Two of the best known and highly respected Producers in the Dubstep scene, Skream and Benga tore everyone who saw their set at field day (and void) a new one. After Jack Beats played their near perfect banger driven set to the packed out forrest stage I thought that the crowd would quickly scatter because lets face it, when someone mentions Dubstep to the average festival punter they are either going to pretend to know what style of dance move it is or if your really lucky they might mention the remix that Caspa did of Deadmau5 that [...]]]>

Two of the best known and highly respected Producers in the Dubstep scene, Skream and Benga tore everyone who saw their set at field day (and void) a new one. After Jack Beats played their near perfect banger driven set to the packed out forrest stage I thought that the crowd would quickly scatter because lets face it, when someone mentions Dubstep to the average festival punter they are either going to pretend to know what style of dance move it is or if your really lucky they might mention the remix that Caspa did of Deadmau5 that hit the top of the hype machine.

Starting with none other than my fav track of the moment  - Sweet Shop by Doctor P it instantly turned the crowd into a crazed moshpit, its like the drop  opened the flood gates to that extra special bit of serotonin that the crowd was saving for the headlinder all at once. For me it was a dream come true, an eardrum shattering performance that had everything of the headlining act; crowd surfing, mic grabs and very angry bouncers (which even though i was kicked out near the end) that couldn’t even be ruined by any of the Sweaty, shirtless steroid driven ego’s trying to hold bodybuilding comps with the other smaller, shirtless, Tatoo driven ego’s that a festival normally brings. By far the best set i have seen since Boys Noize at the Forum almost a year ago, my only regret is not seeing them again on the saturday.

So after seeing the crowds reception to thier set will 2010  be the year of the dubstep for Australia?
Maybe, but i dont think anyone really wants that to happen.

Song of the set- Skream – What did he say?

Peace,

Parksie

Uffie – MC’s Can Kiss (produced by Mr Oizo) (320k)

Peace,

Parksie

My favorite Dubstep producers at the moment have to be Datsik and Excision and when they get together they make some of the most innovative sounding music i have ever heard. Think of the type of music played at an acid filled  Transformers rave and you might have some sort of idea what it may sound like.  Two Step drum patterns, Crazy morphing synth lines with freakish incidentals and heavy hitting basslines. Any robots heaven.

Excision, Datsik – Swagga (Direct Link) (320k) Highly Recommended

Excision, Datsik – Calypso (Direct Link) (320k)

Check out their other amazing tracks on Beatport or  

Peace,

Parksie

Great gift idea for christmas

To start off, Karen Walker’s new collection “Celebrate the sun” has a range of both round and rectangular styles, coming in a nice little selection of coloured lenses and frames – cobalt blue, blood orange, tortoise shell, plain pastal colours and black. They are all definately worth looking at this summer.

view the rest of them at http://www.karenwalker.com.

If Karen Walker hasn’t got what your after then take a look at Ksubi.

Ksubi have 13 new unisex frames as part of their new eyewear collection for 09/2010: Book Club. All of the frames [...]]]> There have been a few eyewear lookbooks this summer that have caught my eye (pun not intended).

To start off, Karen Walker’s new collection “Celebrate the sun” has a range of both round and rectangular styles, coming in a nice little selection of coloured lenses and frames – cobalt blue, blood orange, tortoise shell, plain pastal colours and black. They are all definately worth looking at this summer.

view the rest of them at http://www.karenwalker.com.

If Karen Walker hasn’t got what your after then take a look at Ksubi.

Ksubi have 13 new unisex frames as part of their new eyewear collection for 09/2010: Book Club. All of the frames are left unpolished and raw for that modern look. This look contains layered colour acetates leopard print, leopard tortoiseshell, charcoal, navy, ivory frosts and fuchsia.

Check out their website for more. Ksubi

We have seen some incredible frames from the boys from AM eyewear in the past and this season is no exception.  All of the collection comes in a variety of colours; pearl, tortoiseshell, black and ale. The simple yet stylish designs are great for summer this year, not only do they look great they can be worn with almost anything.

