I'M JUST AN ANALOGUE GUY IN A DIGITAL WORLD

it's been 27 long hard years and still strugglin'

2010-08-20T08:56:00.005+02:00

survival got me buggin', but I'm alive on arrival

gladly breaking with my tradition of non-activity for this itty bitty trailer of what could be one of the best things ever. although the wu and their respective solo offspring is crowned and respected throughout the hiphop (and music) industry, little is known about the creative process and interpersonal dynamics involved. I for one am pretty curious about how the GZA, who often comes across pretty puritan, almost militaristic maybe, gets along with the ever so smooth wizard of poetry. available lecture has never brought me much satisfaction and I'm hoping this documentary will shed some light on the questions I ask myself. It's been ten years in the making so it better be good. plus, the killahbees definitely have to make up for the poor performance they displayed three weeks ago. thank god we had dizzee and some pitbeef to keep us entertained.

wu tang : revealed (geniusly written and directed by the GZA)

oh and I just came across these in my inbox. david beckham is a twat, but these look kinda sweet, just like some of those ransom series did.

available now from crooked tongues

saw band of horses, ellie goulding, black rebel motorcycle club, blink 182, minus the bear, iron maiden, the bear that wasn't and and so I watch you from afar and a bunch of others all in 9 hours time. I don't know about you, but seemed like a pretty good day to me, pretty pretty prettyyyyyy pretty good.

when the jungle was open I rolled in with the riders

2010-07-14T00:40:00.005+02:00

stole food from the bears and bought it back to the lions

been tryin' out a load of new spots, as usual. pretty productive week. I love food.

don't let those beans fool you. pretty tasty bowl of noodles, shrimp, vegetables green curry and coconut milk

chicken curry dish at one of antwerps most authentic chinese restaurants. no frills, all thrill.

ironic yet cute little information detailing. first class perfectly peppered steak. healthy perfectly seasoned garnishing.

all this... and dim some.

been cooking up some pretty good stuff for myself as well, I'm no Ferran Adria yet by any means, but there's definitely something really satisfying about a home-cooked quality meal. I should take it easy on the ice cream tho.

planning on eating sushi/noodles again at soho's tomorrow before staying sane to the tunes of state of mind in kempi's hometown. and I'm having dinner at camogli's this friday with four ladyfriends. last time this occured I turned philosophical on myself and ended up winning a puzzle, pretty random. we'll see what happens this time.

oh and the sales period was pretty disappointing for me to say the least. bought myself my umpteenth pair of desert boots to go to work in, a vans duffel bag for those weekend trips we all love so much and a vans x bad brains canvas belt which is actually the ugliest piece of clothing I bought since a salmony orange v neck sweater.

speaking of shameful clothing. I still hate how mediocre streetwear brands suck dry an independent underground music movement out of lack of creativity.

there's nothing like rollin' around bumpin' some carter II with the windows down in times like these. other recent tunes include: the bird and the bee, bad brains, joshua radin, kid cudi, karma to burn, black sabbath, belle & sebastian, bat for lashes, ... and so on. seems like I'm stickin' around at the letter b on my ipod.

if I fall, if I die

2010-07-01T00:46:00.006+02:00

know I lived it to the fullest

stumbled upon this cudder interview in which he talks about style, his objections to the current state of hip hop and a band of horses show in carnegie hall. he makes it sound so awesome and in doing so makes me regret missing out on their performance about a month ago for whatever bullshit reason. luckily I'll be seeing them in two months with about a dozen other quality acts. however you can't compare a grass field with thousands of loudmouth morons with the intimacy of a good club show. I guess beggars can't be choosers at this point.

here's some relevant footage by aforementioned artists, two versions (pick your fav)of cudi's pursuit of happiness and two of my favorite band of horses songs. enjoy.

ft. mgmt, ratatat

megaforce version

both remind of how immaculate his style and how refreshing his sound is.

things start splitting at the seams and now it's tumbling down. hard.

is there?

playlist these last few:
band of horses - cease to exist
mogwai - mr. beast
minus the bear - planet of ice
qtip - the renaissance
saves the day - stay what you are
camera obscura - my maudlin career
winne - zonder strijd
lil wayne - no ceilings (which made me realize the line 'swimming in polo/sleeping in jordans' is pretty fitting for my previous post)
karen 0 and the kids - where the wild things are OST
... and a whole lot more

I'm a do just what I want

2010-06-28T00:58:00.003+02:00

lookin' ahead no turnin' back

I'm usually not too much of a fan of the summerseason, for the simple reason that I can't stand extreme heat, witnessing clueless suckers in capri's and the sun coming up at an unreasonable time. add to that the fact that I love jackets and sleeping in on cold, dark days and you can pretty much guess fall or winter is more my steez. I must however admit that the summer got off to a pretty good start and this last week was pretty ffin' awesome, aside from the lack of sleep that is.

wore these ralph lauren swimming trunks and gallons of 30°C water on my skin today. I can see this becoming a regular sunday thing for the coming months. next step is learning how to make the perfect mojito royal, shouldn't be too hard right?

payed levis antwerps newest store manager an itty bitty visit yesterday after getting tipped on a pair of LVC selvage 505's with my name on it (litterally) chilling in the stockroom. picked up a playful shirt too (why not). got hooked up with quite the discount as well (for which I'm grateful).

oh and these have been sitting at my place for a minute now, one of the better recent jordan releases for sure. I'll be switching to black laces on the celtics pair though. also featured in the back are my bo jackson trainers in which I've been strolling around town the last couple of days. these seem to be turning a lot of (non-sneaker)heads. I know they're bright and I'm really sorry I don't adjust my style to whatever my friends, their friends and just about anyone in the street is wearing. it's called individuality, you might want to give it a shot.

other than that I returned from a great trip overseas about a month ago which was probably one of the illest two weeks in recent memory. so thanks to all the individuals involved.
picked up a shitload of gear there as well, what'd you expect. TCOB reunion in two weeks, that's what's up. I'm already picking my brain (and bank account) on a location for my next getaway, suggestions are welcome.

been listening to eminems latest record on repeat, which is by far the best material he ever wrote. switched it up with some holy mountain and the latest top notch extravaganza mixtape today. music pretty much determines my life and I wouldn't have it any other way. I'd still rather drive 2 hours to go see a good performance than to pass out intoxicated at a bus stop after a day of open air clubbing or to gather round a tv screen to see a bunch of overpaid guido's kick around a leather device for an extended amount of time, but that's just me I guess.

peace. life's so priceless.

toast to the good life

2010-05-03T02:00:00.015+02:00

back to the hood life

it's been a moment since I last checked in here and in all honesty I'm not really checkin' out the release dates of the latest jordan retros as intensely as I used to (still love myself a solid pair of J's though) or following any blogs myself. in return, these last few months have been such a rollercoaster, characterized with both the butterflies induced by steep descends and the fear of something going terribly wrong in the process. but for now, I'm totally high on life. I probably had some of the most satisfying days/weeks ever and I'm experiencing life as one big party as of late. not in the sense of a bunch of people gathering for excessive alcohol consumption and moving their bodies to music in a ridiculous fashion, but more in the sense of finding joy in pretty much everything I encounter, big or small. most of the time reality has a way of slapping you in the face or even stabbing you in the back, but lately it has been stroking me in places that love being stroked actually. I've truly been living from day to day and saying yes to pretty much every experience coming my way, which often means you gotta sacrifice some sleep, but since sleep is the cousin of death, I'll just accept fatigue every now and then.

also, this whole going out for dinner is getting kinda ridiculous, last friday marked the absolute summum of idiocy when I had sushi first, only to go out for steak one hour later. I guess this is quite litterally the price you pay for being a yes-man. I for one am not complaining, but I think my piggy bank is.

so I guess I'm just awaiting the unavoidable low that is to succeed this incredible high.

I've made it my mission to try every sushi spot within a 20 mile radius of antwerp/ghent. some all round japanese eateries that let you combine rice/noodles wok dishes with sushi, might have seen my face a lot lately. having a real hard time limiting myself to just one dish.

finally got around to having a little looksie over at ed templeton's new expo, displaying pretty much all of his work. way more extensive than his exposition in Antwerp last year, incorporating more daily life pictures. balancing between socio-critical, hopelessly romantic and just straight up nasty. runs till june.

chicken - peanuts - noodles - coconut curry - maki's - inside outs - .... note the boat (and my little rhyme I did there)

these simple yet effective blazers reached the cs hq two weeks back. immediately broke 'em out for a night of culture club. nylon uppers, black swoosh, no frills. beauty often lies in simplicity.

heavy riffage calls for heavy duty garments. round toe red wings - levis 500's - dickies lumberjack shirt to go see yob, goatsnake, eyehategod, karma to burn, about 100 more bands and a poor excuse for a kyuss coverset over at this years roadburn fest. if this whole career thing doesn't work out I'd totally be equipped for a job in construction (what's up nyhc video). at least then it'd be permitted for me to holler at beautiful women and show my buttcrack.

overpriced wannabe american junk, stuff like this tastes way better when it's 50% cheaper

so I recently got introduced to this all u can eat japanese joint. best/worst move ever. I believe this was round three. h-e-a-v-e-n

my person picked up this shirt for me in paris. the quiet life's ode to joy division, loving the sweet irony. this way I can wear a joy division related shirt without looking like too much of a burned out and jaded ex-hardcore cliché. furthermore, the CEO of the LSC also hooked it up with a 1966 selvage version of the classic levis 501. pretty sweet.

I'll be boarding a plane overseas tomorrow for two weeks of intense living, so again don't expect me to update this anytime soon.

antwerp - ghent - brussels - amsterdam - philadelphia - boston in one week time. I might not be fashionable, but I am international.

to quote one of the most influential musicians and businessmen today: life's so priceless.

one love

a week in the life of ...

2010-04-11T16:45:00.011+02:00

part deux

avenue stock sale, cheap gem. light blue but(t)fuckit.

family dinner. also present: chocolate cake & baileys cake. del rey, what's up sjaske.

I'm a shark, y'all just koi fish

although I'd love to be able to identify myself with a tv show such as entourage (who doesn't), I think this is way more accurate. nwa shirts, japanese denim, energy drinks, prps jeans, hustlin' sneakers, big city life, ... cannot wait for se2. and cannot wait to cross the pond again in may for ten days of excessive living.

scampi al diavolo.

I've been called a lot of things, but never funny.

a.d.d.i.c.t.i.o.n. picked up these round toes for mad cheap. also copped my fourth pair of nashville selvages, mackin' & stackin', better be prepared. you can't spell red wing without edwin anyway, right?

playlist:
archie bell & the drells - tighten up
drake - comeback season
the roots - dilla joints
lil wayne - dedication 3 mixtape
graveland - spears of heaven
nina simone - the very best of
birdman - family over everything
inara george - all rise
thorr's hammer - dommedagsnatt
danzig - lucifuge
... and many many more

off to go see eyehategod and blind to faith in ghent now, peace!

cause I win and they lose

2010-04-02T00:50:00.002+02:00

I call'em april babies, coz they fools

ever had that feeling of having something good right under your nose, but not really seein' it?

had dinner at restaurant 'marie' the other day. apart from an upgraded tavern this is probably the eatery which is closest to my door. I always thought it was just a bar until I got invited to eat there.

about 10 tables big and 4 options per course. offering modernised classics with a creative twist here and there.

tomate crevette

steak topped with anchovis, served with unpeeled yet seasoned baked potatoes and fresh salad. just a little bit too salty for my personal taste. will definitely opt to leave the fish off in the future.

rolled up in vans vault LX half cabs

starters + main course + drinks = about 40 euro

marie
boomgaardstraat 42
berchem
website

(blame apple for the poor photo quality)

a week in the life of

2010-03-28T21:43:00.008+02:00

a.k.a. recap

irish 6 rib - grand cafe bourla

<3

semi-sushi

coming home

impulse buy gone wrong

it's my ocean baby, y'all n*gg*s is tuna

what's up j money?

what's up werner & paula?

ik sip geen henny ik ben huisman

ossenhaas aka fillet of beef

angel on my left, devil on my right

2010-03-17T19:58:00.004+01:00

make no mistake who'll I be with tonight

got my goonie on last sunday and hit up some attics to go treasure hunting. no dubloon or map to one eyed willie's rich stuff, but I did stumble upon these gems:

philips 747A - circa 1930

gründig majestic - circa 1955

the good people at ubiq philadelphia hooked it up with these bad boys:

timberland - abington limited editions.

I think I'm developping some sort of boot fetish, as I have some red wing woolrich editions on the way as well.

