In 2018, Jelena Hallmann-Haeschke, an illustrator and graphic designer based out of Germany, released a brilliant series in which she illustrated different moths. The series whilst minimal in what it covers displayed the moths in vivid colours and stunning textures.
Find more work by Jelena Hallmann-Haeschke here.
Oddly calm. Usually when I’m about to put music out I get this very specific kind of stomach-ache which isn’t happening this time.
2 Years was one of those songs that practically fell out of my brain. I wrote the whole thing terrifyingly quick, each word just appeared in front of the other. I love sitting with lyrics, stretching metaphors out, creating deeper layers, references to other songs on the project, things for people to uncover. 2 Years was not one of those songs, I only changed a couple words since the first demo.
Woah, so much. Pretty much everything I know was learnt in these past few years. Music is business, an overly complicated one at that. When I first started songwriting in high school in 2013 I had zero clue about contracts, mechanical royalties, publishers, syncs, managers, production agreements. There are lot of people out there ready to take advantage of young artists who don’t know things about how the industry is structured. And then just on a song-writing level, I learnt pretty much everything I know between 2014 and 2016 working with a guy here in New Zealand called Josh Fountain who showed me how to produce, and gave me all the space I needed to carve out my own voice as a writer. Only now am I beginning to realise how lucky I was in that regard.
Ooo good question. I think today we are increasingly seeing artist do the “singles-thing” and it works super well for them. You can go one of two ways when exploring that route. The first is locking down a sound and slowly building an audience single-by-single, getting maximum exposure with every track. The second is using the singles method to find what resonates with people. Each track becomes an experiment to see what people respond to, and then you have to recalibrate the creative process based on the feedback. For me, I had written a ton of different types of music in 2017 and had no idea what I had just made, and I didn’t release it. I lived with the songs for a long time before realising that there were two separate vibes emerging, two categories almost. I sat down and reorganized the demos into two folders and that’s when everything clicked. From there, I tried to hone in two separate, but referential, sounds. I spent almost a year tweaking production with my friend in LA, Micah Jasper. I think in this way, I was able to bring a really creative, varied, palette of sounds into a coherent project which has been such an amazing process. The funniest part has been releasing all the singles, which are all so wildly different, but knowing that everything is going to click for people once they hear both EPs.
Interesting. I came up at a weird time, right before Spotify really took hold of the industry and its competitors materialised. So I got to experience releasing music in the SoundCloud blog era, where I also saw a decent amount of buzz. A lot of the online press I had earlier in my career doesn’t even exist anymore or was absorbed by a larger company. Now, everything hinges on New Music Friday and other editorial support so finding online premieres (which used to mean everything) now has a lot less importance to the entire team. I feel like I have to acknowledge the luck of making music at a time where it’s so accessible, and how fortunate I am to have a group of people working to realise that music.
That’s hard to say. I guess it’s influenced everything I’ve done whether or not I was aware at the time. I can’t believe that I’ve been able to see the world. I have friends who have never been on a plane, so I’m not gonna say that travel is “essential” or anything but I feel like the things I’ve seen and the people have met have influenced me in ways I’m not sure I’ll ever fully understand. Maori culture taught me to find value in family and the land I’m from, American culture taught me to be more bold, and British culture taught me to never, under any circumstance, call someone without texting first.
To me, culture is the thread that connects communities. That’s my view at this current moment but honestly my 20s are teaching me to never make grand statements about my world view because it changes every 30 seconds.
Massimo Colonna, a photographer based out of Scandiano, Italy, published another brilliant mini series of photos, this time named Interferences. As always Colonna explores interesting themes, and in this series the themes of nature and articifial spaces is dived into. Colonna utilises naturistic rendered spaces with mysterious-like atmospheres to create an uneasy type feel in this series, which makes you ask what is real and what is not in the world of consistent digital growth?
Writing about the series Colonna stated: “A project based on landscapes situated on the border between reality and fiction, animal figures are co-protagonists of a story that has no plot, based only on the visual dialogue between nature and artificial elements. The images themselves are artificial, fakes, created on the computer these landscapes don’t exist, but how can you determine where fiction ends and reality begins? The atmosphere accompanies us in these remote places, almost inaccessible, but something familiar transports our mind to the intimacy of the view.”
AJIMAL, the moniker of Fran O’Hanlon, has released a brand new single named How Could You Disappear? The song comes before the release of AJIMAL’s upcoming album As It Grows Dark / Light, which is due to be released in the Spring of 2020. The upcoming album will be produced by Guy Massey, a Grammy-winning producer and engineer who has worked with the likes of Ed Sheeran, The Libertines, and The Sherlocks — to name a few.
You can stream How Could You Disappear? via Spotify here.
Vegyn, a London-based music producer, released a new latest single named It’s Nice To Be Alive. The new single comes just before the release of Vegyn’s upcoming album Only Diamonds Cut Diamonds.
