This month Kickzoo have dished out three pairs of Stu Graham’sRider Revolt Shoe for us to give away. The shoe is a sick and slick, lime-green Creature take on the Osiris Chino Mid kick and we love it. Just watch his part in the fantastic ‘Feed The Need‘ to get hyped and answer the simple question below to be in with a chance of winning a pair.
Shoe Specs:
– Vulcanized sole for increased flexibility and superior board feel
– Aggressive herringbone pattern for MPG
– Paneled upper for added support and durability
– Mid top styling for added ankle protection
There are plenty of enigmatic personalities in skateboarding, but rarely does the enigma come with as much substance as Heath Kirchart. It’s unheard of that a skateboarder puts out a part as inspirational as his in Sight Unseen in 2001, almost a decade after his curb-tech part in Foundation’s Super Conductor Super Collider, and then silently raises a bar he was always carrying almost another ten years later in AWS’ Mindfield. Concentrating on nothing but what he personally wanted from skateboarding he achieved what more or less everyone would love for free, the ability to do whatever he wanted on a skateboard.
Yet, he remains to this day as modest, quiet and as self-deprecating as he always has been, reluctant to take interviews too seriously and straight up refusing to acknowledge the extent to which people love him. This has – whether he likes it or not – led him to be one of skateboarding’s most endearing characters whose ability on a skateboard will never cease to astonish me.
This year he made his farewell to actively filming video parts with some final eye openers in Emerica’sStay Gold and so we decided to pay our respect in two ways. Firstly, we managed to steal five minutes from him for some words as he cycles across the USA in the kind of eccentric manner only someone who has previously had a game of skate against himself could achieve. Secondly, we have gathered a collection of our favourite video parts that can be watched online so anyone who missed out on his early days can witness the career of someone who has made skateboarding exponentially better than it would have been had he not given up the paper boy job and skated more. Here’s to you Heath, we know you won’t raise your glass with us but we love you all the more because of it.
Interview: Stanley
Now that you’ve hung up your professional boots are you excited to just go out and skate for yourself again?
I’m just excited to be able to skate without the pressure of having to work on a trick to film. If I feel like cruising for a week a month or a year I can.
Would you get pissed if someone wanted to film you now, even if it wasn’t for a part?
I imagine I’ll still go skate with Miner, Jet, or Greg and if I feel it would look cool I’d film it.
Foundation – Super Conductor Super Collider (1993)
What kind of work do you reckon you might end up into now that you’re not skating? You’ve said before about how you’ve never wanted to do a real job so have you had any ideas or is it a wake up and see deal?
I’ve never want to HAVE to get a real job, I always wanted to work a job because I felt like doing it not because I have to make ends meet. I haven’t really decided what direction I’m going to go in yet.
Would you involve skating in future work in any way… or will it just be a pastime?
For me to work in skating it would have to be for a brand I really like and get behind. I couldn’t work for someone I wouldn’t ride for.
Foundation – Rollin’ Thunder (1995)
You’re often labelled as enigmatic or quiet, do you feel that this is sometimes a misunderstanding or that remarks that you’ve made have been taken out of context?
I’m quiet. I just try not to make a fool of myself. I’m not a very easy conversation.
What did you learn from skateboarding? A lot of people talk about how it offered them a unique path in life that no other pastime can provide, but what did it do for you personally?
It allowed me the freedom to be who ever I wanted to be. I was never told to do anything. In my entire career I was only “talked to” like once or twice.
Birdhouse – The End (with Jeremy Klein 1998)
Who or what got you into skating rails?
I think it was just the progression of skating at that time. I was in the generation of big rails and tech rail skating. That’s what you did if you wanted to stand out.
What decade for you was the most fun and why?
90’s, it was just about going out and filming with your friends. No pro filmers or nothing, you just filmed each other. Their was no pressure. The flipside was that there was no progression and it looked like shit.
Baker – Bootleg (1999)
In the last ten years you started and finished with two sections that many consider to be among their favourite parts of all time. Did the way in which you approached skating change in any way after the massively positive response for Sight Unseen?