It's been a good week for hardcore and music in general. saw terror, madball, mf doom and skarhead in a 6 day timespan. framed this poster I found in the archives a couple of weeks ago . this one dates back to the second terror tour in what must've been 2003 (?). I remember attending arnhem / hasselt / deinze on this specific tour. although I never get ignorant in the pit anymore, I can still get stoked on good hardcore any day of the week.

while on the subject of music and gems, I'm pretty sad I have to miss out on husky rescue's performance in brussels this weekend. steam locomotives have never sounded so good in a song before and I simply love that 'ghost is not real' record. four course meal doesn't sound too shabby either, am I wrong?

diamonds in the sky - directed by miikka lommi

playlist:
danzig I
danzig II
danzig III
dr dre - chronic
nas & jdilla - dillmatic

I took a train from brussels to antwerp to cop fine pieces

2010-03-02T07:54:00.004+01:00

don't get it twisted london's got the dime pieces, we stoppin' in amsterdam for top of the line reefer.(*)

although this online reporting of random rubbish could well be labeled as inactive at this time, I do however feel the need to share some intel on fine affordable dining. hit up antwerps sushi palace last sunday and I must say it's incredible how this joint has managed to slip under my radar since it was conceived about a year ago.

big stacks of democratically priced raw fish in a clean and quiet environment.

had some tuna maki, salmon sashimi and tuna/avocado inside out rolls.

32 euro for two persons including drinks might rocket this japanese eatery to a bi-weekly event.

sushi palace
vleminckveld 37
2000 antwerpen

already had some of these treats two weeks earlier when I hit up amsterdam. now I have to say that amsterdams supposedly best sushi spot doesn't have sh*t on one of antwerps cheapest, I'm probably still on a sushi high from sunday though as I remember being pretty stoked about this dish as well.

kagetsu
van woustraat 29
1074 ab amsterdam

amsterdam itself didn't hold too much surprises. I love to walk around the city once every two years, and especially now the weather circumstances were pretty idyllic as it was snowing, which provided a pretty cool view walking by the canals.

managed to pick up some gear here and there these last few weeks which I'm pretty happy with. having a personal shopper with a clue is pretty cool.

clae mcqueen (rip), vans chukka fleece, rockwell 'unTITled' collection, lee denim shirt, some book on the history of jeans titled 'from cowboy to catwalk' which kinda had me chuckling at the time I saw it. kinda wondering how to rock a denim shirt without looking like too much of a retard or a geography teacher. khakis might work, but I heard denim on denim is done again, so I might have to go all out and wrap my entire body in this divine fabric.

not pictured are insane amounts of bagels, coffee and muffins (apple cinnamon wot woooot), timberland abington boots and the vans book which I copped at amsterdams american book store.

I gotta get up and go file for unemployment right now.

playlist these last few:
percee p - perseverance
mobb deep - the infamous
liferide - s/t
talib kweli & madlib - liberation
fat joe - elephant in the room
la roux - la roux

(*)offcourse I didn't actually take a train, I did however scoop some reefer at a coffeeshop where I saw two black dudes playing checkers on a board that had mercyful fate, death, deicide, carcass, etc. carved into it. black metal came to mind.

they know I'm a dog

2010-01-26T23:51:00.004+01:00

but they love my pedigree

been bumpin' an awful lot of 107.8 these last few weeks inside the antwerp city limits.

top 3 mocro bangers to get down to currently is:

JAY SEAN - down

weezy guest appearance

JASON DERULO - whatcha say

imogen heap anyone?

JUELZ SANTANA - back to the crib

dip set what? featuring chris breezy.

considered shaving some lines on the side of my head, going clubbing in a vest (what up McLovin'?) and rockin' some white loafers but decided to stick to vans caballero hi's, black 501's and a dickies flanel shirt for excessive amounts of seafood and stepping my movie game up last weekend.

two of today's most original and talented hip hop artists talib kweli and mf doom will be performing in this great nation of ours, february 2nd in antwerp and march 7th in brussels respectively. be there or don't care.

karibu ya bintou

2010-01-26T23:22:00.003+01:00

aka welcome to life in limbo

new video by baloji of starflam fame.

anyone who has read this blog before knows I love added value in music video's. this is a short film created in the streets of kinshasa, referring to muhammed ali's rumble in the jungle. definitely feelin' the pop art graffiti and skeleton suits (eddie sutton anyone?).

Directors: Spike and Jones
DOP: Nicolas Karakatsanis
Producer: Annemie Decorte (Dr. Film)
Styling: Ann Lauwerys
Mask: Katrien Matthys

be sure to check out B's full length album 'kinshasa succursale' when it drops.

crunkswagger HQ has free duo tickets to give away for Baloji's performance alongside customs, selah sue and alex gopher, this saturday 30th of january at the warande in turnhout. if interested, hit me up with your darkest secrets, funniest jokes and hottest fantasies RIGHT HERE !!

she all on me cuz all I do is ride around in bentleys coups

2010-01-19T00:34:00.006+01:00

got no need she got me buying her them fendi shoes, all we do is shop until we drop.

picked up some stuff for cheap last week. I hate the vultures sales season attracts, but I'm a sucker for sweet deals.

lockwood & avenue backroom sale hooked it up with two rockwell shirts and a XXL diamond shirt I was looking for for a while now. might have to get it tailored as it's so big I could almost use it as a blanket. 20 euro for 3 shirts, which is ridiculous! they might have some larger sizes left as we speak, start bulkin'!

sven lockwood had the honor of designing his own signature SB. he kept it pretty basic with a leather/suede dunk mid. so siked for him that he's able to do this, a louder dunk high is on the way as well. keep 'em peeled.

my friend bjorn hooked it up with some uniqlo japanese selvage denim, who recently opened their first european store in paris, france.

I'm usually pretty sceptic about jeans below the 100 euro barrier, but these definitely deliver.

dark indigo stiff denim

light contrast stitching on the back pockets, no label

red selvage

perfect fit as well, somewhere between nashville selvages and some tighter models. runs a little smaller than edwins though. definitely planning on getting some back up pairs. pretty curious how these will hold up after a couple of wears.

hit up the outlets yesterday.

timberland classic hand sewn 7-eyes mock toes. been looking for pair of these for a while now. so happy with these. 40 % off. gore tex version. life is good.

adidas zx500.

vans leather/suede chukka's. casual friday material if you ask me.

picked up some polo dress shirts and dickies flanels in the process as well.

last but not least I upgraded my mode of transportation last week.

I'm no automobile connaisseur/enthusiast by any means, but I'm definitely feeling this ride. I'm gonna miss my old car and the memories that came with it, but I'm pretty sure it found a good home. finally able to play my ipod when cruisin' as well, I'm slowly catchin' up with todays technologies.

roadtrip playlist:

la roux - la roux
weezer - blue album
talib kweli & mos def - black star
only if you call me jonathan - red friend
god help the girl - ost
timbaland - shock value II

leave the beef in the streets

2010-01-16T09:33:00.007+01:00

and bring the bread home n*gg*

got invited to dinner at Ter Vennen the other day, known for its favourable location and classic french cuisine. I'm pretty traditional concerning restaurants and would rather eat a solid classical meal opposed to some weird experimental menu. I do however feel like an established reputation shouldn't be an excuse for a mediocre overpriced meal. and that's just what they served me in Wijnegem. can't really single out a real flaw, but I'm not able to find any strengths either.

appetizer: tomato soup served with a spoon of smoked salmon.

entree: carpaccio. I kinda like how this was served with cheese, would have however opted for a more exotic choice than plain old gouda.

ordered the chateaubriand. thank god I instructed it to be cooked somewhere between rare and bloody (a tactique I swear by after one too many dried out pieces of meat), because what I got served was just beyond bloody towards a point. you would expect they'd know how to bake a steak if you're paying 30 euro for it. served with home made fries (which are pretty delish), green beans, carrot and béarnaise sauce. the quality of the meat was definitely outstanding, buttery soft, but it kinda lacked taste.

served with a 2008 cabernet sauvignon.

walnut caramel ice cream for dessert.

I guess this place is ideal for business lunches, but it doesn't really appeal to me personally. the horrendous decorating might have something to do with this as well.

ter vennen
merksemsebaan 278
2110 wijnegem
tervennen.be

maybe I should quit my job and start a restaurant as I believe I succeed in preparing a steak better and more accurately than the average restaurant.

this got proven on two seperate occasions these last couple of days:

300 grams of regular 12 euro/kilo beef from the local butcher. served with some oven baked pommes poms. before rollin' down to brussels to go see kickback and length of time at the new magasin 4.

deer steak (bambi didn't die for nothing after all) with my own little mashed potato recipe. quick dinner before hitting up the gym.

parkour motion reel video

2010-01-04T16:55:00.004+01:00

cool vid

concept and illustration by serene teh, post production by noel lee

santa claus came early

2009-12-24T12:32:00.004+01:00

I don't know if misses claus is all to happy about this, but I'm not complaining.

vans' iconic oldschool model, full grain leather version. way classier than the usual materials and above all easier to clean, which comes in pretty handy walking around in conditions like the past few days.

'art and sole' by innercity design

'sneakers' by some japanese dude

'the beatles' biography by bob spitz

oh yeah, I've linked up dominique's blog, whom I've met a couple of weeks ago, she was wearing an XXL parra lele shirt. definitely knows what's up, peep her blog at knotoryus.com.

music for death

2009-12-23T23:41:00.012+01:00

flippin' through my music files I noticed I've been listening to a whole lot of mixtapes this last year. mixtapes have always been a interesting subject in my life and social scene and I have always had the concept of 'the mixtape' involved in my life somehow ever since I was 13 years old. just to be clear, the age of the mixtape being an actual physical cassette tape is far gone and depending on the nature of the music compiled the medium can range from cassettes over cd's to digital download links.

I can personally distinct three types of mixtapes, first one being an actual tape (or cd-recordable as technology advanced) on which friends or even strangers exchanged music they thought was worth checking out. at that age you had to get by with a weekly or monthly allowance which didn't exactly give you room to buy any record you wanted to check out, hell I think I spend the amount of money I used to get back in the day on just one drink nowadays. keep in mind that downloading music or even internet just didn't exist back then so you pretty much had to rely on whatever medium you could. what happened was you'd just tape all the shit you had for your friends and trust them to return the favor. cassette tapes were pretty easy to come by as they weren't too hard to steal and you could tape over them as much as you liked, so exchanging these tapes was obviously an easy and budget friendly way to acquire new music.
for the second kind I'm afraid I'm gonna have to go romantic on all your respective behinds, because this is the compilation of songs you'd give to your future/current/past love. music has always shown itself to be the perfect means to express emotion, be it positive or negative. so when you're anything like me and lack the talent or willpower to create it by yourself you just steal from those that seem to be able to perfectly transfer emotion to notes, chords and lyrics. these kinds of little creations would find its use in subtly or not so subtly expressing how you feel about someone or displaying musical memories that carry some sort of special meaning. coming to think of it, it's pretty weird how every mix I ever exchanged with a girl was basically a love-tape, while the tapes I used to exchange with male friends could easily be described as hate-tapes as I'm pretty sure the content was nothing short of dark, aggressive and negative. yet looking back, most of those dudes are still somehow involved in my current life, while the girls ... well, aren't.
now the third kind, and basically the kind I was referring to earlier, is the type of tape as it was conceptualized in the early new york hip hop scene and that has gone through major changes throughout the past 3 decades as the pysical tapes that used to be recorded and traded by fans and artists have been replaced by bits and bytes that can be downloaded in a matter of seconds. back when this subculture was still in its cradle and basically revolved around live performances, people used to record these to have something to bounce to at home. artists soon caught on to this and started recording their flows themselves making it easier to get their name out to the public by selling and trading their tapes. later on, when record labels came into play, these mixtapes also functioned as demo's. even now, years later, mixtapes aren't dead. artists still use these unofficial tapes to get their name out or, when already established, to give the fans something in between releases and thus creating a buzz as most of these releases contain blueprints of songs that are to appear on their future work. these tapes usually tend to put more focus on lyricism and hooks as they are often rapped over existing songs or unpolished versions of beats, in doing so these releases show a more raw version of the artist that doesn't drown in (over)production, and just like ODB, I actually kinda like it raw. in fact lil wayne's monster clubhit 'a milli' is, as the man claims himself the perfect example of a track off a mixtape. as the story goes there was still some room to fill upon writing the carter III so wayne requested a repetitive and basic beat he could just fill up with rhyme, pretty ironic as the songs blew up out of proportion.

in true holiday spirit I have selected these mixtapes that have truly grasped and amazed me this past year for your pleasure. even if you're not into the genre I advise you to open your mind and check these out as they have formed the blueprint for what is to come in hip hop future and definitely contain genre-trancending elements.

