, laughing in a narrow tub, frolicking through deserts, graf-laden alleys, forests and, most recently, sitting still in caves—those familiar with contemporary art frequently invoke legendary photographers like Larry Clark and Nan Goldin. But of course. He and his friends, after all, are heir to the bohemian life in their piece of downtown NYC. When he was at Parsons, he shared a place with the equally notorious painter Dan Colen, forming a triumvirate with the late art world royalty Dash Snow whose tagging exploits he would document. Everybody who entered his place merited a Polaroid shot which made it to his wall. By the time he showed The Kids Are Alright in 2000 and got it published, it was only a matter of time before Whitney’s curator would visit that same pad that served as the test tube to the burgeoning of his art—a combo of nudism, vintage porn, and Sport Illustrated, he once explained. But the most amazing thing besides the rigor of his process—the exacting way his photos are framed, lit, processed, staged, picked out of hundreds— he is also one of the most accessible photographers today. You can see his work in Vice, among which this cover photo of a model face to face with a bear in the wild. In NY Times mag’s Oscar 2008 portfolio, he shot the new generation of talent including Ellen Page, Seth Rogen, and Marion Cotillard. Kate Moss becomes lady phantom in V Magazine, and Agyness Deyn falls from a five-storey building for him in POP. Having shot a Cannes Lions-winning campaign for Wrangler, he’s also done Levi’s, Missoni, and recently, Stella McCartney’s kids line. Today, he’s slowly extending into moving images, recently making a short film ad for Pringle of Scotland featuring Tilda Swinton. This is after his latest show, also the last in his summer trip series, Moonmilk, a journey to the center of the earth/ to the belly of the whale/ to an HR Giger set—possibly between Morrissey concerts he’s still so addicted to.

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heavy hitter

Were you shocked by how Moonmilk was received in London? They had to close off the block—it was awesome… London is fun to visit, but… Every time you take a taxi, it’s like 100 dollars… And English people make me feel like a wild American or something, like I’m not civilized enough. But the boys in London are so cute, like little pixies. What was the highest points of the shoot for this series? The high point was overcoming all of our fears, exploring and crawling through dirt and mud and dust, searching for the perfect location. Some place that would look like an apricot pit, the magic place in this subterranean world… What can we expect in your show at The Breeders, Athens this February? Some of my most recent cave work, some new falling photos, some black-and-white nudes, and a few more surprises. I started doing these black-and-white studio nudes about a year ago, and it’s a really different way of working. All you have is a white background and a person. You’re essentially nowhere, and it’s a challenge because so many photographers have shot that way. It’s fun to try and find new and innovative ways to reinvent that format and find my voice in it… Will you give us the juice on what else is next? I spend a lot of time asking myself “What should I not do next?” and then I do that. I like to do what I shouldn’t do in order to challenge myself. The whole idea of the cave project was to do something that was a whole new different way of working. I was so used to shooting fast and running and jumping and falling, and then I switched to the slowest way of shooting ever… Another project I’m working on is a short film for Neville Wakefield’s Destricted series. But honestly,

I just got back from spending the majority of the last two years in caves, and I just plan on relaxing and spending a lot of time at the New York Public Library looking at children’s books for inspiration. I sit on the floor there with my digital camera taking pictures of drawings that inspire me. Looks like you’re really transitioning to film. With Mike Mills and Gus Van Sant behind you at that? It’s fun to experiment in different mediums, and film inspires me probably more than anything. I’ve known Mike Mills since I was a teenage skateboarder, and he showed his work at Alleged Gallery on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, and I met Gus when I was in college, and he’s always encouraged me to make a film. I think when I was younger, I wasn’t ready to undertake such a large project, but now, I feel more confident that I could make an independent feature. How different is today’s thirtysomething Ryan from the 24-year-old kid who took the Whitney feat? Well, like the Germaine Greer quote: “You’re only young once, but you can be immature forever.” For instance, this past summer when we weren’t shooting in caves, we spent all our downtime lighting our farts on fire. Turning 30 was great though. Things that were up in the air all seemed to fall into place. I have a good team of people that I work with now, and I own a bus that we travel around the country in. Some things haven’t changed: I still ride my bike all over the city, I’m still close with people I grew up with, I’m still shooting nudes and…running from the cops if they see us. The only difference now is that I like plants and tea and fancy candles.