Too see the other colours or see their earlier stuff check out www.ameyewear.com

1. A little introduction for our readers who might not know the real Alvin?

I’m Alvin Manalo, the designer and creator of Saint Augustine Academy, a music snob and general nice guy.  Haha. 2. When and How was Saint Augustine Academy born?The idea of the label started in December 2003.  I really wanted to make something that reflected what me and my friends were into: music, art.  We just really loved to dress up. 3. When was the turning point in your life that you believe designing and clothing could be more than just a passion, but [...]]]>

1. A little introduction for our readers who might not know the real Alvin?

I’m Alvin Manalo, the designer and creator of Saint Augustine Academy, a music snob and general nice guy.  Haha.

2. When and How was Saint Augustine Academy born?The idea of the label started in December 2003.  I really wanted to make something that reflected what me and my friends were into: music, art.  We just really loved to dress up.

3. When was the turning point in your life that you believe designing and clothing could be more than just a passion, but actually a career?

To begin with, I’d never really considered that designing could actually be a career… and the level of success we’ve achieved so far has happened kind of ‘organically’ so I guess there’s really no actual point. After a while things just started to fall into place.

4. How did it all happen – what is the story behind the creation of the label?

Our first collection was called ‘Delusions of Grandeur’ and consisted of denim, tshirts and shirting and a few blazers. We sold it at Incu, Capital L, Orson & Blake and Cactus Jam (Melbourne) plus a few other stores that I had relationships with via my previous label (which was called SCAR). With each passing season, we increased our stockists and the collections got larger. Over the past nearly 6 years we’ve sold our label in some amazing boutiques in Japan, LA, New York, Singapore, Ireland and Canada, including Patricia Field’s boutique in New York, Hotel Venus. Now we have our own boutique in Surry Hills, and are heading over to New York in January to source a new distributor.

5. Who was involved in this happening – who do you thank for helping you get to where you are today?

Adrian, my business partner, has always been an integral part of running the business and if it wasn’t for his belief in what I was doing, Saint Augustine Academy would not be where it is today. I’d already sort of lost steam after the failure of my last label, due to not having enough capital and someone to take care of the business side of things.  At lunch one day, Adrian made the fatal mistake of asking me what I needed to make it happen.  The rest is history.

We’ve also worked with our publicist Candice since the beginning and she has been really helpful in raising the profile of the label. Plus of course all my friends who’ve ever modelled for me for free and interns who’ve done all the shit-kicking work ha ha.

6. When did your lucky break come, when was the spotlight cast upon you and your clothing?

I feel something really changed early last year.  We’d already been around for 3 years or so, quietly chugging along, but as soon as we produced our first runway show off-schedule during RAFW, coinciding with opening our boutique in Surry Hills, the general consciousness about the label became much more wide-spread.  We had a string of success working with several big profile bands around the same time, including Bloc Party, The Horrors, Interpol, MGMT and The Rapture.

7. Where did the inspiration come from for the whole feel and look of the label in general?

All my collections are somehow connected to music – whether it’s an album, or a genre, artist, or even just one song. I love a lot of different music, and its always been a big part of the reason why I design clothes. The label kind of started from me wanting to make clothes me and my friends wanted to wear.  Like the clothes of the bands we saw and loved. Things like skinny suiting and sharp silhouettes. My dream is to have bands like The Horrors, Ipso Facto and Dead Weather dressed in Saint Augustine Academy exclusively.

8. Tell us a bit about “Do you believe Her?”

This Summer collection was inspired by the song of the same name by Danish band The Raveonettes. The song is a bit of an ode to the sounds of 60’s girl groups and surf rock, and I wanted “Do You Believe Her?” to reflect this. The collection has a kind of mod aesthetic and is monochromatic. The menswear is sleek skinny suiting and shirting with unique details, in black, white, charcoal, tweed and houndstooth. The womenswear comprises of lace and ruffled shift dresses, silk shantung high-waisted mini shorts and cocktail dresses and my favourite, a womens tuxedo.

9. Most memorable moment during your career – milestones, awards, etc?

We’ve had some amazing times over the years… Getting to do what I do every day is pretty awesome, it doesn’t really feel like a job. Getting the opportunity to meet some of my heroes and give them my clothing… I’m talking about people like MGMT, Interpol and Nick Cave. Pretty cool.