KID CUDI - a kid named cudi

DOWNLOAD

cudder's first mixtape. 100 % backed by kanye west and showing similarities to yeezy's signature style, often acclaimed (by haters) as emo hip hop. day 'n nite remains to be one of the best songs on this, eventhough it has been milked for all it's worth by the mainstream, next to 'is there any love?', 'down & out', '50 ways to make a record' and 'man on the moon' which would become the prelude to cudi's debut masterpiece man on the moon: the end of day.

LIL WAYNE - the weezy effect II

DOWNLOAD

I gave lil wayne's debut rock record titled 'rebirth' a couple of spins last week and couldn't help but being rather dissappointed in doing so. this tape was to be a sneak preview of how this new orleans goblin could handle guitars and a rhythm section next to 808s and let me say that the songs featured on this here tape took some time to grow on me but once they did I was unable to get them out of my head. songs like 'prom queen', 'hot revolver', 'rap cemetary', 'every girl', 'I'm at war' and 'rock star' are all pop/rock gems that'll have you putting this release on repeat and doing some sort of weird tribal mosh in your hallway. I think if young money entertainment would've slimmed these 20 plus songs down to 10 for rebirth they'd have had pure gold.

WALE - back to the feature

DOWNLOAD

typical example of the kind of artist that has been getting his name out through guest appearances and mixtapes before bustin' out a proper release. wale has been in the game for so long, but only just released his debut record titled 'attention deficit' november 09. this has some creative reproduction of hooks and plenty of references to his peers and popular culture. one line I've always thought was funny as shit is "I can make the clouds jealous, n*gg* I am that fly.

LIL WAYNE - no ceilings

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whereas the weezy effect could've been considered a preview for rebirth, I'd suspect no ceilings to be an introduction to the highly anticipated carter IV record. although I think it is impossible to top carter III which is 80 minutes of lyrical and musical genius, it is clear that weezy will definitely try this or die doing so. no ceilings offers more linguistic play, creative metaphors and genius wordplay as we've grown accustomed from this new orleans hard body. seriously I'm no stranger to the english language nor an idiot, but the way he puts things into words often has me dazzled. if a well educated music fiend such as myself has trouble deciphering some sentences, imagine the genius hidden behind the creation of those words.

enjoy.

houndstooth ubiq fatima mid

2009-12-21T06:21:00.004+01:00

chukka cut, houndstooth uppers, white/gum midsole. another winner from these japanese masterminds. beauty often lies in simplicity. officially dropping on christmas eve, I'm already wondering how I will get my hands on a pair (preferably all four).

kinda remind me of this winter 2007/2008 release:

vans era/chukka. this 60 % deadstock set is missing the sk8 hi version of both colorways, which I just didn't find that appealing. purple/blue/violet versions were also released for the female vans fiends.

while on the ubiq tip, picked up these fatima hi's when I was in philadelphia earlier this year. mustardy brown leather uppers, white rubber midsole, plaid detailing. also comes in black and white versions.

wore timberland boots / camo pants / penfield flannel / millet fleece / north face windbreaker for a little hiking trip on the french-belgian border on the shortest days of the year, which also turned out to be the coldest of 2009.

been listening to:
timbaland - shock value II
mogwai - mr. beast
the smiths - meat is murder
birdman - family over everything mixtape
camera obscura - my maudlin career
sea wolf - white water, white bloom
mono - hymn to the immortal wind
lil' wayne - rebirth
laura veirs - troubled by the fire

vans sierra chukka LX

2009-12-05T14:09:00.007+01:00

I've always been kinda drawn to hiking and survival gear as a style, which is weird as I spend most of my time in the city. nevertheless I'd look kinda ridiculous in real mountain gear, so these streetwise alternatives are just what I might need. white midsole / suede uppers / metal laceholders / rubber toeguard.

available from bows & arrrows as we speak, so I'm guessing you'll be able to find these at the usual accounts sooner or later.

penfield kasson

2009-12-03T20:36:00.004+01:00

postman rang the office saying he had something that couldn't fit the mailbox. been waiting for this to arrive for a while now. penfield 60/40 kasson parka, tan, xxl. already had the black version which I scooped up in France for mad cheap. this season's version adds a more rugged lumberjack-like inner liner, also digging the green colored contrast filling on the inside. the cute little bear logo on the left arm is new as well.

more info: www.penfieldusa.com

had some of this homemade stuff

mashed potatoes, spiced carrots, pangasius filet. stocked up on some deer earlier this week, just waiting for the right occasion to bake 'em up.

hittin' the gym in a minute for the first time in ages, finishing up the first season of mad men after that. still have to decide whether I'm going to see isis/keelhaul or emily jane white on saturday. choosing = losing.

just wait a coupla months then u gon'see

2009-12-03T01:39:00.006+01:00

you'll never find nobody better than me

picked up william fitzsimmons' latest release on vinyl last weekend. born to blind parents, having gone through enough to write depressingly beautiful / beautifully depressing songs. his sophomore release titled 'until when we are ghosts' probably being one of my favourite albums within the genre.

he's doing three dates this coming weekend under the moniker of duyster night together with isbells (recently acclaimed as the culmination of indierock genius, will have to see to believe).

04/12 diksmuide
05/12 brussels
06/12 hasselt

will be making the drive down to diksmuide this friday, will be skipping the ayco duyster dj set to hit up club heat on the way home though. guess I'll need my portion of straight up ignorant r&b heads after dealing with semi-intellectual, psuedo excentric music lovers.

check out his interpretation of kanye west's heartless.

other vinyl pick-ups include:

this piece may or may not have been involved in a trade with a nas LP.

wish I would've gotten the gatefold edition, this one saved me 30 bucks though.

also got:
320gig external harddrive, of which I apparently only needed 22.
new matress/pillows/covers. sleepin' better now, gucci sweater now. drop top bm's I'm the man girlfriend.

tuesday:

bubbles with some bab(i)es

wednesday:

kobe beef

yakitori chicken

been listening to:
the mercury program - st
lil wayne - the weezy effect
karate - the bed is in the ocean
laura gibson - beasts of seasons
notorious - ost

life's a bitch

2009-11-30T10:48:00.012+01:00

I put my arm around her shoulder

this weekend finally brought me the amount of inner peace I've been searching for for quite some time now. although I consider myself a strong independent person, I hate how day to day matters in the constant struggle for urban survival can bring a person down. I've been questioning things like success, true love and personnal happiness, and been trying to see how these should balance out in this death sentence called life (as proclaimed bij the DITC collective). seems like I have the tendency of trying to rationalize emotions on one hand and putting ratio in an emotionally driven perspective on the other. this offcourse is impossible, if not paradoxal, and will only leave you insomnic, disappointed and confused. accepting ignorance just might be the only way to peace of mind, which offcourse makes intelligence more of a curse than a blessing. this kinda reminds me of a line my friend klaas wrote for rhythm to the madness saying 'don't want to live at the mercy of impulse'. although I think some common sense is necessary in making decisions I find myself to be happier and more alive in spontaneous actions. as stated above, too much reflection brings depression and overcontemplation means emotional death.

this being said and the clouds in my head slowly clearing up, I'll be displaying some more senseless materialism and other nonsense on here in the near future.

been driving all over belgium and beyond these last couple of days for the sole purpose of good music, cold drinks, beautiful views and spending money.

picked up these clarks blackdown boots in holland. kind of a native american vibe goin' on. crepe soles offcourse.

my friend J hooked it up with these cheap bubbles.

ate and shopped at ikea, recession is a bitch. köttbullar, large portion. got some household gear and a lil' lounge chair. will be back for a dining table soon.

new office view starting january. sorry antwerp, just call me judas.

jordan III flips / edwin nashville red selvage / dress shirt / H&M knitwear for the weekend. vitamin water re-store, I miss US sized bottles.

pittoresque.nl

could easily survive on these.

look me in the eye and promise no love's like our love, look me in the heart and unbreak broken, it won't happen.

I might try to update this more regularly, until then check out these awesome joints I got linked on.

http://just-a-complex-man.blogspot.com/ my man klaas, the machine from the east, the icon of self discipline.

http://avenuestore.blogspot.com/ lina's blog, of avenue fame who has hooked me up with quite some footwear in the past.

in other news:

true colors, one of my favourite belgian bands, and quite possibly one of the best european straightedge bands ever, is calling it quits. more info on http://tcmerch.myshopify.com/ . they'll be playing a shitload of shows all over the place, so make sure you give them the goodbye they deserve.

hardcore as well as life itself wouldn't be the vicious circle it is, if there wasn't bands popping up to fill the gap. check out my boy emile's new project at www.myspace.com/liferidehc .

booked myself a flight to dublin just yesterday to go hang out and see the rhythm to the madball on december 11th. hoping to scoop up a pair of air zoom toki's or size exclusive footscapes and chill with drunk leprechauns.

damn right I'ma get mine before they bury me.

swallowed whole

2009-11-12T11:12:00.012+01:00

like the pill that makes you choke and stills your soul

I've grown to be a firm believer of doubles. this directly applies to stuff like kicks or garment pieces, because you just know whenever you break out those crispy J's or a slick pair of denim some ignorant fool is gonna step or spill his beer on them. now offcourse clothes are just clothes and life stretches way beyond the parameters of what is material, but I find it soothes me to know I've got backup pieces stickin' in the closet for whenever abovementioned situation occurs. hell, I've even bought doubles of shower curtains in fear of not ever finding a pair that fits my tilework quite as well. unless you're a gazillionaire, this does not apply to cars, houses or 700 dollar peacoats. and unless you're a total bitch/asshole, this does not apply to human beings either.

kinda like you have to see a movie twice or more to truly grasp it's meaning, find layered messages or subtle humor, this works with records and even live shows as well. this in mind I had the privilege two see some artists perform twice in the timespan of one week. as predicted I went to see damien jurado again when he played antwerp and as hoped the show turned out to be somewhat the opposite of what I witnessed the day before. opposed to introvert and silent the first performance, he showed himself entertaining, honest, witty and funny even the second one, throwing in some more variation setlist-wise and a death can dance cover to top it off.

after a sweat-inducing and jampacked kickoff of the iron age/rise and fall EU tour in Mol, I kinda decided last minute to go see this package again across the border. guess I'm always down for a little roadtrip of some sort.

partners in crime being: 335ml cans of redbull, high on fire's 'death is this communion', xasthur's 'defective epitaph', my new gps system (which was a purchase long overdue as anyone who ever rolled with me might know) and my lil' buddy right there.

kinda grabbed whatever clothes were laying around, which kinda made me look like some sort of tree hugging nature activist with a decent amount of green (pun not intended) to spend on gear instead of fair-trade wines.

new balance 575 / edwin red selvage / penfield flanel / old navy hoodie / the north face parka

while on the subject...

wore vans mountain editions / levis 501 shrink to fit / knitted h&m sweatervest

to go chill with these dudes at the museum of natural history and snack it up in the center of brussels.

they're having an exposition on whales and dolphins right now, which is actually not even worth the extra 2 euro's you have to pay for it. I'm actually more into living creatures anyways, although taxidermy is a pretty grimm occupation.

museum of natural history
rue vautier 29
1000 brussels
naturalsciences.be

one of my all time favourite nyhc bands, breakdown, is doing a small european stint this weekend, they will be playing at trix club in antwerp this friday, show is sold out. john vanderslice will be playing café video in ghent on sunday, seems like this little bar is programming several cool independent acts lately, check out their agenda on cafevideo.be. missed out on kings of convience playing brussels last monday on account of poor time management / good conversation. can't win 'em all.

check out john vanderslice's 2007 release titled emerald city HERE, have yet to check out his latest album myself.

been bumping these tunes as of late:

william fitzsimmons - until when we are ghosts
ghostface killah - wizard of poetry
beatles - blue & red albums
emily jane white - dark undercoat
drudkh - microcosmos
lil' wayne - no ceilings mixtape

keep it real.

lord knows I don't want to compete

2009-11-02T15:00:00.005+01:00

but I still sleep in the very sheets he's been in

I'm aware of the fact this hasn't been updated for over a month. fact of the matter is that I've been unable and unwilling to do so due to extensive travelling followed by social isolatian. spent three weeks trippin' east to west through the states alongside rise and fall who were doin' their umpteenth us tour. now I could post up pictures that don't carry much meaning to whoever reads this and try to give you a little insight on those three weeks, but the truth is words nor pictures would do this experience much justice. I do however want to express my sincerest gratitude to bjorn, cedric, vince and OJ for havin' me on this. by now, rise and fall's third full length has dropped. available everywhere. get it, trust me, it shreds.

after kind of a rough patch of coughing my lungs out, being confined to my bed and missing out on madball playing antwerp on account of the swine flu I'm back on my usual bs: food & music.

took a little trip to the north of france to go see damien jurado perform at 'le drugstore' in lille. headcount being about 25 people the atmosphere was quite intimate to say the least. though I'd rather have it this way than paying over 20 euro and having to deal with this little thing called the human race too much. I do however feel a little more appreciation would be in place. offcourse we're still talking about france here, a country that hasn't really spawned much good aside from kickback, baguettes and champagne.

after falling in love with his latest release 'caught in the trees' and falling asleep to it on random peoples' floors and hotel rooms for the past few weeks, I was kinda hoping for a good amount of new songs in his setlist. ironically he mostly performed stuff off his first three records. still a solid set clocking in well over the hour. opposed to his performance in Antwerp last year, he didn't bring jenna conrad (of troubletown fame) to back him up on the keyboard. story goes damien jurado never writes a setlist and just plays whatever he feels like at the given time. keeping this in mind and still hoping to hear songs like 'gillian was a horse' and 'sheets' I'll be seeing him again tonight at bar mondial in antwerp. I suggest I see you there.

went out for some japanese food beforehand at a place just down the street from the venue.

soup, whole wheat pasta and salad for starters

maki/sashimi dish

pretty decent cuisine in a traditional japanese setting. mentioned menu will set you back about 24 euro, including drinks.

yamato
rue royale 19
59000 lille
france

broke out these caballero highs for the occasion.

solid choice for a rainy day.