“Some things haven’t changed: I still ride my bike all over the city, I’m still close with people I grew up with, I’m still shooting nudes and...running from the cops if they see us.”

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HEavy hitter

â&#x20AC;&#x153;I always say that I was raised by wolves because by the time I was born, my parents had raised seven kids already and had pretty much given up...So I was able to run wild.â&#x20AC;?

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Aside from having to cope with losing your brother to AIDS, what kind of childhood did you have? Losing my gay brother when I was 17 was terrible, and it sucked because I never got to tell him that I was gay myself since I didn’t really know yet at that point… I feel like my work is some kind of response to his death because it is about celebrating life and seeing and experiencing things… I always say that I was raised by wolves because by the time I was born, my parents had raised seven kids already and had pretty much given up, so my teenage siblings basically raised me. There were so many different personalities, from the stoner to the cheerleader to the rock chick to the straight-A student and then my gay brother and all of his flamboyant gay friends, all mixed in with a very Roman Catholic upbringing… And then by the time I was 10, my brother and sisters all moved away because they were all so much older than me… So I was able run wild. There were no rules. Every day was something new and exciting that had nothing to do with school… I was a snowboard instructor, I skateboarded and worked in a skate shop, I was constantly going to movies and concerts, tripping on acid at Grateful Dead shows and hanging out with my brother Michael in the city—his boyfriend was a drag queen who did a Barbra Streisand impersonation, and we’d go see him perform in Greenwich Village. I was always hyperactive, and I’ve always had lots of energy.

heavy hitter

“I like to do what I shouldn’t do in order to challenge myself.”

You mentioned that you want to inspire high school kids to also be into photography. Any real-life fulfillment of this wish that you know of so far? I get emails every day from kids around the world, sending me their work… I give them advice and tell them which ones of their photos I like and give them some constructive criticism and encourage them to go in certain directions… What’s a perfect day that has nothing to do with photography? Well, the perfect day for me would include photography… But aside from that…sex, riding my bike, taking a bubble bath, going to a movie, eating sushi, looking at cute boys, watering my plants, listening to music, and lying around on my bed… What would a self-portrait look like today, what’s the title, and why? All of my self-portraits have always been unconventional, like…when I got a handmade penis tattoo inside my lip. If I made a self-portrait right now, I would be doing a headstand, naked, making a funny face, and then I’d post it to Facebook. It would be called “Everyone Knows This Is Nowhere.”

www.ryanmcginley.com

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WORKING GIRL

D L E I F F O DEPTH vorite par is a fa Ni ke oo Br her first pert nce she got why photo-ex si on er as Ev re a s. s and again gazine Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; oving time ands and ma pr br n en io be sh s fa among her, sheâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; her grandfat camera from r blood. he is in y ph ra og ot that ph Reyes By Raydon L.

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WORKING GIRL

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WORKING GIRL S o m et im e s ,

photography is more than just capturing reality—it can also be about transforming reality. Fashion photographer Brooke Nipar knows this philosophy quite well. Just look at her photographs that show an explosion of colors and contrast on women donning big hair, baroque outfits, accessories, and oozing sexiness from every angle, and you’ll see exactly what we mean. Acknowledging Guy Bourdin, Nick Knight, and Terry Richardson as a few of her influences, Brooke often employs a highly exposed and delicately blurred and dreamlike effect in most of her shots. Take for example her pictures of emerging pop icons Lykke Li and the now infamous Amy Winehouse, or her own take on ultra-feminism when she shot a mohawked Cassie for Dimepiece Designs’ Fall/ Winter 2009 collection. “With fashion stories, I generally have quite a bit more control over all of the elements— creative direction, styling, fashion being used, model, hair and make up. I do try to get a candid, informal feel for a lot of my images. Something that’s a little quirky or a little bit off,” Brooke points out. This LA-raised cameraworks master is practically BFFs with some of the major fashion publications and streetwear brands on the globe. Besides being the former Photo