It’s Nice To Be Alive combines the experimental elements that have been previously audible in Blue Verb and the 71-track album Text While Driving If You Want to Meet God. In many ways, Vegyn’s ability to communicate ideas through song titles and quite melancholic productions that feel reflective to the listener, reminds us of artists such as Aphex Twin.
1. Blue Verb
2. Nauseous / Devilish
3. That Ain’t No Dang Cat!
4. Aspenz
5. Cowboy ALLSTAR
6. Thoughts Of Offing One
7. Debold
8. Fake Life
9. I Don’t Owe You NYthing
10. Fire Like Tyndall
11. Unknown, Forever Unknown
12. Retro OTW
13. When I Strike…
14. You Owe Me
15. It’s Nice To Be Alive
16. Blue Verb Reprise
With a new album coming, Gang Starr are back with a new song, previewing the upcoming album. This well-produced song named Bad Name was a shock to many fans of Gang Starr, mostly due to it featuring vocals from the late MC Guru. Yet, unsurprisingly, DJ Premier has managed to pull off a solid and respectful production that brings back the memories of their past.
Coming from Tim Baker’s latest album All Hands is a smooth piece named The Eighteenth Hole. In this piece, Baker grabs you in withasuperb vocal performance. In this rendition of the song, Tim is joined by Felicity Williams of Bernice and Nico Paulo who bring in a layer of honey-like warmth. With this marvellous piece released, Tim Baker has emerged as an artist to watch.
Entering with a wave of incredible energy, ear-pleasing vocals, and a catchy beat is ONUR with What U Do. In his latest single, ONUR delivers a grand production that will keep you listening for weeks to come. This radio-ready track is made for the playlists.
In this segment, we showcase our top picks of what to catch at the cinema this weekend, what to stream and our short film of the week.
Our pick of the new releases out on October 18th, 2019:
| Rating | Length |
| 15 | 99 Min |
Released in 2009 and directed by Ruben Fleischer (most recently known for helming the Tom Hardy antihero film, Venom), Zombieland is a post-apocalyptic zombie comedy that was a critical success and rapidly gained following across the world – and took an apocalyptic-sized $75.6 million at the box office. The film features Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg), a nerdy, shy student and survivor of the zombie epidemic, who is attempting to make his way across the zombie-infested world to reach his family in Ohio. Along the way, he encounters Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson), a gun-wielding tough guy who’s struggling to gain his favourite snack, Twinkies, and a pair of sisters (Emma Stone and Abigail Breslin), who are trying to get to the Pacific Playland amusement park, which they believe is a sanctuary that’s free from zombies.
The immense success of the film led the creative team, particularly writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick (now known for their work on Deadpool), to want to formulate a sequel as soon as possible to cultivate the original’s success. Even Harrelson, who (in his words) is not a “sequels guy”, stated that he “never wanted to do a sequel in the previous movies I’ve done until this one”. But various creative differences, scheduling issues and concerns regarding the necessity of a sequel, have meant that the sequel was placed on hold.
Fast forward a decade to 2019 and Fleischer along with the cast of the original have finally returned for a sequel. The quartet are now experts at regularly dispensing of zombies but they are now faced with the grave problem that the zombies are ever-evolving – they are becoming more intelligent- and subsequently more of a threat. As well as dealing with the newly evolved zombies, the group must come to terms with the issues within their own dysfunctional family in order to survive in this apocalyptic world.
Though this film is highly unlikely to be in contention during award season (nor is it trying to be), Zombieland 2 is being widely praised for its cast, the humorous script and its element of pure fun. And its currently holding an approval rating of 76% on rotten tomatoes – an admirable score for a sequel. So if you’re looking for zombie-infested fun or simply a film to get you excited for the Halloween season then this film is perfect.
| Rating | Length |
| Mature | 1 Season |
Talent shows have become omnipresent in our lives – they have launched some ordinary people into the stratosphere and others have had their dreams crushed by the format. But, their abundancy has led to stagnation and a diminishment in their power or influence – The Voice UK has struggled to propel an artist beyond the show itself and The X Factor has recently turned to a new celebrity format to salvage some form of popularity. Netflix’s new reality series Rhythm + Flow appears to have surfaced at an optimum time. The concept is simple: three famous judges are searching for their next hip-hop superstar, through auditions, battle rounds and tasks, and the ultimate winner will receive $250,000 and a slot at a Spotify gig.
The concept is undoubtedly formulaic. But, where the series really comes into its own, is through its three main judges: Cardi B, T.I. and Chance the Rapper. Their criticism and judgement feels fresher and less outdated than other comparable talent competitions. They respect artists and don’t tend to fall into the “mocking” category that plagues other shows – they provide constructive criticism and never take pleasure in the contestant’s incompetence. It’s honest, entertaining, provides a much-needed platform for hip-hop artists and is sure to either rescue the format or annihilate any other competitors all together.