A.P.C. x supreme

2009-09-28T19:40:00.004+02:00

seems like everyone and their mothers are doing collaborations nowadays, but when two pioneering brands in their respective marketniches are working together, I feel like I have to take a minute or two to see what's goin' on.

basically, nothing too interesting as this pretty much remains a indigo blue selvage pair of denim with a little addition to the label, a removable pin (yay!) and some foul language on the booty (nay!). I'm sure kids will go crazy for this, and I'm also pretty sure none will be left when I hit LA in three weeks.

dropping october 1st (USA) and october 3rd (japan).

supremenewyork.com
apc.fr

you never been so high

2009-09-22T14:00:00.004+02:00

kiss the ground goodbye

seems like I'll be roaddoggin' / chillin' / bringin' da ruckus for three weeks on rise and fall's coming US tour. I seriously don't know what to expect, but I guess that's pretty cool.

here's the dates:

10/02: Haverhill, MA @ Anchors Up
10/03: Long Island, NY @ Ronkonkoma American Legion Hall
10/04: Edison, NJ @ The Stelton Church
10/05: Baltimore, MD @ Sidebar
10/06: Richmond, VA @ Alley Katz
10/07: Raleigh, NC @ Brewery
10/08: West Columbia, SC @ New Brookland Tavern
10/09: Atlanta, GA @ PS Warehouse
10/10: Birmingham, AL @ Green Cup
10/11: Little Rock, AR @ Vinos
10/12: Fort Worth, TX @ 1919 Hemphill
10/13: Austin, TX @ Emo's
10/14: San Antonio, TX @ Ten Eleven
10/15: Tucson, AZ @ Living Room
10/16: San Diego, CA @ Che Cafe
10/17: Anaheim, CA @ Chain Reaction
10/18: Salinas, CA @ Building E
10/19: Las Vegas, NV @ Eastside Joes
10/20: Albuqeurque, NM @ Taylair
10/21: Denver, CO @ Blast O Mat
10/22: Kansas City, MO @ Mission Theatre
10/23: St Louis, MO @ Fubar
10/24: Chicago, IL @ Beat Kitchen
10/25: Indianapolis, IN @ Murphy Building
10/26: Cincinnati, OH @ Warsaw Arena
10/27: Romeo, MI @ Static Age
10/28: Cleveland, OH @ Nows Thats Class
10/29: Lemoyne, PA @ Championship
10/30: Edison, NJ @ Clara Burton Hall
10/31: Albany, NY @ Valentines
11/01: Holyoke, MA @ Waterfront Tavern

rise and fall recently recorded their third full length album titled 'our circle is vicious'. I believe it will be dropping mid-october, consult the deathwish website for more info. meanwhile, check out some of their new joints on myspace.

I'll be droppin' off the tour after the anaheim show and hang out in LA for two more days to go see brand new play at the hollywood palladium and stuff my face at In 'n Out burger. if anyone happens to know any cool spots / stores nearby, hit me up.

until the light takes us

2009-09-22T13:40:00.006+02:00

directed / produced by aaron aites & audrey ewell, starring varg vikerness, gylve fenriz nagell, kjetil-vidar haraldstad, etc.

belgian premiere in kortrijk october 9th, click for info

blackmetalmovie.com

while you wait on the answers that I pretend to find

2009-09-16T11:00:00.005+02:00

keeping up with emotions still occupies our time

feast your eyes on this amazing unofficial video for grizzly bear's song 'two weeks'. I particularly liked the cut-out hearts bit. visualisation is breathtaking.

created by gabe askew. read what he had to say on this project right here.

while we're at it, here's the video for 'while you wait for the others'.

directed by sean pecknold.

still not the biggest grizzly bear fan though.

via kanye's blog

tongue

2009-09-16T10:17:00.004+02:00

has to be pink innit?

promo flick for the release of the 'tongue 'n cheeck' air max 90, designed to celebrate the release of dizzee's fourth studio album carrying the same title. these came to life with the help of ben drury, who also contributed to the air u breathe pack back in 2006 with an air max 87.

directed by james copeman and drury himself

now onto the shoe: white midsole, transparent air unit. light beige uppers consisting of suede, leather and a perforated leather toebox. detailed laces, pink tongue with bold red tongue 'n cheeck lettering. only point of critique is the material of the swoosh, which is a little bit too shiny for my personal taste. nevertheless these are the best 90's (or air max's in general) I've seen in a long ass time. clean and simple, with playful detailing, just the way we like 'em.

dropping this friday exclusively at the nike 1948 store in london. no word on the amount of pairs in circulation though, but I'm guessing these will be rare as hell.

more pics and a double interview with dizzee & drury over at crookedtongues.com

the album itself releases monday 21st of september.

ghostdini

2009-09-15T19:50:00.003+02:00

wizard of poetry

in stores september 29th

peep the video to the 'stapleton sex' single, nothing too shocking actually. u might wanna hit up a hardware store for some electrical tape after seeing this.

pretty stoked on the new album though. especially after the disappointment titled only built for cuban lynx 2. don't let us down tony.

if I had to explain it

2009-09-03T10:14:00.015+02:00

I wouldn't know where to start. it's like you're falling in love while I just fall apart.

okay seems like it's been ages since I updated this right here. previous post on the chef apparently was the 100th one. nothing too special obviously, I guess I'll do a lil' somethin' somethin' when I reach 200 (IF I reach 200 that is). I do however want to thank everyone who reads this little thing and gives me feedback, seems like a number of people are into it and my reading audience stretches way beyond belgian/european borders (gotta thank google for that one though).

it seems summer has ended and the chill is imminent. last few weeks have been pretty hectic so I'm glad whenever I can just lock myself up and listen to the entire ghostface discography in one night, which I actually did on two seperate occasions this last week.

so, I went to pukkelpop again for the first time in ten years. saw a lot of good stuff, bon iver probably being the most impressive of the entire fest, I need to catch them in a (preferably small) venue asap. rival schools got pretty boring mid set. dizzee rascal raised temperatures to 40°+ in the marquee with a well balanced out set of old and new stuff. new found glory gave me chills, which is pretty noteworthy considering this was probably the hottest weekend of the summer. the get up kids had a pretty disappointing setlist but made me realise not too much has changed for me as a person since I last saw 'em there in '99. my bloody valentine was way too loud. now before you get your panties in a bunch I very well know this is pretty much their gimmick, but it's pretty useless to be this loud if your songs just drown inside the wall of sound. dinosaur jr. did not deliver, at all. curtis jackson, however, did. another highlight was definitely life of agony, again not the best setlist (a wee bit too much soul searching sun and way too litte ugly material) but the sound was pretty much perfect. left mid set of the arctic monkeys who mostly played new stuff which I'm not yet familiar with. pretty bummed on missing a place to bury strangers and la roux though, but I might catch the latter in glasgow in a couple of months.

these events however make me realise how much I hate alcohol (and drug) abuse. don't get me wrong, I can enjoy a little sip just as much as the next man and I've gotten pretty crunk on occasion. but it seems people lose all sense of decency and control when they enter the premises. drawing pictures of dicks might 've been funny when you were 15 or if you're seth in superbad. spending three days having a hard time standing up from all the booze and walking around bare chested with magic marker all over you is straight up pathetic once you pass the age of 20. also, picking up random stuff from the ground and placing it on your head is not funny, excentric or cool. it just shows the need for some kind of attention and your inability to be interesting otherwise. if this is the norm for the youth of today, just call me an outcast.

anyway, I don't wanna be all negative since I had a pretty good time and witnessed good music at a fair price. shout out to my friend klaas for letting me crash on his couch and putting up with my black ass for three days. got treated like ffin' royalty.

wore black 501 STF with jordan IV pure moneys (r.i.p.), switched to black/black air force 180's on saturday though. klaas in cool grey jordan IV.

worked out for two hours consecutively on friday and saturday at hassogym in hasselt with the local track team. not the best idea on 4 hours of sleep and an average daily intake of 800Kcal. still beats doing nothing though!

the get up kids

tore the club up with jeffrey and wouter at culture club's 'flavor' last saturday. sweet music, laid back atmosphere, cold drinks, good times.

rocked this uniform right here:

pointer mathieson / edwin red selvage jeans / the hundreds tee / gap cardigan

went to see tiny vipers for free at café video's in ghent alongside sara, tom and francesca. place was packed to the ceiling. fortino opened up with 'eyes like ours' and mainly brought songs off of her latest record 'life on earth'. fifty minute set and two encores I could've done without. she'll be playin' brussels and lille (fr) later this month if you're interested.

up next: rzl dzl/war hungry/reproach/municipal waste at trix antwerp 04/09, electric wizard in aarschot 06/09, explosions in the sky at OLT deurne 09/09.

keep it real

house of flying daggers

2009-08-27T16:50:00.003+02:00

named after the 2004 motion picture (aka Shi mian mai fu) and perfectly combining streetsmart with sword knowledge in true wu tradition, this animated video gives us a little heads up on what to expect of raekwon's OBFCL2, with a pushed back release date now droppin' september 8. nothing too spectacular imagewise, though I love some of the little detailing like the licence plate on the police car. can't fuck with ninjas fighting the clan on a basketball court. featuring the best of the wu-offspring: GZA, ghostface & meth. curious as to how the album will live up to the enormous hype created around it.

raekwon will be performing at antwerp's petrol club on saturday october 10.

not completely unrelated and although I'm not too much of a shyamalan lover, I gotta say I'm pretty excited for the last airbender, stated to drop august 4th 2010. teaser looks pretty impressive.

perfect wednesday

2009-08-13T14:51:00.016+02:00

aka the perks of the global financial crisis

fuelin' up

hit up my usual ghent route with no actual purchasing intention, but got hooked up with some sweet deals. when did a two letter word get so hard?

pointer mathieson

clae mcqueen

vans mountain edition

the hundreds tee

wore vans vault half cabs / 501 / blacklisted tee

be sure to support and check out my boy angelo's show comin' up september 26th with bands like: length of time, pushed too far, reproach, loud and clear, etc.

ill blood fest
joc de schuur
krekelstraat 167
izegem

purchased a three day pukkelpop ticket. I usually tend to avoid musical events people visit rather to show off their beer drinking skills or practice the divine art of making an ass out of one's self, than to actually check out music. Yet this year's line up is too good to let it slide: a.o. dinosaur jr., bon iver, arctic monkeys, dizzee rascal, asher roth, andrew bird, grizzly bear, rival schools, n*e*r*d, my bloody valentine, la roux, kraftwerk, new found glory, a place to bury strangers, the get up kids, ebony bones, mstrkrft, 50 cent, etc. pretty 'wow'.

thanks to my friend klaas for hooking me up with a place to rest my head. pretty excited for omelets in the morning and buffin' up at his local gym. one more week.

mushroom burger and vitamin C juice over at tasty world

madball was playin' bruges later that night, so I met up with bjorn to go have a lil' peek. I could think of far worse ways to spend a wednesdaynight, comin' to think of it, we couldn't really come up with better ways after seeing an immaculate set from these NYHC oldtimers with pretty much half of the setlist consisting out of set it off material. cricien demonstratin' his style bustin' some stagedives himself. classic. I love madball. I love hardcore.