10. What are some of your favourite labels, what can we expect to see you wearing other than Saint Augustine Academy?

My favourite labels right now are Carol Christian Poell and Tatsuro Horikawa, but I mostly wear my own clothes or vintage stuff. I like combat boots on my feet most days.

11. We have seen the label feature in some of the biggest magazines in the country ( i.e. GQ) where can it go from here?

I want to expand the label’s international distribution, especially in Europe and Asia, and increase our womenswear to be as big a part of the business as the menswear.

12. Where would you go to wind down after a busy week for a few drinks on a Friday afternoon?

I’ve been working 7 days a week for over 5 years now, so the concept of a weekend’s gotten lost, but I’d usually go to an art exhibition, maybe at Black & Blue, Palmer St Gallery or MA Gallery. Sometimes I might swing by Ching-a-Lings, Vegas (at Q bar) or Brighton Bar but I usually end up just hanging with friends on the steps of The Gaff, or Palmer St Park until we get told to move along. Haha.

13. Future plans for the team – distant and near?

Next Feb we will have our Autumn/Winter range (which is called ‘The Lamentations of Euchrid the Mute’ which was inspired by the Nick Cave novel And The Ass Saw The Angel) in store. We’ll also be showing the S/S 2011 collection at RAFW in May, as well as exploring a line of Saint Augustine Academy accessories and footwear.

The Black Sheep are one of the lesser known groups of the Infamous Native Tongue crew. Their First full studio album ‘A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing’ takes on similar styles and morals as their more famous cousins with Intelligent lyrics that take take on heavy on issues in a positive or humorous way such as ‘U Mean I’m Not’, the values promoting ‘Flavour of The Month’ or the classic style in ‘The Choice Is Yours’ (which the now famous Engine Engine number 9 verse was later sampled by Fatman Scoop). Although i don’t think The Black Sheep is for everyone [...]]]>

The Black Sheep are one of the lesser known groups of the Infamous Native Tongue crew. Their First full studio album ‘A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing’ takes on similar styles and morals as their more famous cousins with Intelligent lyrics that take take on heavy on issues in a positive or humorous way such as ‘U Mean I’m Not’, the values promoting ‘Flavour of The Month’ or the classic style in ‘The Choice Is Yours’ (which the now famous Engine Engine number 9 verse was later sampled by Fatman Scoop). Although i don’t think The Black Sheep is for everyone you should give these tracks below a chance.

Black Sheep – The Choice Is Yours

Black Sheep – Pass the 40

Black Sheep – You Mean I’m Not

Support the black sheep by purchasing them on

Peace,

Parksie

Mos Def has been one of my favourite Hip Hop artists for a long time now. In my eyes he is a one man Tribe Called Quest: Intelligent, Positive, Socially aware and executes his impactual rhymes over Blues, Jazz and Rock inspired production. His tracks are always about real issues, ‘Mathematics’ gives us a series of linked rhymes about the statistics and percentages in the struggle of being the lowest common denominator, his collaboration CD with Talib Kweli ‘Black Star’ was mainly focused on the bad side of Hip Hop and the gangster image [...]]]>

Mos Def has been one of my favourite Hip Hop artists for a long time now. In my eyes he is a one man Tribe Called Quest: Intelligent, Positive, Socially aware and executes his impactual rhymes over Blues, Jazz and Rock inspired production. His tracks are always about real issues, ‘Mathematics’ gives us a series of linked rhymes about the statistics and percentages in the struggle of being the lowest common denominator, his collaboration CD with Talib Kweli ‘Black Star’ was mainly focused on the bad side of Hip Hop and the gangster image and his guest appearance on Immortal Technique’s controversial track (which Eminem then ruined with a cub version) ‘Bin Laden’ attacked the US Bush administration and blamed them for the September 11 attacks. Whatever your style of music i am sure you can find a Mos Def track that you will like I would Highly Recommend listening to the albums ‘Black on Both Sides’ and  The ‘Ecstatic’ the tracks mentioned above, the fast and fluent ‘Speed Ball’ the chilled out ‘California’ and my fav track of his latest album ‘The Auditorium’ (mid quality mp3 below)

Mos Def – The Auditorium

Please Support Mos Def by Purchasing his tracks on he is one of the real people out there trying to change things.

Peace,

Parksie