This short film tells the story of Fran (Katy Wright-Mead). She has passive suicidal thoughts. But, one day she smiles at a guy (Jim Sarbh) in the office – he takes her to the cinema, for a meal and on a short holiday. But, as this guy attempts to get closer to her, Fran struggles to come to terms with the fact that she must learn how to live. This short film is an honest portrait of the dramas and struggles of having suicidal thoughts and also contains elements of dark humour. The premise is simplistic, but the issues dealt with are complex and it’s a true testament to Horowitz’s skill that she manages handle successfully them with care.
Speaking on the short film, Horowitz stated that “In 2013, in a dark Theater in New York’s lower east side I directed a play called killers, written by Kevin Armento and starring Katy Wright-Mead. The play told of a death-obsessed woman, Fran, who didn’t know much about living. It was a little scary, but also funny and kind of sweet. It stuck with me and 5 years later I’ve turned it into a short film. I hope you like, and want for Fran as much as I do!”
In this segment, we showcase the most notable albums out each week. Here are the albums out on October 18th, 2019:
Jimmy Eat World, Surviving: Following 2016’s Integrity Blues, Jimmy Eat World have come out with their 10th studio album Surviving via RCA Records. The record sees the pop punk outfit reuniting with Integrity Blues producer Justin Meldal-Johnsen (Beck, Nine Inch Nails, M83) and is being promoted as one of their most ambitious and personal efforts to date. “Surviving explores some of the different kinds of weights my ego tells me I have to carry, what I see people around me choosing to carry and what I have found to be the truth when I choose to let go,” frontman Jim Adkins explains.
Foals, Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost (Part 2): Foals return with their sixth studio album and the second half of their two-part studio project, Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost. The first part was released back in March to generally favourable reviews. Notably, the album cover was taken by famed National Geographic photographer, Maggie Steber. The indie group have also announced a documentary titled Rip Up the Road to promote project, which will be released on November 15th via Amazon Prime.
Battles, Juice B Crypts: Four years after the release of La Di Da, experimental rock outfit Battles are back, this time as a duo consisting of multi-instrumentalist Ian Williams and drummer John Stanier. Juice B Crypts features a variety of guest artists, including Shabazz Palaces, Tune-Yards, Xenia Rubinos, Jon Anderson of Yes fame, and Taiwanese psych band 落差草原 WWW. Ian Williams said in a statement: ”[Juice B Crypts is] about chord progressions, resolutions, returning home. Take that and throw it into a blender of modern electronic tools like glitching devices, or use melodic lines and take them and regurgitate them and pulverize the traditional stuff but at the same time try and retain harmonic relationships while completely smashing them up.”
clipping., There Existed An Addiction to Blood: This is the third studio album from experimental hip-hop group clipping., out now via Sub Pop. The follow-up to 2016’s Splendor and Misery is described in a press statement as “experimental hip-hop built to bang in a post-apocalyptic club bursting with radiation. It’s horror-core that soaks up past blood and replants it into a different organism, undead but dangerously alive. It is a new sun, blindingly bright and built to burn your retinas.”
Vagabon, Vagabon: Indie singer-songwriter Vagabon aka Lætitia Tamko has released her sophomore self-titled record, previously known as All the Women in Me. Vagabon changed the name of the record when she learned the poet it references, Nayyirah Waheed, preferred not to be quoted. The album follows 2016’s critically acclaimed debut Infinite Worlds, and is reportedly a departure from it, featuring less indie-rock guitars and more cinematic synths as the artist searches for a new musical identity.
Other albums out today: Anna Wise, As If It Were Forever; James Arthur, You; Nils Frahm, All Encores; Playboy Carti, Whole Lotta Red; Ringo Starr, What’s My Name; Third Eye Blind, Screamer.
Timo Kuilder, an artist and illustrator based out of Amsterdam, Netherlands, released a splendid series named Drunk Glasses. In this mini-series, Kuilder explores drinks with minimalistic features that are pleasing to the eye. Kuilder’s use of rough textures with retro-like colours brings out a homely feel to the series.
You can find more work by Timo Kuilder here.
Issey Miyake’s SS20 collection debuted at the Paris Fashion Week. This was also the first debut collection of Satoshi Kondo. He had worked in the fashion house for over a decade, capturing the essence of the brand.
A Sense of Joy was the name for the collection, and rightly so as this is what was brought to the audience. The show presented an unconventional way to do a catwalk. The catwalk had high energy and lively music. There have been many other fashion houses who have had unconventional catwalks. But this one was focused on a performative act, which helped it anchor its audience with a memorable experience.
Throughout the show, many loose-fitting garments were displayed. As the models danced and spun around, different silhouette looks were created from initial garments. In terms of colour and print, the whole collection utilised playful and vibrant elements.
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