Monday, May 24, 2010

Already Summer "Dreaming"

Well, we think Allo Darlin' should credit Billy Idol for the "Dancing With Myself" intro, but we approve nonetheless of the romantic track "Dreaming" from their upcoming self-titled album to be released June 7th by Fortuna Pop Records. The easy guitarin' and sprinkling of ukelele, which contrasts ironically with the cold weather lyrics, makes us believe it's summer already. The whole song feels like a hammock session. Have a listen.

Knockarounds: Knock Off or Knothing Like Them?

Cool, recognizable logo. Classic shape. A color for everyone. What more could you ask for in a pair of shades? The freedom to lend out (permanently), step on and simply lose them sounds great, too. Ranging from $7 to $25, these shades live up to their name, and for the truly reckless, they can be bought in a set of 18 sealed in a paint can. Though they owe their design to Ray-Ban, we think these Knockaround sunglasses have some steez even Ray-Ban can't knock.












photos courtesy of knockaround.com




Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Soulful Battle Cries for Change

BRM coming back 'atcha. We can't avoid the undeniable passion Nigerian-German singer and songwriter Nneka pours into her tunes. Bob Marley founded reggae and gave a voice to silenced people. Tupac started the rapper's battle cry for "changes," and it recently became pertinent in a global way when Somali-Canadian rapper K'naan began proclaiming he "learn[ed] the English language just to share his observations" about his destitute homeland. Erykah Badu stripped down for the sake of change in her controversial video "Window Seat" off her new album New Amerykah Part Two: Return of the Ankh. Give "Heartbeat" from Nneka's 2010 release Concrete Jungle a couple listens through, and its soulful, cutting verses will be under your skin all day.