Posts Tagged ‘fashion’
Shop for Service
Keeping up with the trends hasn’t been very hard the past couple of seasons, what with punk studs piercing their prongs in everything from the runway at Chanel to $5 tanks at Forever 21. And it’s pretty clear by now that bangs are back, and British blonde/white hair is lightening up the dark mood of winter. But one thing I’m pretty surprised to see becoming a trend is community service.
Giving back is the new black? Following Entertainment Industry Foundation Week, when all of the major television networks featured their stars doing an act of service, Gap Inc. is now the one bringing service in style.
Working with ServiceNation.org, both EIF week and Gap, Inc. are shining a spotlight on service.
From Nov. 12-15, you can get a 30% discount at Gap and all of its constituent stores, and they’ll give a portion of the proceeds to support a non-profit.
Although I’ve always believed that if you give into trends it means you’re not creative enough to come up with your own style, this is a trend I feel proud to support. And I hope it’s a trend that lasts, unlike hareem trousers…
THE MAN HIMSELF, A Review of Daniel Johnston
Following Daniel Johnston’s October 15 show at the Paradise Rock Club in Boston, I wrote a review for the Daily Free Press that was Published: October 22, 2009.
Just as a turtle has a shell, and the Beatles have fame, Daniel Johnston has fans. These are certainties of life.
Despite the dramatic change in his style, not talking about his donning of sweats and sneakers, and too-tight t-shirts, but the update in his music to something that sounds highly professional on his latest album, “Is and Always Was,” Daniel Johnston’s fans keep coming back. The new style, which is a decided step away from the lo-fi songs he is loved for, may have come as a surprise, but Daniel Johnston hasn’t isolated any fans.
At 48 years old, Johnston is back on tour, looking familiar and just as friendly but his sound is different.
What’s different? Why?
Follow the jump for answers, questions, and answers in Daniel’s questions.
Say Yes to Monotonix
photo cred: Jenn Pelly
As I stared blankly at my International Relations text book that was supposed to serve as a “Do not Disturb” sign, a voyeuristic stranger peered over my shoulder and breathed hotly on my neck on the Lucky Star bus. He’d obviously just eaten Indian food and I’d just lost my iPod. There was no sign of a book or a magazine in his lap or behind his seat. This was going to be a long ride. I anxiously adjusted in my seat and I could tell he thought I was “making myself more comfortable,” or something equally embarassing like that. When my feet stuck to the Pepsi-coated floor and my head crunched against the 1990s carpeted head rest, I began to question the logic of traveling 4 1/2 hours by myself. It was my friend’s birthday in Boston and my first bit of “free time” in weeks but instead of catching up with the people I wish I could see more often, I was skipping away in solitaire to New York City to see the sweaty Israeli band that had swooned me once over the summer at Sirenfest.
And there would be crowd surfing.
Over the summer, when I was starting to think that I was becoming a very serious person with a very serious internship, I escaped to NYC seeking frivolity. Luckily, I walked upon the wonder of what appeared to be a 1970s rock show mixed between a set of indie bands: Monotonix in the lineup at Sirenfest. With three more-than-half-naked Israelis bouncing atop the audience’s outstretched arms, the show was a spectacle for sure. It was fleshy but the music wasn’t messy. There was symmetry in the steady drum and bass riffs and their transitions were precise, although mops of 2-feet long hair made it hard to see this as an orchestration. It was more like a melodic execution. The rhythm cut clear and did not falter even as the band pulsed up and down above the crowd.
“Body Language” – Monotonix mp3