"this is our first song. vinnie stigma wrote this song. well actually the animals wrote it before him, but he made it better."

pretty sweet view as well as you can see

life is swell

near death experience

2009-08-13T14:26:00.004+02:00

jeff staple on his main factor for human categorization

I'm starting to think near death experiences even eachother out. I've had my share, but you don't see me doin' collabs with new balance now, do you?

while we're on the subject, here's a preview for jeff's second interpretation of the new balance 575, set to drop august 18th at select stores worldwide.

for more info and a good read head over to stapledesign.com

perfect sunday

2009-08-11T20:03:00.007+02:00

featuring following feature films (alliteration anyone? (wow!))

Everybody needs to vent a little now and again, don't you figure? Some of us are privileged enough to vent to you in the boys' room stalls and the rest of us have to settle for less conventional methods. Like, I don't know a bottle of booze and a handgun.

I wonder how many steaks I could make out of you?

No, I like to rock n' roll all night and part of every day. I usually have errands... I can only rock from like 1-3.

B&J cookie dough for lunch

shit, they say the best things in life are free

winner pays dinner

turkish pizza at ghent's most renowned provider

gulhan pizza
sleepstraat 70
9000 gent

album of the week

2009-08-11T15:02:00.004+02:00

well last week to be exact. had this on repeat for two days straight.

andrew bird - noble beast, released january 2009 on fat possum recs.

pretty basic singer/songwriter stuff incorporating a rather large amount of violins and whistling. the world wide web is full of extensive critique to this album, so put google to use for those. I particularly like the way bird fills his lyrics with references to nature's elements and metaphors my mid-sized brain can't quite grab a hold of (I doubt if they're even supposed to make sense at all), but doesn't shy the use of a word like snack machine.

not quite sure what the meaning behind the title could be, but I'd be siked if I were to be labelled a noble beast.

CLICK

andrew bird will be performing in belgium thursday august 20th ( info)

vans vault buffalo boot

2009-08-10T14:59:00.006+02:00

looks like the original caballero altered to a more casual leisure boot. comes in brown and black, of which the latter definitely gets the cake. white midsole, black nubuck/full grain leather uppers, embossed logo, red contrast laces.

set for a spring 2010 release.

more pics at highsnobiety.com

been handlin' the game so long

2009-08-08T17:12:00.014+02:00

my thumb's bruised

getting older isn't the easiest thing to deal with, especially since I feel like I haven't aged mentally for 7 years, au contraire. thank god there's still people close to me who perfectly know how to ease the pain.

I have a weak spot for conceptualisation and detailing and I was pretty stunned by some of the stuff I got. my girl sara hooked it up with what is quite possibly the craziest set of presents ever received, ever. Well thought out to cover most of my childish interests.

LP version of M. Ward and Z. Deschanel's musical collaboration titled vol1. still waiting for zooey to do a record with hubbie Ben G or for zooey to dump him, inspiring a follow-up to 'give up'.

pretty much speaks for itself. larry david = king of the beshitted lifestyle.

bobbito garcia's 'where'd you get those?' (a question I tend to ask/answer from time to time). a book on the history of new york's sneakerculture. have yet to begin to read.

vans chukka bad brains edition. I must admit, if these weren't vans and the bad brains weren't the gods that invented the mosh part I'd straight out hate these, they remind of that ridiculous dready brand 'alternative' kids used to wear throughout the 90s, epic fail. however when one forgets the functionality of shoes and is able to open up to the artistic/conceptual side of an item like these, it's pretty hard to hate on them. sick detailing throughout the whole product. box molded after their 'ROIR' release, lightning bolts on both the sole and the heel, rastafari colors all around the midsole, 3 sets of laces (beige/rastafari/bad brains logo alternated in red green yellow), lion logo printed on white fabric on the inside of the box and they come in a bag which has the image of a bad brains ROIR tape on it. I studied these for a full 15 minutes. amazing.

some 'sweets' to round it all up.

started the day with these delights. not so unusual as I insist on pancakes or omelets whenever I have time in the morning.

2 eggs, 1/2 liter of milk, 200 gr of flower.

I'm like mix that sh*t, bake that sh*t, roll that sh*t, smoke that sh*t.

didn't quite feel like dress shoes or a shirt. air trainer 2 urban haze / 501 / sweatervest to work.

ate at pretty much the only place you can find a decent (note the use of the word decent, which is not a synonym for good) steak after midnight. had a mozarella sandwich on the side. completed with a soda, this combination will cost you 20 somewhat euro.

't hoekske
kortrijksepoortstraat 1
9000 gent

picked up my boy j last night who gave me a little in-car presentation on current hip hop and its analogies with my life. pretty hilarious and I'll say it again: I love the effort and thought put into stuff like this. awesome present. couldn't be happier.

u god supernigga 12inch single

lil wayne fireman 12inch single

birdman and lil wayne like father like son 12inch LP

doom born like this 12inch LP + doom mask. so ill!!!!

met up with A & W afterwards to have a couple of drinks at club heat.

wore black jordan V, black levis 501STF and black rocksmith kid 'n play shirt.

rest of the posse also in J's (true blue III, fire red III and 3M raging bull V's), kinda regret not snappin' a shot of this.

last but not least I treated myself to a little birthday present. copped two pairs of true blues, that had just dropped online. two pairs for a little under 220 euro sounded like a pretty sweet deal to me. there should be some more available over at crookedtongues.com. enter 'FREESHIP' upon checking out to get a discount on shipping.

be sure to read the little piece the dudes at CT wrote about this release. eazy e and mike judge reference and the comparison with the crack meth before/after picture 'cracked' me up.

EDIT: true blues are all gone from CT, but I know slam ghent has some. otherwise your best bet might be ebay or pys.

classics reinterpreted

2009-08-05T20:14:00.008+02:00

hypebeast summary

three items I thought were pretty noteworthy

nike blazer supreme tz2 - after acquiring the black suede sb's and the lance mountain designed ones and basically falling in love with the sheer simplicity and classic character of the blazer, I'm pretty sure I'll be getting these when they drop. classic white midsole, high quality grey leather uppers, perforated swoosh, golden logo. pretty slick.

adidas torsion gore tex - a more rugged & raw version of the zx8000/zx9000. gore tex materials to resist water, dirt and other sneakerhead nightmares. black/grey colorscheme with mild purple and yellow accents. clean, simple and tough as nails. available from atmos, if you speak japanese that is.

asics gel lyte three - balancing the line between hideous and genius. by the hand of matt halfhill and yet another collaboration with retail monster david z, asics brings us this bold version of their most notorious classic. buttery suede, 3M, ballistic mesh, limited to 250 pairs worldwide and expected to drop at selected david z's somewhere in october.

more info/pics over at hypebeast.com

today was a good day

2009-08-05T15:23:00.004+02:00

stumbled upon this shortfilm to promote the recent rerelease of the iconic air max 87. Created by Bas Nalden (blog) and displaying the presence of this classic shoe in our present culture. I particularly like how the scenic shots are visualized, makes it look like a miniature replica of Amsterdam. Could've handled a little more content though. Music very fittingly provided by la melodia (myspace).

while on the nike tip, here's the extended version of the commercial shot for the new p-rod sb. I love how elements out of two different and seemingly unrelated worlds get mixed. I've been a huge fan of ice cube's seminal third solo album the predator ever since it landed in my cd player back in what must've been 1994 so I'm pretty siked to see his gangster mugg pop up in a video like this one and how his track got used and interpreted by a brand that I have spent way too much green on the past few years. shot by enrique mayor. kobe bryant cameo. pretty sick.

they say you livin' like you died before

2009-08-04T14:45:00.015+02:00

I've got a place that only I can go

went from sittin' in a cell to sittin' on a jet

loyal travel companion (air force 180)

langhölmen

jamaican me crazy

cinnamuffin

T banan

schwarzenegger fun shirts

americanization

dopesmoker > life

smoothies/sneakers 'n stuff

monkeybizz.se

disappointment

rocksmith / upper playground / staple design

truth

I love wordplay

Paul U Bergstrom

pub.se

bare necessity

theater / opera

lesbian uppercut

need more of these in my life

addiction

minnemonka's

rain

wacky wobblers

theater / opera part deux

nordic animals

true white chukka / otter / infant

professional photography

more escalators

marathon

TSD

böredöm

no parking / museum of natural history

a friendly get-together / handcrafted

burgare

icebar

stay cold

high on fatigue

souvenir

TOP 3 CITY

woke up this morning to make some coffee

2009-08-03T10:39:00.012+02:00

everything sucks today

probably a representation of many peoples' emotions/actions waking up, but in this particular case the opening line to the descendents' everything sucks album on fat wreck. been waking up and buttering my toast an awful lot to these tunes the past few weeks. what strikes me is that as of late I actually started relating to the content of the songs displayed on this masterpiece. first encounter with milo & co probably dates back 12 something years ago when a friend taped me this album from his brother's cd (lagwagon 'duh' on side b if I remember correctly). whereas 10 years ago I just heard fast, harsh music and funny imagery, today the record clearly displays the most common of fears and thoughts among people in their mid 20s: the head on collision with real life (doghouse, everything sucks), love (I'm the one, sick-o-me, she loves me) and the reluctance of growing old (when I get old) as already explicitly displayed on their previous recording 'I don't want to grow up' (who does??).

although not considered a classic album by most, by far my favourite descendents release. released in 1996 after their second hiatus, when milo returned to the rest of the band with a PhD in biochemistry and an addiction to cafeine.

CLICK

watched these being lazy on a saturday/sunday afternoon

and mainly been listening to:
a place to bury strangers - a place to bury strangers
regina spektor - begin to hope
trapped under ice - secrets of the world
jenny lewis - acid tongue
death cab for cutie - open door ep
nattefrost - terrorist
iron age - the sleeping eye
xasthur - all reflections drained
etc etc

a weekend in weightgaining

2009-08-01T18:15:00.007+02:00

change does seem to be good from time to time. hit up wagamama for a bite before going to see public enemies (which was more than decent by the way). ordered teriyaki beef instead of the usual yaki udon, which is pretty much the same dish minus the shrimp and with a decent piece of pink steak instead of chicken. being the creature of habit that I am I did decide to stick to a classic concerning the sidedish, negima yakitori which is wagamamian for chicken saté.

de keyserlei 13
2018 antwerpen
wagamama.be

arrived terribly late at a friends wedding the day after, still in time for starters though so I guess you could actually call it perfect timing. trifecta of fish in rum sauce followed by a vegetable soup, no pics.

main course was guinea fowl in dark sauce with a side of apple tatin, potato gratin and seasonal vegetables. had doubles on the sides, unfortunately not on the poultry. white chardonnay to go with the starters, red cabernet for the main course.

the happy couple traditionally cutting the wedding cake. please note how it is presented on a stretcher.

desert buffet = worst/best idea ever!

please excuse the low quality pics

all this at:
de groene jaeger
bredabaan 889
2930 brasschaat
degroenejaeger.be

sushi sashimi at kokyo, supposedly stockholm's finest sushi/vegetarian eatery. made a total of three oriental evenings in one week's time. I'm not complaining.

kokyo
sveavagen 105 (near the public library)
se11350 stockholm
sweden

nike AC ND hybrid

2009-07-31T10:08:00.008+02:00

whereas nike used to innovate and bring a breath of fresh air to the shoe game, this release pretty much proves nike jumping on the bandwagon of what is 'happening' these days. yet they do manage to bring new elements into the design which makes this hybrid pretty interesting. Blazer midsole and suede sperry/del barco influenced uppers. what's particularly cool on these are the woven parts on the ankles and the way the heel is constructed. distance between lace holes could've been smaller for my personal taste though.

these look like you can sail your boat to a desert island in them, go for a hike in it's woods and still look fresh when you hit the club later that night.

pics through Osneaker.com

good genes in good jeans

2009-07-30T13:56:00.009+02:00

although I've always been able to appreciate a nice pair of jeans, I notice I've become quite the denim enthusiast lately. whereas a trip abroad would usually result in the struggle to transport orange/brown boxes back home, a recent trip up north brought me the following pieces:

levi's LVC 1933 501XX

throwback to the early 30's, ideal for warm weather as they used lighter fabric than on normal selvages, still rigid enough to crease up like a carton of milk. high rise, cinchback, suspender buttons and visible rivets on the crotch and back pockets. can't go wrong.

now the main reason I dropped dough on this piece of garment is the sense of detail they poured into it. right beneath the two-horse label patch they put a white NRA label which indicated that levi's company worked following the labor rules of president Roosevelts national recovery administration. as if this wasn't convincing enough the jeans also comes with a book on the history and evolution of the 501 (NOT a shirt, as pictured). love it.

levi's LVC 1944 501XX

heavy duty, dark selvage. fits pretty close to the levi's 501 STF jeans getting mass produced right now, only with better quality denim and subtle detailing like light purple gulls on the back pockets and red stitching on the inside.

apart from nashville red selvages, 501's are probably my favourite jeans. to quote the company itself: quality never goes out of style.

