Nat Liechti looks at the hottest literary genre in town: Having gradually emerged from the underground over the past few years, the so-coined ‘ghetto fiction’, ‘urban fiction’ or ‘gangsta lit’ has enjoyed a dramatic rise in popularity recently. With particularly prominent writers such as Sister Souljah, Nikki Turner and Vikki Stringer churning out novels faster than you can sing Elvis’ In the Ghetto, the style is notable for its unapologetic depictions of life on the darker side of the urban landscape. The characters are usually either African-American or Latino and it must be said, the novels are certainly not for the faint of heart. Violence, sex, poverty and racism are all portrayed in a raw — and largely realistic — way. ‘Riding Dirty on I-95’, Turner’s latest novel [recently released in Australia through Random House] details a headstrong woman’s quest for love and understanding whilst trying to survive in a tough world. Involving murdering gangstas, neglectful parents and drug-dealing lovers, the book packs a punch and is great introduction into the world of ghetto fiction. [illustrations by We Are The Robots]
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Crimea X is the coming together of two offbeat, disparate characters, DJ Rocca (Ajello, Super Sonic Lovers, Maffia Sound System) and Jukka Reverberi from 90s Italian glam cult rockers, Giardini di Mirò, who have often have been compared with the sound of Mogwai, Arab Strap, and Godspeed You! Black Emperor. We asked them about their favourite music and they started with The Smiths song, Ask [listen below] ‘I saw them playing live on Italian TV. It was during the 80s when I was extremely young, and I’ve never stopped listening to this song’. Read the rest of Crimea X’s Secret Playlist.
I love the curated selection of abandoned swimming pool photos on Feature Shoot today, featuring work by Carlo Van de Roer and Albert Jodar, amongst others.
Win a set of Sony personal audio prizes
Thanks to Sony Australia, four Lost At E Minor readers will win personal audio prizes, including the new 8GB Walkman S series video MP3 player and the MDRXB500 Extra Bass headphones. Read more
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In the beautiful work of New York City-based illustrator, designer and typographer, Mario Hugo, finely rendered faces and figures intermingle with various abstract patterns and shapes to create some seriously refined, surreal, and mysterious work that’s all that, and then some.
A colonial-style fishing village on the Pacific coast of Nicaragua, San Juan Del Sur is becoming a popular tourist location but has remained largely unspoiled by the tourist dollar. Read more
New York-based eco-line Loomstate create the coolest tees made of organic cotton. Each printed t-shirt not only celebrates nature but is stylishly crafted, with contrasting stitching coupled with signature twisted side seams for a sleek fit. My favourite is the Seabra design [pictured below]. And, boys, don’t fret because Loomstate cater for males, too. Read more
Skateboarding is fun. I know this because we have one in our apartment which we use to cruise across the polished floorboards to get from room to room. Though I should acknowledge at this point that I use the term ‘cruise’ liberally. Read more
We have a bunch of new playlists up on our sister site, My Secret Playlist, a music discovery website and weekly email publication in which we invite our favourite bands and musicians to give us the rundown on their eight favourite songs right now. Over the past few weeks, acts such as The B52s, Team Genius, Pivot, Jukebox the Ghost, Moby, Katy Perry, and the Dandy Warhols, among many others, have written about the music that inspires them. To sign-up to receive the weekly My Secret Playlist publication, just enter your email address into the website’s subscription box.
How old must Kermit be now? Not to old to collaborate with skater-friendly retailer Supreme and photographer Terry Richardson. Kermit, who usually wears nothing, has been hooked up with some new threads to advertise the brand. It seems Kermit and Terry are the perfect work partners: they’ve even released a video clip documenting the shoot.
Peter Morén, one third of the Swedish group — Peter, Bjorn and John — that gave us some of 2006’s catchiest moments with their collection of eminently whistlable tunes, has a wonderful debut solo album out called The Last Tycoon. Read more
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Trip out with Sparrow Vs Sparrow’s retro illustrations, I love their aesthetic, color use and sense of humor. Read more
Karen Caldicott’s clay head models
British born, New York-based model maker Karen Caldicott has been making clay heads for all major US publications over the last decade. Read more
Forget battery powered vehicles. Cars made from ice are the future of transportation: no pollution, no honking horns, no painful rap music blasting out of souped up stereos. And if they melt, they melt. You just swim the rest of the way down the slipstream.
With the recession still biting, it may be time to whip out the glue and the cardboard and make your next pair of cool kicks. Don’t know how they’d manage in the rain though? Read more
There is not a medium that UK illustrator Lizzy Stewart cannot wrap around her little finger to make the most beautiful, whimsical images. Read more
Thanks to Sony Australia, four Lost At E Minor readers will win personal audio prizes, including the new 8GB Walkman S series video MP3 player and the MDRXB500 Extra Bass headphones. Read more
Using both highly rendered images and softer graphic design elements, Nate Frizzell weaves stories into his paintings that we all can see ourselves being a part of. Giclee print on Sommerset velvet archival paper 12”x20” in a limited edition of 25.
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juan perez said | 4 December, 2006
me parece una exeletene idea