Monday, June 30, 7:00pm
Housing Works Used Bookstore & Café (126 Crosby Street, South of Houston)
BOMB Magazine presents: Victoria Redel and Honor Moore

BOMB Magazine presents BOMBLive from time to time, and this Monday there will be a talk between Victoria Redel (The Border of Truth) and Honor Moore (The Bishop’s Daughter) “about fathers and daughters, fiction and memory.” With a Q+A and signing. Should be interesting.

Wednesday, July 2, 2008
McNally Robinson (52 Prince St. between Lafayette and Mulberry)
Marcus Reeves & Alec Forge on Hip Hop and Radio

In case you missed the last Marcus Reeves’s (Somebody Scream!: Rap Music’s Rise to Prominence in the Aftershock of Black Power) event that I mentioned, here’s another, equally interesting. He will be talking with Alec Foege, author of Right of the Dial: The Rise of Clear Channel and the Fall of Commercial Radio, about hip-hop and commercial radio on Wednesday.

Leaving an imprint on New York’s indie fashion circles for the past few years with experimental, expressive collections, young NYC-based designer Brian Wood sees his latest African Warlord line culminating with the drop of his upcoming Africa Vintage Logo limited edition tee.

Known for artistic pieces suited for the streets and runways alike, Brian Wood’s designs are a product of creative vision and the tutelage of visionaries like Marc Jacobs and Anna Sui. The African Warlord concept was an examination of the impact Western popular culture has had on continental African sensibilities. Ripe with color and content, each piece spoke to the collision of two world cultures.

With the Africa Vintage Logo tee, Brian Wood presents his most artfully crafted piece in the collection thus far. The cut and sew tee features 6 printed iconic vintage logos, with a 4 panel-pieced front, and raw edge sleeve finish. The back neck label is also stitched on an appliquéd square of authentic Khenti cloth. Limited to only 100 total pieces produced, the Africa Vintage Logo tee will surely be a rare delicacy among the boutique circuit.

Be on the lookout for a July 1st drop, and check here for a current listing of shops where you’ll be able to invest in this work of textile art.

Here’s one for all you DIY photogs, lomos and designers out there: the Lomographic Society International is partnering with the tee-shirt company Threadless on a contest to design some gear inspired by Lomo’s 10 Golden Rules of Photography.

Rule 1: Take your camera everywhere you go
Rule 2: Use it any time — day or night
Rule 3: Lomography is not an interference in your life but part of it
Rule 4: Try the shot from the hip
Rule 5: Approach the objects of your lomographic desire as close as possible
Rule 6: Don’t think
Rule 7: Be fast
Rule 8: You don’t have to know beforehand what you captured on film
Rule 9: Afterwards either
Rule 10: Don’t worry about any rules

Known for supplying the recent resurgence in plastic, “toy” cameras like the Diana, the Holga and the Lomo — cheap-bodied, high-saturated, medium-format relics of the American 50s to 70s, Soviet Russia and good Commuists worldwide — the Lomographic Society was founded in Vienna in the early 90s by a couple of guys who accidentally rediscovered the magic aesthetic of these cameras. The society’s guerrilla style and rules of irreverence quickly outgrowing its supply, Lomo expanded to Berlin a few years later and held simultaneous inaugural exhibitions in New York and Moscow.

Watch out of your design wins! Besides the 2,000 Dollars in prize cash, you could also gain a heap of Lomo camera tricks. With those in your pocket, you’ll soon find yourself in a vast global network of street photogs and creatives who will nod knowingly every time you snap off a little plastic shot.

More on Lomographic here and on the contest here.

Stephanie’s got soul. So much soul that it moves through her lyrics, erupts uncontrollably with the unique alto in her voice, and leaves a deep resonance in the minds of listeners. Her soul is fresh and according to her, marks a “reincarnation for the new generation.”

This Bronx-born native makes no mistake when it comes to producing lasting music. With influences from greats such as Betty Wright, Lyn Collins, Margie Joseph, Roberta Flack, Candi Staton and Mavis Staples, it’s only expected that the rasp-jazz songstress bring music back to its feel-good roots.