I live in a very small circle so when that video came out it was just another video coming out. Only now that people still talk about it do I feel that it was something memorable.
You must get it a lot of praise now though, right? How do you take it these days?
I don’t get much of anything. I could skate a skatepark for a couple of hours and not have one person talk to me or even stare. I always felt bad that I was paid to endorse products when skaters didn’t even recognize me.
Transworld – Sight Unseen (2001)
Your last video part in Stay Gold wasn’t included on the iTunes version, are you happy that your career filming parts remained only or the physical video and DVDs put out?
Yeah, I like that it may drive a could more people into the skateshops. Plus it’s hidden so you have to want to see it to see it.
What’s your opinion on where skateboarding is going online?
Everything is so instant now. I couldn’t keep up, as soon as someone does something the next day it’s online for everyone to see. It took years for me to get things together for people to see.
Emerica – This Is Skateboarding (2003)
Will you be skating the mega-ramp again any time soon?
I’d skate it any chance I get, but there is only one and I’m not really “in”.
Was it your idea to have a game of skate against yourself?
Kinda, I just headed down to Emerica and Jet, Timothy and I decided to do it.
Battle At The Emerics – Heath Kirchart Vs Heath Kirchart (2009)
Looking back on the twenty years would you have changed anything?
Yes, a lot. But I don’t want to bring up the things I’m not proud of.
What will you miss most about skating professionally?
The money, the traveling, the family aspect of it on tour.
What will you miss the least?
The interviews.
Alien Workshop – Mindfield (2009)
Click on the picture above to stream Heath’s Mindfield part directly from Greg Hunt’s website. It’s one of the finest parts ever produced and should be seen in the best quality imaginable.
Holy production combo Batman! In an unusual change of events for the french house duo, Daft Punk have been making headline after headline in recent months as we get closer to the release of the Tron Soundtrack. Further unconfirmed leaks aside, it has been confirmed that Daft Punk have produced the new N.E.R.D. track ‘Hypnotize You‘.
The track appears of ‘Nothing‘, the latest album from Pharrell Williams’ (seen doing a street plant back in the day on the right) band and can be seen being performed live on the Late Show with David Letterman below.
It’s a slow funk jam that’s a departure from the dystopian disco sound of Tron and Human After All and a return to the slower, groovier, in-front-of-the-fireplace style sleaze-cheese of Something About Us. Listen to it below.
Black Milk has posted the video for ‘Welcome (Gotta Go)‘ online.
The video was directed by long-time collaborator, Anthony Garth, with some hard work put in by editor Chris Chynoweth to create a gnarly stop-motion effect in downtown Detroit. Watch it below.
The track appears on the rapper’s album ‘Album Of The Year‘ out now.
Andy C will be releasing his fifth Nightlife mix CD on October 4th through Ram Records.
The tracklisting has just been announced and features over 60 tracks including cuts from Noisia, Sub Focus, Chase & Status, Rusko, DJ Fresh, Loadstar, Ed Rush & Optical and many more…
Have a look over the tasty tracklisting below then peep a trailer for an Andy C documentary that’s due to be dropped soon.
