Dumped 6.0

Archival Thursdays: Aphex Twin - Selected Ambient Works Vol.2 (1994)

During the early 90's, Richard D. James aka Aphex Twin produced many beautiful ambient masterpieces which he later released on several different albums. One of those is the lovely 'Selected Ambient Works Vol. 2' released on UK's Warp Records. None of the tracks, except one, have any titles whatsoever, but that's not important. What is important is Richards' intricate techniques and engineering that naturally allow him to produce some of the most beautiful sounds known to man.

There are two vinyl versions of this release. One version is pressed on brown vinyl, has a black and white cover and is numbered, and the other version is released on black vinyl with a full color cover and was produced in much smaller amounts and is also superior in sound quality since it's pressed on non-colored vinyl. Both were released at the same time. I scooped up the black vinyl/full color cover version at this record store that was very short lived on South Beach called 'Osiel' a while back. Stay tuned for the next Archival Thursday.

HUF

Keith Hufnagel is an original player to the fullest. He's one of the original NYC skaters that was part of the Supreme and Zoo York crews during the early 90's and has appeared in only the best skate videos in existence. During the summer of 2002, Keith opened his first store in San Francisco and named it 'HUF'. Ever since then they have been known for their quality goods such as skateboards, clothing, accessories and other interesting collaborations with respectable brands such as Nike, New Era, Reebok, Vans, Adidas, and the list goes on. The success of the next few years that followed allowed Keith to open two other locations throughout California. These days the 'HUF' brand is focused on their new footwear line which will be dropping sometime in June. Check out these 'HUF' commercials featuring the man himself shredding the streets of San Francisco and New York, made specifically for the new line of footwear. Keep checking here and here for more info and exact drop dates.

Track Ready

Yesterday I brokedown, switched up, lubed & cleaned the ride in preparation for next weekend. A few pals and I are heading to the track at the Brian Piccolo Park Velodrome here in Broward and I'm seriously looking forward to it. Therefore, I switched the risers with the drops, added the track pedals & clips, changed up the ratio and re-torqued most bolts. Shortly after, I took it out for a spin and snapped these photos.

Archival Thursdays: Danzig - Lucifuge (1990)

Archival Thursdays is something I've been meaning to do for quite sometime now, just never got around to it. As many of you know, I used to DJ and I still collect vinyl to this day, therefore I have a decent record archive so what I'm going to do each Thursday is present you a genuine release from my collection.

The first Archival Thursday is set to go with Danzig's second full length album 'Lucifuge'. It was released on Def American in 1990 and was produced by none other than Rick Rubin (of course). It has the hits "Devils Plaything" and "Snakes of Christ" and is considered their best release. This particular promo copy was found at the now defunct music mecca on Ave. A, 'Etherea'. I've seen other copies popping up on eBay lately for a pretty penny. Most Danzig/Misfits stuff tend to keep it's value I've noticed, which is always good. Stay tuned for the next Archival Thursday.

Red Dead Redemption

Red Dead Redemption is the long awaited follow up to Read Dead Revolver both produced by Rockstar Games, creators of legendary titles such as Grand Theft Auto and Midnight Club. Production for this game took Rockstar over 6 years, and after title changes, setbacks on release dates, and just straight-up long delays, the game has finally arrived as of yesterday.

It takes place in the great western American frontier during 1911. John Marston is an ex-criminal and was part of a tightly knit crime organization during his younger outlaw days. Marston settles down and raises a family and leaves the outlaw way of life for another time. During a time when there was lawlessness all across the land, the Federal Government was trying to implement their ways and new laws. The only person they knew that could do justice for them was John Marston, since he himself was a pure outlaw and former member of one of the largest posse's in the west. John is reformed now and does not want any part in helping the fed's, until they kidnap his wife and children. Marston is sent across the plains to help bring the rule of the new law. He must kill and capture all of his former gang members and leader or his family will pay the ultimate price.

The game play is just like Grand Theft Auto, which means you can roam anywhere, interact with anything, and take on other smaller missions. You can go shopping, hunting, gambling, drinking, barter shit, etc. It's supposedly the most advanced game yet, as far as open world environment titles go.

I picked up my copy yesterday but still haven't had a chance to try it out. I was just glad to have it already after all these years. View the official game trailer below, and for screen shots, more videos and other interesting stuff, visit the official website here.

Macaframa NYC Trip

This spring the Macaframa crew headed to NYC to chill with their east coast counterparts and made this excellent video in the process. Filmed throughout their entire trip from start to finish, it features great footage of the city's riding spots, hangouts and local bars. It also depicts how much fun springtime riding in NY can be. Check it out below!

Macaframa New York Trip from MACAFRAMA on Vimeo.

For My Williamsburg Peeps

Artists On Their Bicycles Calendar

I know this is a bit dated, but I was emailed this last week from a friend. It's a calendar titled 'Artists On Their Bicycles: New York' which was produced by the Swiss Institute in NYC and was created for Art Basel in Miami last December. It features twelve of New York's most notable artists & photographers showing some bicycle love. It contains the great Ryan Mcginley, David Byrne, Amy Granat, Terry Richardson and eight other movers and shakers live & direct from the big apple. To view the rest of the calendar click here.