Acne MOC RAW jeans

not too much of an acne person to be honest, but I couldn't pass these up. lower rise in the front and a tighter fit than 501's. the perfect compromise between straight fits and those womens pants that make your family jewels pop out for all to see. oh yeah, cool white contrast stitching on the back pockets.

if they call this raw, I think they'd have to call my regular jeans barbwire though, as the fabric on this is pretty smooth.

(un)fortunately, I didn't lose too much of my old habits as I picked these up along the way as well. I will be wearing these and keep my second pair on ice.

and these were waiting for me at the office this morning

I wish we could open our eyes

2009-07-24T00:57:00.004+02:00

to see in all directions at the same time

but even if we can only see in one direction at the same time, you'd have a 25 percent chance of seeing this silkscreened death cab for cutie poster upon gazing through my living room...

handnumbered # 190 out of 250

a pretty good addition to these:

other recent ebay acquirements include: air max light mulberry, lagwagon 'duh' lp, merauder 'five deadly venoms' lp, new iphone skin and a crown of thornz 'I guess I gotta learn the hardway again' shirt of which I have two now (trade offers welcome).

julie's house

2009-07-23T14:56:00.015+02:00

legend says julie's dad built her a dollhouse (appropriately named julie's house) when she was a 6 year old girl. with a weak spot for cakes & pies, julie always dreamt of owning her own little bakery. years later, and backed with a degree in desserts her dream became reality when she opened up julie's house, the life size version, in the heart of ghent. located in an old castle-like house near the water, offering a range of home made pies, cakes, brownies, etc.

payed this little fantasy world of hers a visit for brunch after tasting one of her delicious pies a couple of weeks ago. this formula lets you pick two dishes out of: eggs & toast, english scones, pancakes w/ maple syrup and pain perdu. all topped off with a choice of tea/coffee and fresh squeezed orange juice.

gotta love the detailing

opted for eggs & toast

... and pancakes topped with maple syrup & blueberry jam.

view from the top. pretty idyllic.

brunch will cost you 14 euro.

julie's house
kraanlei 13
9000 gent
julieshouse.be

apart from calories julie provided us with some appropriate tunes as well, priscilla ahn's debut album 'a good day', which is already a great piece of music by itself, but also complemented the dreamy atmosphere perfectly.

I've tracked down this link for your illegal downloading pleasure, CLICK

patta air max 1 samples

2009-07-21T18:53:00.007+02:00

seems like the patta crew got the chance to play with some samples awaiting their collab I talked about at an earlier time. only three pairs in existance so I suggest you settle for pictures or prepare to commit crimes if you want to have these stacked up in your room. likin' the gum sole and normal mesh (duh), but not too convinced on canvas uppers on an AM1. oh yeah, pink floyd the wall reference on the insole, pretty smart.

more pics over at hypebeast.com

parra's own collaboration with vans has also been hittin' stores these last weeks. I know slam shop (gent/bruges) has these in stock as we speak, and I'm guessin' avenue antwerp and 808 mechelen will be gettin' these as well.

era's + matching shirt definitely take the cake out of the three.

wastin' my time, servin' my mind

2009-07-20T15:08:00.004+02:00

for sense pleasures I can find

took a little break from work yesterday to meet up with the jr-ah and go see faux mags, murphy's law and some retard picking a fight.

grabbed an obligatory bite to eat afterwards:

sushi/sashimi dish

noodles with beef, thai curry and coconut

pretty decent considering the dutch tradition foodwise

at:
SOHO
jan van jieshoutstraat 24a
5611 eindhoven
holland

amazing visuals

2009-07-20T01:23:00.003+02:00

olympus pen commercial. 60.000 pictures, 9.600 prints, 1.800 images. created by Michael Kadelbach. music by Johannes Stakowski.

post-it love. directed by Simon Atkinson & Adam Trowley. starring Charity Wakefield & Lee Ingleby. music: Masaki Kurihara / Kuricorder Orchestra.

bonus points for the girl's outfits

I love shortfilms

life on earth

2009-07-16T15:53:00.004+02:00

can get pretty hectic at times. been slackin' off on updates since this blog isn't really in my list of top priorities. spent the last weeks roadtrippin' back and forth between gigs, workin' on some projects, redecorating, shopping, hangin' out and bummin' around.

I'll be tryin' to get this thing going on a more regular basis if I find the time.

to extend my sincere apologies to whoever wastes his/her time reading this, I'm linking up jesy fortino's latest musical output under the moniker tiny vipers, just released this month on subpop records.

click here to download life on earth

witnessed a pretty charming set of her last winter opening up for damien jurado at antwerp's trix club.

on an unrelated yet equally nerdy note, I scooped up three sweatervests for mad cheap last week. anyone who knows me should know how much I love these things.

wore one of them alongside nike sb trainer 2 'urban haze', limited edition 501's I copped in vienna four years ago and a full zip nike windbreaker to match the olive accents for a guided tour around a production plant yesterday evening.

this week

2009-07-06T15:39:00.008+02:00

is/was/would've been about the following

meth & red
monday july 6th
vooruit gent
sint pietersnieuwstraat 23
9000 gent

sold out though

nj's mongoloids, my ebonic brethren in the setup, dutch groovemasters state of mind and more
tuesday july 7th
jh tydeeh
rivierstraat 8
2400 mol

highlight would've been lil' wayne at hmh in amsterdam, unfortunately he cancelled his tour because of medical issues. maybe weezy should lay off the purple for a while, but actually I prefer he'd not. hope a new date will be announced soon that doesn't interfere with other plans.

wilkesbarre's coldest are doing three dates in germany this weekend. will be catchin' them in essen. destroyers of devilishment rhythm to the madness and designer brand edgemen true colors are playing select dates as well.

july 10th : rote flora, hamburg
july 11th : jz papestrasse, essen
july 12th : juha, rosswein

air jordan I östrich

2009-07-03T14:19:00.002+02:00

droppin' july 7th

dope simple colorway, quality material. these would've been even better if the nylon uppers were leather as well. consider these a comfort to anyone who missed out on the östrich sb's 5 years ago.

more pics over at highsnobiety.com

vans vault del barco LX

2009-07-03T12:20:00.007+02:00

the wait is long

a few additions to the already impressive colorscheme line up for these. brown, black and green/brown/salmon-ish are highly ranked on my imaginary want list. still set for december until further notice.

while on the subject, went to the vans outlet the day before yesterday. due to an error at headoffice the cash register scanned all the items at an additional discount. here's the result:

somewhere in there are beige vault skate hi LX with snake skin detailing, caballero hi's, grey/black half cab pro's, paisley authentics. 6 pairs for 180 euro. I'm starting to think there might be a god after all, and I'm guessing he wants me to wear more vans.

kept it clean and simple to go see mogwai. black authentics, black stf 501's, white shirt. ss in parisian blue. good set, although I could've done without the encores after an hour and a half set. plenty of material off happy songs for happy people.

been to hell and back so often

2009-07-01T12:41:00.014+02:00

I've got frequent flyer miles

planned to go see notorious as it was supposed to drop the last week of june. went to see drag me to hell instead since theatres in belgium suck and don't show this flick anywhere. below average predictable horror movie with some good scenes here and there. best parts are the drawings in the opening credits and the sight of alison lohman throughout the whole movie. the scene where she comes down the stairs in a yellow dress is pretty wow. also starring that dude from jeepers creepers with the most annoying face ever. don't go see this, google pictures of lohman instead.

directed by sam raimi

broke out structures for the occasion, my boy j wore military blues

snacks, music and installation of 3.0 software on my iphone afterwards.

took a trip to essen germany to see death threat on sunday since I missed them a week earlier. other bands I saw were: the mongoloids, rise and fall, strength for a reason and have heart whom I have no connection with whatsoever though I must admit crowd response was pretty sick.

death threat killed it though.

peep my boy fatjay in full effizzay. pic borrowed from facetheshow.org

wore new balance 1500 limited editions. had these on ice for a while but been breakin' em out pretty often lately. fits pretty smooth and is one of the few all leather runners that don't look too retarded. colors make me long for fall, I can't stand this heatwave.

picked up this bizarre rise and fall tote bag. funny at first but disturbing if you stare at this too long. haven't listened to kiss in ages. find ronald.

traditional stop at burger king on the way back. I kinda miss the road and it seems like the road misses me too.

right now I'm off to go outlet shopping and see mogwai later tonight.

just like cochran

2009-06-29T23:59:00.005+02:00

cocks*ckers you never see me boxed in

been scopin' for a vinyl copy of jay z's dynasty record for a couple of years now. finally found one last weekend, and at a pretty good price as well. vinyl enthusiasts will understand the sense of accomplishment one feels when adding one of those records you've been wanting for a long time to your collection.

probably my favorite hova record as well.

if you're not familiar with this gem, click

recommended with the windows down and the system up

you know it ain't no stoppin' all the dogs I'm droppin'

2009-06-29T23:00:00.005+02:00

it's fridaynight so everything is poppin'

was supposed to have brunch this friday, but seems like this is pretty impossible on weekdays. go figure.

kickstarted my day with a visit at tasty's instead

since I'm pretty receptible to suggestion I went for the suggestion burger which was a broccoli mozarella burger and the suggestion juice which was mango passionfruit basilicum orange if I recall correctly. pretty tasty indeed.

burger + juice = 8 somewhat euro

tasty world
walpoortstraat 38
9000 gent
tastyworld.be

had a little stop at julie's house for some raspberry chocolate pie, had officially declared friday cheat day at this point.

slice of pie + tao = about 7 euro

julie's house
kraanlei 13
9000 gent
julieshouse.be

headed back east for dinner at de martinushoeve

popped bottles on the patio upon arrival

tricolore of melon, shrimp and horseradish for starters

baked sole garnished with mashed potatoes and carrot

palet of creme brûlee, vanilla ice cream and chocolate mousse for dessert

de martinushoeve
spaanse molenstraat 44
2040 zandvliet
martinushoeve.com

this came in pretty handy afterwards

life is a maze

2009-06-27T11:12:00.004+02:00

and love is a riddle

get your late passes ready, but I'm totally into this record as of late.

Lenka pretty much proves australia has more to offer than kangaroos, naomi watts and ice cream.

thirteen mostly upbeat and uplifting sounding songs that lyrically balance on the verge of depression. addressing themes such as heartache, desire, self realization, ... through playful lighthearted tunes and a voice that pretty much embodies naivity and innocence. kinda like having your pierced heart handed to you in colorful gift wrapping.

check out her debut solo album here, thank me later.

alife everybody mono high

2009-06-25T14:45:00.005+02:00

f supra, f air yeezy, f kanye vuitton ... these are the law

nubuck, high top, earth tone, embossed logo, no frills. I need these in my life.

more colors, models, apparel available over at alifenyc.com

I'm on a quest for a size 12

de echte echte

2009-06-25T14:27:00.005+02:00

oftewel de ekte ekte

notorious dutch MC threesome de jeugd van tegenwoordig will be performing in mechelen tonight. they are set to play a platform on a river (= pretty awesome)

if getting your groove on with underage girls is your thing, you might want to be here.

this picture makes me kinda jealous of wiwa's skin color and specs, fabergé's W-taps and vièze fur's vièze fur.