Editor of the recently defunct MissBehave magazine, she has also shot for Anthem, Complex, Details, Luire (Japan), Nylon, and Vibe, and for brands Converse, Lee Pipes, Made Me Clothing, and Wrangler. When asked how she keeps up with her fast-paced profession and lifestyle, she credits good old fashioned passion and honesty as the ones that keep her going. “Most of my inspiration come from the fact that I love what I do. I always want to keep moving forward, creating new images, setting new goals for myself and working towards being a better photographer. These days I try only to do projects I believe in and feel strongly about,” she says. Although Brooke always starts her photo shoots with a clear vision, she describes her creative process as one that doesn’t follow any strict plans. Working on her feet and allowing herself to be surprised by whatever situation she is in lets her get a better feel of the shoot and work in a more flexible way. She explains, “These editorials are where I really get to do whatever I want and have a lot of fun. I always leave room for things to change a bit. I don’t adhere to a shot list or anything. I like to be inspired by what’s going on in the moment.”

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WORKING GIRL

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WORKING GIRL Her ongoing love affair with photography began when her late grandfather, who was also a photographer himself, left her an heirloom: his 35 mm film camera. That’s when she started shooting her friends and took some photography classes in school just for fun. Brooke was 16 when she seriously fell in love with the craft and realized she could actually make a living from what started as just a hobby. And so, she enrolled herself in Art Center College of Design in Pasadena. At 23 and just 10 days after her graduation, she packed her bags, left the sunny beaches of California, moved to New York, and instantly got into the rhythm of the city. “New York is a city of opportunity. Anything and everything is attainable if you are ambitious and focused. It can be a tough and exhausting city, but it can also be inspiring and uplifting. I always feel way more productive in NYC. No other place like it on earth. I love New York,” Brooke exclaims. The next months that followed seemed like something that came out of some inspirational movie about following your dreams in the Big Apple. Imagine Brooke in a video montage, sending out her resume and portfolio to different magazine editors and art collectors to start off her career in the metropolis. Her book was mainly composed of portraits of friends and some fashion tests she had done, all of which were shot on film and were never digitally retouched. She finally got her break when photo editor Jennifer Miller of Jane Magazine discovered her potential and gave Brooke her first real assignment. Even though everybody was already making the transition to digital, she did her first shots on film. That means she didn’t have the advantages of digital air brushes and Photoshop back when she was just breaking into the industry. “My first assignments for Jane were pages in the Beauty section of the magazine. One of the pages was called Beauty Fax. I would shoot a very clean beauty shot of a model from the shoulders up, super high contrast, black and white on film, and then Jane would fax the photo to a celebrity and have them draw/paint make up on my image,” Brooke says. “The most memorable one was when Jane had Robert Smith of The Cure do the make up. I’m a huge Cure fan. I was so excited! They let me keep the original photo with Robert’s drawing on it. I have it framed on my wall in my bedroom.” These days, Brooke still enjoys her creative freedom by freelancing from magazine to magazine. In fact, she had just finished editing a fashion story for Nylon before answering this interview. But

“This industry is very tough. It takes a lot of ambition and perseverance to make it.”

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WORKING GIRL

don’t think this girl is all about the work and nothing else. One of her top rules in life is to always laugh as much as possible and do something that makes her happy everyday. That includes wearing her favorite black leather biker’s jacket, listening to all the good music out there, partying with her friends at night, and stalking Thom Yorke from Radiohead. “I am always stalking him. Well, I am always

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stalking Radiohead. I just went to two of Thom Yorke’s solo shows in Los Angeles. Fantastic!” she exclaims, laughing. When giving advice to aspiring photographers who wish to follow the same path, she definitely adheres to the age-old saying that nothing replaces persistence. She stresses that there’s definitely a difference between merely

having a cool photo blog and being an actual working photographer: “This industry is very tough. It takes a lot of ambition and perseverance to make it.” For the future, expect Brooke to delve into directing videos, publishing a book of her works, learning how to speak French, and travelling to all the places that she deems worthy of beholding with her viewfinder.