July 21st marks the expedition back home, with the release of her forthcoming album Tell It Like It Is. When asked about the hiatus between this album and her 2003 self-titled debut, Stephanie McKay responded with a quote from Q-Tip: “Record company people are shady.”

Fortunately, she’s worked through the industry struggles to put forth a solid album. With its distinct title, Tell It Like It Is speaks to the people on their own level. Her latest single “Jackson Avenue” is a hip revival of the classic ‘day on my block’ theme and brings listeners on a journey of what she says focuses “good times, good friends, and Sergio Valente’s.” Stephanie describes this album as “more organic, less electronic” than her debut.

With inspiration stemming from family, life and love Stephanie indulges in the art of storytelling, and she’s had the opportunity to work with some of our times most acclaimed storytellers — Mos Def and Talib Kweli. She describes the two as “poets and masters of their craft. Dedicated to the betterment of their community and proud of their culture. These are things I aspire to do as an artist.”

With her ability to grasp an audience with her music, Stephanie has set herself in the right path to achieve this goal, and been marked her as an artist to be reckoned with.

MUTO a wall-painted animation by BLU from blu on Vimeo.
Blu may be one of my favorite street artists working today. His work, as instantly identifiable by style as it is by sheer scale, has also been humming a high current through the world art net recently, culminatingin an invitation to do a piece on the side of the Tate Modern in London and a solo show at the Galleria Patricia Armocida in Milan, which opened last week.

Like a global graphic novel, Blu’s tenuously allegorical grotesques and often mythological figures appear on building-sized panels dispersed from Saõ Paulo to Berlin and from Nigeria to Palestine. There isn’t a narrative that binds them to be “read” together — at least not one I see — but each sketch is also a skit, a scene acted out in the borderlands of comedy and drama. A little bit of surreal life sliced out of a dreaming child’s acidic nightmare by a sure, clever surgeon.

The life that Blu gives his creations is what sets him apart most and nowhere is that life more evident than in the epic stop-animation above that he made last winter.

More Blu here.

Blu (June 18 - July 25, 2008)

Galleria Patricia Amocida

via Bazzini n°17, Milano

Wednesday, June 25, 8:00pm
Happy Ending Reading Series (Happy Ending Lounge, 302 Broome Street)

Amanda Stern’s Happy Ending Reading Series ends out Wednesday with readings from Marisa Silver (The God of War), Nicholas Dawidoff (The Crowd Sounds Happy), and Sloane Crosley (I Was Told There’d Be Cake) and music by Nina Katchadourian. Each author is asked to do one risky thing, and the musician to play one cover. Always a fun, smart time.

Thursday, June 26, 7:30pm
St. Mark’s Reading Series @ Solas Bar (232 E. 9th Street btw. 2nd and 3rd Aves)
Continuum 33 1/3rd Reading

Three authors from Continuum’s 33 1/3^rd series will read at Solas on Thursday: LD Beghtol (Magnetic Field’s 69 Love Songs), Franklin Bruno (Elvis Costello’s Armed Forces) and Elizabeth Vincentelli (Abba Gold).

The mercury retrograde is over and a fresh breeze of regeneration will be felt by all this Saturday, June 21 with the Avant Yard offering of “Ancient Futures: The DNA of Culture and Civilizations” at MoCADA, the Museum of Contemporary African Diaspora Arts at 5pm.

This multi-media group exhibition will confront socio-political boundaries in “underground” movements with a dynamic blend of painting, photography, installation art, photo-illustration, and music. Featured artists include, Terry Boddie, Fikisha C., Jennifer Crute, Francks Deceus, Joshua Humphries, Dirk Joseph, Laura James, Kip Omolade, William Rhodes, Danny Simmons, Jamel Shabazz, and Malik Yusef Cumbo (Avant Yard).

Live music will be presented by The Essential M.C. (CA), Game Rebellion (NY), The Welfare Poets (NY), Yolanda Zama (SA), Nucomme (TX), and a long awaited Survival Soundz reunion featuring Carla Csharp Gomez (ATL).

Known for giving young artists the stage to speak their voice, Avant Yard will set the day in bloom with a special photographic collaboration from the students of Life Academy High School for Film and Music from 2pm until 5pm.