Rick Rubin: In The Studio

If I can comeback to this life as anyone it would probably be none other than legendary music producer extraordinaire Rick Rubin. Ok, maybe not physically, but definitely mentally! See, lately I've been reading his book 'In The Studio' and it's quite amazing to see what this man has achieved in his lifetime without even having a single idea what it is to work a studio mixing board. His only job as a producer, in his own words, is to "find out whats good about [a band] and help bring it out". His production discography is a who's who in the music industry and after being honored seven Grammy's, his talents are very much sought after to this day. This book chronicles his meteoric rise, from his early days as DJ Double R in the early 80's, founding and running Def Jam Records alongside Russell Simmons from an NYU dorm room, discovering and producing the Beastie Boys and LL Cool J, to his transition in the early 90's into a successful independent record executive, signing and producing the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Johnny Cash, System Of A Down, Tom Petty, Neil Diamond, Slayer, Weezer, Danzig, among others, to his role as the most influential producer of all time (currently as the co-head of Columbia Records), and his continued successes with rock/metal supergroups Audioslave, Linkin Park, Slipknot and most recently Metallica.

When Rick was with Def Jam, he was the only (and first) white person associated with hip-hop, which was quite unusual for that time. But after releasing rap music's first number one album "Licensed to Ill" by the Beastie Boys, his work started to gain credibility and respect from all circles and angles. Rick also started his own label Def American, later known as American Recordings, to cover other genres he was experimenting with. Most of the original, real hip-hop & rap music died back in the late 80's to early 90's and Rick wanted to work with rock & heavy metal acts but Russell did not want to release that type of sound and was striving to keep Def Jam strictly hip-hop. Rick was really interested in other forms of music and formed Def American to release artists such as Danzig, Slayer, System Of A Down, The Jesus & Mary Chain and various others, with much success. With all these accomplishments it makes you wonder how one single person can make so many moves.

Whats interesting is the way Rick goes about working with his artists. If he doesn't have a feel for potential in the music firsthand, he will look the other way. He also likes to connect with his clients on a real personal level, "I have to really like them as people first and foremost". However, once he agrees to record an album with a band or artist his accommodations are unlike any other. Rick has various recording studios throughout Los Angeles which he lets his clients take over for the duration of the recording to make it more suitable and comforting for them. And by recording studios I mean huge estates such as the famous "Mansion" which is supposedly haunted and was where classic albums such as Red Hot Chili Peppers' "Blood Sugar Sex Magik" and Linkin Park's "Minutes to Midnight" were produced. His projects are definitely unique in every aspect, from start to finish.

We should all know by now that when ever you see the seal of approval that is "Produced By: Rick Rubin" to never, ever pass it up. If your a true music fan you will definitely find this book a good read. I'm sure you can find a good copy on eBay, if not get it here. Check out some shots below, starting with the infamous Mansion.

Cinelli x Mash Prototype

I know this has been plastered on just about every bike blog known to man, but since the Cinelli x Mash has always been my favorite track bike, this post is long overdue. Apparently they will be releasing two versions of the frame. One with some serious track geometry catered specifically for the track, which will be slightly higher in price, and one with the same perfect geometry and specs as the current street model. Their goal was to offer something different for the customer, which is always a plus. They also mentioned that the color scheme will not be what is currently being used on the prototype and that those are only stickers applied to a raw frame. But who cares about that, either way it's a beautiful bike! They should be up for sale sometime in 2011, "and no sooner" according to their blog.

Check out some photos below, read more on the Cinelli x Mash prototype here.

Tangerine Dream - Poland

This weekend I went record digging at one of Miami's last used record shops, Yesterday & Today Records, which was very therapeutic since I haven't done that in a very long while. It's so wonderful flipping through records, feeling the breeze of each record you flip through carrying that unique used vinyl smell, in the zone, searching for that perfect copy. It's purely mental, but it's definitely an addiction. I know I've written a post about Tangerine Dream on here before, but I had to write this as I came across a few early discs of Tangerine Dream and one of them being the great recording that is 'Poland' which is a live set from the Warsaw Concert. Recorded against all the odds at a concert played in sub-zero temperatures and plagued by powercuts in communist Poland in December 1983, 'Poland' represents the very pinnacle of Tangerine Dream's live achievements in their 1980s' incarnation of Chris Franke, Edgar Froese and Johannes Schmoelling. It also marks the band's break from Virgin records, being the first of their releases on the Jive-Electro label, and thus the first album of their so-called "blue years". At that time, Poland recovered from the politcal turbulence it has been undergoing for the last three years, and Tangerine Dream was one of the first "western" bands to visit Poland in the 1980s. That was not a novum for them, since just three and a half years before, they had performed in East Berlin, being in fact the first western band allowed to do so.

The opening track comes in with a raw, sick electro beat and a driven melody that not even Anthony Rother can compare or step to. I still haven't been able to find another Tangerine Dream album that equals this one, truly brilliant. If you're used to newer electronica and synth music, this album may be a bit slow for you, and it's much closer to classical music than to William Orbit or Moby. Like a lot of older electronic music, this album needs to be listened to, not just played in the background. It's great music for writers, as the development of the music sets your imagination loose and makes you forget all about the world around you. Or maybe that's just me. Anyway, if you're seriously interested in eighties avant-garde, the development of electronic music, or just brilliant psychedelic synth work, 'Poland' is a fantastic album. Check out some great shots of Tangerine Dream below. Stay up on their latest here.