After all, she still has a lot of movers and shakers to transform with her lens. Oh… and just in case you cross paths with Thom Yorke one of these days, kindly tell him that Brooke’s looking for him, would you?

www.brookenipar.com

WORKING GIRL

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WORKING GIRL

Photographer ANOUCK BERTIN fascinates us with her take on beauty, innocence, and everything girly. In fact, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s so girly, she could puke pink all over it.

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working GIRL WORKING girl seem to think that the French have the best taste in the world. And the French think Americans are trendsetters. They always envy each other’s lives,” compares photographer Anouck Bertin. She shares her insight on how some people observe the grass on the other side, and as usual, it’s always greener. But right now, the 31-year-old is busy taking beautiful photos and magazine covers for Interview, Nylon, and the New York Times while keeping a day job at the catalogue section of Urban Outfitters in Philadelphia. It’s fair to say that maybe the grass is greener on her side because she made it that way. Originally named after French actress Anouk Aimée, she was born and raised in Mexico City to French parents and moved to Paris later on to take up accounting. “Growing up in Mexico wasn’t the greatest thing when I was a teenager,” she recalls. “There were a lot of security problems; restrictions. And I couldn’t go out without a car or my parents. When I turned 17, I knew I was done.” Anouck set out for the City of Lights but would later realize that Paris wasn’t all peaches and cream either. “My parents’ condition for me before I left Mexico was to take up accounting. It sucked big time. Teachers couldn’t believe I was made for accounting,” she muses. So at age 20, she decided to enroll at photography school and managed to land a stint as a photo editor for a teenage fashion magazine two years later. “Hey! I still got my accounting diploma,” she says. Living in Paris, Anouck traveled yearly to the Big Apple and would often buy clothes, books, and DVDs that remind her of all things new, fresh, and original. She says, “In Paris, you have the impression that it’s always the same-the same scene, the same people. When you visit New York, you get this feeling of déjà vu--like you know the place. Different things happen everyday. And you just want to be this giant sponge and absorb everything.” The mystery of the city prompted her to move to the States where she has since maintained a peripatetic lifestyle, traveling back and forth between Philly and New York during the weekends.

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WORKING GIRL has since made a name for herself in the fashion industry, taking photos that own some sort of playfulness and pixie-like airiness about them. She has this queer sort of predilection for animals and pretty young things that reflect profoundly on her work. “I’m obsessed with deer, bunnies, and all kinds of cute animals. I guess ‘girly’ is my playground,” she realizes, adding, “It’s an endless pond of resources for me.” In most of her work, you will either spot an animal hiding in the corner or gossip girls trying to become them—images that represent the fairytale that sits beautifully in the photographer’s beautiful mind. It’s almost natural, like second skin—the fun and oftentimes frivolous fanfare behind Anouck’s photographic canvas. “I know my pictures are overly girly. It’s like I could puke pink all over them.” But it’s consistent enough that even when she tries to photograph something dark and depressing like skulls or skeletons, it comes out colorful and fun. She adds, “I like turning morbid into something playful. I play with those boundaries a lot,” obviously in as much as that her movie inspirations are Donnie Darko, Virgin Suicides, and Doom Generation, a little peculiar for someone who makes a living out of taking pretty pictures. Teenagers are her favorite subjects to capture. “It’s like they’re stuck between childhood and adulthood. They are so confused, and their confusion fascinates me.” Anouck tries to recreate cinematic imagery in her photos in order to crystallize an atmosphere where girls can be vulnerable, wily yet playful at the same time. “Fashion is always open to fun and crazy ideas that get stuck in your head,” she says. “I like fashion photography because you get to be pretty free.” Ruminating on the horizon, Anouck says that she still doesn’t have a clue of what’s to come. “That is the scary part of my life,” she says. “Definitely I don’t see myself in France or Mexico. I never really feel accomplished anywhere I go or whatever I do.” How about surviving the New York lifestyle? “Well, that’s probably my biggest accomplishment to date. Trust me, I had a thousand reasons to give up on NYC.” She likens the place to a bad boyfriend who the photographer’s been on a love/hate relationship with for the past four years. “It offers you all the chances, but it can also bring you down. But if you hang in there in the down moments, you can land pretty far.”