An opening reception hosted by Defrei of Ahficianados with resident DJ’s, The Majestic Twinsound and Ahficial Music continues on to the main exhibition from 5pm until 9pm, including a dance from LOVESPACE MUSIC Alter-Native Movement.

MoCADA is located at 80 Hanson Place in Ft. Greene.

The entire event is FREE.

“Ancient Futures: The DNA of Culture and Civilization” will be on view at MoCADA through September 7^th, 2008.

For more info, click here

BabyStone – the soulful mash-up of Ms. Novena Carmel and Itai- croon the stage with a gathering of beautiful eccentricity. The sound captures a Jazz, Afro-Funk, Caribbean sensation that caters to cultural enthusiasts. Marcus Brock had the chance to sit down with lead singer, Ms. Novena Carmel. This retro-fitted chanteuse is no stranger to the grittiness of the soul and funk being that her father is Sly, of the revered band Sly and the Family Stone. But, even without the distinction she’s a show stopper! BabyStone’s syncopated rhythms and intuitive - yet fun- lyrical dynamics need be positioned on anyone’s playlist.

If you’re in the Los Angeles area, don’t forget to check out the Record Release Show at Temple Bar tonight. For more info, click here

Trace: How did you and Itai start working together?

Novena Carmel: Itai and I started working together a couple of years ago. He had a track he was producing and when I sang for him, we vibed. Eventually, we had enough material for a show. We didn’t even have a band yet, but I was like – let’s book a date! We then got a band together, booked a date, and rehearsed about five times before our first show.

T: Was the use of live musicians in your band on purpose or a routed intention?

NC: The band was on purpose because we like a BIG sound. I like a real sound, there’s a lot of “fake jewelry” out there so to speak, but BabyStone won’t turn your neck green! We are influenced by funk, soul, and Afro-Beat. So, the use of live sounds and music is very important to us. We are now looking to performing an acoustic set as well in future shows and albums. Itai loves Brazilian music and I have family there so we want to incorporate more of those sounds into our music, like in “Can I Be.”

Me, personally, my vocals will always be soulful but I have a yearning to do some wild, electronic beats. Our live album is many live instruments, similar to a live show but I also want to perform to synthetic sounds like keyboards and talk boxes. Just weirdness, not only sincere heart-to-heart beats. Our next recording will probably have those types of sounds, not completely out there, but different.

T: Some artists try and shy away from their parents’ music – does some of that sound/feel resonate in your music? How has that inspired BabyStone?

NC: As an artist I’m inspired by a lot of modern artists and those that have come before me. One of my favorite genres is the funk/soul of the time period when Sly & the Family Stone was writing their biggest hits. The sound is so influential and amazing to me that there’s no way I could shy away from it. It’s funky, it’s in your face and it’s timeless. That’s a lot of what BabyStone is or at least hopes to be.

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With the UK music scene growing tired of the same old indie bands, KOJO seems destined to fill the void for those looking about in search of something new. The band’s unique blend of funk, rock, soul and electro conjures up a cocktail of influences from Sly and the Family Stone to Prince and the Red Hot Chili Peppers, all encapsulated in a slick set full of energy and instantly memorable melodies.

Formed and based in West London, the band’s music is a mix of all their influences, cultivated in a rehearsal studio off Portobello Road. Lyrics cover everything from getting out of London’s rat race in “ Let’s Go,” to the superb reflection on their 80s childhood name-dropping Thundercats and Super Mario with some original computer samples in “8 Years old.”

KOJO is currently working with Grammy Award winning producer Simon Gogerly (U2, Gwen Stefani) whilst finishing the writing on their debut album. Mates Duffy, Estelle and DJ Yoda regularly come to see them play and you can check out their video blogs on Nokia’s Royal Artist Club.

Catch KOJO at their Summer Party this Friday June 20 at DEX, where they’ll be laying on a fantastic set as well as DJ’s all night, a BBQ and hot tub action.

For more info and a sample of KOJO’s tracks, click here

DEX

476 Brixton Road

London SW9

Doors 7pm to 4am £5 Before 9pm £10 after