CD 1
1. Spor – Kingdom
2. Delta Heavy – Space Time
3. Mind Vortex – Onslaught
4. Chase & Status – No Problem
5. Wilkinson – Moonwalker
6. Loadstar – Link To The Past
7. Bladerunner – Spartan Law
8. Hamilton – Echoes
9. Octane & DLR – Seven
10. Konflict – Messiah >> Splash Babylon
11. Sparfunk – Crash Test Dummy
12. Mindscape – Bounce
13. Shock One – Polygon (Dirtyphonics Remix)
14. Mind Vortex – Now It’s Time
15. Sigma – Stronger
16. Noisia – Deception VIP
17. Survival, Octane & DLR – Transition
18. Hive – Blackout >> Ed Rush & Optical – Schranders Dice
19. Wilkinson – Scream It
20. Rusko ft. Amber Coffman – Hold On (Subfocus Remix)
21. Siren – Snorkel >> Logistics – Colour Wheel
22. Spor – Halogen
23. Phace – Strange Science
24. Loadstar – BLVD
25. D Kay & Lee – Tuning VIP
26. Break – Breakfast
27. Culture Shock – Ohrwurm
28. DC Breaks – Take That
29. Spinline – Run
30. Gridlok & The Upbeats – The Jitters
31. Ram Trilogy – Gridlock (Break Remix)
32. Commix – I Have You
33. Culture Shock – I Remember
CD 2
1. Craggz & Parallel – Turn The Page
2. DJ Die – Ghet’to Bizness
3. Break – All Thats Left
4. DJ Fresh – Mission To Mars
5. Tyke & Recipe – The Music Makers
6. S.P.Y. – Go With The Flow
7. Fierce & Vicious Circle – Section VIP
8. Enei – One Chance
9. Culture Shock – Footloose
10. Hold Tight – Lounge (DC Breaks Remix)
11. Sub Focus – Triple X
12. Blackout – L.O.V.E. (Hamilton Remix)
13. Delta Heavy – Take The Stairs
14. Ed Rush & Optical – Chubrub
15. Sub Focus – Rock It VIP
16. Break – Hot Love
17. Culture Shock – Protection
18. Noisia & Phace – Floating Zero
19. DJ Fresh – Cylon
20. Total Science & S.P.Y. – Gangsta
21. Total Science – Squash (S.P.Y. Remix)
22. Callide – Supreme
23. Hamilton – Soundboy
24. Wilkinson – Samurai
25. Drumsound & Bassline Smith – Can You Feel It
26. Apollo Two – Return To Atlantis (Marky & S.P.Y. Remix)
27. Loadstar – Hit The Ground
28. Break – Get Hot
29. Underworld – Scribble
30. DC Breaks – Pickett Line VIP >> Sub Focus – Deep Space
After 8 years of riding the swoosh, Reese Forbes has parted ways with Nike SB and has moved on to an as yet undisclosed shoe sponsor.
The shoe company have compiled all of Reese’s ads together, so jump right in by clicking the one below to see 8 years of skateboarding history from the big popper.
As part of their on-going collaboration with Product Red, Girl and the art dump have joined forces to produce a collection of work for sale in an online auction.
Alongside a series of wooden OG Dolls there are screen prints and individual works available from this website. There’s stuff here for collectors, skate-art enthusiasts and any of you in need of some awesome stuff to make your house look less dull. Check them out by clicking the picture (with further information) below.
All proceeds go to the global fund for eliminating aids in Africa too. Good stuff for good cause.
The SpitfireHighlander is supposedly designed for the more sophisticated skater, which, if you’re paranoid as I am could be misinterpreted as a form of discrimination. As I’m sure you’ve noticed, the skateboarding demographic consists of only about 5% sophisticated skateboarder and a whopping 95% scummy bastard, myself falling in that wider bracket. My argument is on behalf of that 95% who could be potentially be missing out on a perfect bag by incorrectly assuming it’s designed for those skaters suffering from serious illusions of grandeur. You know the sort, those that turn up to skate spots with a messenger bag big enough to hold a mouse mat, a pair of Ray-Bans and an ironic vintage dildo. This is simply not one of those bags.
The filthy roast-poncer kind of skater craves a bag that’s got enough room for all my scummy bastard possessions. This includes but is not limited to the following: poorly-made sandwiches, cheap booze, a hammer that I never use but feel I should carry at all times regardless, a spare change of clothes, a shower in a can (deodorant) four issues of various skate magazines that came out the year before, one large packet of Doritos, 14p lemonade, Balti mix and a vintage dildo that’s in no way ironic whatsoever. This bag has enough room for all that crap and more.
It boasts two massive main compartments, a hidden organizer for school/work (read: sandwich/hammer compartment), comfortable straps, fleece lined iPod/dildo pocket, all covered in a heavy duty fabric construction and Spitfire embroidery throughout. So yeah, if you’re a self-proclaimed ‘sophisticated’ skateboarder or a massive twunt then this bag will not only fit your mouse mat but your massively inflated ego too! And if you’re a skateboarder who needs a bag for practical purposes then this is for you. It doesn’t look bad at all either. Spitfire are winning.