www.anouckbertin.com

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night vision

NIGHTVISION U92 DOLLHOUSE LAUNCH @ENCORE

Photos by Melvin Sun

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night vision

KATY PERRY AFTER PARTY

@ENCORE

Photos by Bruce Casanova

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NIGHT VISION

MTV MASQUERADE @ESTABLISHMENT

Photos by Nuk Romualdez

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LITTLE DRAGON SECRET SHOW

NIGHT VISION

@LOFT SEVEN, LA

Photos by Anthony Williams

MANSION LAUNCH

@ENCLAVE

Photos by Drake Santos

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NIGHT VISION

TELEPOPMUSIC @ALCHEMY

Photos by Lorenze Buenaventura

ENCORE LAUNCH @ENCORE

Photos by LA Laguna

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NIGHT VISION

MOCA MADNESS

Photos by The Cobrasnake

TOKYO POTLUCK

Photos by The Cobrasnake

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Where to find stuff in this magazine

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TRETORN Available at Trilogy, Alvion Centre, Makati City Tel: 328-1071 TRU Available at Power Plant Mall, Makati City TRUNKSHOW Available at Glorietta 3, Makati City; Robinson’s Place, Manila; Trinoma Mall, Quezon City See trunkshow.multiply.com VNC Available at Glorietta 2, Makati City VON ZIPPER Available at Stoked, Power Plant Mall, Makati City ZOO YORK Available at all Zoo York stores and shoe departments nationwide ARTISTS DARLENE ANDERSON (Model) MERCATOR MODEL AND ARTIST MANAGEMENT See mercatormodels.com GRACE DEANG (Makeup Artist) SHU UEMURA See gracedeang.multiply.com OMAR ERMITA (Makeup Artist) SHU UEMURA See facebook.com/darkstarmercury RICH HERRERA (Model) W TALENT MANAGEMENT See wtalentmanagement.com WESLEY VILLARICA (Photographer) See wesvillarica.multiply.com STUDIOS PARALLAX STUDIO Warehouse 13 La Fuerza Compound, 2241 Chino Roces Ave., Makati City TRYPTYCH STUDIO G/F Sarmiento Condominium, 177 Yakal Street San Antonio Village, Makati City Email: miguelmiranda42@yahoo.com

MUSE

“I feel like the need to be different and creative is important. It’s what gives you street cred.”

DIVINE REVELATION By Raydon L. Reyes Photographed by Mike Quain

esign has always been Melody Ehsani’s “divine blueprint.” Just one look at her custom shoes and accessories donned by the likes of Rihanna, Keri Hilson, and Alicia Keys would be enough to convince you that she was made to create beauty. But being born to a traditional Persian family meant that she had to fight rigid cultural definitions to figure that out. As a child, she had always been taught that getting married and becoming a lawyer were the only options she could take. Her conscience fortunately led Melody to drop out of law and enroll in an art school at the age of 23. After learning how to use design programs and finding a manufacturer in Hong Kong, Melody eventually came out with her first collection of high-end stiletto shoes. She has been set on creating her own path since then. “I feel like the need to be different and creative is important. It’s what gives you street cred,” asserts the Los Angeles-based designer. Today, Melody has branched out to making rings,

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earrings, and necklaces that utilize an ‘80s flair. Mostly made of acrylic, her pieces use a tinted mirror effect with gold or silver chains and plates. Her most popular items include her trademark Love-Hate Rings, Matrix Earrings, and her 3-Finger Fresh Rings. “The ‘80s represent innocence and authenticity to me. I think that probably has to do with how old I was during that era,” she says. Melody also makes sure that young women who have their own sets of dreams get the help that they need via the Oneness Model advocacy. Through the course, students learn how to meditate and do “transformation work as women.” A portion of the sales from her site are used for books and materials they need to finish the class. In the coming years, expect Melody’s first store where you’ll see not only footwear and jewelry but also special cut and sew pieces where you can create your own accessories.

www.melodyehsani.com

R2 Wing Greenbelt 5 Mall, Ayala Center Makati City PH +632 7290945