JVT
thursday june 25th
vismarkt
2800 mechelen
dijlefeesten.be

bulls vs. celtics

2009-06-23T00:48:00.005+02:00

1 - 0

third in the defining moments series, following the toro bravo pack, jordan provides us with the classic jordan I in two long time rivalling team colorways: the original bulls colorway that got banned from the hardwood when it first came out and the green/white/black celtics colorway.

let's hope jordan brand has taken a turn away from all that melo, laser, dubzero, jordan air force crap. jordan I through XI are pretty flawless as they are, no alterations needed.

pickyourshoes.com has pairs available as we speak.

looks like someone used a typewriter to tag his pictures... proficiat! more pics, google that sh*t.

dark was the night

2009-06-23T00:15:00.002+02:00

having discussed this compilation album on two seperate occasions this weekend, I thought I'd post it up.

released february 16th 2009 and curated/produced by the dessner brothers (of the national fame), dark was the night features 32 exclusive songs by the likes of cat power, iron & wine, feist, spoon, yeasayer, bon iver, arcade fire, and so on and so on. these songs were compiled as a benefit for red hot, an organization creating awareness on hiv/aids.

if you want to support their cause you can buy the release online here , if you just want to check out some good tunes and don't give a rat's ass about red hot, click here to download.

train song by leslie feist & ben gibbard is epicly good!

if the meal between breakfast and lunch is called brunch

2009-06-22T14:03:00.005+02:00

this would be called lunner

spanish food themed afternoon:

not pictured are some salmon, chorizo, seafood, bacon appetizers.

chicken paprika quiche

sandra's signature paella dish

sweets

pointer benson

2009-06-19T14:31:00.006+02:00

pointer shoes are always kinda hit or miss in my book, while some models are totally on point, others look like slightly altered versions of the atrocities one can find under mid-calf length trousers at the yearly city fair.

these, however, are I L L ! mid cut, leather uppers and a rubber midsole to keep it casual.

both colors will be acquired. not too convinced regarding the leather laces though.

bensons will see the light of day fall/winter 09.

more info: pointerfootwear.com

great way to start the weekend

2009-06-19T13:34:00.005+02:00

after a little round trip around the world, these finally reached my office

575s weigh a ton and look indestructable

pretty cool packaging as well:

crookedtongues.com currently has a shitload of exclusive adidas for sale, the zx9000 is hands down one of my all time favorite runners.

uptown

2009-06-19T09:42:00.007+02:00

we packin' and we stackin'

apart from a queens ny neighbourhood bellerose is also a belgian based brand that produces clothing under it's own trademark name. casual outfits for the familiy man at leisure (the skinny family man that is), nothing too interesting. now what does make it interesting is the fact that bellerose stores also carry levis, edwin, the north face, arcteryx, clarks, red wing, new balance, etc.

even more interesting is the fact that bellerose antwerp is closing its doors at their old location and will be opening a new concept store elsewhere by the end of 2009. they are deleting all their current stock at 50% or less.

some jeans go as low as 25 euro, although most of the good stuff is gone already. plenty of bellerose clothing left and a good amount of the nike vintage line if you're into that stuff.

hooked myself up with some cowboy gear:

two lee brand lot 101 sanforized cinchback cowboy selvages. RRP is 225 euro each, got 'em at 25 a pop.

sick cow fur detailing on the upper pair.

red wings, RRP 250 euro, now at 50% off. if you ever need any wood chopped, I'm your man.

go check for yourself at:

bellerose
lombardenvest 34
2000 antwerpen
bellerose.be

had one of these to reload on carbs and protein for a full day of chillin'/shopping. although it didn't taste like oreo's at all, still pretty effin tasty! 30 grams of protein, 34 grams of carbs, 0 grams of saturated fat.

available at:
sport & nutrition
lange nieuwstraat 26
2000 antwerpen
sportennutrition.be

satisfied my caffeine need at caffénation. best drinks, but not exactly my kinda setting. if you like to discuss karl marx or may 68 (or just pretend you're smart), this might be your place. che guevara parody = fail.

a lick of paint, some interior decorating and an attitude adjustment could rocket this place to a #1 hangout spot, now it's just a place you visit to drink good coffee.

iced soy vanilla latte + iced chock = 6,80 euro

caffénation
hopland 46
2000 antwerpen
caffenation.be

iron heart

2009-06-18T18:08:00.005+02:00

since I tend to like stuff containing the word iron (eg: iron flag, iron boots, iron mind, iron and wine, pumping iron, iron skull, iron-y), I can't help but love these pants.

commemorating iron heart's 5 year existence, they unleash this 23oz slab of denim upon the world. twice the weight of a regular selvage denim, wearing one of these for a day is probably an extensive leg workout on it's own.

limited to 400 pairs and releasing today, thursday june 18th, at selfedge.com

price is kinda steep at 450 dollars, but hey at least shipping's free

jordan III true blue

2009-06-17T20:03:00.006+02:00

part deux

some more pics of this highly anticipated retro

blue looks bright as hell compared to the OG

can't wait though, 2 more months

what do tigers dream of

2009-06-17T19:44:00.003+02:00

when they take a little tiger snooze?

wagamama on monday

yaki udon + negima yakitori + still water

more info: wagamama.be

drinks at berlin & the joker afterwards

nike air hoop structure triax

2009-06-16T14:26:00.005+02:00

set for a november/december release, nike presents this high top interpretation of the nike structure triax which was rereleased in two OG colorways spring 2007. Eyecatcher definitely is the transparent sole and the toe-box which is made out of leather as opposed to the mesh used on the original running version, not too bad of an idea considering the shapes the toe-boxes on the retro took on while being worn.

although intended to play ball, the shaping and coloring strongly resemble a structure - atc/crosstrainer hybrid in my eyes.

more detailed pics over at highsnobiety.com

sweet lime

2009-06-15T23:39:00.006+02:00

fusion, mexican, tapas

"fusion cuisine combines elements of various culinary traditions while not fitting specifically into any. the term generally refers to the innovations in many contemporary restaurant cuisines since the 1970's" dixit wikipedia

although my modest opinion wouldn't categorize sweet lime in kortrijk under fusion dining, they do offer a good variety of snack-like courses in a chilled out loungy atmosphere. don't go here if you expect experimental cuisine, yet pay them a visit if you're lookin' for a decent alternative for your usual italian/oriental saturday night experience.

extra points for cute waitresses, something this place is supposed to be known for.

non-alcoholic sweet nut cocktail (coconut, milk, vanilla)

nachos w/ sour cream, vegetables & herbs

had this salmon & cheese panini for appetizers

chicken enchilada w/ plenty of salad and vegetables

cocktail + 2 courses + drinks = somewhere around 25 euro

sweet lime
kasteelkaai 4
8500 kortrijk

big ups to charlotte v for making this possible

slowin' down wasn't even an option

2009-06-13T13:35:00.003+02:00

so I chose to speed it up

I'm a sucker for irony, so I thought I'd share this one

hopin' to see this dude pop up on stage on a segway at one of lil wayne's shows in a month

meanwhile, check out the pain's first album here, definitely one of my top 10 sexiest records out there.

jordan I do the right thing pack

2009-06-13T13:18:00.002+02:00

celebrating the 20 year existence of seminal cult movie do the right thing, jordan brings two long forgotten colorways of the air jordan I back to life. Normally when you see these it's because some jordan fiend displays his cracked & yellowed 10k jordan I collection up on niketalk. should be pretty cool being able to get your hands on a pristine pair of these.

pretty poor material at first sight, but I'm guessing the pics have a lot to do with this.

no release date set yet.

black angus

2009-06-11T02:11:00.006+02:00

had dinner at Azar's place last night, an argentinian steakhouse located near Antwerps central station. while the rest of the neighbourhood has strongly deteriorated over the last few years, this place still delivers the same fine quality imported argentinian meat, as they have been doing for over 20 years now. highly recommended.

empenadas for starters, a typical argentinian roll filled with spicy meatloaf. as you can see me and my company mixed it up with some grilled shrimp (nerd alert: last weekend trivial pursuit told me the singular is scampo and scampi is actually plural)

400 grams of 100% certified black angus strip loin beef. served sizzling hot with a side of fries and vegetables. somewhere in between bleu and bloody, just as requested. heaven on earth.

mandatory

on the house

empenadas + bife de chorizo grande + coffee + drinks = 40 somewhat euro

parrillada argentina
anneessensstraat 29
2018 antwerpen
03 231 63 39

808 sneakershop stockroom sale

2009-06-10T14:06:00.005+02:00

bob 'goodman' of 808 sneakershop is getting rid of some excess stock at good prices. plenty of nike, vans, asics, reebok, ... in plenty of sizes and lots of ill shirts, sweaters, windrunners and fitted caps. I think he also has some asics x david z collabs left in stock for those of you who like to $hine.

go have a look and keep supporting independent stores such as his. dude has his heart in the right place and is wise to the game. expect an 808 special up here sooner than later.

808 sneakershop
haverwerf 1
2800 mechelen
808sneakershop.com
myspace.com/808sneakershop

finally picked up the rockwell duvet cover. sooo sick!

sleep well!

start with toothpaste, then pop bottles

2009-06-09T14:18:00.006+02:00

after a two week break from work, I was welcomed back with a champagne breakfast at Lamot's, located in a remodeled old beer brewery along the river Dijle. pretty sweet.

champagne, fresh squeezed orange juice and ovenwarm bread

hamslice filled with celery, gouda, brie, miniature mozarella caprese, soft boiled egg, smoked salmon, tuna salad, miniature spinache quiche, frangipane biscuit

my view for the morning, pretty sick

old remainder of the brewery

view from accross the river

breakfast was 17,50 euro
main course + drinks between 20 and 30 euro depending on your order

grand café lamot
van beethovenstraat
2800 mechelen
grandcafelamot.be

my money doesn't burn

2009-06-09T01:45:00.003+02:00

it just melts

picked up two of these with the excuse of a long awaited breakthrough at work, I guess any reason will do

penfield recently dropped their new collection. plenty of black, grey and purple. lockwood and vassan jackets look dope. take a peek at penfieldusa.com.

local retailers carryin' penfield gear are a cut above and fish & chips

so I reminisce on memories

2009-06-09T00:57:00.007+02:00

losing touch, losing touch with reality

following two releases totally flew under my radar for some weird reason

first off, the sounds released their third studio album last week titled 'crossing the rubicon'. first saw them opening up for panic! at the disco in brussels a couple of years ago, good show but it didn't really stick. some months later I was stuck in traffic driving home from class and heard 'tony the beat' on the radio, I wrote down the exact time and looked up the playlist on the radiostations' website to know what I was dealing with (yes I am nerdy like that). checked out their sophomore album 'dying to say this to you' and been a believer of these scandinavians ever since.

crossing the rubicon however is quite the step back. more poppy melodies with singer maja ivarsson reminiscin' about her youth and talkin' about (lost) love. not the same variation that could be found on dying... and a little too 'funky' at times for my personal taste.

a first spin tells me 'my lover', 'midnight sun' and 'the only ones' are my favorite songs. judge for yourself here (click)

Ben Gibbard and co also have a new EP under their belts titled 'the open door EP'. At the risk of being an overly critical dickhead, I must say the five songs displayed on this release don't quite live up to the high standard created by their previous three albums. Where narrow stairs had kind of a hazy, dreamy feel these songs seem to be more straightforward again. Although they return to a more classic (dare I say cliché?) death cab style, this is still better than 99% of similar bands out there.

download here

it's a silly time to learn to swim

2009-06-07T21:53:00.006+02:00

when you start to drown

I never really knew of the existance of this cd single until I found it at a virgin megastore blowout sale. featuring such great heights, there's never enough time alongside the shins' and iron and wine's interpretation of respectively we will become silhouettes and such great heights. can't go wrong for 3$ with this one. cool artwork as well.

on a cover-related note, here's a video for the postal service's version of against all odds, off the wicker park soundtrack (also featuring mogwai, the shins, death cab, snow patrol, ...). always thought of this as a pretty depressing song, the video doesn't quite have the tendency to make one smile either.

other recent music pickups include:
jawbreaker - dear you lp
eye for an eye - omega drone ep
tegan and sara - the business of art cd
master musicians of bukkake - totem one lp
lil wayne - carter III part one lp

konnichiwa bitches

2009-06-05T13:59:00.009+02:00

the line between love and hate is a very fine one, but I think japan and me are cool for now

had this takeaway sushi dish for breakfast (7am) at london heathrow yesterday. salmon sushi rolls, served with limegrass and soya sauce, pretty decent for 4 bucks.

apparently itsu is a london exclusive food company specialised in healthy takeaway snacks and beverages, more info at itsu.com

could use one of these in antwerp

picked up these ubiq fatima mids at atmos nyc earlier this week. stoked as these are pretty tough to come by outside of japan. check an interview with hommyo and kosaka (respectively of atmos japan and ubiq japan) right here

not as bulky as timbs, but heavier than your average chuck. released spring 2009, which is pretty weird, as I see these as an ideal shoe for winter.