Bellend Sebastian
Pfanner rides the fire and he is HOT SHIT. You should probably try to skate more like him and then you’ll win a lot more.
This may be only the third proper Deerhunter album, but in modest indie terms Bradford Cox has become something of a star. Whether it be under his own successful solo moniker Atlas Sound, or fronting Deerhunter, Cox has made a name for himself as both a gifted songwriter and music obsessive. As with any new recording baring his stamp, then, Halcyon Digest comes carrying the heavy weight of expectation.
From the noisy experimentation and psychadelia found on their debut Cryptograms, to the critically acclaimed indie rock found on 2008’s Microcastle, Deerhunterhave covered a lot of ground in a short space of time and Halcyon Digest continues this trend. The band’s trademark reverb laden guitars are back, giving the record the feel of a lost gem from a past decade. The appropriately named lead single ‘Revival’ is a good example, with a warm and simple sound that feels far removed from the heavily distorted guitars of the band’s earlier work.
In a way I miss the band’s experimental edge, which had up until this point contrasted with the more stripped back approach of Atlas Sound. However, the songwriting here is unsurprisingly top notch, and there shall undoubtedly be plenty more twists left to be taken in the Deerhunter story. While the band may have sacrificed some of their experimentation since Cryptograms, this has allowed for perfectly refined songs the likes of which could only be possible once those excess layers of fuzz are removed. ‘ Helicopter’, for example, is built around the simplest of chord progressions, but such care has been put into its construction that it needs little else. As Cox’s voice melts into the song’s chorus he strikes upon a melody that no level of pedalboard wankery could match, singing, “Oh these drugs played on me in terrible ways, they don’t play like they used to play”.
While it’s true Deerhunter’s latest is their easiest on the ear by a long shot, the band has lost none of their strength in depth. By cleaning up their sound they have managed to produce a set of crisp nostalgic pop songs, but still with thick layers of ambience to discover and enjoy. Whether this is as good as Cryptograms or Microcastle, I’m unsure, but this could be any other songwriter’s masterpiece.
When you think of French music, who comes to mind? Johnny Halliday? Edith Piaf? Probably Serge Gainsbourg? But it’s the hip hop scene which has been the most important cultural revolution in the country of the Bastille, giving as it does a voice to the disenfranchised youth and allowing second and third generation immigrants the chance to share their story.
Throughout the 90s in particular and moving through into the 21st century, French MCs, DJs and producers flourished, becoming part of the country’s fabric and providing the backdrop for other mediums, such as Matieu Kassovitz’s masterpiece ‘La Haine’. The Exception Culturelle Francaise law, which stated that at least 40% of the music played on the radio must be homegrown certainly helped, but it was the hard hitting and often overtly political and anti-establishment lyrics which cemented these artists in the foreground of people’s attentions.
It’s not easy to dissect every group or artist that made an impact in their homeland, but the five acts below are a selection of those that made their mark, whether in the old school or in the recent past. Look, listen and love. Vive La France!
Words: Abjekt
SAIAN SUPA CREW
Saian Supa Crew are simply one of the most innovative hip hop groups on the planet and certainly the foremost in France at pushing the musical envelope. Each track from their albums ‘KLR’, ‘X Raisons’ and ‘Hold Up’ features fast-paced delivery from each of the MCs across sometimes skittering, sometimes booming beats across their releases showcasing the talents of both the rappers and producers.
Even when a couple of the MCs fell away from the group, the Saian juggernaut showed no signs of abating and even caught the ears of RZA and Will.I.Am, proving how far their reach had travelled. With double-time rapping, reggae influences, singing and beatboxing, there’s no let-up on any of their albums, or the groups they were in pre-Saian – Explicit Samourai, Simple Spirit and OFX – which is why they are such an important group to get into.
IAM
Mid-90s hip hop in France was very much influenced by the gangster rap sounds of the American rap scene and it needed a group to stamp their own Gallic footprint into the scene, which is exactly what IAM did. Still lauded now as an extremely important group in the evolution of the country’s rap scene, IAM’s seminal album ‘L’Ecole De Micro D’Argent’ is as fresh today as it was when it was released in 1997.
