Lost AT E Minor

WE'RE THINKING

It’s been a while since we last checked in with one of our favourite illustrators, New York based Tomer Hanuka. His work is like the first rays of morning light on the fifth day of a week long vacation — easy on the eye but brimming with nervous anticipation.

WE'RE SUPPORTING

Working out of Latvia, Riga, artist Ilgvars Zalans creates lush, vibrant pieces that are at once unsettling for their mashed up textures as they are eerily and awkwardly beautiful. Of his art, he says: ‘I focus on images and motifs that are fundamental, archetypal, and universal in human experience, as opposed to those that are socially determined’. Read more

WE'RE LISTENING TO

You know that band you’ve always wanted to form, the one with the little-girl-lost singer with the mischevious eyes and the propulsive beats that drive bass hooks so catchy you want to bottle them up and sell them to Sting? That’s right, that fictional band that lingers just that little deeper in your imagination every time you saunter down Bedford Avenue, surrounded by girls in neon tights and guys in ruffed up converse. You know the one? Well, guess what, you’re too late. It’s arrived. It’s French. And it’s so damn good.
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WE'RE WEARING

Pioneering Australian designer Kara Smith can definitely give Urban Originals a run for their money. She creates the most innovative handbags for those that truly want to stand out. Detailed with lovely pockets and vintage buttons, Smith’s retro inspired designs literally transform original vintage fabrics into ‘one-off’ clutches, handbags, totes and accessories. I’m in love with her clutches! But yes, if you missed her over the week end at the Blue Mountain’s Leura Village Fair, she’s stocked in Glebe and Sydney’s Todae store, as well as at a variety of online outlets.

WE'RE READING

DJ Spooky — That Subliminal Kid — is just about the deepest crate digger around, trawling the barrels of long-lost record stores for choice vinyl to spin in his wickedly dubby sets. He gave us the inside word last week on his eight favourite songs right now via our sister website, My Secret Playlist. This is what he had to say about Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry’s Panic in Babylon: ‘If there’s anything that the twenty-first century has told us, it’s that dub is the real original hip-hop. Lee Scratch even had to make it clear in 1965 by adding “Scratch” to his middle name. Take that, Grandmaster Flash!’ Read the rest of DJ Spooky’s Secret Playlist.

The Deal sisters have dropped off the indie-rock radar of late, but this clip of them covering Hank Williams’ I Can’t Help It reminds us why we all loved them so much back in the day. Incidentally, the Breeders are set to release their new album, Mountain Battles, in April.

WE'RE TRAVELLING TO

Last night, I caught Pagan Fest at B.B. Kings in NYC. I missed the band that I was the most excited to see, T˘r, but Turisas and Ensiferum more than made up for it. Americans have been pretty late to warm up to folk and Viking metal, and bands of this sort almost never tour the States, so it was gratifying to see that the show was sold out, and that the crowd was so exuberant. Read more