already scopin' for a backup pair as we speak, as I'm pretty sure I won't be able to keep these off my feet

hooked up with some jordan I straps at 60$ as well... dope

my boy at atmos also gave me a scoop of the new balance cm996 atmos exclusive

atmos nyc got some pairs in, available instore as we speak

atmos
203 west 125th street
harlem, new york
atmosnyc.com

had beni's falafel to regain some strength after being awake for 40 hours straight

falafel humus + coke zero = 7 euro

pretty good shit if you're in for some vegetarian fastfood and don't want to drop too much 'kessef'

beni's falafel
lange leemstraat x belgielei
2018 antwerpen

peep this sick bcs japan tour shirt to round things up, laughed for 5 minutes straight first seeing this

'20$, you won't find this anywhere'

no updates for a while

2009-05-30T04:16:00.001+02:00

in harlem right now and can't upload pics from my phone

peace

I'm just an angel with a dirty face

2009-05-27T12:58:00.004+02:00

trying so hard to keep up the pace

grabbed a quick bite to eat before going to church yesterday. checked this lebanese restaurant in the city center of leuven. had the mechwi mshakel dish (imagine how much of a fool I looked like tryin' to pronounce this to the waitress) which was basically a mixed plate of grilled meat: marinated chicken, lamb and kefta. served with spiced rice and a choice of garlic sauce and hot sauce. shit was so spicy it tasted like my chicken was marinated in lava. thank god I had a cold lebanese almaza beer to cool things off.

also on the menu was a 600 gram marinated chicken, which didn't seem like a good idea as I was on a pretty tight schedule and for reasons stated in one of my previous posts.

mechwi mshakel + glass of beer = 17,50 euro

omaya
biezenstraat 5
3000 leuven

sunn o))) was good, nothing more nothing less. did expect more of the whole church concept though. as I approached I could hear the windows in the street trembling (yeah I was kinda late, what's new), imagine the anticlimax when entering and finding a poorly crowded 'sold out' show filled with a purple haze (not the good kind).

playlist:
the streets - a grand don't come for free
emiliana torrini - fishermans woman
crown of thornz - train yard blues
isis - panopticon

chain of strength x the hundreds

2009-05-27T12:42:00.004+02:00

although I respect the legacy of californian youth crew icons chain of strength and the independent work ethic of LA based streetwear label the hundreds

this is pretty lame

more of these monstrosities over at hypebeast

supreme x bad brains collab was pretty dope though

jordan III true blue retro

2009-05-26T11:58:00.004+02:00

two pairs, gimme two pairs

release date of this highly anticipated retro of one of the most iconic jordans has finally been set.

jordan III true blues will be released to the general public august 2009, should make for an excellent birthday present (size 11 please). Let's hope there will be none of that countdown pack bullshit goin' on with these. Give the people what they want, a quality retro that's widely available at a normal retail price.

pictures look pretty damn good

seems like some of these are already available online through marqueesole, prepare to drop 350 big ones if you really want to get these 2 months prior to release.

it took the night to believe

2009-05-25T12:32:00.005+02:00

stephen o'malley and greg anderson are desacralizing an old church in leuven tomorrow. celebrating ten years in existance and supposedly only playing material off the grimmrobe demos (click to dowload)

at the risk of having my bowels act up on account of the wall of noise these dronesters will produce, I think I'll be having a really light meal beforehand

show is sold out by the way

sunn o)))
predikherenkerk
onze lieve vrouwestraat
3000 leuven

saucony shadow 6000 varsity pack

2009-05-25T10:32:00.009+02:00

after the collab with alife rivington club my favourite saucony trainer (can't really f*ck with the jazz model, as they're unstable as hell) comes back in three fresh colorways inspired by college life. kinda reminds of what nike did with the dunk hi's in the late 90's and later on the dunk hi sb's of the be true to your school pack in 2005.

been thinkin' of getting myself a pair of shadow 6000s for a while now, these might just do the trick. purple and orange ones have my preference.

available as we speak

pics through high snobiety

when it comes to presents

2009-05-25T10:12:00.007+02:00

a mailbox filled with protein bars is totally boss

(34gr of protein per serving)

pretty much has all the qualities one looks for in a gift:

movie or music inspired/related
functional (read: edible)
protein

totally 'brightened' up my day, thank you

was looking for a picture of the teen whore pregnancy test, found this cute pic instead

confusion blackens my world

2009-05-25T09:22:00.013+02:00

caught up on some flicks this weekend

oh yeah, I'm officially in love with kat dennings (call me)

dinner reservations at la résidence du parc yesterday, had the mozarella caprese for starters. followed by an ovendish consisting out of cob, leek, cream, potatoes. fruitsalad for dessert. no pictures I'm afraid, as my phone was dead.

start with straight shots then pop bottles

2009-05-23T11:50:00.009+02:00

flirt with the hoodrats then pop models

got invited by amaya to eat some japanese/chinese in a supposedly well known tepanaki joint north of antwerp. as is often the case with this kinda places the setting wasn't all that: an old residential villa transformed into a restaurant. the food however was pretty delish

we opted for the fish & meat menu

an impression:

appetizer consisting of some fried seafood, spicy chinese onion and a sushi roll

our swordsman for the evening

view

some watery vegetable soup, kinda looked like someone jizzed in it

the master at work

fish dish (check my rhyme!) with salmon, cod, onion, mushroom, marrow and herbs

lamb

steak, fried rice and chinese vegetables

some of that black stuff to top things off

menu + drinks will set you back about 50 euro

oriental plaza
turnhoutsebaan 446
2970 schilde
orientalplaza.be

headed over to the mims & chingy showcase afterwards

admire my professional photography:

mims up in this bitch

tried inventorizing the amount of booty shorts, failed though

chingy totally killed it and rocked some serious ice

see y'all the 5th

the temple
solariumdreef 5
9070 destelbergen
clubheat.be

air max 90 x huarache x current hybrid

2009-05-22T15:31:00.008+02:00

aka the ideal beater for the summer

we've all seen the samples, but now we finally have a release date. expect these to drop at the beginning of july.

I think they would've looked even better without the white detailing. and those white laces will definitely have to go.

some more purple label madness

2009-05-22T09:27:00.003+02:00

love the colors/hate the design on this

more pics here

and if you can't respect that, your whole perspective is whack

2009-05-22T08:59:00.004+02:00

maybe you'll love me when I fade to black

JAY Z resigns as CEO of def jam

this is pretty big news. often acclaimed as hip hop's most succesfull persona, jay z ends his contract with def jam, after running the show as president/CEO for 5 years and releasing 10 studio albums through his own roc-a-fella sublabel.

here's what shawn carter himself had to say about this:

“I’ve been incredibly fortunate to have served as President of such a culturally-defining label as Def Jam over the last three years. During that time, I’ve had the pleasure of working with many of the world’s most dynamic artists and many of the most dedicated and talented executives in the music business today, including [IDJMG Chairman/ CEO] Antonio “L.A.” Reid. But now it’s time for me to take on new challenges. I am pleased to have had the opportunity to build upon the Def Jam legacy, helping to move the company into a new era of artistic success.”

“I can honestly say, working with Doug Morris and LA Reid has been a unique and fulfilling experience and I respect them immensely. I’ve been in the family for almost my entire career. Doug and I spoke directly and had one of the most unique “negotiations” ever. Doug won the toss but, we both won in the end..I thank him for allowing me to be a completely independent artist. Not every artist can say they own or are given the opportunity to own all of their music.”

more info:
hiphopdx.com
allhiphop.com

pretty curious about what will be next for hova

and still I feel that I'm drowning

2009-05-20T12:03:00.013+02:00

I'm losing, I'm slipping, I'm falling down

went to celebrate the release of true colors' and state of minds' new LPs last saturday

(pic stolen from laura)

missed out on joshua's song on account of being a lazy bum. saw world gone mad aka 'you want your cake, you want to steal it too', total marco abularach worship with obligated recycled icemen riffing, hard as fuck! hollands finest b-boy posse state of mind up next. they're one of those bands one might forget exists from time to time, but these dudes are constantly lurking on the downlow, releasing quality albums and convincing friend and foe with their honest and energetic live performance. this evening was no different, opening with drowning, a joint off of their new album titled mental gold and quite possibly the best song I've heard in a long time. some bits off of music for the statefully insane and a sick d'mize cover and a blitz cover to round things up. when it comes to sincere, honest and straight up heavy music, state of mind definitely gets the cake. texas heavyweights bitter end took the stage and started to really get things moving on the floor. extra credit for shouting 'lift up your feet' right in front of a moshpart. most of the set consisted out of climate of fear material, some older stuff and I'm guessing one newer tune from the EP. I was under the impression they played everything slower as they do on their records, but it could've been the kush (of hope) talkin'. catch them on tour with true colors the next three weeks and buy my boy klaas a protein bar. only caught the first couple of songs true colors played. what can i say other than the fact that this is currently the best band out there playing authentic straightedge hardcore, period!

picked up both bands' record release editions

more on these later, maybe

and my man fatjay hooked me up with these two joints

while on the subject of live music, ghostface didn't disappoint last monday, although I missed a couple of classics (daytona 500) and could've done without his tributes. hands down my favorite wu offspring alongside the genius.

after seeing a dude rockin' a hitler mustache at my gym (maybe not the best idea in a gym that has been sued for racism and discrimination in the past, but anyway) I was totally in the mood to take a trip to Aachen Germany to see terror/born from pain/trapped under ice again. pretty good call, as the show was pretty dope.

picked up one of these at a local convenience store

austrian (graz maybe?) + the fact that this is called the beast + picture of some dragon-like creature = pretty fuckin' hard if u ask me

oh japan, why do you keep defying me

2009-05-20T11:38:00.005+02:00

seems like I opened pandora's box with my previous posts

peep these japan exclusive (!!!) vans mountain editions

wonder why they're getting all the good stuff and we're stuck with that iron maiden crap, I'd be more than happy to trade in my fries for rice if I could get my hands on all that good stuff

available at united arrows ltd

I guess I only like exclusivity

2009-05-19T19:01:00.007+02:00

when I'm included

would consider the north face purple label line and the nb's posted below a valuable reason for moving to japan temporarily

pictures courtesy of google and 'S.Tropio'

seems like the good people at nike sb are slowly getting their mojo back

2009-05-19T17:59:00.002+02:00

leather/suede uppers, simple earth tone colors, gum sole, winner

available online at kix files, but I'm guessing these will reach the skateshops sooner than later

the blue box still rubs me the wrong way though

milka x daim collab

2009-05-19T17:15:00.007+02:00

check out this 'sweet' collab, a phenomenon in no way limited to fashion

available at you local retailer as we speak

kinda makes me crave for a piece of almondy aka a good reason to visit ikea stores when you're in no need for furniture whatsoever

new balance restoration of heritage pack

2009-05-18T19:54:00.003+02:00

now this is what the f is up! co.jp style

new balance are re-releasing two of their long time high end classics, the M1500 and the M1700, in cooperation with japan based united arrows. sober and clean grey/white/blue colorway and rugged high quality materials, pretty much what nb is best known for.

I think the phrase 'less is more' pretty much sums it up for these beauties

available from united arrows if you're fluent in japanese

otherwise I'm guessing your best bet is ebay

I'm on a mission

a crunkswagger's critique

2009-05-18T01:09:00.009+02:00

"the one thing better than a perfect evening is a perfect evening with one little flaw we can nag about all night long"

having a taste for oriental cuisine and being into loungin' (celebratin' all day, no more public housin'), I ended up eatin at 'same same but different' in kortrijk on friday, located on a main road where one would rather expect a couple of gentlemens clubs

I was totally feelin' the interior and the concept of a mixed menu of eastern vs western food. having to wait over one hour and a half for a mediocre dish of chicken with chili, basilicum, vegetables and rice however made me quite the opposite of positive, the fact that they simply forgot to prepare one of our orders didn't really help either

chicken with chili and thai basilicum + pepsi max (hello???) = a little under 20 euros

same same but different (I'm guessing the difference is the poor service?)
doorniksesteenweg 105
8500 kortrijk

although I ate a good portion of chicken with gratin dauphinois on saturday, my love for midnight snacking brought me to what is hands down the best shoarma/pita/pizza/snackbar/whatever in a 50 mile radius of antwerp later that night

ordered my usual, the large chicken sandwich, which is basically a plate of spiced grilled chicken served with a minuscule döner sandwich and six sauces

next to providing food, they also facilitate their clients general development with placemats providing all kinds of information on egyptian subjects.

large chicken sandwich + diet coke = 8,50 euro

sint catharina
jodenstraat ??
2460 herenthout

jordan V raging bull pack revisited

2009-05-16T18:35:00.007+02:00

some more detailed pics of the 'toro bravo' pack

might try to scoop these up when I'm in the big apple later this month

more pics over at hypebeast