Having caught the ear of Wu Tang and featured affiliated rappers on their track ‘Petit Frere’, they saw their album go gold in just two days and gained momentum outside of their homeland with a set at Reading Festival. Solo projects became commonplace amongst their members, but it’s as a group that IAM really showcase how hard-hitting and head-nodding French hip hop can be.
MC SOLAAR
Solaar is the daddy of French hip hop, still releasing records to much acclaim in both his homeland and abroad. Whilst purists prefer his older work, it’s his later material which brought him the mainstream plaudits with tracks such as ‘La Belle Et Le Badboy’ and ‘Solaar Pleure’.
Having guested on Missy Elliott’s ‘All In My Grill’ and seen his tracks used in such high-profile TV shows as Sex And The City, Solaar’s star continues to shine as brightly as ever. His reminiscence of his childhood and African heritage couple beautifully with his poetic lyrics throughout his entire catalogue and it’s clear to see why Solaar is viewed by many as the benchmark for hip hop in the country.
ORELSAN
Orelsan courted much controversy when he first hit the French scene, with members of the French Parliament unfairly accusing him of sexism and masochism. Lyrically, he can border the edges but does so in such a skilled way, that you can’t help but appreciate his talent.
His album, ‘Perdu D’Avance’, dropped in 2009 and showcased his wit, wordplay and flow amongst a backdrop of fun beats which lead to him being dubbed the “French Eminem”. Regardless of whether that’s the case or not, it’s going to be interesting to see where the new face of French rap is going when he releases his follow-up.
DISIZ LA PESTE
Getting noticed by the legendary Joey Starr of the infamous Supreme NTM crew at an early age, Disiz La Peste thrust himself into the limelight with ‘La Poisson Rouge’ in 2000 with lead single ‘J’Pete Les Plombs’, inspired by the film ‘Falling Down’. Not one to rest on his laurels, Disiz continued his climb to the top of the French rap charts and appeared on the soundtrack of ‘Taxi 2’.
2009 saw Disiz retire from rap with a bulletin on MySpace but he said he was looking to continue on with music in general. With this statement came ‘Disiz The End’, an album that showed he’d lost nothing in the nine years since his debut album with the standout ‘C’est La Verite’ becoming France’s own version of Lil Wayne’s ‘A Milli’. Whether dropping double time as in his verse on Rouge A Levre’s ‘Gash’ or more centred rhyme patters on ‘Il Est Deja Trop Tard’, Disiz is definitely one for the annals.
This month Kickzoo have dished out three pairs of Stu Graham’s Rider Revolt Shoe for us to give away. The shoe is a sick and slick, lime-green Creature take on the Osiris Chino Mid kick and we love it. Just watch his part in the fantastic ‘Feed The Need‘ to get hyped and answer the simple question below to be in with a chance of winning a pair.
There are plenty of enigmatic personalities in skateboarding, but rarely does the enigma come with as much substance as Heath Kirchart. It’s unheard of that a skateboarder puts out a part as inspirational as his in Sight Unseen in 2001, almost a decade after his curb-tech part in Foundation’s Super Conductor Super Collider, and then silently raises a bar he was always carrying almost another ten years later in AWS’ Mindfield. Concentrating on nothing but what he personally wanted from skateboarding he achieved what more or less everyone would love for free, the ability to do whatever he wanted on a skateboard.
Holy production combo Batman! In an unusual change of events for the french house duo, Daft Punk have been making headline after headline in recent months as we get closer to the release of the 
The 
This may be only the third proper Deerhunter album, but in modest indie terms Bradford Cox has become something of a star. Whether it be under his own successful solo moniker Atlas Sound, or fronting Deerhunter, Cox has made a name for himself as both a gifted songwriter and music obsessive. As with any new recording baring his stamp, then, Halcyon Digest comes carrying the heavy weight of expectation.
When you think of French music, who comes to mind? Johnny Halliday? Edith Piaf? Probably Serge Gainsbourg? But it’s the hip hop scene which has been the most important cultural revolution in the country of the Bastille, giving as it does a voice to the disenfranchised youth and allowing second and third generation immigrants the chance to share their story.